The $30,000 Bathroom Addition in Waukesha, WI

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Age: 36

Location: Waukesha, WI

How much did you pay for your home?

$250,000–$500,000

What was the project, and why did you do it?

Bathroom addition, bathroom renovation, and new flooring in the bedroom

How many quotes did you get? Did you price shop at all?

Four. I shopped around a bit, went to a few bathroom-specific companies, and ended up using a general contractor.

What did you think it was going to cost?

$20,000

What did it actually cost?

$30,000

Why the difference?

The contractor made a few mistakes and had to redo them. 

(Not to mention: A few years later, we ended up having to replace a shower and re-tile a shower floor.) 

How did you get the money to pay for the project?

Savings

What did you splurge on that was totally worth it?

We splurged on a floor-to-ceiling shower enclosure for the primary bedroom en suite. With the custom shower walls, tile floor, and wall tile it cost $10,000+.

What did you splurge on that totally wasn’t worth it?

Double vanity. It must have been $5,000; the same one with a different material would have cost half the price.

Did you cut any corners?

I ended up doing all the baseboard and trim myself. Now I know what hard work it is—I made over 100 trips between the second story and basement to make additional cuts because my measurements were off. 

I totally should have hired a pro to do this for me—it would have saved so much time! 

What was the most surprising cost?

Glass shower walls! [It cost] $3,000 for custom shower walls, and it took forever.

What was the most stressful, emotional, or exciting part of the project?

I'll never forget when the contractors forgot to seal up a hole in the floor and our cat got in there (somehow). I ended up having to cut an additional hole in the floor to get him out. 

Any advice?

HIRE PROFESSIONALS! Do not try to cut corners to save even $1,000 dollars.