Start Planning Your Winter Remodel Now
It’s not easy trying to find the right time to remodel your home. You have lots to consider, including affordability, your availability (being able to see a project from design through completion), your contractor’s availability, weather, and more. If you’re a winter visitor who owns a home anywhere in Bonita Springs, Fort Myers, Estero, Sanibel or Naples, then you’re also factoring in your own busy travel schedule. While many homeowners look to remodel in the spring or summer months, there are actually several reasons why you ought to consider remodeling in the winter instead. Here are 6 on-point reasons why winter remodeling is ideal for you:
1. Contractor Availability
For remodeling contractors, and particularly those in Southwest Florida, the busiest seasons are spring and summer. As such, trying to schedule an in-home consultation with a contractor during the peak season can be frustrating. It can take several weeks, and in some cases months, to arrange an in-person meeting. But, if you can wait to start your remodel in the winter, during the offseason, you’ll benefit from your contractor’s increased flexibility. With a design-build firm like Progressive Design Build, you’ll have the added benefit of being guided through every aspect of your home remodel from concept to completion—right from the start.
2. Expedited Permitting
An effect of contractors being busy in the spring and summer months often causes a backlog of activity for government agencies that process Florida construction permits. If your home remodeling project will require a building permit, waiting to remodel in the winter can be a good thing—resulting in proper permits being expedited faster during the offseason.
3. Interior & Exterior Renovations
It’s natural to assume that winter might be the ideal time to focus on an interior remodel. You are correct. Would you believe, however, it’s also an ideal time to renovate an outdoor living space? Here in Southwest Florida, we don’t have heavy snowfall or freezing temperatures. In fact, winter is our dry season. It is an ideal time to complete an outdoor renovation due to the cooler temperatures and lower humidity. This creates the best conditions for pouring concrete and installing foundations. During this time there are also fewer chances of hurricanes or storm activity.
4. Supply and Demand
The basic rule of supply and demand applies to the remodeling and construction industry, like anything else. During the peak season, all remodeling contractors are putting in orders for materials at the same time, which can result in a possible backlog or longer wait times. Although the cost of building materials doesn’t vary that much between peak- and off-season, in the winter you will experience increased availability of certain materials, and thus a quicker turnaround. This leads to a shorter project timeline, possible savings, and less inconvenience to you, the homeowner.
5. Virtual Communication
When you choose to work with a remodeling contractor, particularly as you plan your remodel while living out of state, a big part of your selection criteria should be their willingness and ability to work with you virtually. Thanks to today’s amazing digital technology, a qualified remodeling firm can do all the essential prep and design work without having to physically meet through FaceTime, Skype, Zoom, or other easy-use digital communications channels.
Clear and frequent communication between you and your contractor is essential for the success of a remote home renovation project, in particular. Take full advantage of smartphone photos, texting, emails, and phone calls. Also, ask your contractor if they use any project management software such as BuilderTrend or Co-Construct. These and similar platforms are ideal for not only continuously tracking progress and keeping in touch with your entire project management and production team.
6. Safety Assurance
Following the challenges we’re all facing right now amid the COVID-19 pandemic, reputable contractors have a complete safety plan in place, from jobsite walkthroughs throughout the entire construction process, so as not to jeopardize your safety or well-being while they are on your property. Construction, by and large, is already a very safe profession – a big part of the reason why it has been deemed “essential work” by nearly every state that has issued shelter-in-place guidelines throughout the pandemic.
At Progressive Design Build, we’re following state and CDC guidelines to ensure that it remains safe in this era of COVID-19. This includes ensuring workers are outfitted with the right PPE, social distancing on job sites, frequent hand washing (including adding portable hand washing stations to every site), rigorous disinfection of commonly touched surfaces or tools, and more. We always take safety seriously, and we’re happy to explain in detail the extra steps we’re taking during these times to keep our workers, projects, and your household safe.
Now that you know why winter is a great time to remodel, it’s time to start planning. At Progressive Design Build, we have been remodeling winter visitors’ homes around Fort Myers, Naples, Bonita Springs and Sentinel for three decades, garnering gushing reviews for stunning work, high security, and a 3-year warranty.
So, before you leave, make sure to schedule a no pressure, hassle-free design consultation with Progressive Design Build’s team of Southwest Florida remodeling experts and see what we can do to perk up your home for the winter.
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