What You Need to Know About Home Remodeling

What You Need to Know About Home Remodeling

Are you considering a home remodeling project? There are several things you need to know about home remodeling before you hire a contractor and get to work. Beyond budgeting and planning, home remodeling has many caveats that need to be navigated. Here is what you need to know about home remodeling in Northern Virginia before you embark on your next project.

Have financing figured out before you start

Financing your home remodel is easy if you know where to begin. You can get a home equity loan or line of credit through your bank or another mortgage lender to fund your remodel. You can also look at low-interest loans and grants available through the state of Virginia and local counties.

The financing you can get often determines your budget for home remodeling in Washington DC or Northern Virginia. Make sure that as you budget your home remodel you leave some cushion for unexpected expenses. Cosmo Builders is very accurate in estimates, but sometimes issues can arise that require additional work not foreseen during the consultation and estimate process.

In addition, you may need additional funds for things like eating out or staying in a hotel or Air BnB while your remodel is in progress.

Be prepared for life disruptions

How much your life is disrupted by home remodels in Northern Virginia depends on what part of your home you are remodeling. If you will be without a kitchen or bathroom during the remodel, make sure that you have planned ahead for the disruptions these remodels will cause.

If you are remodeling your kitchen in Fairfax or the surrounding area, you will want to create a temporary kitchen elsewhere in the home with electric burners, a microwave, and a minifridge. These preparations will help decrease the amount you have to spend on takeout and dining out.

Consider the need for outside storage

You’ll need to remove your belongings while the home remodel in Northern Virginia is taking place. You may be able to store dishes and other items in your basement, but if you are doing a basement remodel that doesn’t work. Consider if you need to pay for outside storage before your remodel begins.

Storage units are very inexpensive. You can usually get the first month at a discounted rate, and most remodels can be completed within two or three months.

Remodel for yourself, not the next owners

While it is true that some home remodels can increase the property value of your home, this shouldn’t be your primary concern when remodeling in Northern Virginia. A home remodel should reflect your family’s needs and desires, not what you think will make the house sell in the future.

Chances are the decisions you make now will improve your property value even if you don’t go into it with that goal in mind. It is much more important to make your home work for you and your family. For example, if getting rid of the tub to install laundry facilities in one of your bathrooms is the ideal solution for your family, you shouldn’t feel pressured to keep the tub because someone with young children might want it later.

Don’t skip the contractor and permits

It can be tempting to handle a home remodel in Northern Virginia as a DIY project, but this is not recommended. First, you can’t skip the permitting process, and the permits require that the work be performed to a particular industry standard. Only an experienced contractor knows the building codes, electrical codes, plumbing codes, and HVAC codes to ensure that permits are acquired correctly and that all work is completed appropriately.

If you don’t get the appropriate permits, and the city or county finds out you remodeled your home, they could make you undo all of the work that was done and start over with a permit application and a contractor. Without an experienced contractor, you could face issues with the quality of construction down the road.

Cosmo Builders is a full-service design-build contractor in McLean serving Washington DC, Fairfax, Arlington, Sterling, and all of Northern Virginia. We handle everything from design to permits to construction to take the pressure off of homeowners and ensure that everything is completed correctly.

Contact Cosmo Builders for Your Home Remodel in Northern Virginia

Cosmo Builders can address these and any other concerns you have about your home remodel in Northern Virginia. Contact us today for a free consultation, during which we will determine your wants and needs and develop an estimate for your home remodel in Fairfax or the surrounding area. We can also address these and any other concerns you might have about home remodeling in Northern Virginia during the consultation process.