Common Remodeling Mistakes

With so many potential remodeling pitfalls, it's wise to learn from the mistakes of projects past. Knowing what not to do when you take on a remodel will help you make the most of your time and money, and ensure that your project doesn't end up on the trash heap. To make it easier for you, we've compiled a list of the seven most common—and costliest—remodeling mistakes.

1. Rushing into your project.
"Develop a good plan, price it, then work it," says Klaus Herring, associate and project manager for Paul Davis Restoration in Santa Fe, New Mexico. "If you think through your project and you know what you're looking to do, that's half the battle.

"When we go into a project, for example, we make a site visit first to get a feel for what our client wants. Then we develop a design and plan that is revised sometimes three or four times. By the end of the revision process, we have a project that is well put together, addresses perceivable eventualities, and will accommodate the unforeseen events that are inevitable in a remodel."

2. Choosing the first contractor you interview.
Take your time. Get several bids. Check each potential contractor's references, and check with your local Better Business Bureau to see if the contractor has ever been reported as being unethical. Make sure insurance coverage is in place: Every contractor should have business liability insurance, and every subcontractor working for that contractor should be covered under workers' compensation insurance. Make sure that if the contractor is subcontracting work, those companies are insured. A contractor may carry insurance, but the company that's actually doing the work might not.

Find a contractor who fits your personality and is open to communication. Look for one who will sit down with you, lay out his or her plan of attack, write it into a contract, show you the breakdown of labor and materials (or the flat rate), then have you sign the contract before the work starts.