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A study released in June by Harvard University reported that construction activity on single-family homes hit an all-time high of $206 billion in 2001. The majority of our report doesn't deal with future projections," says Rachel Drew, a researcher at Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies, which conducted the study.
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A Tennessee Court of Appeals will allow the American Subcontractors Association to submit a brief and include oral arguments in a case against a subcontractor. Cubbage says ASA's Subcontractors Legal Defense Fund (SLDF) is funding ASA's involvement in the appeal.
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After just five months, The Service Master Co. and The Home Depot have ended a joint home services program. The program, conducted at The Home Depot stores in Orlando, Fla., Memphis, Tenn., and Sacramento, Calif., tested a range of co-branded residential maintenance and repair services.
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In 1992, the EPA instituted an erosion regulation -- under the authority of the Clean Water Act -- that holds developers, site owners, and contractors on construction sites larger than one acre responsible for the development and implementation of an erosion control plan for that site. The paper quotes Donette Dunaway, a water board staff member, as saying, "Through this enforcement case, we're trying to get the message across that sediment and erosion to our creeks won't be tolerated."
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Whether it be from client-generated change orders, contractor-generated change orders, or unforeseen conditions, the reason doesn't matter. Jill Liptow, of The Remodeling Center, a Pewaukee, Wis., design/build firm, calls it "the final agony."
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One of the biggest reasons remodeling companies don't make money is because job costs are greater than the amount estimated.
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Usually a warranty ceases to be in effect when it expires in writing. That is "on the high side," but not excessive, compared to that of other companies in a peer review group Wills belongs to.
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Gary Crowley, owner of Crowley Construction, recently came back from a 12-day vacation and nobody even knew he was gone. A year and a half ago, fed up with solicitations he received at the office and not particularly happy with the "repetitious and impersonal" nature of answering machines, Crowley got in touch with Contact Communications.
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Anytime you increase space that's centrally heated and air conditioned, you increase the per square foot value of the house," says San Antonio real estate agent Pat Clay. Homeowners usually add a family room because the family's grown or because they're dissatisfied with the configuration or size of their current first-floor layout.
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Does remodeling pay? Our annual report gets to the bottom of the age-old question.
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About one-third of the projects built by Ryan Schleper, owner of All City Builders, Buffalo, Minn., are basements. Schleper says clients want their basements finished for two reasons: They need space, and it's usually about a third of the cost of an addition, because mechanicals, foundation, and outside walls are already in place and no re-landscaping is required.
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For Stephanie Witt, owner of Kitchens by Stephanie, Grand Rapids, Mich., the question comes down to, "Do you want a payback on your investment or the room of your dreams?" Replace all fixtures to include standard-sized tub with ceramic tile surround; toilet; solid-surface vanity counter with integral double sink; recessed medicine cabinet; ceramic tile floor; vinyl wallpaper.
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Seen strictly from the standpoint of resale, carving a bathroom out of existing space, especially in a home that has only one or one and a half baths, might be the most productive remodeling project you can undertake. Even first time buyers, whose expectations may not be as high, "want a master bath and at least one more," she says. Include cultured-marble vanity top, molded sink, standard tub/shower with ceramic tile surround, low-profile toilet, general and spot lighting, mirrored medicine cabinet, linen storage, vinyl wallpaper, and ceramic tile floor.
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Resale values for the 2001 Cost vs. Value Report were estimated by the following real estate professionals.
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People usually add on to stay put, points out Kerry Butler, owner of Butler Construction Services, a full-service remodeling company in Kelso, Wash. "They like the neighborhood, the school district. They've looked at newer, larger homes and decided to invest in the home they have and stay in the neighborhood."Real estate agents agree, rating this project a 94% recoup overall, with the recoup on additions in areas such as Washington, D.C. (177%), and San Francisco (126%) returning even more.
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Bob McCay, owner of McCay Building Company, Birmingham, Ala., says prospective home buyers with experience -- that is, those who've already bought and sold homes -- notice windows. In this year's Cost vs. Value Report, an upscale window replacement project -- with a national average of $15,502 installed -- yields a slightly higher return -- 77% -- than replacement windows at a mid-range price point, with a national average of $9,424.
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As Minnesota remodeler Marty Schirber points out, a homeowner thinking of selling might solicit 10 bids from 10 roofing companies and go with the cheapest.
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Depending on the product and the color, new siding can change the whole shell, the character of the house, as defined by the outside look, says San Antonio real estate agent Pat Clay.
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This year's study offers two gut-and-replace kitchen remodels: a mid-range price project at $43,213 and an upscale kitchen -- same size, different components -- at $70,368. The price difference in specing granite vs. other types of materials for countertops, for example, may be $5,000, Dawn points out, but "it can make a $20,000 difference in the asking price, because of the perception about the quality of the home."
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Minneapolis remodeler Marty Schirber observes that potential home buyers often like some feature of a house simply because it's something they couldn't imagine building for themselves. One such example is a master suite, which Schirber calls "sanity space."