Experts agree: There isn’t really a best time to renovate your home. Renovating is a process, often a very time-consuming one. Homeowners should be prepared and start planning as soon as possible.
Marissa Jambor, a designer at Bath Plus Kitchen Design Remodel, suggests planning at least six months out. Everyone wants to have their new kitchens completed in time for the holidays, but if you can be flexible, you can get on a designer’s or contractor’s schedule when they have a bit more wiggle room.
The New Year brings resolutions, and homeowners get serious about getting organized. That’s a great time to start thinking about the changes you want to make in your home, says Allie Mann, a designer with Case Design. Set up appointments with designers and get the conversation started.
But if the cold winter months keep you in hibernation, rest assured: You haven’t lost out. Because there is no perfect time to renovate, Mann suggests early summer, if you can be flexible. Once the school year has ended and family vacations are booked, the calendars of contractors might carry a lighter load.
Of course, weather makes a difference if contractors are moving walls. The days are longer and warmer in summer, and the weather is more reliable than during the cold winter months, when a snowstorm could cause delays.
But there are other benefits of being flexible on timing. Costs of materials can be lower. Choices might be fewer, but if a tile shop wants to move merchandise to make room for new stock, sometimes there’s a deal to be had. But such sale prices aren’t predictable, Jambor says. “It’s more about the luck of the draw.”
Appliances are a different story. Vendors stay in touch with designers all year, alerting them to sales. If you’re considering a suite of the same make of a handful of appliances, additional promotions can help homeowners save money.
But back to those daydreams of a summer beach week. “People might think: ‘Gosh, I don’t want someone in my home while I’m away on vacation.’ But you know what? We get a lot of requests for that. That’s the best time,” Mann says. “Who wants to be home when demolition’s occurring? You miss all the dust and the noise, and you come back and [the demo] is done. You’re not living through the worst part of the project.”
