The hidden cost of DIY renovations

What is it about renovations that everyone thinks they can do it as good as or better than the professionals?

I know when I try my hand at renovations; the finished product always looks way short of professional. Part of the problem is that people often don’t call professionals in to do a job in the first place. Instead, they opt for the cheapest quote they get, and I can pretty much guarantee that the cheapest quote comes from a one-man show who says he’s a professional, but really isn’t. Often, the project—whether it’s a basement, kitchen or bathroom renovation—or maybe an extension to the property—turns out badly. The homeowner has to spend again to get the problems fixed, causing extra expense, time...and mess. Suddenly, the homeowner thinks he or she can do a better job themselves.

I’ve gone down that route and quickly realized that this is simply not true. And there’s a few reasons why:

• I have to spend a lot of money buying the tools I need to do the project. Waste!
• With little renovation experience, I never know where to begin
• Practice makes perfect, which is why my plastering looks like a mountain range
• You have to go to school to learn the trades required in reno work—I didn’t

The bottom line is that if you want to find a good Montreal General contractor to perform renovations on your home—the one thing you own that actually increases in value—then you need to contact a professional. This means you are likely to pay more than you would like for your next renovation project, but it also means you will like the end result you get in half the time...without the headache.

Hey, you get what you pay for, right?

http://www.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/eng/ibp/irc/codes/codes-guides.html