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Major Kitchen Remodel Project Description: (MIDRANGE) Update an outmoded 200-square-foot kitchen with design and installation of a functional layout of new cabinets, laminate countertops, and standard double-tub stainless steel sink with standard single-lever faucet. Include energy-efficient wall...
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Master Suite Project Description: (MIDRANGE) On a house with two or three bedrooms, add a 24-by-16-foot master bedroom suite over a crawl space. Include walk-in closet/dressing area, whirlpool tub in ceramic tile platform, separate 3-by-4-foot ceramic tile shower, and double-bowl vanity with...
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Basement Remodel Project Description: Finish the lower level of a house to create a 20-by-30-foot entertaining area with wet bar, a 5-by-8-foot full bath, and a 12-by-12-foot auxiliary room. Walls and ceilings are painted drywall throughout; exterior walls are insulated; painted trim throughout...
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Family Room Addition Project Description: In a style and location appropriate to the existing house, add a 16-by-25-foot room on a crawl space foundation with wood siding and fiberglass shingle roof. Include drywall interior with batt insulation, prefinished hardwood floor, and 180 square feet of...
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Window Replacement Project Description: (MIDRANGE) Replace 10 existing 3-by-5-foot double-hung windows with vinyl- or aluminum-clad, double-glazed, wood replacement windows. Wrap existing exterior trim as required to match. Do not disturb existing interior trim. The national average cost of this...
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Bathroom Remodel Project Description: (MIDRANGE) Update an existing bathroom that is at least 25 years old. Replace all fixtures to include standard-sized tub with ceramic tile surround; toilet; solid-surface vanity counter with integral double sink; recessed medicine cabinet; ceramic tile floor;...
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Attic Bedroom Project Description: In a house with two or three bedrooms, convert unfinished space in attic to a 15-by-15-foot bedroom and a 5-by-7-foot bathroom with shower. Add a 15-foot shed dormer and four new windows. Insulate and finish ceiling and walls. Carpet unfinished floor. Extend...
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Bathroom Addition Project Description: (MIDRANGE) Add a full 6-by-8-foot bath to a house with one or one and a half baths. Locate within existing footprint near bedrooms. Include cultured-marble vanity top, molded sink, standard tub/shower with ceramic tile surround, low-profile toilet, general and...
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Siding Replacement Project Description: Replace 1,250 square feet of existing siding with new vinyl siding, including all trim. The national average cost of this project is $7,329. Read on to find out the average cost recouped on this project in your location.
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Deck Addition Project Description: Add a 16-by-20-foot deck using pressure-treated pine joists supported by 4x4 posts set into concrete footings. Install composite deck material in a simple linear pattern. Include a built-in bench and planter of the same decking material. Provide a complete railing...
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How much of the cost of a remodeling project can be recovered at resale? Our annual report samples current conditions in 35 markets.
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A weak labor market contributed to the Consumer Confidence Index dropping nearly five points in September, to its lowest level since March. Consumer plans to purchase major appliances dropped to the lowest level in a year.
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After a flurry of court activity resulted in a brief delay, the national do-not-call list went into effect in early October. D.S. Berenson, of Johanson Berenson LLP, McLean, Va., a firm specializing in construction law, says that "date of last sale" is a fairly vague term, but to be safe, consider...
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It would appear that Americans are sick and tired of sitting around in the dark. Just one month later, Hurricane Isabel rocked the East Coast, knocking out electricity to millions of homes, for more than a week in some cases.
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A California electrician is lucky to be alive after accidentally impaling himself on an 18-inch chip auger drill bit.Unfortunately, Hunt landed face-first on the drill, and the bit went through his left eye and out the back of his head.
As we went to press with our annual Cost vs. Value Report, homeowners were still investing in their homes at record rates. Despite a general slowdown in the national economy in the first quarter, the value recovered across all remodeling projects in the Report has jumped by more than 5% to 86.4%.
When the management team at Kendale Inc., Jacksonville, Fla., wants to know exactly what's happening in the company, they take a look at the company's comprehensive Flash Report. Each area of the business works toward specific goals, so this report also provides an indication of how well the...
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When Annette Greco noticed that her projects were going over schedule, she knew she had to take action. "I was hearing excuses like, 'The salesman didn't catch something,'" says the co-owner of Greco Remodelers Manassas, Va. "We wanted to create more accountability on the part of our production...
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As the owner of a remodeling company, you're constantly harvesting relationships. But your relationships with the people you work with every day -- manufacturers, suppliers, subcontractors -- are just as important.
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Mike DiFabion likes to keep customers' expectations low and their satisfaction high.
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I suggested that I tell him about the company anyway, so that he (or a neighbor) could consider contacting us if he changed his mind, and then I did a 15-minute presentation.Guy Marzano is a sales rep with Case Handyman Services of Golden Valley, Minn. In his first month of commissioned selling, he...
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Yellow Steel, a Portsmith, N.H., marketing firm, has launched www.wenailit.net, a Web site that offers contractors a chance to create direct mail, doorknob hangers, jobsite signs, and other marketing materials at reasonable cost.
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A 10-page audit from his company covers marketing strategy, organization, system productivity, advertising, price, competition, and other considerations.Wentworth now has a month-by-month marketing plan that includes direct mail, mailings to specific areas around the jobsite, advertising, and Web...
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Taking project photos, especially in tight interiors, is tricky. Good digital equipment makes it easier to shoot in natural light.