How Footprints Floors Help Avoid Renovation Delays!

The typical home improvement project gets delayed by at least 1-2 months. That’s a reasonably long time to live in a home with unfinished floors or stripped-out appliances.

Home renovations seem to present infinite opportunities for things to go wrong. Sometimes these issues seem entirely out of control. At the same time, at other times, it comes down to an incompetent or unprofessional contractor.

That doesn’t mean these problems can’t be avoided. If you’ve been dreading the thought of renovating their place, it’s time to take a breath of relief.

There’s a fresh new approach to getting a renovation done. One that doesn’t leave you in charge of micromanaging contractors, watching over logistics, or trying to keep things on schedule.

Let’s go through seven reasons why renovations get delayed and how easy it is for you to avoid them.

Products and Materials are Backordered or Out of Stock

Yes, supply chain problems are still ongoing. Waiting lists can feel endless, and some products have never gotten off the backorder.

If you’re planning a renovation, you have to factor this in. Inventory problems are always incredibly frustrating, especially when it’s something visible, like a specific type of hardwood flooring you have your heart set on.

In worst-case scenarios, a single critical product going out of stock can delay an entire project for weeks or months.

It can feel like these problems are out of your control – and for the most part, they are. So, if getting your home renovation done quickly is a priority, be prepared to accept possible product substitutions or design alterations.

It’s essential to ensure that your contractor is entirely on board. Many contractors have a select brand or two that they like to work with. And this can happen more often when dealing with specialized contractors like flooring installers and tilers.

Sometimes it’s because they sincerely feel that a particular product is best and are providing you with unbiased advice. Other times, they steer you in a specific direction because they act out of self-interest.

That’s because contractor rewards and loyalty programs can financially incentivize contractors to have their customers use specific manufacturers. You don’t want to get stuck with a contractor like this.

The best way to avoid this is by choosing a home improvement company that gives you the freedom to use whatever brands and products you prefer.

Shady Contractors

The home renovation industry has a mixed reputation, and dodgy contractors are one of the reasons why.

Contractors are known to put work off without notice, ignore instructions, change things, play the blame game, upcharge customers, go cold contact, and even slap homeowners with liens after being fired for their mistakes.

Many contractors are skilled and ethical professionals who will treat your renovation with care. But this career field does attract those with a little less integrity. If you plan to hire a contractor independently, you must know what red flags to watch out for.

Top contractor faults include:

• Poor communication
• Poor risk management
• Poor budget management
• Insufficient skills
• Not insured (unbeknownst to you)
• Poor documentation
• Lack of preparation

Contractors with traits and habits like this can throw an entire home renovation off. Review sites are beneficial for weeding out the bad apples, but these sites can be prone to manipulation.

Want to avoid the chance of getting tied up with a less-than-honorable contractor? Work with a faith-based, home care franchise that will handle them for you.

Skilled Labor Shortage

Many home renovations are being rescheduled due to the shortage of skilled trade laborers. America’s employment market is missing at least 1 million of them!

This issue has been building up over time. Workers keep leaving the workforce without enough entering to replace them. But 2020’s surge in renovation demand only exacerbated it.

This presents a few challenges:

• Finding contractors who treat their crew well enough to attract and keep them on
• Avoiding contractors who use shady, sub-par crews to fill the labor gap
• Finding contractors who don’t use the skilled labor shortage as an opportunity to overcharge their customers

So, what’s the solution?

Find a home improvement company with a trusted network of subcontractors, crews, and other specialists — ideally, one with a history of working well with subcontractors and maintaining solid local relationships over time.

Subcontractor and Crew Problems

We can’t overstate how critical it is to use a contractor who can retain an excellent set of skilled laborers and then manage them well.

Once the design is set, the contractor is hired, and the materials are on-hand, the rest of the renovation comes down to the crew’s skill level and work ethic.

Poor workmanship is one of the top construction complaints. It turns out that most homeowners can put up with some noise for a while and can even tolerate a project going over budget. But a shoddy work job is rarely okay with them.

A good contractor should notice poor quality work, and homeowners who are well-informed and highly involved will often catch things.

This provides the chance to correct an error while the project is ongoing. However, this wastes time and money and is guaranteed to cause delayed or prolonged renovations.

It’s also common for poor workmanship to go unnoticed until long after the work is finished. You might notice squeaky floorboards or lifting tiles when everything should be in good condition.

If you aren’t interested in micromanaging, try using a home improvement company that manages contractors, subcontractors, and crews on your behalf.

