How to prevent ballooning project costs by planning ahead.
How to prevent ballooning project costs by planning ahead.
One of the most common things that homeowners ask when looking at remodel projects is, “How much does it cost to do x.” Our answer: it depends. This answer likely makes your hackles rise just a little. The reality is it depends on a large number of factors but the two major ones are what and how much. For instance in a bathroom, are we tiling the floor and the entire shower or just the floor? And then what are we using to tile it? Are we doing subway tile? Medium format porcelain? Natural stone? Each of these products varies wildly in cost per sq ft. Subway tile runs about $4/sqft whereas natural stone tiles can run as much as $25+/sqft.
So if the factors that go into cost can be so variable how can we control the budget from going off the rails? We have found there are two key factors: scope and selections. Scope refers to the type or quantity of the work being performed. Quantity seems fairly intuitive; it takes more time to lay 2000 square feet of flooring than it does to lay 200 sqft.
Let’s take a look at the type of work. Some materials have different labor requirements or some ways of building take more labor than others (to say nothing about some quality differences). For instance when you look at building sheathing. The most common way of sheathing a building was with OSB or plywood. Now there are several types of new systems that are on the market that have specific guidelines for installation such as Huber’s Zip System. These take more time and care to install but boast extreme weather resistance and no need for building paper.
So, on the materials side this too is fairly straightforward. Some countertops cost $40 a square foot and some cost $400 per square foot. This is where the clients preferences and truly the needs, wants and would be nices of the project really come into play.
At The Building Company we have developed
a process to help facilitate the maximization of the budget. The first factor is knowing: what is the budget? Then we need to define the highest priority items. Is flooring a key element? Do you want custom cabinets or are out of the box cabinets acceptable? Do you care what type of paint gets used? These help us to allocate the budget accordingly. Then we can get into selections and setting thresholds based upon the space. This means that we are there as a guide and guardian of the budget. We know that it can be enticing to pick all the things that you want and that’s fine but that money has to come from somewhere else. We are here to help you stay within that budget. But the best part is that at the end of all this we know the exact amount that it will cost to do the project.
In summary, “How much will I spend on remodeling my bathroom/kitchen/main floor?” The reality is it depends on several factors but the two most important will be scope aka how much of what kind are we doing and the choice you make on materials. We are here as a guide and ally in the process to try and get you as much as we can at your desired price point. If you feel this process is something that would work well for you and your project let’s talk, reach us at
509-890-0222,
inquiry or by
email.
