Now on Houzz: What to Know About Budgeting for Your Home Remodel

The budget conversation – it’s sometimes awkward, often slightly uncomfortable and usually comes with a bit of anxiety. Because of the nature of construction, things often cost more than what homeowners think. There are endless debates on why that is, but the result is that we designers often have conversations with clients that end with an awkward silence. The silence usually means that certain aspects of their project might be out of their reach. And truth be told, we really don’t like being the messenger in these conversations. We want our clients to be satisfied with the process and get what they really want.

Things to keep in mind for a smoother project:

Establish Your Budget Early: We have been in situations where clients have not told us their budget until we have completed some of the initial phases of work. This, no surprise, can slow down the process….

Ensure Your Budget Is Realistic: It’s easy to look at TV shows and get the wrong idea about what things cost. In most cases those budgets are not realistic for a bunch of reasons, most of which revolve around how suppliers and trades price their services to be included on the show. There is an old project management saying that goes, “Price, speed, quality- pick any two.”

Understand What You’re Paying For: Hard costs, fees, furniture what is in the contract? Your design team will also help you understand what is in those budget numbers. Hard costs include the costs of the construction materials and fixtures required to actually build the structure. Soft costs generally include fees for permits, consultants and designers.

 

Click here to see the article on Houzz.

 

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