| HOME SHOW-FALL
EDITION
Sizzling Chefs on the Cooking & Entertaining Stage
Five Tips from Steven Katkowsky for a Successful Remodeling Project
1. When choosing a contractor, ask the right questions and don’t be shy.
2. Check the licenses of both your general contractor and subcontractors and get references for everyone involved in your project.
3. Get a proof of insurance including a certificate of insurance naming you as an additional insured.
4. Know what permits are needed on your home for plumbing, electrical, building and mechanical work and how to go through the permit process.
5. Control your money, save your money. Use payment schedules with a large balance at the end of the project using fixed prices and work change orders. |
Most homeowners dream of remodeling their home but fear the nightmare of the money pit. While makeover disasters are often more myth than reality, most problems arise when homeowners are unprepared and make poor decisions when it comes to choosing a remodeling contractor and navigating the home improvement process.
“The only person who can save you is yourself,” says Steven Katkowsky, a general contractor and professional kitchen and bath designer and author of the book Danger Construction Zone: Your Guided Tour to a Successful Remodeling Project. “When discussing the problems people have encountered, that one thing almost always comes to mind. You must save yourself.”
Katkowsky will be sharing his sage advice on working with remodeling salespersons, designers and contractors at the HOME SHOW – Fall Edition. His tips cover topics including selecting contractors, checking licenses and insurance, knowing what permits are required and – most importantly – how to save money.
“Undertaking a major remodeling project on one of the single largest investments you will ever make, your home, is no easy task,” Katkowsky said. “This is a project you want to do right. This is a project you want to enjoy.”
A homeowner needs to do a tremendous amount of work researching the contractors who will be working on their home. “I cannot emphasize enough how important it is that you play an active role in the selection process,” Katkowsky said. “The people you hire will be one step short of moving in. Your home will cease to be your home and will become their work area, their construction site.”
Katkowsky explains that a successful remodeling project is a partnership not unlike a football team. The homeowner is the team owner, the contractor is the coach, the players are the subcontractors and the Super Bowl is your finished project.
 “It’s all possible because of your due diligence as the owner – putting together a championship team with an outstanding coach, a coach that you hired,” he said.
Among the most popular improvements for homeowners are bath projects. Katkowsky said the keys to a modern bath remodel are maximizing available space to make the room appear larger than it is and incorporating universal design features that add functionality. Consulting an expert is essential to make sure the process goes smoothly.
“Use a specialist for this,” he explained. “A kitchen and bath specialist will often be most creative and innovative.”
Katkowsky will present two seminars at the HOME SHOW – Fall Edition on the NARI Neighborhood Stage. “Going in Style” covers creating the illusion of space in a small bath and fashioning the dream “baby boomer” bath. Seminar times are 6 p.m. Friday; 2 and 6:30 p.m. Saturday; and 3:30 p.m. Sunday. In “The Agony and The Ecstasy,” Katkowsky guides homeowners through choosing a kitchen and bath contractor for their home. Seminar times are 1:30 p.m. Friday and 12:30 p.m Sunday.
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