At the Intersection of Art, Architecture & Design

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The market is valuing home improvements that make the most of the existing house – adding space in attics and basements plus making mechanical and safety improvements – upgrading their front entry and replacing major systems like roofs and siding.

When you live in a place that fits you and your family to a tee, and that embodies your sense of beauty – you’re happier and healthier. These 4 concepts will help you understand whether you’ll get your investment back at resale.

In 2005, during the height of the housing boom, you could recoup 90% to 100% of your cost for many home improvement activities. And in hot areas – such as Washington, DC where I practice – you could recoup more than 100% of your cost on kitchen and bath remodeling as well as many outdoor rooms. Today the picture is quite different; the national averages show few home improvements return more than 80% of their cost and most return between 60-70%.

I got a question recently on a post about Remodeling Price Drivers asking: “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?” The short answer is that, [...]

How to avoid financial pitfalls in home remodeling – part 1

It’s frustrating — to say the least– when you receive wildly different price quotes for what you think is the same work. This article is about how to compare estimates when you’ve provided the contractor a drawing of what you want.

What does it cost to renovate a kitchen? I’ve had 3-4 contacts within the past few weeks from homeowners who wish to renovate their kitchens for budgets ranging from $15,000 to $25,000. In their words, they want to gut their kitchens and replace everything from cabinets to lighting to flooring.

This blog is half rant and half advice about how to evaluate bids from remodeling contractors.

I’m in the process of designing a basement for one of my clients in Bethesda, MD. Since most of us have a hard time believing how expensive remodeling can be, I thought it would be useful to see the costs of the different components for this remodeling project and where cost savings can be achieved.

Thoughts about ways to keep kitchen remodeling costs down.