The Reno Coach to the rescue!

We were in the middle of our first floor renovation when our contractor at the time pulled a fast one on us and left us in a mess(wont go into details of that as its irrelevant to The Reno Coach review)Its not enough to say that we were shocked and stuck! I heard of Reiner from The Reno Coach trough a friend who used him before for his own house renovation and raved about it.Gave him a call and our nightmare was over!!Reiner took over a project and had everything done on time and budget!The first floor in our house is finaly done,we have moved few walls around,created an open concept,redone our kitchen and put a skylight in our hallway.Reiner was so confident,organized and comforting,especialy after our bad experience with the first contractor.We cant say enough about his professionalism.We highly recomend him for your next house renovation!

Renovation Leads to Separation – Staying Together After All the Work is Done

by: Rosalin Smith-Carr on August 21st, 2009

If you’re thinking about moving ahead with a home remodelling project, the following are some factors to consider. This is tried and true advice gleaned from over 25 years of consulting with clients in Toronto on home buying, moving, selling and renovating. It will not only save you financially, but emotionally as well. Speaking of emotions . . .

Toronto Home Remodelling: Can Your Family Afford the Emotional Cost?
There is an old idiomatic expression in the real estate industry that goes, “Renovation leads to separation.” This is especially true if the family inhabits the home while the renovation is taking place. Noise, dust, cramped quarters and dealing with unreliable contractors take a huge toll on even the most stable relationship.

This is added stress on top of professional responsibilities, child rearing and other day-to-day pressures. This is why I have always found that the most important factor to consider when deciding whether or not to renovate is not the financial cost, but the emotional cost.

After all, what good is a newly renovated home when there is no family left intact to enjoy it?

Toronto Home Remodelling: When It Makes Sense to Move Forward
If your family is prepared to weather the emotional toll, following is when it makes sense to move forward with a home remodelling project.

You Love Your Home: This is probably the best reason. If you love the basic bones of your house, its location, and the feel of the neighbourhood, then remodelling makes sense – if it’s within reason (which we’ll discuss in just a bit).

The Costs are in Line with the Neighbourhood: You can easily spend too much on a home renovation project. Following are two questions to ask that will help you keep costs in line with your desires.

The first question you need to ask – and answer – before proceeding is, “Does it make sense to spend this amount of money, on this home, in this area?” You want to be able to answer “yes” emphatically. The second question is, “When all the work is done, will my home be the most expensive home on the street?” The answer to this question should be “no.”

The reason is, any improvements you make should be those that a future buyer will be willing to pay for.

Remember, potential homebuyers pay relative to what other homes in that vicinity have sold for. So no matter how much that slate tile in the master bath costs or how great it looks, if it puts your home in the “most expensive” category, it’s unlikely you’ll recoup what you spent.

Toronto Home Remodelling: Make Sure Moving Is Not a Better Option
As renovating can get expensive – quickly - sometimes it makes sense to move. To illustrate, consider this: let’s say you own a beautiful two-bedroom, semi-detached home on a lovely, quiet street. You need a third bedroom and would like to have a family room on the ground floor. You’d also like a pool.

Do you think it would be a good idea to have all of these changes and additions done to your existing home? My experienced opinion is, “Probably not.” Why?

These are significant changes. You’re not remodelling, you’re rebuilding. In real estate speak, changes like this make you a classic “move-up buyer”; one who wants a detached home with a private driveway and a larger lot size. It would be better to buy a home with these features than remodel your existing one.

Toronto Home Remodelling: Get First-hand Advice before Making a Final Decision
No matter what your decision, get some helpful first-hand advice before making it. Seek out the following three people:
(i) an experienced, local real estate agent. They’ll be able to advise you on tangibles like resale value;
(ii) someone who has gone through a similar home remodelling project. They’ll be able to tell you what to expect, e.g., cost, how long it’s going to take, recommend contractors, etc.; and
(iii) a contractor who can provide you total costs for your Toronto home remodelling project.

Couple's renovation nightmare is demolished

City officials said the collapsed foundation rendered the entire structure unsafe. A close-up showing the damage to the home's foundation. Couple's renovation nightmare is demolished ctvtoronto.ca When Kyla Prashad and her husband started renovating their home in Toronto's east end, they hoped to finish the repairs themselves and re-sell the house for a modest profit. Instead, the young couple is facing a $100,000 demolition bill after city officials labelled the house unsafe. The couple, who have a young daughter, had yet to live in the two-storey house and invested tens of thousands of dollars into fixing it up. To make matters worse, the couple was told that since they did the renovations themselves, insurance won't cover the tab to take the house down. "This has basically been our dream, and it's all coming crashing down - and we have to pay for it (to come) crashing down," Prashad told CTV Toronto's Dana Levenson Tuesday. During the renovations, the couple made some excavations in the home's basement, but heavy rains over the weekend led to flooding water that weakened the supporting walls. On Sunday, the foundation walls collapsed in on themselves. Now, only the front and back walls are holding up the house, and city officials say the entire home is completely unstable and must come down. On Tuesday, a large gap was visible between the ground and the bottom of the home's side wall. "The entire foundation wall of the building has basically collapsed into itself, and we have a building that's in an unsafe condition," a city official told Levenson. The demolition was slated to start Tuesday morning, but was delayed until later in the afternoon. Prashad, along with her husband Jason Carey, planned on using the profits from the sale to pay for the renovations and to clear some debt. "I just hope that this is actually the right thing that's happening," said Prashad. With a report from CTV Toronto's Dana Levenson