Why do so many home improvement projects end in disaster? According to Amy Johnson, the author of What Your Contractor Can’t Tell You, it’s due to the fact that homeowners simply don’t have access to the right tools, knowledge and planning abilities that the pro’s do. Her basic premise is that home owners will spend 90% of their time actually working on a project, and 10% planning it, while the opposite is true of professionals.
This theory forms the book and allows homeowners rare insight into the mind of a contractor and how to put this theory to good use, no matter what size project you’ll be working on. By focusing more on planning and by taking the time to handle problems before they actually occur, Johnston feels that homeowners will be able to tackle even huge renovation projects with less hassle. And you know what? She’s absolutely right.
Each chapter contains an important lesson or two on how to take a home renovation from start to finish. Whether you’ll be doing the work on your own, or hiring a contractor, the author takes you through each necessary step to save time and money. From the original design phase, to how to oversee workers and how to stay on budget, Johnston offers some real world advice that can be put to immediate use.
The sections on cost estimates, budgeting and dealing with plan specifications are essential reading and should be gone over at least twice, and then once more during the actual renovation phase. Simply by reading this section you can easily save thousands of dollars on your home renovations. There are insights in here that are commonly only known to contractors, but now everyone can benefit from them right now.
The sections on handling permits and town officials should be required reading for anyone that is planning on improving their home and it offers some great tips on how to get the right permits, how to get through inspections and how to save money on the entire process, start to finish. If you have a zoning commission that is not known for their friendliness, this section should be very beneficial in helping you overcome those obstacles and keep on with your project.
If you are planning on undertaking a major renovation to your home, or you are just doing some weekend projects, this book is an incredibly valuable resource that is more than worth the cover price. You’ll be saving not only time, but also money, by putting the tips in this book to good use. It’s the ideal gift for anyone that enjoys DIY projects, and especially to those that are considering buying a home to fix up or that need to tackle some serious projects. We highly recommend this book and found it to be one of the few resources in this genre that absolutely anyone can benefit from.
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