That’s usually the question sitting just beneath everything else. Sometimes it’s the first thing people ask, sometimes they wait a few minutes (or even days) and circle around to it, but it’s always there. Nobody wants to fall in love with a remodel only to find out it lives in a completely different financial universe. Because we value honesty and transparency, we’d like to take a few minutes to describe how our pricing process works. The following are the four basic steps we use that are meant to bring greater clarity to your project’s cost as we progress through them.
Step 1
At the very beginning, we’re not pulling out calculators and drafting spreadsheets. It’s more like sketching with a broad marker. You tell us what you’re thinking. We listen, ask a few questions. Based on that, we give you a rough range. Not a guess exactly, but not a locked number either.
For most bathrooms, you’re probably looking somewhere in the $40,000 to $50,000 range (though we’ve seen some master bathrooms start around $80,000). Kitchens tend to be higher by default, usually starting around $80,000 and heading up from there depending on how far you want to go. (Read more about the cost of a kitchen here) but we’ll use a bathroom as an example moving forward. That first number is intentionally a little loose. Think of it like standing at the edge of a forest. You can see the shape of things, but not every tree yet.
At this stage, it’s not precision. It can’t be. We don’t know if you’re dreaming about heated floors or just trying to get rid of that almond-colored tub from 1993. But the range matters. It gives you a gut check. Does this feel doable? Or are we already off track?
Step 2
Once we get into the details (what you actually want to change, what stays, what absolutely has to go) things tighten up. Maybe that bathroom lands closer to $47,000 once we understand the tile choices, the fixtures, the way you want the space to feel when you walk in half awake on a Tuesday morning. You might come in thinking one thing and then pivot halfway through the conversation. Happens all the time. Someone says, “Well… if we’re already doing that, we might as well…” and suddenly the scope shifts. It stops being abstract at that point and starts to feel real.
Getting to this step does require what we call a “Project Planning Agreement”. This includes a modest investment that is often between $1,500 – $2,500 which allows us to begin the process of designing and budgeting your project in detail.
Step 3
And then, before anything begins, before materials are ordered or demo day is even a date on the calendar, we present a full budget. Line by line. No hand waving. Maybe that number comes in at $47,850. By then, we’ve done the work on our end to remove as many surprises as possible. Not all of them (because remodeling has a way of revealing things behind walls that nobody could have predicted) but most of them. Enough that you can move forward without that constant low-level anxiety about what’s coming next.
The next step is building your remodeling project which includes signing a fixed price contract. The contract spells out the scope of work and the materials included. It also includes a set of plans and a list of selections. This kind of contract greatly increases the likelihood of success because expectations are clearly laid out and agreed upon.
Step 4
So the project is done, you have a beautiful newly refreshed room, and everything’s paid for. Should everything go correctly, the budget will be accurate, and all parties will spend exactly what we planned from Step 3. And here’s the part people don’t always expect. We don’t cut corners or quietly swap materials behind your back. We manage the process tightly enough that surprises don’t spiral. The goal is to keep refining the number until it actually means something, up until the final check is sent. We’re very strict about our budget as a team, and are open about it with you should something come up. Not all remodelers do that. It’s about starting wide, narrowing with intention, and then delivering something that lines up with what you were told, or better. Until it’s something you can plan around, not just react to. Because at the end of the day, the question isn’t just “what will it cost?” It’s “can I trust the number I’ve been given?” That’s the part we take seriously.
Kick off your remodel with us with Step 1 as soon as you call at 651-735-8367 or filling out our Contact Card here.