How Much Does it Cost to Remodel a Bathroom?
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Bathroom remodels and renovations provide some of the highest returns as a home improvement investment. However it isn’t by any means a cheap project, and it can take a long time to complete. Therefore it is essential to gather and plan your bath ideas ahead of time for the room and then find the right contractors for the job. Asking questions, setting realistic expectations and budgeting from the start can mean the difference between finding a contractor you trust and enjoy working with versus a long and trying few weeks.
Determining your budget could be tricky when planning your renovation. The list of what’s involved in a bath remodel includes faucets and fixtures, floor plan changes, new showers or baths, new flooring, countertops, cabinets and lighting. This long list of accessories and pieces come with a lot of different prices and options to compare before choosing what to buy for your bath remodel. Here are some factors to consider before starting your bathroom remodel.
Style & Ideas
Why do you want to remodel the bathroom? Is it to modernize the functionality of your current bathroom? Or to update the style and color? Ask yourself if your style is classic or contemporary, mid-century modern or Bohemian chic? Does your bathroom fit your lifestyle? Maybe you live a fast-paced lifestyle in which you never have time for more than a quick shower in the morning. Perhaps you like a long leisurely soak in a jacuzzi tub at night. Either way, how you remodel your bathroom reflects both your aesthetic taste and your lifestyle, and all of this impacts your budget and price range.
Approach your contractor with many examples of your bath ideas, including pictures from home decor magazines, links to bathroom design ideas on the web and paint chips from the hardware store. The more information a contractor has ahead of time, the more your bath remodel will turn out exactly how you want it.
Custom-built or store-bought accessories?
Once you have ideas for your renovation planned out, the next step is to find bath remodel accessories in your price range. If your idea for the bathroom doesn’t fit exactly within a type of style like modern or contemporary, you may need to hire a professional craftsman to custom build accessories like the vanity, countertop or mirror frame. These specialized contractors will have different prices for their work depending on the material you want the accessories made from and how they calculate their prices: by the hour, job or otherwise.
However, if you want to stay close within your budget, there is the option to buy accessories like sinks, toilets, countertop materials, cabinets and different lighting options at home improvement stores. They have a variety of options when it comes to items like bath lighting, toilets, sinks, vanities and cabinetry because they come straight from different manufacturers. Of course, you might leave the selection to your general contractor if you’re uncertain about buying what fits best within your budget and design. Contractors often also have wider access to bath remodel accessories because of their personal relationships with manufacturers. This also means they could buy them for better prices than at a home improvement store.
Agree on prices and schedules before starting
An experienced contractor should be able to give you a written schedule and list of the construction tasks they are going to perform and what their deadlines are for the completion of each task. This helps prevent disagreements along the way and gives you clear expectations about how long the project should take to complete.A bathroom remodel is often a lengthy project, and thus a contractor may ask for money in advance of the work being started and after completion of specific milestones along the way. Make sure that the payment schedule and total amount is agreed upon and put in writing before the start of the project. Then at the end of the project, the contractor will be able to give you an itemized list of everything included in the remodel and how much it costs in total.
Does the remodeler stand by their work?
A bath remodel involves various areas of expertise: construction, plumbing, electrical and lighting. Talk to your contractor at the start of the project about how they deal with mistakes, damage and repairs that may arise. Make sure the work will be backed up by an expressed warranty or guarantee.
