Taking a Bite Out of Home Remodeling Cost Estimates

Remodeling costs have the potential of nixing any return on investment you were hoping to achieve. At the heart of the problem is the home remodeling cost estimate. Invite five contractors to bid on the addition of a sunroom, and you will be amazed at the array of quotes. How is it possible to have one remodel estimate of the modest seven by nine space come in at $15,000 while another goes as high as $55,000? Common sense tells you to keep remodeling costs low by picking the mid-level bid, but this could actually become just as expensive as the high-level contractor bid. What is a homeowner to do? Easy!

Understand Home Remodeling Cost Estimate Disparities

As a conscientious consumer, you already know to pick contractors with care, research their reputations with the Better Business Bureau, verify licenses, and check on insurance policies with the local building department. You may even solicit consumer references. Unfortunately, you do not spend any time inquiring about the contractor's vision for the project. Lost in the shuffle of a home remodeling cost estimate is an honest evaluation of workmanship and a compatibility check of vision. Where you may see a basic countertop, your remodeling contractor may envision a work of art in marble. As a result, costs tend to run over budget.

Factor in Your Building's Condition

Another reason why remodeling costs may suddenly increase can be traced back directly to the condition of your home. If wiring, plumbing and other items need to be brought up to code, you will not know until demolition and construction begin in earnest. Opened walls tend to reveal wiring problems, leaking pipes, termite infestations and structural problems that need to be addressed. They add to the overall cost of the home remodel.

Set a Realistic Budget

Familiarize yourself with cost estimation worksheets for home remodel projects. Even if your contractors offer detailed bids -- and not very many do -- run your own numbers and look for oversights. Avoiding the sticker shock begins by defining the scope of possible expenditures. For example, a bathroom remodel may include fees for permits; if it takes the form of a home addition that is close to the property line, it may also require the services of a surveyor, which drives up costs even further. Then consider the costs of:

• Excavation
• Foundation preparation or repair
• Framing lumber and labor (factor in material replacement, if wet weather threatens)
• Windows and doors
• Roofing additions
• Concrete work

Before long, the disparity in home addition- or bathroom remodel costs makes sense. Other costs that drive up the overall expenditure of the project are the:

• Need for insulation
• Routing of heating or cooling duct systems
• Plumbing (including mandatory code updates)
• Electrical wiring (more mandatory code upgrades are possible)
• Water and also sewer hookups

Going further, there are now the finishing costs of:

• Painting
• Trim work
• Appliances
• Light fixtures
• Floor coverings

Turn a Home Remodeling Cost Estimate into an Exercise in Teamwork

The cost-conscious homeowner is wise to download a free construction cost estimation spreadsheet, such as the BYOH version, and put in budget amounts for the various line items. Share this sheet with your chosen contractor. Be sure to specify ceiling amounts to protect against running out of money in the midst -- or toward the end -- of the project.

Sources

Build Your Own House; "Construction Estimating Software/Spreadsheets"

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