House remodels can sometimes be truly a nightmare, especially if you don’t prepare well for it in advance. The fact of the matter is that simply hiring a contractor and picking a date is just not enough for a proper remodel.
But what is? Here, we will do our best to encompass all the aspects of a remodel done right which should minimise or completely eliminate the stress that’s bound to follow.
Decide what needs to be done
Before you move with planning your remodelling project any further, you first need to determine exactly what you want to do in your home. But we don’t mean like “Remodel my kitchen.” But more like “Repaint my kitchen walls, replace kitchen cabinet doors, set up a new backsplash, rearrange the appliances…” Simply put, you need to be extremely precise and know exactly what you want to do – and even preferably how you want to do it – so that you can plan the entire thing out down to the very last detail. If you manage to do so properly, the rest of the steps should be a breeze.
Create a budget
Once you know exactly what you want to remodel and how big the project is going to be you should create a budget. Now, this budget should include the estimated price of the work that needs to be done plus 20% of that sum for unforeseen hiccups along the way, as well as the expenses of a hotel, motel, Airbnb or any other solution in case you and your family need to relocate during the remodel. Therefore, make sure you take all of these things into account and don’t plan a remodel until you’re 100% sure you have enough money to cover all of these expenses.
Hire all the necessary professionals
Now that you know what you want to do and are sure you can see it through financially, it’s time to contact all the necessary professionals and contractors. Depending on the part of the home you are remodelling, you should contact a painter, a plumber, a general contractor, and someone to take care of all the rubbish you’ll be left with. Many people tend to forget about this part of the remodel and start panicking once they realize that they don’t know how to handle the situation. Therefore, do as Aussies are doing – they hire professionals for rubbish removal from Sydney ahead of time so that they know every aspect of the remodel will be taken care of in a timely manner.
Ask for references
Finding the experts for a particular task is not that difficult, however, finding the right experts is a completely different story. So, when looking to hire professionals to help you out with your remodel, make sure you ask them for references and ask to see their portfolios and recommendations as well. Ideally, if possible, ask your friends and family members to recommend someone they’ve hired in the past and were happy with their services. This way, you can rest assured that everything will be done as agreed which will significantly reduce stress and tension.
Be present
It simply can’t be emphasized enough just how important it is to be present during the remodel. Many people feel like they’ll just be bothering the contractors, so they prefer not to position themselves in the middle of the remodel which is not the best decision to make. First, if you’re present, you can keep an eye on everything that’s being done which enables you to react on time in case something’s just not going right. Second, if you’re present the contractors can simply ask you for further instructions in case they need to do something differently than it was agreed upon for whatever reason. Finally, you’ll be able to see the transformation of your space first hand which is always super fun.
So, when planning a remodel, make sure you consider every aspect of it down to the very last detail. This will allow you to create a fool proof plan of action that shouldn’t flop in any moment, but it will also enable you to prepare a plan b in case it does.