Budget Overruns

Home renovations don’t have a good track record for staying within the budget. Here’s some data from the 2020 U.S. Houzz & Home Study:

• 31% of homeowners ended up over budget
• 36% of homeowners ended up right on budget
• 3% of homeowners ended up under budget 
• 29% of homeowners didn’t bother setting a firm budget

This data shows that only 39% of homeowners ended up on or under budget. Budgetary issues are often delayed further if homeowners need to refinance or rework their plans. 

Budget overruns are usually a planning and management issue. Some contractors like to low-ball their quotes so they can win a job, while others just let things get out of control.

Want to keep your budget tight? Work with a home improvement company that’s used to keeping things tight.

Good Solo Contractors are Booked Out

Home remodeling projects are in demand. And so are reputable, preferred contractors.

Top contractors with a track record of completing projects on time, staying within budget, doing quality work, and handling their crews well almost always have lengthy waiting lists.

Waiting lists tend to happen with self-employed contractors whose companies’ operations depend on their presence.

Unfortunately, working with a solo contractor leaves your project’s timeframe at the mercy of their professional and personal schedule. And that always results in your renovation getting done far later than it could be.

Here’s an alternative: try using a well-run home improvement franchise that can get the job done without relying on one contractor or project manager. It’s the best way to prevent scheduling inconveniences from delaying your renovation.

The Design

A beautiful design doesn’t always translate into reality. Always ensure you have a clear picture of what you want, then communicate it clearly to the contractor, so they understand.

• Make sure the contractor has a good understanding of what you want
• Make sure the contractor can pull off the design
• Make sure you know exactly what you want

Many homeowners think they’re on the same page with their contractor, only to realize down the line that they had completely different visions. Contractor errors and design regret mean scheduling delays and further costs.

You shouldn’t have to micromanage a contractor to see if they are carrying out your vision and giving you what you want.

Want to avoid this problem? Use a home improvement franchise that guides you through the design process, then takes care of construction for you.

What’s a better way to do a home renovation?

Many things can go wrong on the job. When you look at it closely, most problems come down to poor management skills. The most talented contractors, flooring installers, tilers, and painters aren’t always great designers, managers, or communicators.

But that’s what it takes to get a job done smoothly and with as few delays or interruptions as possible.

That’s one of the reasons why many homeowners don’t like hiring contractors on their own. They aren’t always sure whom to trust, don’t want to risk a project going wrong, and don’t want to place themselves in financial jeopardy.

That’s normal. But there’s a new and better way to get your projects done. One that doesn’t leave you exposed or in charge of things you don’t need to be involved in. And that’s Footprints Floors.

Footprints Floors – A Better Home Improvement Franchise

Footprints Floors provides American homeowners with a consistently positive home improvement experience. That’s because we don’t leave our Franchise Owners to run things independently. It’s a wood floor franchise with a tight central team and streamlined franchises.

Our customers never worry about scheduling inconveniences, delays, or personnel problems. They simply get a smooth renovation experience where everything is taken care of.

No matter where they are in the country, homeowners can trust Footprints for a beautiful wood floor renovation done on time and within budget.

If you’re interested in learning more about our home care franchise, please visit our franchise website for more information.

Do Home Renovations Boost Home Value?

Home renovations and remodeling projects are just about as hot as the housing market! That’s probably because most homeowners are eager to make the most of a still-strong market and boost their home’s value.

It’s a nationwide phenomenon. Homeowners from coast to coast are racing to upgrade, improve, and update their property – all in hopes of ramping up their home’s valuation.

Regions Bank conducted a national homeowners survey. It found that almost half of American homeowners are planning to renovate their houses to boost their value within the next year. That’s up 7% from last year.

Homeownership and renovations go hand in hand. It makes sense for people who are planning to stay in their home long-term and makes sense for owners who are getting ready to sell. A good remodeling job will improve the living environment, help maintain the home, and should add to the home’s value.

Most renovations will increase a home’s valuation to some degree. But does that translate into added equity? Will a renovation increase the home’s valuation by more than it costs to complete it?

Not so much.

Several financial and real estate industry reports have shown that most home renovations don’t create more value than they cost the homeowners. And to make things worse, in many cases when renovating a house can make it more difficult to sell.

Of course, maximizing the value in order to sell isn’t always what homeowners are concerned about. Many are primarily concerned with refining their personal living spaces. But this isn’t good news for anyone who wants to recoup their financial investment or make their home highly attractive to buyers.

