Kicking off a major home renovation is the culmination of countless hours of planning, vision boarding, and number-crunching. You’ve saved money, obtained funding, and measured so many times that you’re reciting your lumber order in your sleep. Channel that nervous energy toward ensuring you’ve accounted for everything before the sun rises on demo day.
1. Know Your Goals
The grout in front of your range is crumbling, and you’re sick of cutting your feet while flipping pancakes. Some projects elevate themselves to number one, while others are hand-selected to better suit your style. Whether your project is more form than function, it’s imperative you know your “why” for investing in your home.
Consider what the upgrade will help you achieve today and how it may impact your home’s value long-term. Kitchen and bath renovations often offer a high return on investment, especially if your current spaces shout a bygone decade. You won’t know your home’s new value until your project is complete and you get an appraisal. Report your completed upgrade to your homeowners insurance provider to ensure you have adequate coverage for your new digs. This may change your rate slightly, but it’ll encompass your higher-value replacement cost in the event of a claim.
2. Set a Budget and Confirm Funding Sources
Average expenditures for home improvement projects quickly spill into the five-figure category, especially when you hire contractors. Even with do-it-yourself work like painting walls, switching out light fixtures, and overhauling your landscaping, budgets can bust. Review your current expenses to see if you can cash-flow improvements or add a loan repayment to the mix.
Next, compare this analysis to your savings account balances to see what may be available there. Aim to strike the balance between managing your costs and protecting your liquidity for emergencies or other opportunities. If you’ve owned your home for several years or its value has increased, look into a home equity line of credit. Here, lenders extend access to an amount of money up to a certain percentage of your home’s value.
For example, if your home is worth $300,000 and you owe $200,000, a HELOC with a 90% loan-to-value would give you $70,000. With a line, you request money from the line when you need it, which can help you reduce borrowing costs. Check with your bank or credit union for options and rates to find the right fit.
3. Get Referrals for Reputable Professionals
Ideally, you know your limits when it comes to home renovation. However, knowing you can’t install wood flooring isn’t the same as knowing who to hire to install it. Launch a grassroots research effort by asking friends, family, and your social circle for recommendations. Their first-hand experience, both good and tragic, can help guide you in the right direction, avoiding potential renovation nightmares.
Take their insight with a grain of salt, though. You respect your friends’ opinions, but make your own decision. Cross-reference referral information with Better Business Bureau reports, looking for potential red flags. Meet with your short list of contractors to review your project and discuss mutual expectations. Ask about their payment terms, communication style, and who will work on your project. Walk through each detail to ensure you hire the right professional for the job.
4. Plot Your Project Timeline
Start dates are important, but so are the myriad of deadlines in between the first and final hammer falls. Identify your scheduling constraints, including personal, work, or weather-related. If you’ve committed to host a friend’s wedding in the backyard next spring, avoid cancellation or a construction fiasco. Consider the most common schedule-killers for your project type like permitting issues, zoning variances, and subcontractor conflicts. Share your constraints with your contractor and suppliers to clarify expectations and identify risks.
Walk through your weekly project schedule and identify goals and workflows, as some jobs require significant coordination. A bathroom renovation may have plumbers, electricians, and drywall installers juggling work in tight quarters and even tighter timelines. Include completion expectations in your contracts and set terms for what happens if vendors fail to meet them.
If your neighborhood has restrictions on construction, work with your homeowners’ association to be compliant. Share your project schedule with them and direct neighbors as a courtesy, as construction noise can be disruptive. Communicate any noise restriction requests to your contractors, which can prevent neighborhood disputes that could tarnish your beautiful project.
5. Take Out the Trash
Construction is messy, and the chaos of torn-out cabinetry, shipping boxes, and pallets is an eyesore. Worse yet, is living in a construction zone, where you’ve fashioned a living space in a fraction of your home. Start by decluttering your home before the project begins, throwing out, donating, or using up long-forgotten things. When you begin your project, you’ll have fewer items to store and manage while your kitchen is out of commission.
Communicate with your vendors regarding what items you’d like to salvage for donations and arrange timely pickups. You’ll reduce project waste, promote reuse, and efficiently manage stress-inducing waste on-site. Some waste can be recycled or even sold, which can go toward your project budget.
Manage Your Renovation Project With Thorough Planning
With visions of a stunning “after” in your head, ensure your safe and sane arrival with a comprehensive plan. To get to your dream end result, you must go through the saggy, and sometimes soggy, middle. Walk through each project phase, compare it against your life’s calendar, and collaborate with contractors to get the whole picture. Keep positive momentum going by celebrating the progress made and relishing the effervescent excitement of a bright future. When it’s done, enjoy your refreshed space and celebrate your well-planned project’s successful completion.
Lily James 
Edward Robinson