Angie's List: How To Survive A Remodeling Project

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Anyone remember that movie "The War of the Roses" where a couple with a perfect marriage takes on a remodeling project and ends up in divorce court and trying to kill each other?

Well, Angie's List has some tips to keep you from that drastic step if you dare to remodel.

Contractors tell Angie's List that 2015 is going to be a busy year for home improvement.

So, how should homeowners prepare for unexpected stress?

"The one thing people most often underestimate when it comes to a remodeling project is the actual stress it puts on your family to have the remodelers there. We all worry about how much it's going to cost and how long the project's going to take, but what you don't realize is that you're going to have contractors living with you, and you might be cooking your dinner in the living room," Angie Hicks with Angie's List said.

Good planning and communication can help reduce some of the stress.

"The most common problem, when it comes to remodeling, is lack of communication, so my best advice is to be sure that you're meeting regularly with your head contractor. Whether it's every morning before they get started, or at least once a week, because that way you can cover things that come up real time, instead of letting them blow up into bigger problems," Hicks said.

Other things to cover include where materials and tools will be stored, where the crew will go to the bathroom and how early they'll start hammering in the morning.

"In general, remodeling is a very intrusive process. It can really disrupt the lives of a homeowner just because the project we're doing will be torn out or torn up and then it will take a number of weeks before its put back together to working condition," contractor Andy Peabody said. "If there's an area of the house that homeowners absolutely don't want work to be done in, that needs to be discussed ahead of time."

Even the best planning doesn't always make the jobs go perfectly. Contractors say they often run into existing problems they have to fix before they can get back to the planned remodeling project.

That adds to the time on the job, as well as the budget, which can add to the stress.

"I will plan a little bit of contingency into my own budget. It also doesn't hurt for the homeowners to plan a little bit just to make sure they can cover any additional costs without stretching the budget too thinly," Peabody said.

Hicks recommends setting aside at least 10 percent of your estimated project cost as a contingency fund and to add at least a week to the expected end date of your project. If all goes well, she says look at that extra time and money as a personal bonus.

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