Starting a home remodeling project begins with an idea.

What kind of remodeling are you looking to do?
What is the architectural layout?
What is the overall square footage needed?
Use this page to help formulate ideas.

Your first stop in home remodeling is figuring out what you would like to do.

Perhaps you are looking at expanding your kitchen, adding a bonus room, installing a home entertainment system, updating your bathroom appliances, or simply redecorating the nursery room.

Should You Renovate or Buy New?

The dollar investment to remodel your home could be used to purchase a new home.

The decision to renovate or buy is based on a number of factors, including type of renovation, cost, neighborhood analysis, market valuation, your desire factor and other issues.

Home renovation costs should be 30% or less of your home market value

Sketch Your Home Remodeling Plan

Understand design trends before finalizing your remodeling plans. Home remodeling considerations include:

* traffic patterns
traffic should flow to one side of the room rather than through its center; i.e., by placing the door ways in the corners

* kitchens
larger kitchens have a greater resale value than smaller kitchens – you will want to design the working area with appliances in a triangular position for easy working

* private areas
bedrooms and bathrooms should be separated visually from the working areas of the house

and much more considerations when designing your plan

You may require the help of an architect or designer.

Assembling Your Home Remodeling Specifications

Designing the remodeling specs is the most important task that you will undertake.

This task can be the most complicated since you need to detail everything about your remodeling plans so that you can bid the project out to a contractor.

Finding and Selecting a Home Remodeling Contractor

The home remodeling specs will be used to bid the construction project. Take your specifications plan and follow these three important tasks:

1. Take your spec plan and have it reviewed by an architect or other home designer.

It will help them design or revise a house plan to fit your remodeling specs.

Take the architectural plan and submit a request for bids from remodeling contractors.

The architectural plan should include your construction specs (if no, include your spec plan).

Make sure to work with a network of contractors that have been prescreened:

Arrange Financing

Once you approve an acceptable bid from a contractor, you may now seek home improvement financing from a lender.

The lender will most likely secure your financing using the equity value of your existing home.

There are two types of home financing :

1. home equity credit line
2. home equity or home improvement fixed-rate loan

Estimating Your Home Value:

The amount of financing lenders will give you is based on the equity value of your home.

Start the Project

Be prepared to manage and control your project to avoid surprises and cost overruns

Now for the construction – learn how to manage:

* project management
* change management
* problem resolution management
* cost management
* financial management

Inspect Your Home Remodeling Project

He who holds the money rules the process.

As your construction moves through construction phases, get the project phase inspected before making payment.

Once payment leaves your hand, you lose control of getting things done right.

Decorate Your Project

Your decorating budget may be tight, so shop wisely for best ideas and plans.

Furniture, electronics, pictures, etc. – and that is just for the interior.

For the exterior, you have flowers, yard furniture, cooking grills, etc.