Home Project Summary

Update Living Room

Ideas, costs, tips and plans - the information you need for a successful Living Room Makeover project

February 2011

Homeowners have many important questions about their Living Room Makeover Project. How much will it cost? How long will it take? What problem areas do I need to watch out for? Can I recover my Living Room Makeover investment when I sell? Can I do some of the work myself? What can I do to make sure that the work is done right?

Costs, materials and best practices for the example Living Room Makeover project will help you answer these questions. Use this information to develop a budget, bid requirements, hiring contracts and a project plan.

Use the following information to understand your options, make good decisions and get quality work at a fair price.

Living Room Makeover - Project Overview

The approximate costs and value of a typical Living Room Makeover project are summarized below. Use higher estimates for larger metropolitan areas and the lower estimates where home prices are below the national average. Adjust costs for substitutions or refinements in the last section. For size differences of up to 25%, scale total costs in direct proportion to the size of your project. Use the adjusted costs as a basis for setting a material budget and for comparing contractor bids (if you choose to have a professional perform the work).

Project description	Update living room finishes and materials. Update flooring, doors, switchplates and decorative hardware. Add built-in speakers, wall mounting system for flat screen television, crown molding and recessed lighting. Install new window treatments. Use above average grade of materials, fabrication and installation quality. Estimated costs do not include furniture and flat screen television.
Project size	205 square feet of renovation
Material and labor cost	$5,805 - $6,773
Material cost	$3,321 - $3,875
Do-it-yourself assessment	The typical Living Room Makeover project can be completed by a moderately skilled do-it-yourselfer; as with any project, high quality Living Room Makeover requires attention to detail and careful planning.
First year Return on Investment - ROI	Returns vary widely and are affected by the range of home prices in your neighborhood, the overall condition of your home and sensible design choices. A high quality Living Room Makeover project in an appropriate neighborhood can return as much as 77% - 91% of its initial cost.
Long term Return on Investment - ROI	Actual returns vary widely and are affected by the range of home prices in your neighborhood, the overall condition of your home and sensible design choices. A good quality Living Room Makeover project in the right neighborhoods can return 61% - 72% of its initial cost.
Green rating	Living Room Makeover projects can incorporate renewable or sustainable resources and environmentally friendly materials.

Living Room Makeover - Proven Ideas and Project Tips

Review these tips, design suggestions, options and lessons learned before finalizing your Living Room Makeover project plan.

To maximize return on the Living Room Makeover project, limit cost to no more than 2% of home's total, post project value
For best home resale value, follow a consistent design and decorating theme throughout the home
Recess speakers into walls or ceiling to share media system access and create room ambiance
For best resale value, select a taste neutral design for your Living Room Makeover
For best resale value, select components, appliances, finishes and fixtures of comparable quality
Use separate, individually controllable lighting circuits for ambient and task lighting
Use underfloor electrical receptacle(s) to provide interior portion of room with cord free electrical power
Select finish treatments that harmonize with furniture and statement accessories

Living Room Makeover - Project Plan and Details

The following list includes major work tasks commonly performed during Living Room Makeover. Use this list to understand the timing and sequence of different steps in the Living Room Makeover project. Click any Task name for a complete written specifications, FAQs and quality checklist for the task - this essential information will help you control Living Room Makeover project cost and quality.

Task

Service Provider

Duration

Do-it-yourself difficulty

Target cost

Develop Living Room Decorating Ideas

Interior Designer

3 to 5 d

Level 3 - Complex, Difficult

$380 - $635

Prepare Living Room Design

Interior Designer