A Checklist for Successful Home Remodeling Project

There is a drastically misleading notion that a home remodeling project does not require thorough planning, can be done eyes-closed and hands-down, and will not take more than a couple of hours. However, the truth is far off from this opinion. To have a house adequately remodeled, one should consider several essentials, which will ensure the operation’s success, will not entail severe budget leakages and leave both the contractor and the homeowners satisfied by the result. Complicated as it can be, a high-quality home remodeling project can come true once a homeowner considers a variety of important factors, from preliminary steps to the selection of the contractor, and follows the set of basic rules. As is in any business, planning is key to flawless processes. But mistakes accompany any kind of activity. All in all, it is always better to familiarize oneself with the possible future failures and ways to waive them rather than solve them on-the-go.

To support our readers embarking on the journey of home remodeling, our team has revised essential steps one should take to have a home remodeling process going evenly and as trouble-free as possible.

Renovation or Buying New?

The answer to this essential question that most homeowners need to ask themselves largely depends on the particular case. While some homeowners find it easy to organize an appropriate work on improvement, there can be underlying factors that will get in the way and, sometimes, render the entire project unbearable. Besides, it can turn out much less expensive to purchase a new living space than trying to bring back to life an old and heavily weathered one. One had better consider all pros and cons in terms of investment of money and powers in advance of work.

Among the crucial factors to consider, one should base the decision on the renovation type, prices, assess the situation in the community, compare offers on the market, and make up one’s mind on the right style and scale of the renovation one wants to have. One needs to conduct some thorough calculations to make sure that one is on the right way. The ideal investment in a home remodeling project should not exceed 25% of your home value.

10 Things to Consider Beforehand

Once the work has begun, there will be no way back, and the things one missed out at the beginning will build up and become a landslide hard to eliminate during the process. It will interfere with your normal routine and disrupt the usual course of events. To avoid dramatic shortcomings and have the work flowing without turbulent fits, one should turn to use a plan. To avoid chaotic outcomes and ensure that the project runs safely and with more convenience, there is a list of steps to take before the work starts.

1. Clear the Target Area

Before the renovation process starts, check the target spaces for items that you can keep from the process’s side effects. This will ensure their safety and convenience for both you and a team of workers. Make the items you will need during the renovation in an accessible place so that the work will go uninterrupted. You can also pack the less important stuff in cardboard or plastic boxes and replace them into a safer location. Remember that the remodeling operations will require several people who will need a lot of space to conduct the jobs and house the necessary equipment, which can be ample and can take up a lot of room.

2. Store The Things Conveniently

Once you have packed up the things, you will need during the process of home remodeling, allocate a convenient room, and store it there, breaking it down into several categories. This measure will let you reach them simply and anytime. Remember the essential items for your household’s normal functioning and for your comfortable staying there while the project goes on. One may find this step too simple, but it is better to consider before one starts looking for a spoon or a saucepan, interfering with the renovators’ team and losing precious time and nerves.

3. Never Forget about Security

Remember that a remodeling process will imply people walking around your living space, all of them being strangers. While most contractors guarantee the ultimate safety and security for their customers, it is better to prepare for negative surprises. On the other hand, your house passers can notice that the renovation is going on and pursue their curiosity further to your loss of precious belongings.

One can try using a special lock with the opportunity to grant access to the selected persons only. One should not also forget to change its settings right after the project is complete.
Precious things like items of jewelry, money, and other valuable possessions, must be safe, too. Keep them behind the safe’s door. Utilizing a security framework is one ideal option.

4. Use Zoning For Comfort

To still feel at home while the renovation project is ongoing, divide your dwelling or the room into sectors to distinguish the room for work of the masters and your comfortable life during the project. Try to foresee all your possible needs and place the required items nearby.

5. Keep the Items in One Right Place

Even in moments of routine, it can get hard to locate an important item. Such things can get twice as hard when your dwelling swarms with people and bustles with renovative works. Create a space where you will stay most of the time and surround yourself with all the important items. It will save time on the search for them and reduce the unpleasant effect of inconvenience brought about by the remodeling works.

6. No Children

Again, even in times of peace and quiet, children can cause a variety of troubles. Imagine how far it can get while your home is under renovation. Another thing is that such works may pose a danger in the form of electricity, harmful materials, and instruments that can cause injuries. To avoid hassles and keep the children safe, ban them from entering the zones under renovation. Even the utmost care and control on the part of the team of workers cannot entirely ensure your little family members’ safety. So it is your responsibility to keep tabs on them.

7. Keep The Home Protected Externally

Think of a fence or any other measures to keep the remodeling site safe from trespassing. Inconvenient as it can be, these measures will ensure the safety of your possessions and your family. Get all the needed permissions.

