Bathroom Remodeling

Bathroom Remodeling – How Much Does the Project Actually Cost? 

Bathrooms are an underappreciated room in almost every home and rarely do they get the attention they deserve.  Have a clean bathroom with all the desired ammenities can improve your daily life! There are few rooms used more and thought about less than the Bathroom. When it comes to starting a bathroom rennovation project, two things should be in the fore of your mind: The desired additions or subtractions, and the overall cost of the project. Any renovation project started without a spceified goal or budget is likely to cost an arm and a leg, and end up being unsatisfactory. There is a lot of wiggle room for cost and design in a bathroom remodel, as the material and labor costs are subject to quality of the work or material, the design, and the time spent on the project.

Step 1: Consider the Layout

The layout of the bathroom is one of the deciding costs in any bathroom remodel.  Most bathrooms tend to be small rooms with limited space and several necessary appliances, such as sinks, medicine cabinets, toilets, baths, and showers.  Fitting everything you need into a cramped room can be difficult and costly. If you need to do expansion of the room, the cost of the project can skyrocket. For any structural renovation, you will have to take down existing walls and change the layout of the bathroom. To avoid spiraling construction costs its recomended that you choose to work with the exsting room layout. One of the most common renovations for bathrooms that keep the original layout of the room intact is the shower remodel.  You simple swap out the existing shower for a new design, adding in features, like a shower seat, or new glass walls or windows, while keeping the layout of the room intact.  A Shower remodel allows you to keep all the plumbing, electric wiring, and walls as they are, significantly reducing costs. Labor is a huge expense in your bathroom remodel, and cutting labor costs is a surefire way to save money.

Step 2: Know Your Materials

For your average bathroom the materials cost is pretty variable ranging rom $2,000 to $10,000. When you start a bathroom renovation project you are typically looking at replacing several costly fixtures of your bathroom. Getting a new sink, new toilet, new bathtub, new cabinets, and even new mirrors or lights is not cheap. Factor in the cost of new counter tops, new tiling, and other accessories,and you can find yourself faced with a hefty bill at the end of the renovation process. If you are looking to make the bathroom handicapped-friendly or have specialized fixtures, it will cost an additional $2000 to $3000. You can save money here, by choosing lower cost materials, but you do risk sacrificing quality.  The easiest way to save money on materials is to know in advance what materials you want, and to stick to your budget.  Going into a renovation with a plan will prevent the cost spiral, as long as you keep to your goals.

Step 3: Labor Costs

If you have small bathroom, any bathroom that measures 100 sq. ft or less, the high end of labor costs could be $12000 to $13000, assuming you redesign the entire room, including reworking the plumbing and wiring. This cost also includes installation of new fixtures, new tiling, and inspecting everything afterward. Don’t forget to inspect your plumbing and wiring afterwards. You can save a lot of money in the long run on repairs.

In general, a good rule of thumb when considering costs is to expect roughly double the cost of labor for remodeling as compared of materials. While not ironclad, its a good base point to start with when considering Bathroom remodel.