A house remodel consists of an organized series of home remodeling services that are focused around a defined scope of work for an owner’s needs.
These home remodeling services may be anything from construction documents to the common home improvement product replacement and everything in between.
Due to this sheer number of different types of home remodeling services, discussing all home remodeling services would not be attainable in one article, but rather we will discuss house remodels that require the services full-service remodelers.
The home remodeling process can be stressful and frustrating for many homeowners just wanting their home to have a new look.
This is principally due to even homeowners with remodeling experience not understanding how to effectively approach a major remodel project.
Even simple DIY home improvement projects can cause more problems than they solve if not planned properly.
The devil is in the details when it comes to planning and executing any size home remodeling project.
We exist in a period of living virtually through televised home improvement programs that demonstrate the house renovation process as a 60 minute television program.
These programs are developed for entertainment not educational support. As a result, most homeowners do not understand how much work planning and preparing for a house remodel is on the owner.
It takes far more than a contractor showing the owner a revised floor plan at a price they are willing to pay to develop a rewarding house remodel services package.
Learn about the home remodeling services that you need for the best Houston house remodel
In a day with increasing home values, rising material and labor shortages house remodel becomes an attractive alternative to moving or buying a new home.
This assessment can be quantified by developing a financial feasibility to determine what is the best alternative in the buy / build / renovate scenario.
The anxiety caused by a house remodel does not have to result in a self-fulfilling prophecy of a miserable experience.
The keys to a very rewarding house remodel project are surrounding yourself with trustworthy and experienced professionals and do the preparation up front.
Home Remodeling Services Preparation
The remodel preparation starts much before the actual design process begins. It begins with the owners imagining how a space might look like if they made some proposed changes.
Identifying the products, they want to replace, the space they want to create and the features they want to include is an essential step in discovering what they want.
There are three primary goals an owner should achieve in preparing for design. They are collecting images and remodeling ideas, developing a want and needs list and developing an investment range for the remodel.
- Collecting Images & Ideas– Communicating design details can be a challenge for professionals let alone owners attempting to explain an idea.
The best method for the owner to assist themselves in this process is through the collection of photo images of products, features and spaces.
These home remodeling ideas can be captured from sources such as Pinterest.com and Houzz.com.
There are other sources such as magazines that ideas can also be captured from. These images and ideas can be used to tell a story by pieces for your project.
- Develop Want & Need List– With the assistance of your idea & image collection the owners can develop a want & needs list for their remodel.
This list identifies products, materials and architectural features that are important to the owners.
Once the list is assembled, the owner can place a priority to the items with the relative importance each item has to the project’s viability.
The priorities will assist the owners if sacrifices need to be made for the sake of the investment budget later.
- Develop Investment Range– Unless you are one of the fortunate ones and have an endless supply of money, a project investment range should be developed to guide your design and construction team during the developmental stage.
The investment should not be used as the construction budget, but rather as a method to guide the owner to set realistic expectations during design phase.
Home Remodeling Preconstruction Planning
The preconstruction planning stage of a house remodel requires aligning the owner with advisers and selecting a construction delivery method.
Armed with the owner’s preparation research the actual remodel planning stage can begin. This step starts with the hiring of trusted professional advisors for the design team.
These professionals include a remodeling contractor, an architect or house designer and maybe a structural engineer.
Depending upon the project, some owners will use an interior designer to drive the remodel design.
- Select a Design Team– As mentioned the remodeling design team consist of trusted professionals that guide the owner through the remodeling process.
While the architectural designer develops the CAD house plans, the remodeling contractor facilitates constructability and construction cost guidance.
How this collaborating effort works between the professionals depends on what design process the owners select.
There are two design approaches that owners can select in creating their house plans. The traditional approach is the design to bid method. The second approach is the design to build approach.
- Design to Bid– This approach is when the owner hires an architectural designer to prepare drawings.
These drawings are normally created to completion and then submitted to three remodeling contractors soliciting formal proposals. The owner then would interview and hire the best contractor for their needs.
- Design to Build– The design build approach is a collaborative approach between remodeling contractor and designer.
In most cases the owner will hire the design build contractor to be fully responsible for both the design and construction of the project.
The benefit for the owner is that if there are any design errors or omissions the design build contractor is responsible, not the owner.
Development of House Plans
Creating house plans typically is a 3 step process for a major home remodeling project. For smaller project that require plans like a bathroom or kitchen remodel, the design process may only need 2 steps instead of 3.
We will discuss the building design process that includes a concept stage, drawing development stage and the final construction document stage.
- Concept Drawing– This is the design stage that formulates the images & ideas the owner has brought to the team.
The drawings typically are block like spaces capturing critical architectural features and high priority design elements.
Once the rough shapes have been defined and accepted the plan can move to the next stage for development.
- Development Drawing– The development drawing stage is where the plan designer scales and places dimensions on the drawings.
Door, window and room dimensions are detailed as well as wall profiles and cabinetry.
This stage is also when the drawing documents are engineered by the appropriate Texas licensed engineer.
- Construction Documents– Constructions drawings are ready to develop construction cost.
With a completed set of construction plans and specifications, the remodeling contractor can create a defined detailed proposal.
In addition, these documents are required for building permits.
Home Remodeling Services Execution
The actual home remodeling begins with developing a schedule & action plan to discuss with the owner.
These discussions are centered around accessing the project, the families living arrangements during construction and finalizing critical material orders. These factors have a decisive influence and impact on the projects progress.
Creating an action plan for items like dust control, working hours, dedicated construction parking & home entryways goes a long way in avoiding conflict during the project.
Regular communication is also an important factor in reducing the stress and inconveniences associated with longer projects.
Open discussions about scheduled power outages and interrupted water service can help keep everyone composure.
Remodeling and renovations of a house that owners are currently living in is far more emotional than a ground up construction project.
The remodeling process requires greater care for house hold members interacting with a construction environment.
A case can be made that home remodeling and renovation is more challenging the new construction due not only the higher emotional level of the clients but the craft requires the remodeler to go backwards before they can progress with moving forward with a project.
Conclusion
The need for home remodeling services is an essential aspect of any major house remodel project.
Your exact service needs may vary, but there is little dispute of the necessary entirety of the process that is required to avoid significant delays and costly mistakes.
Owners should be mindful of evaluating the significance of the impact of a house remodel on both their houses future value as well as their immediate financial situation.
Not being prepared for the financial impact of the house remodel can cause interruptions or worse the cutting corners in finishes to complete the project.
Following the outline provided will yield the best overall results and experience for your house remodel.
