The Reality of Rising Costs in Remodeling

The last several months have had quite a ripple effect on almost every aspect of our lives and while there have been silver linings in figuring out ingenious and more efficient ways of dealing with these effects there are stark realities. Let’s address these realities, at least the ones related to your home and the upcoming remodeling projects you are dreaming of.

Wikipedia outlines that a ripple effect occurs when an initial disturbance to a system propagates outward to disturb an increasingly larger portion of the system and is often used colloquially to mean a multiplier in macroeconomics. In other words, it’s like a pebble being tossed into a perfectly calm and still pond (or in the case of COVID-19 a boulder catapulted from a high peak).

Remember the toilet paper shortage and panic back in April 2020? That was a ripple effect following lumber mills being shut down for several weeks combined with huge, and I mean huge, demand. The remodeling industry is now feeling the same effect. The prices of lumber and other building materials have skyrocketed due to shutdowns, increased demand, and suppliers not anticipating the massive up tick of desired materials for home improvement projects by DIYers. In addition to price increases the overall supply chain has been disrupted resulting in delays of availability and delivery. Some say that the supply chain has not been disjointed to this degree since Hurricane Katrina in August of 2005.

Thankfully there is a light at the end of the tunnel and solutions to consider. In fact, you can ace the test in Remodeling Realities 101 by doing the following:

• Be realistic in your expectations
• Consider that circumstances are different at this time
• Keep in mind that material prices will stabilize, eventually
• Decide what projects you can take on yourself and what projects would be best to partner with a professional on
• Do your research and be informed (honestly this takes more than watching HGTV, although that is a blast)

Phew! We can all agree that the last several months have been challenging. If you find yourself in the position of wanting to partner with a professional Snohomish County design | build remodeling firm for your upcoming project, please click here to contact us at VanderBeken Remodel.