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This is going to be mostly negative, unfortunately...
What kind of renovation did you do? kitchen + new floors, so relatively small
How did you find your designer/contractor/architect? Yelp. We got 3 bids, and went with the bid in the middle.
How long did it take vs the estimate? We started in early December and we were supposed to be done yesterday... we're not done. It's probably going to be another month. I'm due March 1!
How was the cost vs. the estimate? About 15% higher than estimated... some due to us choosing more expensive materials, some due to hidden problems being discovered in the midst of the reno (mold in our bedroom due to moisture leakage from outside, we discovered that on Tuesday...)
How did you finance it? Mostly cash, some credit (so far I've paid off the balance but we might leave a little on towards the end), and an emergency gift from my mom.
Any regrets? Um YES, buying this house! I regret a lot but it's hard to put into words. Right now, after over a month with out a kitchen and two months without a floor, and 8 months pregnant, I'm really regretting starting this project. Hopefully when this is all done I won't be so regretful but right now... UGH.
With any renovation, expect it to take twice as long than estimated and cost 10-15% more.
Side note, has anyone see those credit card commercials with the couple talking honestly to a contractor about their renovation? "I'm going to leave your house a mess for months..." "I'm going to nod my head and pretend I understand you..." They are so true!
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What kind of renovation did you do?
reconfigured doorways and created a hallway from two bedrooms to get to an add on which only had through access from one of the other bedrooms. took down a wall to make that add on a master with a closet to add a bedroom officially to our home's record (bought as 2 bed/1 bath, now a 3 bed/1 bath even though we added no square footage). also ripped out all knob and tube in bedrooms (1929 home) and updated electrical panel
How did you find your designer/contractor/architect? figured out what we wanted to do and went to city hall to make sure we had the right idea about permits. we definitely wanted to have the permits on record as we were changing the number of bedrooms, so we wanted to increase property value. brought our baby and asked on the DL for some recommendations for architects. found one that could take on the small job from that list and he was integral to making our plans happen by pushing it through city hall and changing some ideas we had so we didn't have to have a structural engineer to save time and $$. he was the BEST!
How long did it take vs the estimate? we had about 6 weeks before we had to get out of our rental. took about 5 days longer than that, so we were able to keep our moving truck in storage and stay at my mom and dad's while we finished painting.
How was the cost vs. the estimate? sounds bad, but we didn't have an estimate because we had to do what we had to do. DH and FIL did probably 80% of the work themselves. we farmed out the drywall/plaster because of time and expertise as well as the baseboards and 3 bedroom door installation. we would have run out of $$ if we had to pay any more people to do work!
How did you finance it? cash, combo of our savings and gifts from parents when we purchased the home (they gave us $$ for downpayment and this was leftovers)
Any regrets? i regret not thinking about how many decisions we would have to make: baseboards, flooring, light fixtures, etc before we could finish. since it was our first time buying a house, we were very fixed on that instead of prepping for the reno by picking these items out (not necessarily buying them in case something didn't go through!). but since we literally had the architect over a day after we bought the place and started gutting the bedrooms and working on the house 3 days after we bought it, we got the ish done!the other thing i wish we would have done is finished the projects we had before we started others. we got it livable, but then we started a front yard project that has dragged on for months because yard work takes forever! and our new interior doors still haven't been painted. oh well! we'll get there some day.
but no regrets doing the work as we probably spent $15K and got $50K in equity based on comps.
What was the overall process like? a LOT of work, but we're so proud of it and it is so much more fun to put your own stamp on your house! and we really enjoy our house too.
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What kind of renovation did you do?
Master Bath, and then kitchen a few years later.How did you find your designer/contractor/architect?
Internet search and referral. We got 3 bids and picked the one we liked best. And we picked the one we got from the internet. We used the same designer for kitchen afterwards.How long did it take vs the estimate?
Master bath was over by a few weeks (or a month); Kitchen was over by 1-2 weeks.How was the cost vs. the estimate?
Sigh. lol
Master bath we wanted to do it within 30k? Estimate was 35-40k by designer, and it came out to be 50k or more. Kitchen. Sigh. Originally we just wanted to get the kitchen done, we were wishful thinking to have it done around 80k. We got talked into really remodeling the entire first floor, opening the walls, changing the floors and color of floors...etc. The estimate was under 6 figures (I think?). The end result was of course, over. Of course there were a few surprises, such as the water and gas line is not where they thought it should be, or they need to get a chase (?) constructed in order to fit the air conditioning vent (we opened walls and moved things around). I was/am in denial about it and I still don't know exactly how much did we spend over. DH did, and we don't talk about it lol.How did you finance it?
Savings.Any regrets?
I thought I would, but really no. When I was paying the bills like pouring water out I had a lot of "I wish we didn't". But now all is said and done and we are living in the beautifully renovated home, I am OK. I am glad we did what we did.Final thoughts: Always assume it will be 1 month over, and you make sure you stress that you need this done on time, and maybe they will take you seriously and delay by 2 weeks. If you are remodeling the kitchen, get ready for some sort of dieting / weight loss program afterwards because the constantly eating out/take out EVERY MEAL is going to cost ya.
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Have you ever done a major renovation or remodel? My parents have.
What kind of renovation did you do? They replaced carpet with laminate flooring in the entire house, and gutted and re-did the kitchen.
How did you find your designer/contractor/architect? Word of mouth.
How long did it take vs the estimate? It was pretty much on time, surprisingly. I've heard too many horror stories about contractors tearing up a place and disappearing for weeks.
How was the cost vs. the estimate? The flooring was right on. There were some additional costs with the kitchen, I think there was more structural work than expected, but it wasn't a big cost overrun.
How did you finance it? Savings.
Any regrets? The timing wasn't great (some health issues going on at the same time) but no regrets about the renovation itself. I loved picking out all the finishes, the house looks much lighter, and the kitchen is a joy to be in. It was very dark and cramped before the renovation.
What was the overall process like? Well, it's a pain to be without a kitchen for two months, but it went as well as it could... the microwave and electric teapot were working.@Anagram: If you're looking to buy and renovate, in theory you could do the work never you move in, if it makes sense financially. It's not easy, but a good renovation can really transform a space.
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@Myicitygirl: I did some research on this, and it probably varies by state, but what I found is that typically the contractors you hire will carry their own insurance if they act as a business and not an employee. For example, our plumber, tile guy, carpenter, etc all own their own businesses, so they are responsible for insurance and things like paying taxes. Some GCs will hire subcontractors who are businesses, so in that instance, they would not need to provide insurance. But if the GC hires employees who act as his team of people and they work for him and not themselves, then he has to have insurance. Also, we did not get a permit, because for us it wasn't really necessary. Technically, I believe in our state, you only need a permit if you're moving water lines or changing electrical, things like that. So for replacing cabinets, appliances, flooring, countertops, etc, none of that requires a permit.
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