Price Drivers in Residential Remodeling
 Size, Complexity & Finish Level Determine the Cost of Remodeling |
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| Remodeling is expensive! There’s just no getting around it. There are 3 main factors that drive price: Size, Complexity & Finish Level. We’ll look at each briefly and then also look at ways to minimize the effect of each. | ||||||
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| But you don’t need to sacrifice your life style or a sense of luxury and quality in order to keep costs down. | ||||||
| First, square footage is overrated! I can almost always achieve a client’s design goals within the existing footprint or with strategic bump-outs. Second, it’s usually more comfortable and satisfying to re-purpose space rather than simply add a big addition on the back. Think of your neighbors who have added large additions only to leave the older portions of the home empty most of the time. Instead, you can re-purpose old spaces — maybe move the kitchen to where the dining room used to be. And then the lot can be used to create wonderful outdoor/indoor spaces with a great sense of privacy and serenity. | ||||||
| Second, materials can be used in ways that create luxury without great cost. In the bath, below, while the finishes look rich, the total cost of the finishes were well below 50% of the total cost (usually finishes are 60-70% of the cost of the remodel) See Article on Controlling Costs. We used the same travertine tile for all surfaces — this allowed me to get true wholesale/pallet pricing. There are no fancy patterns or mosaic borders — keeping the cost of tile laying down. The room is a simple rectangle — the only complexity is added by the angle of the vanity (not shown). The fixtures are mid-level — but well designed. The shower has a single showerhead — a multi-function hand-held on a bar that allows it to be used in multiple ways. We used a solid-surface shower pan rather than tile for the shower floor. We kept and re-used existing doors and door hardware. |
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 Luxury Materials Used Cost-Effectively |
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| Imagine how much more labor-intensive it was to lay the tile in the small powder room below with all the different tiles and patterns. While equally stunning in an understated way, the bath above, was much less labor intensive than the one below. | ||||||
 Complex Tile Patterns Add Expensive Labor |
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| Third, interesting and complex details can be created in less labor-intensive ways. The wainscoting in the breakfast nook, below, uses the wall as the “recessed panel”. We used prime 1x stock for the stiles and rails. The ledge is simple crown with sill material on top. This design simplified the labor and made the wainscoting detail affordable here and in the dining room. Additional complexity was added in the home, below through the use of paint to emphasize the architecture (see related article). Paint is one of the least expensive ways to add detail and complexity to a remodel. | ||||||
 Effective By Relatively Simple Wainscoting |
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| So, when you’re planning a remodel, keep in mind ways to keep down costs while still adding luxury and cost-effective details. | ||||||
| All images courtesy of Braitman Design/Build |
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Hi. I love your website and your design concepts. I have a couple of questions about “bump outs”. When is a bump out no longer a bump out but rather an addition? And when doing a cost estimate, is the cost of a bump out the same as an addition, approximately $200 per square foot?
Signed,
Owner of a small 1950’s era ranch in the MD suburbs
[...] got a question recently on a post about Remodeling Price Drivers [...]
Maureen – Great question. In fact, I decided to write a post in response. Let me know if this helps. If not, post another question, call or email.
Best,
Jackie