Home Improvements

Anyone in the rental property business for any length of time is usually comfortable working with contractors. My wife and I are no exception. There is always a rental unit that needs new paint, countertops, windows, appliances, parking resurfaced etc. But when it comes to one’s personal residence the dynamics change. While cost is usually the number one factor when selecting a contractor for work on a rental, quality is the primary factor when choosing someone to work on a personal residence. Either way, selecting a contractor comes down to value!

With the recent closing on the sale of our former home, we’ve got funding to make some improvements on our new home to include a screened porch, new front door, flooring and an improved parking area just to name a few. These improvements will not only modernize and add value to the home, but the features will truly make this home ours! For the past two months we’ve had a parade of contractors visiting our home. I expect this will continue for several months until we work off all the items on our “punch list”. Given that our new home represents a serious investment for us, we are taking the home improvement decision process to the extreme!

I’ll share what I’ve learned so far, with the caveat we’ve only just started making improvements to our home. Thankfully, those jobs we’ve already completed have went well. Our tree trimming and new screen porch in this week’s featured pic being two of the first. Hoping we are just as fortunate on the jobs coming up!

Don’t rush to failure. As stated, we are taking our time and seeking bids from numerous contractors. I think the worst thing you can do on home improvements is get in a hurry! This is somewhat of a new concept for us as when we are repairing or improving rental properties, speed is paramount. For a personal residence, slow and deliberate wins the race. Our improvements are permanent in nature, we can’t afford to screw it up!

Look at a wide variety of options. Sometimes this requires setting our biases aside. In every project, we are getting high end estimates, low end estimates and those in between. Usually the variances are minor, perhaps type of materials or whether the contractor is full service rather than having to sub portions of the job. The best example of considering all options was for our new front entry door. We looked at fiberglass, wood and metal options. To be honest, I thought wood was the only option and entertaining the other two materials was simply “throw away” courses of action. After a lot of research, we ended up going with metal! I am very happy we didn’t put our blinders on and only consider one particular type of door.

Haggle, haggle, haggle. Right, wrong or indifferent, the largest part of cost for any project in the United States is labor. While the price of materials is relatively fixed, labor and the contractor’s markup can be negotiated. Fortunately, haggling comes quite natural for my wife and I. While haggling on the contract price is a must, one should remain respectful in the process. After all, this is how the contractor earns a living. A ridiculous low-ball counteroffer might drive off the best contractor. The best way to haggle, and tied to the first two points, is gather numerous offers. Once narrowed down to a contractor or two you like, then you can bargain using the other quotes as leverage. We’ve probably already saved several thousand dollars by not accepting an initial bid, but rather haggling for the best price.

We are truly in the first stages of this journey. It is exciting but also a bit worrisome. Unlike our rental properties, the margin for error is much smaller. We need to get this right! At the end of the day though, it comes down to the same basic principles I’ve learned throughout my adult life. Weigh the options and make a decision. Indecisiveness can make a tough job like home improvements even more frustrating.

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