Home Remodeling > Kitchen, Bath, Addition, Basement

Establishing Your
Remodeling Priorities

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For a design/build or any remodeling professional to help you the most, it is important that you and they know and understand the priority order of what is most important to you. You should also determine what your priorities are for selecting a remodeling professional.

Priorities for the Project

There are several methods of determining your priorities for a remodeling project. Here are a few:

Some people use the “bucket” method. They determine what they need, what they want, and what "would be nice to have but could live without." They use these bucket categories to help set their priorities.
Another way of looking at priorities is to use the “pain and importance” method. List and rank the things about your home that cause you the most pain. The kitchen and entertaining areas might be too small to accommodate your family on holidays; the laundry and pantry being in the basement may require you to run up and down the steps too many times a day; or perhaps you have no place do work and read in peace.

Then make a list and rank what is most important to you. You may have things on your list of things that are important but are not on your list of things that cause you pain. You may find that something that causes you pain may not be as important to you as something else you want to do.

Now compare the two lists and rank your priorities based on the combination of both pain and importance.
"Value Engineering” is of most importance when you are doing a larger project. For example you might be remodeling a kitchen, family room, dining room and powder room. A typical homeowner will place equal value on design, quality of materials, and products used. However if you are a gourmet cook, you might want to spend half your budget on the kitchen getting a high end commercial grade range, oven, freezer and refrigerator.

Priorities for Selecting a Remodeler

Before you start talking with prospective remodeling companies, you should try to determine what your priorities are for selecting the contractor. Here are some things you should consider and rank:

___ Reputation

___ Licenses, insurance

___ Adherence to code and proper permitting

___ Guarantees you will pass inspection

___ Certifications and qualifications

___ Experience and expertise

___ Portfolio of work

___ Quality of design

___ Quality of construction

___ Durability of materials used

___ Quality of products used

___ Maintenance requirements