Home renovations shouldn’t be done based on looks alone. It’s important to know what you can expect to recoup – whether or not you plan to sell.

Would you invest in a hype or ‘meme’ stock without considering the company’s financials? Or buy the nicest looking car without evaluating how long it will last or what repairs you might have to make?

Hopefully not. Likewise, you’ve got to know which home improvement projects can deliver the biggest bang for your buck before you get started. This is a quick guide to what kind of value you can expect to get back from popular home renovations.

What kind of home renovation projects create the least home value?

Let’s start by looking into what’s not financially worth it. Last year, housing industry intelligence platform Zonda Media released its 34th annual Cost vs Value report.

This report detailed the value generated by the top 22 home renovation projects. It gave the cold, hard truth about what some of those renovation projects deliver in cost recovered value.

With the lowest ROI:

• Mid-range master suite addition: 55%
• Major upscale kitchen remodeling: 54%
• Mid-range bathroom addition: 53%
• Upscale bathroom addition: 53%
• Deluxe master suite addition: 48%

With a higher ROI:

• Garage door replacement: 94%
• Manufactured stone veneer: 92%
• Minor kitchen remodeling:  72%
• Fiber cement siding replacement: 69%
• Vinyl window replacement: 69%

According to these statistics, the average homeowner only recovered around 66% of their renovation costs in additional value. Many recovered only a fraction of what they had spent.

It’s difficult to successfully track the total cost of home improvements, upgrades, and updates onto the selling price.

Buyers just aren’t willing to bear the entire financial burden of existing work done by someone else. They take it for granted that a home should be in good condition, are prone to find faults with a home no matter what you’ve done, and prefer to personalize their future living space to their own tastes.

This is why changing something on the exterior – like the garage door or the siding – is statistically proven to boost a home’s value more than putting in a swanky new master bedroom suite.

So, if you’re looking to create the most home value possible, it’s best to stay away from these kinds of renovation projects.

Which home renovations create the most home value?

So, where does the value lie? We’ll have to look to get clued in by inside information from the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry.

According to their joint 2022 Remodeling Impact Report, there are only two projects proven to boost a home’s value beyond the cost.

• Hardwood floor refinishing: ROI of 147%
• Hardwood floor installation: ROI of 118%

Yes, that’s right. Hardwood flooring projects are the only remodeling and renovation work that create more value than they cost!

Simply refinishing and polishing an old beaten-up wooden floor is the most profitable upgrade a homeowner can make. A brand-new installation might cost a bit more, but it’s still financially lucrative for homeowners who choose to invest in it.

That shouldn’t be a surprise. Hardwood floors are attractive to a broad group of potential buyers. They reflect classic taste, are healthier to live with than carpets, and are incredibly durable.

It’s a neutral choice that caters to the cost-conscious, value-minded, those with upscale tastes, singles, young buyers, families with children, etc. It’s hard to find a buyer who doesn’t like hardwood flooring. And if one doesn’t – it’s easy to cover it up with their preferred flooring type.

Hardwood has universal appeal as a high-quality, long-lasting home finishing. And this makes it the single remodeling project that homeowners can rely on to create more value than it costs them.

Providing America’s homeowners with affordable, hardwood flooring

Footprints Floors is a home care, Christian Franchise dedicated to providing our customers with affordable wood flooring.

We focus on hardwood floors because that’s the only home improvement service statistically proven to generate home equity. It’s beautiful, ecologically responsible, lasts long, and boosts a home’s value.

We’re proud of our work and the Franchise Owners who carry out our faith-based mission every day.

Please visit our franchise website for more information on what we stand for and how to start a flooring company.

These Home Renovation Projects Receive the Best Return on Investment!

Did you know that only one kind of home renovation project creates more home value than it costs to carry out? That might come as a bit of a surprise. After all, mainstream thinking considers home improvement work a wise investment.

Americans are proud homeowners who routinely pour over $400 billion a year on home renovations! That’s a lot of cash.

It works out to close to $5,000 per year for each one of the American homeowners. And for many of them, these home renovations represent one of the most significant single chunks out of their yearly spending budget.

This level of spending does make sense. Home is far more than a sanctuary. It often represents an investment, a safety net, and a retirement plan. Almost every homeowner wants to take care of their property, keep it in good condition, and periodically spruce things up – whether they’re selling or staying.

It’s natural for homeowners to feel safe investing their money into their homes. Aside from a few renovating purely for personal enjoyment, most are expecting a healthy return on what they’ve put in.

However, that’s not always the case. It isn’t even the norm!

