The benefits of hiring professional contractors

The DIY movement has inspired many homeowners to tackle home repair and remodeling projects on their own. DIY projects can be rewarding, and many homeowners who have embraced the DIY movement have discovered talents they never before knew they had.

But no matter how simple popular home renovation television shows make remodeling projects appear, homeowners should know that such undertakings are far more difficult than they appear on television. Homeowners who overestimate their abilities and the time they have to complete projects can spend substantial amounts of money. In fact, there are a variety of reasons homeowners might want to work with professional contractors when tackling home improvement projects.

Experience: Experienced professional contractors with strong track records (seek recommendations from friends or neighbors) won’t have to go through trial and error and are more likely than DIYers to complete a project on time and on budget.

Inspiration: Homeowners without specific ideas in mind can ask contractors to suggest alternatives before committing to a particular one. Veteran contractors can draw on years of experience to create designs that DIYers might be incapable of coming up with and/or incapable of seeing through to completion.

Cost: Conventional wisdom suggests it’s less expensive to do something yourself than to hire someone else to do it for you, but that’s not necessarily true of home improvement projects.

Labor costs typically account for a substantial amount of professionally contracted projects, but homeowners can cut those costs by volunteering to do some of the simpler tasks themselves. In addition, contractors often purchase materials at a much lower cost because they buy in bulk. So while labor costs might be lower on DIY projects, the cost of materials can offset those savings.

Resale value: Many homeowners renovate their homes with an eye on improving the resale value of their homes. But if homeowners want to showcase a newly remodeled kitchen when selling their homes, they should be prepared for prospective buyers to ask who worked on the project. Fearing potential problems down the road, some buyers might be put off by homes that were not remodeled by professional contractors.

Renovating a home on your own can be a rewarding project for homeowners. But it’s important that homeowners recognize the many benefits of working with professional contractors before making any final decisions with regard to who will tackle their next project.