Home Upgrades to Consider in 2022

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A home renovation project aims to improve the property’s aesthetic appeal and overall value. However, not all upgrades can deliver visual and functional benefits to your home. Understanding the implications of different home upgrades can help you determine how to customize and plan the project to meet your goals. Nevertheless, consider some of the essential home upgrades in 2022. 

Bathroom Remodels 

Bathroom renovations might seem expensive, but even minor upgrades can significantly boost your home’s value. Remodeling a mid-sized bathroom costs an average of $27,164 but can generate a return on investment of about 58.9%. Consider minor remodels such as changing the bathroom mirrors, refinishing the cabinets, upgrading the hardware, and painting the walls.  

Lawn Care 

Improving the lawn in your home can effectively transform the looks and feel of the entire property. You do not have to undertake a large landscaping project to upgrade the yard. Instead, mowing the grass, removing the weeds, adding some plants, and applying fertilizer can do the trick. Proper lawn care gives the impression of a well-cared-for home. 

Interior and Exterior Paintwork 

Applying fresh paint on the interior and exterior walls makes your home look stylish and inviting. You can even choose colors that perfectly match your lifestyle and the environment. Unlike most home remodels, painting is a DIY task that homeowners can perform independently, without much trouble. However, you may also want to hire a professional for the ultimate touch. 

Deck and Patio 

A patio or a deck addition creates extra spaces for enjoying the outdoors. Although building the features can be costly, decks and patios improve the home’s overall appeal and value, with better returns on your investments. 

There are several other kinds of home upgrades that you may still want to undertake. However, please prioritize the above upgrades to elevate your home’s aesthetic appeal, functionality and value.  …

Budget Tips for a Home Renovation

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 Budgeting for a home renovation project is a challenging and tedious process. You must establish what to do and what you desire to achieve from the renovation project. Keep in mind that most renovations cost more than you initially thought. Therefore, ensure that you save some in case of emergencies. Check our expert advice for tips on budgeting your home renovation process.

 Determine How You Will Finance the Project

Please look at your finances to determine whether they can cover the renovation process before starting. If your funds can’t finance the project, you’ll need to borrow money for the project. You can decide to take up a home equity loan for cash. Some homeowners use credit cards to finance their renovation, but you have to plan how you will repay the credit card. You don’t want others to chase you for failing to pay their credit cards off.

 Consult Others

I believe some people have experienced the renovation process first hand. Talk to them, and you will gain knowledge and experience on having a successful renovation project. You will pick a thing or two on cutting costs and budget accordingly. They will advise you on what to do and what not. You will learn from their mistakes and save a substantial amount of money that you can spend elsewhere.

 Cut Costs Where Possible

Cutting costs where you can is not a bad idea as it may sound. And it’s essential if you are working with a tight budget. Consider purchasing your construction materials when stores have clearance sales to get better deals. Also, do some tasks such as painting if you’re a handy person instead of hiring an expert. But only do that if you are confident that you can do an excellent job.

 Renovating a home can be an all-consuming process. With the above tips, you can plan a budget successfully.…

Tips for Managing Construction Risks

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Managing risks in construction entails identifying them and evaluating the most effective procedures for mitigating their impact. And this can involve monitoring, planning, and controlling risks. Here are practical tips to help you manage construction risks during your project.

Risks Identification

Your construction project can have unique risks. Therefore, start by identifying risks that are unique to your construction project. Make sure that you’ve done this during pre-construction to allow your team adequate time to manage them. Perhaps, you can have a brainstorming session with stakeholders and your team and then conceptualize all potential scenarios affecting your project. At the same time, groups should contribute their expertise and knowledge.

Prioritize Risks

Once you’ve identified the risks of your construction project, prioritize them based on their potential impact and chances of materializing. If possible, use numbers like percentages and dollar amounts for risk analysis. Start by handling high-probability and high-impact risks while addressing low-probability and low-impact risks last.

Formulate a Risk Response Strategy

After identifying and prioritizing risks, pick the most effective response strategies for them. Some of the risk response strategies you can use include:

  • Avoiding risk: Avoiding risk is the safest option in a construction project. For instance, you can skip a construction project in an area that experiences earthquakes more often.
  • Risk transfer: This option may be costly, but it’s better than accepting a risk. For instance, you can enter an agreement with subcontractors or suppliers or transfer the responsibility to your insurer.
  • Mitigate the risk: This option entails creating a plan that will minimize the impacts of a threat. For instance, you can provide safety equipment and train workers to lessen a safety risk.
  • Accept the risk: In some cases, you may have no option but to accept risk. For instance, bad weather can delay your project, but you can develop a plan to help you complete the project on time.

Implement a Risk Management Plan

Once you’ve assessed your construction project risks, come up with a plan for managing them. Your risk management plan should optimize your response strategy by providing crucial information and practical solutions to transfer, mitigate, or accept risks. Also, provide the necessary resources for dealing with the risks.

Effective construction risk management requires the involvement of all teams. Also, create contingencies, like having alternative techniques for completing a construction project even when facing risks.…

Common Frauds in Construction

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Fraud is constantly increasing in current difficult economic times. Tight credit and financial pressures are the key drivers of this vice. Construction contracts are particularly vulnerable to different types of fraud because of their multiple suppliers, subcontractors, and several cost inputs. For this reason, project owners, managers, superintendents, and managers should watch for fraud vigilantly. Here are common scams to be wary about during a construction project.

Payment Applications Falsification

False payment applications are up to over half of frauds in the construction industry. And they happen via line items, erroneous totals, false invoices, inflated rates, and roll-forward errors. Project accounts and project managers can falsify payment applications to cater for personal items purchases or funnel the funds to phantom companies under their control. This fraud can also include inflated subcontractor bills and wage rates. Therefore, monitor and scrutinize pay applications for irregularities and errors.

Unperformed Bills

Subcontractors can bill a project owner or contractor for work they have not done. They can also overstate their production units, equipment, and labor units. Such claims are false, and they make the person making them an offending subcontractor.

Subcontractor Collusion

Price fixing and bid-rigging are also common frauds in construction. Pre-approving and pre-qualifying subcontractors are essential because they provide the job’s full scope on which to bid. That way, you can select the most qualified, most responsive, and lowest-priced subcontractor. Also, set rules for the construction contractor to avoid bid-rigging. Bid rotation, kickbacks, bribes, inflated or false change orders should immediately disqualify the subcontractor.  

Other common frauds in construction include change orders manipulation. Contingency accounts and schedule of value manipulation, material removal and substitution, lump-sum cost diversion to material cost and time, stealing equipment, and false representation are also common frauds in construction. Paying attention to these frauds will help you to keep your construction project within its budget.…