| Making Your Budget |
|
Now you have a realistic approximation of what you remodeled bathroom will cost. For example, if you’re planning a makeover of a full bathroom of 8 ft. X 10 ft. (80 sq. ft.) you can start with a price of $125 sq. ft. or $10,000. If you want to slightly upgrade the remodel, but not as far as deluxe you can add 20 percent and come up with $12,000. If you’ve opted to buy all materials and install them yourself you can cut that number by at least half for an approximation of about $6,000. If you ultimately decide to hire an electrician for the new fixtures you can add that to the total. Of course, an approximation isn’t an estimate. It’s a ballpark figure, a reality check. If you get a bid from a contractor that’s 100 percent more than your approximation you know something’s wrong. Either the contractor’s fees are too high, there are design issues that make it a tougher job than it looks, or the material or labor is overpriced. How can you make sure that your estimates and bids are accurate? You can clearly describe the project, review the plans for potential high-cost problems, accurately calculate materials, and estimate labor.
|
