Budget Versus Cost

3 Min Read

While a budget can keep you on track, they must be realistic in order to work for your renovation project

What is a reasonable remodel budget?

I’m often asked, “how much does it cost to renovate my Kitchen/Bathroom/Home?” The budget is the amount you expect to spend. While a budget is a great starting point and can keep your spending on track, it must be realistic in order to be effective. If you set a $100 budget for a date and plan to go to dinner and a movie, you must estimate all possible expenses (dinner, parking, movie tickets, concessions). But you should also ask yourself if you have any flexibility with your budget- what if the movie tickets end up costing more than your expected, or if you have a great time and want to grab a drink after? It is incredibly difficult to account for everything, which is why budget and cost are not the same and can end up having a large disparity.

Cost is the actual amount spent. it is often very different from the budget (especially for homeowners who are remodeling for the first time).

If you have ever planned and paid for a wedding, you know how hard it is to keep on budget when you’re in the middle of the design process. Maybe you were able to restrain yourself when it came to flower selections, but it seems infinitely harder when it’s something more permanent like countertop materials or plumbing fixtures.

As a professional interior designer, it is my responsibility to give you your options. Early in the design process, we discuss project minimums and estimated costs, and as we consider different options we look at how the selections will impact the bottom line. Ultimately, it is up to you how you spend your money. If you want beautiful marble countertops that cost $5,000 per slab then my job is to tell you how it impacts the design, how marble performs, how many slabs you need, and how those costs deviate from the number we budgeted. It’s not my job to tell you whether or not you can afford the splurge- all I can do is give you the facts and my design opinion so you can make an informed decision.

New cabinetry, faucets, countertops, mirrors, lighting, paint, and labor can add up quickly for a bathroom remodel

A small-scale example: simply replacing vanities in a bathroom can cost upwards of $5,000 when you factor in demo, new cabinetry, plumbing fixtures, countertops, mirror, lighting, paint, and labor. If a client tells me they only have $2,000 to spend, there really isn’t a less expensive option that I can make work. In this case, the project would be better off as a homeowner’s DIY project. Take that same example and apply it to a Kitchen. A Kitchen remodel generally starts at $50,000. If a client tells me they have $20,000 to spend, then the conversation we need to have is not about the design, but about costs and budgeting. We can have a conversation early on about whether or not your budget is realistic, but until we have a completed design package that can be bid by trades (and considers everything from construction to materials and furnishings), I can’t guarantee we will stay on budget. Want to know how much it costs to remodel a bathroom? Find a breakdown of costs here (warning- the final cost is going to shock you!).

Looking to find out if your budget is realistic? Schedule a 20-minute intake call here and we can discuss your project.