A Word of Warning: Cost Cutting Doesn’t Save You Money
October 24, 2007 · Print This Article
I was talking with a friend of mine who’s been a contractor for nearly 25 years now and the topic of kitchens and kitchen remodeling came up (of course). We talked a lot about cool new design trends or projects that he’s seen and I must admit that there are some cool things happening. In-cabinet pot lights, LED illumination at night, speakers built in to the countertops (complete with a plug in for your iPod), and other cool innovations are just a few of the cool design trends that are gaining momentum.
I inevitably had to ask him about cost. Specifically, is it possible for someone to experience all of these cool new trends without having to spend a ton of money to get there? He laughed – at first I didn’t quite understand why – but after a few minutes he realized that I was serious.
The resulting conversation was one that made complete sense once I realized what he was trying to say.
Remodeling and Cost Cutting: A Match Made in Heaven?
As he explained, there are some things that can me marked down in order to reduce costs, and there are other things that cannot be substituted or ignored. Your appliances, for example, can be price-chopped by simply choosing inexpensive appliances. Will you be satisfied with the lower cost appliances? Maybe, but they still function and they did save money.
When it comes to something a bit more intricate, such as the custom forming required for concrete countertops, the last thing you want to do is to try and cut corners. He explained it to me like this: if you were to build a car you would have tons of options that would affect the overall product. Some may affect reliability, while others may affect performance or economy. Choosing the least expensive options generally results in a product that doesn’t last too long (think the Hyundai’s of the late 80s).
Yet, put some emphasis and a bit of foresight into your product and it can literally be transformed (think of Hyundai today). The same applies for your remodeling, and this contractor was obviously not a fan of cost-cutting.
Cost Cutting Costs You Money
This may seem counter-intuitive, but it’s true: cutting costs now will cost you much more money down the road. If we were to go back to our car analogy, imagine needing new tires. You could either buy a new set of quality tires, or you could cut some corners by buying used tires. When all of the tires give out on the highway it’s a guarantee that you’ll be kicking yourself for choosing the cheap way out.
When a contractor starts to cut corners (either because of pressure from the client or in an effort to reduce costs) you are essentially compromising the integrity and strength of the finished product. If this product is your countertops, for example, don’t you want to know that it’s been built right? Cutting corners now may mean problems down the road, and there’s nothing more frustrating than having to repair or replace something that was just done.
Stay smart and make sure that it’s done right the first time.
Attempts to cut costs and save money when remodeling a kitchen is like much of what we do in life - its has its share of risks as well as rewards.
A less expensive kitchen remodel isnt necessarily lower quality - it depends on the choices made by the homeowner and the contractor. A contractor that builds quality can do so at a range of prices depending on the many choices of materials and styles a homeonwer chooses. A white appliance vs stainless steel can have the same quality and performance but because stainless steel is more in style and is more expensive to manfucture than a white appliance the stainless steel is more expensive..is it better quality? everything else being equal the answer is no.
counter tops and cabinets follow the same logic - if you get more exotic/trendy woods or more difficult to build cabinet designs are you getting better quality for your money? Do Oak cabinets of a simple design have less quality than cherry with complex door design? the answer again is no..the oak ones may be 30% less expensive but the difference in cost has nothing to do with quality but in the cost to manufacture both labor and materials.
So if cost cutting and cost savings is a primary goal of a homeowner - great! The homeowner shoudl share that with their kitchen designer and contractor. Some contractors dont like working with cost conscious consumers - OK find a different contractor. Some contractors take the low price business and deliver low quality products - avoid these contractors. Find the right contractor and kitchen designer who will work within your budget and deliver you a remodeled kitchen with quality materials and a high level of workmanship. To get an idea of the cost of your remodel and how the different choices you make impact the cost of your remodel visit a site like http://www.remodelestimates.com
Thanks for your thoughts, Dan. Definitely, shopping around and being conscious of quality is what’s going to get you the “best deal.”