4 Ways to Avoid Costly Home Remodeling Mistakes
Today, we’re talking about how you can avoid costly mistakes during a home remodeling project. That way we don’t get what we call scope creep, where the job creeps along, getting bigger and bigger and bigger, and along with it, the cost of the project following and getting bigger and bigger.
Plan, Organize & Design Your Renovation Project in Herriman, Utah
The first and biggest mistake that we see homeowners making when they’re looking to do a remodeling project is not putting in the time, effort and money to actually get a project planned, organized and designed. That’s really crucial for having a successful project and avoiding costly mistakes during the remodeling job.
Quality & Price for Remodel Materials
There is a trade off between quality and price. Diving into that, when the quality is high, the price is also high. When the quality is low, the price is generally lower. You get what you pay for. If you want to save money, it’s understandable to go for cheaper materials and products, and save money that way. However, in the long run that generally leads to things wearing out prematurely and requiring replacement costs, more time, more labor, and more materials to actually change something out that’s worn out quickly. We recommend that you go for higher quality materials that are going to last you a lot longer, that will save money in the long run.
1. Scope of Work for Your Remodel
Diving into our plan to have a good, successful project and avoid those costly mistakes, there are four things that we need to make sure we plan. The first one is the scope of work. What is the scope of work? A scope of work is actually writing down a list of things that are going to be done and a list of things that are not going to be done in the project. That really clarifies what is happening in the whole entire project. That way, we don’t get what we call scope creep, where the job creeps along, getting bigger and bigger and bigger, and along with it, the cost of the project following and getting bigger and bigger.
2. Home Renovation Specifications Book
The next thing, number two, that we need to plan on, is having a specifications book. Now, writing a book specifying what you want, it may not seem like you need to do that. Maybe if you’re doing a smaller project, like a bathroom, maybe you don’t want to write down the nitty gritty details of what you want. However, getting granular and really deciding things even so simple as paint colors, sheens and brands, types of tile, colors of tile, the type of toilet that you want, really getting detailed with those things allows the builder or the design builder to plan on exactly those materials and items. Then that way, when it comes time to purchase those, the price has already been established from the beginning. It really helps save frustration and confusion later on and avoid those cost overruns.
3. Home Project Schedule
Number three, the project schedule. When we’re getting ready to do a project, it’s important to actually put together the schedule so that we know how long each thing’s going to take and forecast the time that we’re going to be there, who’s going to be there, and what those costs are going to be to actually complete each portion of a large project. That helps the costs stay in check from the beginning. If we start to get off schedule, we recognize that and can make changes to get back on schedule and keep the costs where they need to be.
4. Establish a Budget for Your Remodel Project
The final and fourth thing that we’re talking about in today’s video on how to avoid costly mistakes is to establish a budget for the project. It may seem simple, but it’s really important to establish a budget with the contractor or designer or design build company that you’re working with so that they can work towards meeting that budget from the very beginning. That way we are going to be talking about ideas that meet your budget, we’re going to be talking about materials that also meet the budget. Then when we do the bidding and we come up with the project cost, that cost is in the budget so that when we actually get to the construction, we build something that’s also in that budget.
How to Avoid Costly Mistakes in Home Remodeling in Herriman, Utah
If you want to cut it down and make it really simple, the number one thing that I would recommend is make as many decisions as you can, as early as you can in the process. That’s going to help everybody know the expectations on quality, price, & schedule, and then be able to stay in those expectations for the duration of the project, making sure that by the time we’re done with the project, you have avoided as many expensive mistakes as possible. Thanks, and have a great day.
