Any home improvement endeavor requires big commitment on the part of the homeowners. Be it a kitchen remodeling or bathroom remodeling, we invest huge amounts of time, money, and effort for these home improvement projects. As such, we must guarantee that the final output – the new cabinets, the rearranged kitchen cabinets, and the change of flooring from ceramic tile to wood floors – will make us happy. Here are five tips to ensure the success of our remodeling ventures.
Set your budget.
Any home improvement project starts with a budget. Know how much you want and how much you CAN spend on your kitchen remodeling and bathroom remodeling. You can not do anything until you have decided on how much you are able or willing to spend. To have an idea of how much an average remodeling costs, you can ask friends and neighbors who recently did some remodeling. You can also read magazines and visit showrooms.
Working on a fixed budget is very important. While we all want to have a nicely remodeled kitchen and bath, we certainly do not want to be in debt after. Also, be ready to add 20% more to your planned budget for home improvement and remodeling projects cost more once started.
Plan what you want.
Kitchen and bathroom are two of the most well visited parts of the house. The kitchen is where people gather to store foods, cook, and eat. The bathroom, on the other hand, is where people go to at the start of the day to prepare for work, and at the end of the day to clean up before going to bed. Thus, it is important that kitchen remodeling and bathroom remodeling be done in such a way that ease of movement and comfortability are the top priorities, aside from the aesthetics of course.
It is a must that you think hard on whether you would want kitchen cabinets or drawers, island or breakfast bar, if you need more storage, and if it is tile flooring or wood flooring that will work best for you. Be extra mindful of the triangle too; that is the three basic kitchen functions namely storage, food preparation, and cleaning.
When it comes to bathroom remodeling projects, there are a lot of other amenities to choose from. From a deep tub, to a whirlpool bath or a steam shower, to various lighting options, faucets, sinks, ceramic tile flooring and more, you will be busy making decisions for your bathroom remodeling venture.
Have a back-up plan.
Kitchen remodeling, bathroom remodeling, and other home improvement project may last longer than you expected. So it will not hurt if you device a back up plan on where you plan to transfer your cooking and bathing needs temporarily.
Seek professional help.
Never attempt to do remodeling unless you are professionally trained. Also, it will be better if you choose a company with an all around staff rather than hiring a dozen of individual professionals.
When choosing for a contractor, check if they offer high quality products, if they are available for an in home consultation with a designer, if they offer 3D digital designs and layouts, if they have good BBB reliability reports, and if they are well recommended by people within your area.