What every remodeler should ask themselves

As I discussed in a previous blog post, I’m remodeling my bathroom. I’m fairly clueless about these types of things - home repair and interior design are two things that I’m pretty useless at. So I’ve been going through this process cautiously, just trying to avoid making any big mistakes.  Dueling Digs has helped me with ideas.

What the endeavor has enabled me to do is identify the four critical questions that any renovator asks themselves, no matter how sheepishly:

1. What will it look like?
This is really hard -  harder than I expected. Even if you’re working with a designer, it’s almost impossible to get a complete picture of all the moving pieces: the floor tile, the bath tile, the wall paint color, the countertops (or “vanities”, as they’re apparently called), and the faucets. The remodeling industry should do themselves a favor and find a way to show “pro forma” rooms. We’d spend more money if they did.

2. Will I love it?
This question is irrevocably tied to #1, but it too is hard to answer. Even while staring at a piece of sample tile, I really have no idea how I’m going to feel looking groggily at a whole floor of it at 5am while holding a crying baby.

3. Am I being ripped off?
This is my biggest fear with every big purchase, though I’ve become more at peace with it as I’ve gotten older. I’ve pretty much concluded that the answer for all major purchases is yes, I am being ripped off. The reason is simple - you learn about it in any economics class: I have inferior information relative to the other party. Imperfect information causes bad decisions. When my contractor tells me that the carpet will be $10 per square foot, or the tile is $5 per whatchamacallit, how am I supposed to know if that’s reasonable? It’s information asymmetry 101. I can call “bull” now and then, and do research to become smarter, but at the end of the day I’m a rookie and my negotiation adversary is an expert. 

4. Will it “pay for itself”?
Ah, the age-old misnomer that has rationalized a thousand remodels… Let me save us all some time: the answer to this question is almost always “NO”. On a rare occasion, you may be pleasantly surprised - or at least you’ll be able to tell yourself that it helped with the sale price a few years later. But don’t rationalize your remodel by thinking it will pay for itself.

I’ve concluded this: we’re all looking for excuses to greenlight the big remodel. So we try to convince ourselves that either we’re going to adore the new room, or you’ll recover the cost in an eventual sale, or both.

Here’s how I’m going to rationalize my remodel: life is short, and I spend a lot of my time in my house. Loving my house is a high priority for me, and (here’s the kicker): it’s a lot cheaper to remodel than to buy a more expensive house.

Wish me luck.