Deciding: Remodel Before Or After?

Deciding whether to remodel a bathroom before or after moving in can be a complicated decision with multiple layers. Your daily life, budget, and long-term plans will be affected in varying ways by each approach. Test the water with your specific scenario. By weighing the budget and your growing family’s needs, you can find the best option that meets both your expectations for comfort and your financial plans for building equity.

The next sections outline some of the most important considerations to help you make your decision. They rely on real-world examples and deliver accessible, practical advice for both urban and suburban homeowners.

1. Evaluate Your Budget Reality

Begin by determining how much you can afford, both immediately and over the next 12 months. Every homeowner wants to get as far as possible with their budget, but costs for labor, materials, and unexpected complications accrue quickly. Even the cost of a small bathroom remodel adds up quickly in the Bay Area.

Pricing varies from $15,000 to $30,000, based on the finish level and labor market. Create an itemized budget that includes demolition, new plumbing lines, fixtures, tile, permit fees, and a cushion for unexpected discoveries.

With careful planning, saving money can go hand-in-hand. For instance, reusing the existing cabinets, or opting for mid-range fixtures and finishes down the line can save money to invest in other priorities. Lastly, many homeowners look for financing solutions like a home equity line of credit. They usually do so when the remodel is critical or tied to more extensive improvements.

Consider how a remodel would jive with your other costs. Potential relocation plans and the size of your future family play into your logic—having kids, for example, would change your concerns from luxury details to functional necessities.

2. Consider The Remodel’s Scope

The size and scope of your remodel will determine the speed of every other decision. A complete gut job—yanking out old pipes, re-piping and re-wiring, replacing flooring—can add months and potentially costly permitting.

Cosmetic renovations, such as adding a fresh coat of paint or replacing a vanity, may be able to be completed in one to two weeks. Decide how much you want to remodel. For some, a walk-in shower may be non-negotiable for accessibility, while for others, improved lighting and storage might deliver the highest return.

If you’re going to live in the home for decades, make more permanent, hardier improvements. If you plan to move within five years, then err toward decisions that most people will like, making future resale easier. Weave the bath redo into your overall home strategy. Think about pairing it with kitchen renovations or energy retrofits to get more bang for the buck on labor!

3. Assess Your Tolerance For Disruption

If you choose to remodel while living in the home, you’ll need to navigate noise, dust, and work crews in and out of your house. If you have small children at home or you work remotely, the disruption and ongoing foot traffic may be difficult to bear.

In city homes where space is at a premium, every inch counts. Even the temporary inconvenience of losing a bathroom for a few days can create major hassles. Few can endure the uproar, and even those who might be able to manage the turmoil can’t afford the stress.

Most families juggle a major home remodel with creative solutions, like installing a temporary bathroom or showering at a local gym. Consider whether you are okay dealing with temporary solutions like these. If not, do you want it all completed before you live there?

For anyone living under rigidly scheduled routines or with easily disturbed family members, remodeling before moving can save a world of stress.

4. Factor In Your Moving Timeline

Moving timing is crucial, especially if you’re considering a remodel. The longer your remodel takes, the longer your move-in date gets delayed, incurring additional expenses for storage or temporary housing. Delays are common, particularly in hot markets such as San Francisco.

Here, contractors are balancing multiple projects, and permits have a longer turnaround. Factor your remodeling timeline into your plans so you don’t end up paying for two homes simultaneously. If extensive delays are a possibility, it might be more realistic to move in right away and approach the remodel in phases.

This method allows you to stagger costs and move timelines around if necessary. Be sure to consider the impact of your renovations on the flow of moving trucks, furniture deliveries, and other logistics.

5. Check Contractor Availability Now

In many urban areas, skilled contractors can be booked months in advance. Find and vet local pros, read online reviews, and interview contenders well in advance. Reliable contractors are worth waiting for, but their availability may leave you no choice on timing.

Talk about your preferred timeline and receive specific responses on how busy they are. Ensure you have all the pros—plumbers, tilers, electricians—lined up and ready to go when you need them. Taking this step will save you from unexpected, last-minute surprises that delay your project after you’ve moved in.

6. Think About Temporary Living Needs

If you choose to remodel before moving in, you won’t have to live on a job site. Not all can afford the luxury of double housing. If you are in urgent need to move back, consider installing a temporary bathroom in another area of the home. Instead, think about moving in with relatives for a brief time.

In cities where short-term rentals are pricey, the cost of temporary living can be as much as the remodel itself. Consider the cost and convenience of living away versus enduring the change. If the remodel is a short one, a few days of disruption could be acceptable.

For larger projects, it’s usually a lot easier to move in after the remodel is complete.

