13 Often Overlooked Costs Involved in Bathroom Remodeling

How many things do you think that you need to think about when you are planning your bathroom remodel? Fifty? One hundred? A few hundred? 

We don’t know the exact number, but there are a lot, and you may overlook a few of them, especially those that involve your budget. 

Here are 13 often overlooked costs involved in bathroom remodeling:

1. Permits: You may think that since you have a plan in place and a contractor ready to do the work that you are all set. You may be wrong about that though, because many areas require you to have a permit in place and approved before you do any of the work.

2. Testing for Asbestos: Depending on when your house was constructed, you may need to have your bathroom tested for asbestos. The bad news is that the testing costs money, as does the removal if it happens to be there. The good news is that your home will be safer afterwards.

3. Dumpster: Not everyone factors in the cost of the dumpster, which is needed when any demolition work is being done. However, without this item, you will have nowhere to put all the debris.

4. Mold: You never know when and where mold is going to pop up, but you may want to be prepared if it is discovered during your bathroom remodel.

5. Old Plumbing: You may have thought that your old pipes had years of life left in them, but your contractor may discover something different once they get your bathroom torn apart. There is no point in doing all this work in your bathroom to get it looking nice without replacing the pipes, because you will need to tear everything apart to replace them eventually.

6. Bad Wiring: The wiring in older homes is not as sophisticated as newer wiring, which means that your contractor may discover that some or all your wiring needs to be replaced. It is better to know now, before an electrical fire starts or you discover that you can’t use something that you need to in your bathroom.

7. Bugs: Bugs can be found anywhere in your home, but especially in the bathroom where there is a lot of moisture. Opening a wall to find these little creatures can be a surprise that both you and your contractor don’t want.

8. Moving Fixtures: Most homeowners do not consider the fact that it is going to cost them more to move the fixtures in their bathroom, so they plan for it without thinking of the repercussions.

9. Exhaust Fans: Everyone knows that they need an exhaust fan in their bathroom to draw all the excess moisture out, but not many realize that the cost of installing one needs to be factored into their overall costs.

10. Hooks and Towel Bars: These items are always forgotten, because they are one of the last things installed during a bathroom remodel. Neither one costs a lot of money, but they still need to be added onto the budget.

11. Sealant for Tiles: The tiles on your bathroom floor will need to be sealed to prevent damage from water and moisture, but this is something that many people forget to factor into their budget.

12. Paint: You know that your walls are going to need to be covered with something, but that doesn’t mean that you are going to remember to put paint under your expenses in your budget.

13. Small Items: All those smaller items like soap dispensers, wastebaskets, artwork, and even a plunger should have their own expense lines for your budget.

Costs both large and small need to be included in your budget for your bathroom remodel, even though you may be tempted to forget about some of them to make the numbers work. We do not recommend leaving anything out, simply because you may find that you will need to live without certain items until you can save up the rest of the money to pay for them.