Top Tips We Love For Remodeling Your Home
As anyone who has had experience in home remodeling knows, it can definitely be a journey. Not only are there a lot of variables and unknowns while embarking on this type of project, but trends, materials, labor and costs can be all over the place. What your neighbor decides to do, and who your friends and family decide to use for their build will not be the same as what you decide. And neither are the materials that you both decide on. This is as it should be because everyone’s project is different. No two remodels are the same. Not even if you take two of the same rooms in two similar houses that are right next to each other and have the exact same floorplan, layout and dimensions. That’s because the scope of your project, the materials you decide to use, and the vendors and trades you decide to hire are all different resulting in different costs for everyone.
Taking into consideration the elements of the home (such as the age of your home, and the existing interior systems of your home) can all make a difference as well. Things like the condition of your house when starting out, as well as the materials, your budget, and who you decide to hire for the design and build out all go towards the overall costs of your project.
While everyone’s experience with a home remodel is different, getting ahead of these things can really make for a smooth sailing or a difficult project filled with headaches. Things like hiring your interior design team early on, researching your materials that you’d like to use, sticking to your budget, etc can all help minimize headaches. See below, for some of the tips and tricks we tell our own clients when they come to us with the decision to take on a home remodeling project.
Do Your Research and Talk To The Experts Early On
You’ll want to start by talking to the experts that will be involved in your project. Will you need an architect to help draw up the plans? Do you want a designer to help you design a new layout and select materials for your project so that you can have a home that you are proud of and would love to come home to? Asking the experts the right questions early on and before you’ve even knocked down a wall, will help prepare you for what to expect for your remodeling project. Discussing everything like timelines, budgets, material costs, labor costs, what trades you will need to bring in for your project will help inform you on the process and what is involved. The more experts you talk to early on, the better outcome you’ll have during your project and at the final completion. And when the time is right and you are ready, you’ll know which experts you’ll be bringing in to help your vision come to life, because you’ve already done the research.
Figure Out Your Budget
Next, you’ll want to figure out what you are willing to spend. This is very important because it could mean the difference between that custom range you’ve been eyeing versus the one from the local super center. It could also mean the difference between being able to do a kitchen AND a bath remodel both, or having to put on hold one of your projects you’d been hoping to tackle, for another time. You’ll want to start figuring out potential costs by researching the averages of different types of remodeling projects within your area to give you a grand total. I also tell my clients to factor in an additional 20% for anything unknown that could pop up during the course of construction (higher labor and material costs, delayed materials, additional permits or plans to be drawn, a change in design scope or even materials, etc).
Research Material and Product Costs
Start looking at the materials you think you’d want to have in your space. Go walk into your local tile and flooring store and look at some materials you think you’d like to have in your home. Find out what they would cost per square foot, then multiply that number by the square foot of your project and you’ll get an idea of the costs for that material. Do the same thing for each of the materials that you want to install and you’ll have a good material and product budget to work with. Start looking at appliances, lighting fixtures, countertops, and anything else that you’ll be purchasing for the project so you can get an idea of what things cost.
Financing Your Project
Another thing you’ll want to look at is how you’re going to be financing your project. Will you self-finance or look at bank financing or a combination of both? Both have their ups and downs and it all depends on what you have planned for ahead of time, and what you are willing to do in terms of financing. Talk to your bank and look at your financials. This is the most important factor when determining what kind of project you are going to take on.
Assembling Your Design Team
After you’ve talked to your friends and family, you’ve considered the costs of your project, and how you’re going to finance your project, it is time to assemble your design team. You’ll first want to find a good interior designer and architect to help you with the design and the plans. Since the design plans tell the contractor what and how to build the project, the design team needs to be your first go-to. Without the design plans and materials selected, many builders won’t even bid on the job. These plans are your roadmap to the completion of your project, and they tell everyone on the jobsite what is happening. With a great interior designer in your corner, they will also advocate for you with the builder, your trades, vendors and the architect and engineer, and they will help you come up with a beautiful design for your project.
Finally, Just Breathe
When starting on your remodel, and your builder approaches you with a potential hiccup or problem, you want to make sure that your design team and contractor are on top of it and have communicated with you upfront what the problem is and how it can be fixed. As with anything, sometimes you’ve just got to go with the flow and breathe. Knowing you’re in great hands with your design team and having trust in them will make all the difference.
These are all great tips to help you begin to navigate the remodeling process. As you can see, the planning phase can really help to ward off a lot of those unexpected unknowns. The more you plan ahead, the better outcome you’ll have and the happier you will be with the final product.
If you or someone you know has any questions about the remodeling process, we are here to answer your questions. Send us an email or contact us directly. You can also download our home remodeling guide here which is also on our website Remodeling Guide
XOXO,
Gina and The Design Team