Remodel and Live To Tell About It! (Part 3 of 3)

"There is light at the end of the tunnel...!" ( Last post of the Remodeling Series)

PLANNING, PLANNING, PLANNING!! I can't stress it enough!! You and your contractor should touch base on a daily basis. You should also schedule weekly meetings between your designer, your contractor and yourself to make sure everyone is on the same page and work is progressing in a timely manner.

You not only have to plan out your remodel, you have to plan out how you are going to LIVE THROUGH your remodel!

Kitchens - Will you have access to a stove, refrigerator, microwave? If not, have those take-out phone numbers ready!!

Baths - Will you have access to a toilet and shower in another part of the house?  If the answer is no, refer to the next paragraph!

Whole House Rehab - Will you and/or your furnishings have to move out for all or part of the remodel? The cost has to be figured into your budget.

Remember, even when you plan everything down to the smallest detail, there will still be surprises. Expect them and build a 10-20% cushion into your budget. I didn't expect that my town would ask for a septic inspection on my four year old septic tank. Five hundred dollars later, I realized that these little "extras" were going to pop up - and we hadn't even started the construction yet!

Expect that the job will take longer than estimated. Weather, inspections, busy subs and back ordered stock are all out of your control. If you have a deadline for finishing a project, add on at least 20% to the time frame. Make sure your contractor is doing everything he can to avoid delays.

Expect your life to be chaotic and inconvenienced. No one said this was going to be easy!! Keep the lines of communication open with everyone involved....contractor, designer, and especially family members. Sometimes you may have to compromise and sometimes you need to find a solution that makes everyone happy. There were times my husband and I disagreed, but instead of fighting about it, we talked about the pros and cons and gave ourselves time to come up with a different solution. Usually, the new solution gave us both what we wanted!

Remodels don't last forever. When I got to serve Thanksgiving dinner to my family in our new dining room, the chaos of the last few months became a distant memory and worth everything we had to go through to get there!                                                           
                                                                      BEFORE

                                                                          AFTER

"Its not about the destination. It's about the journey. Enjoy the ride!"