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Remodeling Budget

A remodeling budget can be a complicated thing to figure out.  The main thing is of course figuring out how much can you actually afford to spend as well as how much time are you willing to be living in the middle of a remodel or if you can afford it, living elsewhere. Some obvious things not to do: - Do NOT cash out all of your stock and other savings. - Do NOT borrow money you cannot hope to repay - Do NOT count on expected income or an inheritance Overall, look at your finances and consider what you have saved and once that is gone, ensure that you will still be ok should the unexpected occur.  You can also certainly consider refinancing and pulling money out of your mortgage or securing a construction loan. Remember that in the Bay Area, remodeling costs are higher because labor costs tend to be higher.  Know also that California cities enforce some of the strictest codes because of earthquake and fire risks in the area.  After you have figured out how...
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Resources, Media, and Ideas

Before you get started on a remodel, I think there are some great books out there with some really good architectural ideas. My favorite books I've looked through have to be the Sarah Susanka "The Not So Big House" books.  The subjects of these books are really great and really pare down architectural design to a few very key concepts.  Chief among them and the title of the series is the fact that you don't need thousands of square footage to make a house your home.  A small amount or a subtle repositioning may be all that's needed! I took some of this advice myself when I started on my remodel.  The original plans called for huge expansions and roof line changes, but with cost being an issue, I focused on what the most important changes were to me (better kitchen, modernizing the space, and bringing laundry in the house), the pieces fell together rather quickly. If you like this book, you will also love her capstone book, Home By Design .   It is a great...
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Getting Started...

Getting started can mean a lot of things when it comes to remodeling. You could start with a small project or a large project, do a lot of the work yourself, or hire out a general contractor.  The list can go on and on.  Since my experience has been with basically gutting the house and then building from there, I hope I can offer some insight into the full experience while still providing enough ideas for those of you tackling smaller projects. In general, a great way to get started is to consider what are the most important things about your home that you would like to change and why that might be.  You might be living with a dated kitchen or dealing with a very confining closed-off room.  Perhaps you are thinking about expanding the square footage to make the house feel like it's the right size for you. In any case, before you jump straight into plans and ideas, I recommend that you take some time to figure out a few things. 1.  Your budget (both money A...
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Looking Back and Looking Forward

I'm at the tail end of a pretty involved remodeling project and I wanted to share my experiences, pet peeves, neuroses, great bargains, poor deals and other home remodeling info, tips, and tricks with you.  This blog will focus mostly on my experience remodeling in the SF Bay Area.  Part of this is a way for me to review all the things that I went through so that I will remember this for next time (will there be a next time or would I just buy a shiny new house??) and part of this is to give you all some ideas and places to start.   Hope this can be of use to you.  Please help me help you by leaving comments or questions!
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