10 Things to Do After Your Home Remodel

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You made it—after weeks or months of hard work and stress, your home remodel is finished. However, there’s still work to do. Here are 10 things you’ll likely have to do after your home remodel.

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Before you pay that final bill, have a final walkthrough with your builder or contractor. Walk through each room that had work done and point out anything you’re not 100 percent satisfied with. Good contractors will also look for imperfections and will take care of any issues.

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Get Ready to Clean

Home remodels are messy. Not only will there likely be a little bit of scrap left behind (think a stray paint brush, box of nails or wrappers), but your home will need a thorough cleaning. There are companies that specialize in post-construction cleanup to take some of the stress off your shoulders.

Paint

Get ready to grab a paint brush. Sometimes during a home remodel, walls or trim can get scratched and depending on your contract, fixing it may be out of the scope of the project. In case the ceilings got dinged, here’s how to paint a ceiling.

Register Warranties

Take some time to go through any new product or appliance manuals and fill out any warranty cards, then get them sent in or enter the information online, if that’s an option. Taking the time to complete this step will help you avoid a lot of hassle if the new dishwasher fails and floods your kitchen.

Buy New Furniture

If your home remodel included an addition or completely changing the space, you will likely need to buy some furniture. Make sure to take measurements before you start shopping to ensure the items will fit in your new space. If you want to save some money, try these easy upgrades that will make your old furniture look new.

Dust

After most home remodels, there’s dust everywhere—in kitchen drawers, cabinets and even in areas of the home that didn’t see any work. Even if you do hire a post-construction cleaning crew, you may still end up doing some dusting yourself.

Check or Change Filters

Depending on the length of your home remodel and what type of work was done, it ‘s a good idea to change your furnace filters.

Update Insurance

You’re going to want to give your homeowner’s insurance company a call after your home remodel, because you’ll likely need to adjust the limits of your policy. Depending on the type of project, a city assessor may have to come to appraise your updated home.

Create a Maintenance Checklist

Did your home remodel include materials you aren’t familiar with, such as natural stone tile or hardwood floors? Now’s the time to learn how to care for these materials and create a maintenance checklist. This will help ensure your home is well-maintained for years to come.

Get Ready for the Camera

Once your home remodel is finished and you’re settled back in, your builder or contractor may want to have professional photos taken of your space to show prospective clients. You may also be asked to be a reference for the contractor. Of course this is all up to you, so take into consideration how you felt the project went, if you felt comfortable working with the contractor and if you’d be happy to recommend them to friends or family.

For more guidance, here are our best kitchen remodeling ideas and tips.