There are jokes about home renovations becoming a disruption to one’s life for months or a never-ending nightmare. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be that way. Here are four tips for properly planning a renovation project.
Hire the Professionals, Not the Cheapest Contractor
Many people know to seek multiple price quotes for their home renovation project before selecting a contractor. Many horror stories start by picking the cheapest contractor instead of the somewhat more expensive professional. Don’t use the cheapest contractor. Never use a contractor who lacks insurance, doesn’t have a long term reputation through referrals or the Better Business Bureau or hasn’t really done projects like yours. You want licensed electricians and plumbers working in your home, not the people who think they know how but cannot prove they are allowed to do such specialized work.
Set Your Scope Based on Your Budget
Get price quotes for your initial project, and then select the project scope that fits your budget. If you don’t have the money, scale down the scope of your budget. You’ll like the results better than if you ask someone to cut corners to try to meet your budget. Admitting your budget constraints can also force you to be realistic. You may not be able to put a chef grade kitchen in a mid-market home, but maybe you’d be as happy replacing some of the appliances, repairing everything that needs to be repaired and upgrading the hardware.
…. And Then Stick to It
Many of the major problems that arise during home renovations are financial. Someone makes a minor design change like moving a wall or changing the selected materials. It alters the cost of the project, especially one already under way, and it delays completion. What is even worse is expanding the scope of the project. For example, if you’re already renovating the kitchen, let’s do the bathroom, too! They don’t realize the degree to which this significantly impacts cost and completion time. Set the scope of your project based on your budget. Then contain the impulse to add “just one more little thing”, because no, it isn’t really little. All these little changes add thousands to any mid-level renovation. Save yourself from the temptation and stop watching home renovation shows while your home is being worked on.
Plan for the Most Basic Needs
One of the mistakes people make with bathroom renovations is failing to consider supply and demand. For example, they don’t think about the inconvenience having the master bath being renovated and unavailable without safety risk has on the family. Now everyone in the household will be using the second bathroom. And the contractors working in your home may be trying to use it, too. You can reduce this aggravation by bringing in a portable porta potty available from OnSiteCo.com. You may simply reduce the frustration for your family by asking contractors to use the porta potty, especially since it means they’ll be tramping less mud through your home. However, if you have the water shut off to your home for several days while the kitchen and bathrooms are renovated, you may need to use it as well.
Planning a construction project is all about clear and realistic expectations and not going overboard. It’s also taking the time to consider what may eventually go wrong and having the right provisions in place.
