10 tips to make your remodel a success
Successful Remodeling: Ten Tips for Keeping Your Sanity
Copyright ABCD Publishing 2005
ORGANIZE! To make the job easier and ensure your percentage of
good ideas is as high as possible, you need a strategy to
organize your information. Use a three-ring binder or expandable
file folder. You must keep copies of all contracts, change
orders, invoices, receipts, and permits. These will be
invaluable if you have disputes with your contractors and when
tax time comes around. Other sections to consider are ideas from
magazines, quotes, contractor contact info, and so forth. You
can learn purchase an organizer at www.remodelingorganizer.com
Don't be afraid to play designer. Many "amateur" home designers
come up with great ideas, and since you are living in your home
day after day, you can have better ideas than the "pros." So get
out a pencil, make 100 copies of your current floor plan, and
sketch out all the alternatives. It doesn't matter how great or
bad they are, experiment with alternatives. At this point it's
free, so enjoy!
But don't get too wild and crazy. You are almost always better
to stick with a traditional size and shape in a home, both for
resale value and cost for your remodel. Having a kitchen on the
second floor may strike you as a clever and unique solution, but
if it means moving the gas, electrical wiring, and plumbing up
to the second floor, this change will add significantly to the
project costs. And don't install bright orange tile on all the
floors: If you have to move unexpectedly, most prospective
buyers will deduct the cost to replace it from their offer.
Figure out what you can do yourself. Have contractors itemize
their quotes to determine which phases of your project you might
be able to do yourself and which ones you want to hire someone
to do. Tasks you might consider doing include project
management, demolition, rough electrical wiring, installation of
cabinets, fixtures, and appliances, and finish work. Tasks you
should probably leave to the pros include foundation work,
framing, installing sheetrock and breaker boxes, and connecting
your home to the electrical service.
Consider "practice" remodeling. If you aren't quite ready to
commit to doing part of the work yourself, get some hands-on
experience. Find a small project around the house and tackle it
yourself, such as putting a floor in the attic or building
shelving in the garage. Or offer to help out a neighbor or
volunteer for a Habitat for Humanity project. These experiences
will give you a firsthand look at the work. Alternately, you
might take an education course at Home Depot, Lowe's, or another
building material store.
Tips for finding a contractor:
Ask for referrals from friends, neighbors, and co-workers. Ask
other people who have done work for you in the past such as your
plumber or gardener. Search your local and free newspapers for
contractors' ads. Try online referral services such as the one
offered at www.remodelormove.com/forms/contractors.cfm Ask at
lumberyards and hardware stores, especially lumberyards that
cater to contractors.
Always make sure your contractor is fully licensed with state
and local governments. Make sure the license is valid and up to
date--do not rely on the contractor's word. You should contact
your state, county, and city governments for information on the
contractor's license. The website www.contractors-license.org
lists licensing requirements for all fifty states. Also make
sure the contractor is fully insured and carries worker's
compensation, liability, and property damage insurance.
Follow this contract check list: Every contract should include:
Contractor information including name, address, telephone
numbers, license number. A list of what the contractor will and
will not do--for example, the tasks you have chosen to do, such
as painting or demolition. All materials, sizes, colors,
specifications. A dated copy of all drawings and diagrams. If
changes need to be made during the project, they should be made
to these documents and initialed and dated by both you and the
contractor. Start and finish dates. The times work will start
and finish and the days of the week that workers will be at your
home. How change orders will be handled. A warranty for one
year. A binding arbitration clause. A statement of how the
contract can be canceled. A statement that the contractor will
provide affidavits of final release, final payment, or final
lien waivers from all subcontractors and suppliers.
Use the Remodel-or-Move Calculator to estimate your costs.
Available at www.remodelormove.com, this calculator will give
you an estimate by including information about the rooms that
will be remodeled, the level of finish that you want, how you
will manage the project, and where your home is located. Because
it is fully automated, it allows you to try a number of
different combinations of materials and room changes quickly,
and it's free.