Top 5 Remodeling Headaches to Avoid
Whether you’re adding a room to accommodate an expanding family or remodeling to increase value, home renovations can be one of the best investments you make, especially in today’s economy. The key to a successful remodel, however, is knowing what mistakes to avoid.
As a member of the Top 5 in Real Estate Network®, I have advised many clients on what renovations will offer the best return on their investment and pay dividends when the time comes to sell their home.
According to a Consumer Reports poll, the most popular remodeling projects for homeowners are kitchens (19%) and bathrooms (17%). In another survey, however, Consumer Reports asked 6,000 readers to reveal what went wrong when they remodeled their kitchens and baths and how much those mistakes added to the overall cost of their projects. Here’s how to avoid their mistakes and save:
1.Don’t rush in. Changing plans is the most common, but costliest remodeling gaffe. Be sure to leave time for research and create a comprehensive plan, listing every product.
2.Prepare for the unexpected. There’s a lot going on behind the walls. Unexpected water damage was an issue with 17% of bathroom remodels, while structural problems caused headaches for 10% of kitchen projects. A good contractor will be able to anticipate such problems, allowing the homeowner to budget accordingly.
3.Don’t chase the “low ball.” Contractors are lowering their profit margins due to the tight market, but they often make up their costs in labor or other areas. Readers who went for “low-ball” pricing ended up spending a median of $1,500 extra for labor on their kitchens and $1,000 extra on their bathrooms. Don’t sign a contract with a lot of open-ended amounts for products and materials—these are called “allowances,” in contractor speak.
4.Get the paperwork in order. Have the contractor attach copies of his or her up-to-date license, insurance and workers’ compensation policies to the written contract. He or she should also get permits and provide a lien waiver when the job is done; this will keep suppliers from contacting the homeowner for unpaid bills.
5.Focus on the boring bits. Specifying lighting and placement of trash cans are not much fun, but are critical to the process. For example, the proper exhaust fan will prevent mildew in baths and vent odors in kitchens.
Following the above advice will help ensure a successful—and profitable—remodel. For more information or for contractor referrals, please e-mail me. And please forward this email on to anyone you know in the midst of remodeling—don’t let them make these same mistakes!
Sincerely,
John Bendall
RE/MAX Classic Group
Office: (908) 231-0700 650
Mobile: 908-578-1485
john@bendallgroup.com
http://www.centralnewjerseyhomes.com
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2 Comments
The housing recession is due to the following: Just read and see if you agree.
1) What is the major booster of a slowing economy? WAR. It has provided thousands if not millions of new jobs, there are the soldiers, ship building, the industrial & contracted jobs that supply materials to the government who keep extending the war effort.
2) When those many, many soldiers left to go to the war, what happened to their houses? They went onto the market. Thus flooding the market, and causing it to become a seller’s market. Since the war has extenuated, so too has the fluctuating market.
3) The Federal Reserve, mainly Greenspan had deliberately kept the interest rates to a minimum. Instead of a healthy 12%, it has been floating in the mid range of 5% to 9%. That rate is too low for the lenders to make money.
4) With the now increase in interest rate….That has been balanced out by the newly offer (within the last two years) a tax credit for new homeowners $8,000 and existing homeowners $6,500. This, done in hopes to encourage house buying. This combined with an increasing interest rate.
5) The same person who earns a meager income…who just a few years ago could get a home and even a mortgage at a low rate….now cannot maintain that home and has been forced into foreclosure.
6) Too many foreclosures combined with the vacant homes left by our armed forces means that there has increased the vacant homes on any given block to three…instead of the one, just less than ten years ago.
7) Overall the healthy economy occurs with a very carefully perched balance in both the need for homes and the supply of homes. To balance this very lopsided problem, consider the solution provided by the United States, we need more than just these tiny bandaids. We need a blanket approach that covers the entire problem. For example the skin heals from the outside to the inside, in reverse the growth creates a KELOID. That is exactly what the government has created. That keloid will still have to be repaired, removed and fixed. And so will our poor economy.
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