Most renovations don’t pay off in a selling value high enough to recoup their costs. Not only that, but many renovations are simply bad investments that can lessen a home’s selling power.

So, do you know which projects deliver the best return on investment? It’s a good idea to find out before you start throwing a hammer around.

We’ll cover that in a moment, but first, let’s go over what Americans typically choose to put their renovation money into.

What are the most common home renovation projects?

According to one home industry outlet, the ten most popular home renovations are:

• Floors and ceilings
• Plumbing fixtures
• Built-in appliance replacements
• Windows and doors
• Water heaters
• Roofing
• Landscaping and irrigation
• Air conditioning
• Minor bathroom remodeling
• Electrical wiring and safety features

Some of these renovations are cosmetic. Others are to make a home safer, improve its efficiency, make the interior a little more contemporary, or take care of needed repairs.

So, are these the ones that deliver a positive return on investment?

The ROI of Common Home Renovation Projects

The National Association of Realtors and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry took a deep dive into the average cost recovery of standard exterior and interior home renovation projects. Here’s what they found.

The ROI of Exterior Home Renovation Projects:

• Fiberglass front door: 60%
• Steel front door: 63%
• Wood windows: 63%
• Vinyl windows: 67%
• Vinyl siding: 82%
• Fiber cement siding: 86%
• Garage doors: 100%
• Roofing: 100%

The ROI of Interior Home Renovation Projects:

• New primary bedroom suite addition: 56%
• New bathroom addition: 63%
• Kitchen upgrade: 67%
• Bathroom renovation: 71%
• Complete kitchen renovation: 75%
• Converting an attic to a living area: 75%
• Closet renovation: 83%
• Converting a basement to a living area: 86%
• Upgrading the insulation: 100%
• New wood flooring: 118%
• Refinishing hardwood flooring: 147%

Where does the actual investment value lie?

This report isn’t an outlier. Housing industry intelligence consistently shows that only a few home renovation projects are suitable financial investments.

Many remodeling projects will enhance the quality of life and add to a home’s ambiance, but those generally don’t translate into monetary returns.

Creating a new bedroom might be suitable for a young family who wants to grow in place, but the next buyer might find it a little too small. A new bathroom addition can quash early morning arguments in a large family, but the next buyer might find it unnecessary or think it’s in an awkward location. 

Touching up a home’s exterior doors, windows, and siding can undoubtedly add to the curb appeal, but that isn’t shown to create much ROI.

Only a handful of home improvement projects have proven to bring back at least as much value as they cost. Those are:

• garage doors
• roofing
• and insulation

Homeowners who choose to work on the home’s exterior purely for financial investment purposes are wasting their money unless they need to do a roofing or garage door replacement. 

It’s also a pretty good idea to replace old insulation – especially since that can improve the home’s energy efficiency.

However, there’s only one way for homeowners who want to invest in a home renovation that will make them some money.

It’s a classic hardwood floor.

Hardwood Flooring is the Single Best Home Renovation Investment

The remodeling impact study found that hardwood flooring refinishing and installation renovations resulted in a positive ROI.

A hardwood flooring refinishing project that costs $3,400 to complete was estimated to bring in around $5,000. That’s 174% ROI. A new wood flooring installation project that costs approximately $5,500 to complete was estimated to bring in roughly $6,500 in recovered costs, putting this ROI at 118%.

Once the flooring was complete, virtually every homeowner wanted to spend more time at home and took more enjoyment in their dwelling space.

There’s always more than money at stake when it comes to our homes and living spaces. True home investment enhances the livability while adding to its valuation.

That’s the true allure of hardwood flooring. It’s a beautiful and durable way to improve a home’s value and elevate your living space. 

Invest in Premium Hardwood Flooring at Affordable Pricing

Hardwood flooring has always been perceived as a premium home product. Unfortunately, its product and service pricing often reflects that. Many homeowners choose to stick with second or third-rate flooring options.

Today, homeowners across the country now have a way to get hardwood flooring installed or refinished at affordable prices. It’s through our wood floor franchise – Footprints Floors.

Footprints Floors provides quality hardwood flooring installations, repairs, and refinishing without the high markups or premium fees!

Our home improvement franchises are tightly run. We don’t stock inventory and then charge a fee to make up for storage costs. And our home-based franchises don’t have expensive real estate overhead costs that we need to recoup monthly.

We simply focus on providing our customers with excellent service. That’s what makes us different. If you want to experience more Footprints for yourself, please visit our franchise website for more information.