8. Let All Important People Know

While the project can last for a long time, it can get impossible without the involvement of the people you can rely on. The more people know about your remodeling process, the more people you will have to address your temporary issues.

9. Shelter Your Animals

The noisy renovation works will scare your little friends, which can lead to problems with their health. Some materials used can be hazardous, too. Keep them away from the site.

10. Recuperative Measures

As a perk, allocate some money to treat yourself with a restful holiday once the project is complete. You can also skip into a hotel room during the project to maintain your nerves’ healthy condition and have the opportunity to change air and scene.

Plan, Research, Go

If you want to get your remodeling project running smoothly, a carefully outlined plan is a must-have.
Make a list of your desires and the exact things you need. This simple step will save you a load of time making fast and difficult decisions during work. Prioritizing is a vital part of any undertaking.
The next step concerns the determination of your budget. While the contractor you hire will come up with great ideas you may not have considered, you should prepare a particular plan of spendings to safeguard from irresponsible splurging of substantial sums. Think of some 5%-10% you can add to your project to cover unexpected expenses.

Set the deadlines so that you could plan ahead. Discuss it with your contractor, but be ready for delays.

As to the contractor’s search, consult with the people you know who had experience with home remodeling companies. Conversely, you can go online and conduct your research with the National Association of Home Builders’ help, for instance. Draft a list of possible renovators and interview them in turn until you find the best one.

Once you are through these steps, proceed to the remodeling.

Do Something Yourself

If your skills and expertise let you perform tasks concerning home remodeling, you can exercise them by participating in your renovation project. However, do not overestimate your opportunities and your motivation. If you have no strong skills or incentive to help the working team, it is better not to become a complication because it may lead to considerable delays or substantial pauses in work. While your presence on the remodeling site can prove beneficial in terms of investment and speed up the entire process, there are times when you should keep off and let the professionals complete their work without intrusion and negative surprises. The latter is an advantage for you, too.

Apply for help to licensed specialists only if you are not sure enough to handle the task you take on. On the other hand, if you are a pro in remodeling, you can save up enormous amounts of money by taking up even simple but expensive tasks.

5 Tips For Ultimate Success

1. Always Keep The Work Controlled

Any project can have surprises on the way. Something always goes wrong, and unplanned spendings arise often. The reality is that it is merely a part of the game. But the risks of getting behind the schedule or spending fortunes can be minimized if you keep an eye on every stage of the project, communicate with the professional team, and take timely measures if anything gets in the way of success.

2. Check your contractor thoroughly

Check your contractor thoroughly, and you will avoid lots of unpleasant outcomes. Once the work starts, it can be problematic to replace the team with a new one or make adjustments on every step they take wrongly. The way out of the issue is careful research before the project begins.

3. Keep The Documents Safe

As a rule, a home remodeling process entails loads of paperwork and signing into the documentation. There is no need to remind you to check the finest details of your contract. Another suggestion is to keep all the papers accessible so that you can reach them any time a doubt or an argument arises.

4. Remember About Safety

The chaos which renovation processes bring about can provide chances for various crimes to happen. To keep your belongings and the health of your dears, take a set of protective measures.

5. Prepare For the Worst

Not literally, though. However, to waive negative surprises, turn to planning and careful monitoring of all the jobs done in your house.

10 Most Common Mistakes

1. Untimely renovation can hit your budget hard and bring no real results.
2. Full reliance on the plan is a mistake, as nothing is ideal.
3. Not meeting the general contractor can lead to chaotic decisions in the future.
4. Overlooking stress factors is dangerous because you cannot avoid them entirely.
5. Purchasing furniture that doesn’t fit will make you hasty and doubles the effort.
6. Misunderstanding the team of renovators entails negative surprises.
7. Acting without experience and knowledge can be ruinous for the project.
8. Trying to cover several areas at the same time brings about ample expenditure.
9. Careless overspending needs no explanation of the side effects.
10. Preferring saving to quality can work against you in the long run.

To considerably diminish the possibility of making these mistakes, address the guide!

A+ Construction & Remodeling Services

As applies to any serious business, the home remodeling project should follow a careful plan, thoroughly controlled, precisely evaluated, and assigned to a team of professionals. Our Sacramento home remodeling company provides a broad range of services concerning the renovation of any space in your home. Our professionals are highly-educated and have considerable experience in home remodeling to entrust them with a project of any difficulty. We provide full service, ensure the works will be complete on time, be of high quality, and not make you overpay. Contact us to get acquainted with our rates and arrange the project to start and finish with appropriate care and top-notch efficiency.