Remodeling Magazine’s Cost vs. Value report puts the average bathroom remodel at $16,128. This figure simply screams “bad idea” or “not anytime soon” for many homeowners. Still, there are many out there who need to improve old homes or updates ones they need to sell. Can anything be done? Here’s the good news. A better bathroom IS possible without the high investment, and for some homeowners, a bathroom or kitchen upgrade is only a few hundred dollars away!
Re-Grouting: Enhance Tiled Spaces Without Breaking the Bank
Owners of newer homes might be have little worry about how their tile looks. In older houses, however, perfectly functional tile may end up looking terrible due to stains, discoloration, mold or mildew growth, and simply the effects of age on your grout.
The national average cost of professional tile or grout repair is $440, and cruising the web, it is actually difficult to find bathroom re-grouting jobs that break (or even approach) the $500 mark. The real kicker: your new grout won’t only look better and offer more options than your old grout, it will keep its appearance longer, too!
Resurface a Bathtub
In many bathrooms, the fixtures that are already in place are completely functional but simply look bad due to years of use. Stains in your bathtub that cannot be removed can look unsightly, but the relatively simple and inexpensive process of refinishing can give you a brand new surface and have a dramatic effect on the room as a whole.
Most bathtub refinishing jobs run somewhere between $475 and $600 and can often be completed in 24 hours. Though you may be able to find a brand new bathtub for a couple hundred dollars, when you add in the cost of installing the new tub, removing the old one, and all the other work that goes into tub replacement, the bill is likely to run you thousands. By opting for refinishing, you get a brand new tub surface (of any color you like) in a fraction of the time and cost of replacement; remember, you can refinish sinks and countertops, too!
Install New Mirrors
A good bathroom will have many head-turning facets, but if we’re honest with ourselves, most of us spend a lot more time looking at ourselves in the bathroom than we do the tile, tub, or flooring. Since mirrors are obviously one of the most heavily viewed parts of any bathroom, upgrading the one you have will be a very noticeable improvement. The average cost of mirror installation is $340, which makes it an easy fit for most budgets, and once again, it is not the type of project that will have you barred from your bathroom for days at a time.
Combining Projects
One of the nicest things about really inexpensive remodeling projects is that many budgets can afford more than one. Instead of a single bathroom remodel that involves structural alterations, you may be able to do all three of these smaller (though striking) projects, and in some cases even have change to spare!
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