Remodeling a kitchen is perhaps one of the most exciting home renovation projects. The kitchen is often the heart of the home, as they say, so creating a space you love is important.

However, as fun as the idea of a kitchen reno can be, projects like this can come with a lot of stress, and sometimes unpleasant surprises. To ensure your kitchen renovation goes as smoothly as possible, make a plan. Planning is everything when it comes to big remodeling projects, especially those that involve ripping out sinks, building new cabinets, creating counter tops and rewiring electrical outlets.

Here are 5 tips to help you create your project plan:

• Plan out the scope of the project. What do you want to keep and what do you want to change?
• Determine your budget.
• Carefully consider the more invasive (but tempting) aspects of remodeling, such as relocating plumbing and moving drains, vents and electrical outlets. These things sound great at first, but they can be costly and time-consuming tasks. Take your time and figure out how far you’re willing to go with this renovation.
• Think about any parts of the project that may affect other areas of the kitchen. For example, if you decide to change all your kitchen cupboards, will it affect your floors? Sometimes flooring does not extend underneath lower-level cabinets. In this case, if you change your cabinets, you will either need to make the new ones the exact same size as the old ones to cover the unfinished floor or replace your flooring.
• Prepare for potential surprises. Remodeling a kitchen can sometimes result in unpleasant surprises, like finding leaky pipes, dry rot, mold or termite damage. A pain to deal with yes, but at least you’ll have found the problem before it has a chance to get worse.

Planning will help you have a smooth renovation and keep your stress level low. For help with your kitchen renovation, feel free to contact us at 647.300.1242.