7. Prioritize Necessary Repairs First

Determine which repairs can wait and which can’t, noting that many can’t wait. If there are leaks, plumbing issues, structural, or safety hazards, fix these before you consider moving in. Big functional upgrades, such as replacing a cracked, ugly toilet or fixing faulty, dangerous wiring should be priority number one.

Develop an action plan. Address the non-negotiable repairs first to make sure the bathroom is safe and functional from day one!

8. Consider Permit Timelines Locally

In the state of California, permits are required for any plumbing or electrical work, and those permits can take weeks to obtain. Consult your city’s requirements, and include the waiting period when planning your timeline.

Even minor delays in permits can stall your remodel and push back your move-in. A good start for resale and insurance compliance prevents expensive fines and means your work complies with local building codes.

9. Match Timing To Your Lifestyle

The unique rhythm of your family life should determine the timing of your remodel. For instance, remodeling in the summer could be more convenient if children are at camp or school schedules are less demanding.

Don’t plan to begin construction just before a holiday or big event. If you travel for work or have flexible schedules, you may be able to live with the disruption more easily.

Smart Planning For Your Project

Smart planning is the key to a successful bathroom remodel. This is particularly the case in expensive urban centers such as San Francisco, where labor costs and project timelines can change on a dime. In fact, before starting any renovation it’s best to settle into the house for a few months.

This allows enough time to start to see what is effective and what creates stress daily. Just ask any homeowner how their original plans evolved once they started living in the space.

Set A Realistic Renovation Budget

A realistic budget provides the foundation for all subsequent decisions. Begin with an exhaustive list of every potential expense, from contractor and materials costs to the cost of permits and unexpected repairs. Plan for contingencies.

Set aside at least 10% of your total renovation budget for unexpected issues. These issues may be lurking, such as water damage behind tile or old wiring. Keep a running total of every cost.

When new needs arise—say, a pipe springs a leak—reallocate money from non-urgent priorities to pay for them. Prioritize your renovation budget towards making repairs, such as fixing broken plumbing or rotting flooring, before moving on to improvements, such as installing a heated towel rack.

Define Your Bathroom Style Early

Once you know what style you want, every other decision will be a breeze. Explore various styles, ranging from timeless subway tile to high-tech innovations that accommodate an on-the-go lifestyle.

Creating mood boards or sketches will help define your vision. Choose a style that will blend with the rest of your home and will work with your daily life.

If you work from home—increasingly common now, as the pandemic showed us—perhaps you need task lighting or additional storage.

Find And Vet Qualified Professionals

Selecting the proper contractor is key. Create a shortlist, read reviews, and request photos of previous work. Interview a handful to gauge who you click with and can best discuss your vision.

Find and vet qualified professionals to help you navigate the process and learn best practices.

Prepare For Unexpected Discoveries

Historic homes, like those found throughout the Bay Area, for instance, can conceal a treasure trove of unexpected discoveries, such as mold or unusual plumbing. Have a contingency budget for these expenses as well.

Be willing to adapt if surprises arise. Stay in constant communication with your contractor to ensure the project runs smoothly!

Managing A Post-Move-In Remodel

A post-move-in bathroom remodel is a good place for most homeowners’ budgets and timelines to start. Often, it’s a matter of living in the space, putting aside savings for several months, and only then starting on major renovations. While this approach gives you time to learn how you use the space, it does mean living with dust, noise, and shifting routines.

A solid plan helps lessen daily stress and keeps the house running smoothly.

Create A Dust Containment Plan

Dust and debris are inevitable with any remodel. Sealing off the bathroom with plastic sheets and closing vents in adjacent rooms prevents contaminants from moving to other areas. Using air purifiers in living spaces keeps air quality safe, especially in dense urban spots like San Francisco, where ventilation may already be limited.

Have tracks cleaned daily, with sweeps and wipe-downs, and you’ll avoid a lot of the mess from building up. These simple steps go a long way in allowing you to inhabit the space while work is ongoing.

Arrange Alternative Bathroom Access

Think through what will happen when the bathroom is temporarily unavailable. If you have a second bathroom, establish sharing expectations. For homes much smaller than 1,500 square feet, some kind of portable toilet solution or a temporary shower stall could be the answer.

Notify all who will be impacted by these changes well in advance to prevent last-minute panic and confusion.

Communicate Clearly With Your Household

Avoiding surprises with open discussions about noise, schedules, and access to shared spaces helps maintain positive morale. Promote commentary to catch minor issues before they become major.

Setting up a group chat or a family calendar that everyone can see will keep everyone informed.

Schedule Work During Off-Hours

Collaborate with professionals to schedule work around your day-to-day life. Most contractors are willing to schedule work during off-hours to limit the disruption.

With larger renovations, it’s often worth the inconvenience to move somewhere temporarily comfortable.