We moved back into our home today… exactly 12 weeks after moving in with our son while we remodeled. Our contractor – a husband (construction) and wife (project management) team – were incredible. They promised their part would take 10 weeks, and they completed it in nine. Then the HVAC crew came in and did their work. We knew windows would be a supply chain challenge. They’ll be added the first week of January.
When we told several of our friends about this project, they said to prepare for all kinds of delays and to add 2-3 months on the backend. As it turned out, we didn’t experience any issues. Everything arrived on time and the craftsmanship is outstanding. Dan and Amanda provided incredible customer service from the first meeting to the end.
Another suggestion from a friend was to plan for an extra 20% budget bump for unexpected discoveries. “You have 24 years of wear and tear, so there will likely be some surprises.” None of those appeared, although we decided to add some things along the way. My favorite saying to Kathy became: “Change order. Change order.” Ultimately, we spent less than 10 percent above the contracted price.
While getting an upgraded house is nice, the best part of this adventure was being with our son. We did a lot of things together and had many deep conversations – and there was never a moment when we raised our voices or became frustrated with each other. I will remember these weeks as the gift that allowed us to experience our little boy as a grown man. I hope Kyle looks back grateful for the time he spent with us.
