Have a plan! 

They need to know things like:

• Do you want to move or open walls, or are you happy to work in-footprint? If you want to move walls – which walls? (Whether or not they are structural, or whether those walls include a lot of existing plumbing and electrical, has a profound effect on the remodel price tag.)
• You want to refinish your wood floors – are we talking just in one room, or through your whole house? Are you hoping to keep or replace your baseboards? Do they need repainting?
• If you’re thinking of a full kitchen gut & remodel, have you chosen your materials? Do you plan to install stone counters, or laminate? Tile floors, wood floors, or sheet vinyl? When you say wood floors, do you mean wood-look like LVP, or site finished wood that can be refinished over the decades? (There’s a big installation cost difference between, for example, stone and laminate counters!).
• Planning on tiling your walls, shower floor, shower walls, etc? Will that be with simple large-format tile, or with an intricate tile layout that requires not just hours of installation time, but also a true craftsman-artist’s eye?
• Do you live in a condo or community with HOA restrictive rules and impossible parking? If you do, share that upfront – not every contractor is willing to work on condos, and you don’t want to waste your time talking to someone who won’t actually take the project.

1. At minimum: Have a clear list of your must-haves and nice-to haves, and a starting budget in mind. That way they can at least tell you if what you want remotely aligns with your budget. (Need a hand thinking through your Scope of Work? Did you know can help with that in a Design Coaching session? If you need a clue about kitchen and bath remodel budgets in the Seattle area, the folks at Model Remodel have a great article on that!)
2. Next best prep? Have a well-developed layout to share. Even if you don’t yet know your materials or fixtures, scoping out the changes will bump you up the line! (Yes, we can help with layout-only projects at Seriously Happy Homes if you’re not yet ready to choose your materials yet!)
   • Bonus tip – even if you’re not ready to choose your materials, have a few images on hand to illustrate the kind of room you have in mind. Check out this blog on the prep-homework we give our clients to set up our projects for success! Just a handful of pictures can clue the contractor into how complex, high-end, and costly (or not) your project is likely to be. As we said above, not all materials cost the same to install. In fact, sometimes the less costly option costs more to install because it requires more labor than the more costly option.
3. But if you *really* want their attention: Have a fully developed plan that spells out your new layout *and* your new materials, down to details like where you’ll start and stop your tile, how you’ll finish the cut tile edges, and what kind of knobs you’ll use on the cabinets.

Does that mean you might pay for design work that you never get to use?

Unfortunately, yes. Whether you pay in time by DIYing it, or pay with money to get a designer’s help, the remodel process includes feasibility phases that don’t always bring the answers you want. It’s unnerving to invest in a project before you know what it’ll cost!  But that’s the chicken-and-egg problem that comes with remodeling.

While we can’t solve the chicken-and-egg problem, our best advice is to take it step-by-step. Invest as little as you can to get to the next step, exploring your project’s feasibility as you go.

In the end, remember that patience *is* the name of the game these days.

Design is rarely an emergency. Take a deep breath and *don’t* just hire the next available contractor. You’re about to invest a great deal of money in this project and these folks will be in your home for a very long time – You’ll be reminded of how awesome (or “flaw-some”) they were for as long as you’re in your home. So choose wisely, and don’t let fear of not getting a contractor make the hiring decision for you.

Once you finally get those call backs, you’ll want to be prepared with great questions to make sure you get the right contractor for your project, so don’t forget to check out our list of great questions to ask contractors before you hire them!

We hope this helps you get that call back! Good luck and…

May your home always be happy!