60k Bathroom renovation?

[sjc0816]

I’m obviously going about this the wrong way......but we are looking at having some updates done to our master bathroom. I’ve reached out to two local remodeling companies that have both told us that their average master remodel is 60k. We would never spend that much for many reasons....but am I out of my mind thinking we can get new flooring, vanity, a new tub and shower for $10-15k? We cannot do the renovations ourselves.

Our bathroom is in bad shape.....so this is a necessary update.

[big_owl]

Yes I'd say you're wishful thinking to get a contractor to do all that in the $10k range.  You'd have to buy the cheapest everything - like vinyl floor with no subfloor work, etc. OTOH, $60k is pretty high, but it really depends on your finishes. Fwiw our master bath budget is about $50k with us doing all the work ourselves, but that includes high end finishing on everything, heated brick floor, shiplap ceiling, even an $8k bathtub. Not doing it yourself opens you up to the labor rate which adds up quick.

[JLee]

60..thousand? damn.

My bathroom 'remodel' was wallpaper removal, new paint, new vanity (Costco), new mirror (Amazon), new toilet (Home Depot) w/bidet (Amazon), and was about $1100..

[merula]

Depends on the size of the bathroom and what kind of materials you're looking at, as well as the labor costs in your region, but I really can't see $10-15k being an average amount for that level of bathroom overhaul. I spent $2,500 to redo the shower, floor and vanity in a very small (8x8) bathroom, with cheap porcelain tiles, an Ikea vanity and thrifted light fixture, doing all the work myself. (Granted, a chunk of the money was on fixing some framing/insulation issues, but you have to expect that you'll find something unexpected in any project.) My project took me probably 100 hours, but I was brand-new to tiling, so a pro could've done it in ~40.

You MIGHT be able to get away with $15k if you went with minimal demo (like laying another layer of linoleum on top of the current floor) and a handyman, but if you want it done well, you're going to have to pay for it.

Not that $60k is reasonable, but I think your initial estimate is way too low.

[Greystache]

You could probably get it done for under $15K if you replace existing fixtures with stock, off-the-shelf cabinets, counter tops, and tub/shower enclosures. Keep wall coverings simple (painted drywall instead of tile). Any custom work is going to add cost.  Custom tile work is very labor intensive and costly.  If you want to change the location of shower, tub or toilet, you will add a lot of cost.  Can you use the existing wiring an pipes? Changing wiring and plumbing adds costs.  You can save some cost if you do the demolition yourself. The other thing that can add cost is what you discover when you demolish the existing bathroom. If there is any mold or rot that needs to be fixed it can kill your budget and schedule.

[slappy]

I know you say you have reached out to local people. Have you had anyone come and give an estimate? I imagine that would give you a better idea than just using their "average" numbers.

[Cranky]

This is clearly location dependent. I had both my bathrooms remodeled for around $12k (total, not each.) I used an independent contractor who had done work for friends.

The basement bathroom was basically fixing things that irritated me, but it does look a lot better and no longer irritates me. The upstairs bathroom was gutted down to the studs. It's not all that big, though.

Same guy completely remodeled our kitchen for $17k. My house is now way over improved for the neighborhood, but we get to enjoy it.

[sjc0816]

I know you say you have reached out to local people. Have you had anyone come and give an estimate? I imagine that would give you a better idea than just using their "average" numbers.

No. These contractors know the size and scope of the job we are looking at and cannot get close to our budget. So I don't see the point in having them come out and quote.

We might just have the floors replaced and have our handyman do that. I would REALLY like our disgusting jetted tub gone (we have never used it in 13 years) and replaced with a freestanding tub so I might have him quote that as well. We live in a medium sized midwest metro area and our house is 1900 square feet and worth about 280,000 so it would not make sense to OVER improve anything unless we had a ton of money in which case we'd just move.

[slappy]

I know you say you have reached out to local people. Have you had anyone come and give an estimate? I imagine that would give you a better idea than just using their "average" numbers.

No. These contractors know the size and scope of the job we are looking at and cannot get close to our budget. So I don't see the point in having them come out and quote.

We might just have the floors replaced and have our handyman do that. I would REALLY like our disgusting jetted tub gone (we have never used it in 13 years) and replaced with a freestanding tub so I might have him quote that as well. We live in a medium sized midwest metro area and our house is 1900 square feet and worth about 280,000 so it would not make sense to OVER improve anything unless we had a ton of money in which case we'd just move.

Yeah that sounds like a good idea. I'm very curious where they came up with their average of 60k. It seems like their average is way off from what you are expecting, so maybe an estimate would give a better idea. Either way, I'm sure the handyman would do a great job and would probably appreciate the work right now.

[JLee]

I know you say you have reached out to local people. Have you had anyone come and give an estimate? I imagine that would give you a better idea than just using their "average" numbers.

No. These contractors know the size and scope of the job we are looking at and cannot get close to our budget. So I don't see the point in having them come out and quote.

We might just have the floors replaced and have our handyman do that. I would REALLY like our disgusting jetted tub gone (we have never used it in 13 years) and replaced with a freestanding tub so I might have him quote that as well. We live in a medium sized midwest metro area and our house is 1900 square feet and worth about 280,000 so it would not make sense to OVER improve anything unless we had a ton of money in which case we'd just move.

I'm really curious to see what your tub quote comes out to be -- I also have a jetted tub and the only time it's been on since I bought my house was to clean it, lol.  I'd love to replace it with something else!

[Fishindude]

Seems a bit high to me.
We did an entire new kitchen, gutted to the studs; all new custom cabinets and tops, plumbing, electric, lighting, appliances, flooring, etc. for $40k.

[J Boogie]

Also, keep in mind these companies are getting 60k to do updates to a particular taste.

Many of these folks won't mind the challenge of seeing your bathroom and envisioning what they could do with a $25,000 budget.

They'll avoid things that can rup up the budget, like designer valve trim, expensive stone, moving plumbing and electrical, as well as small format tile or large format tile. Medium size tile (bigger than subway but smaller than 2'x2' or so, which requires a high degree of wall/floor flatness to avoid lippage) can give you decent cost savings.

You can source vanities and other supplies from discount builder outlets locally to save.

[nedwin]

I think your budget for a full remodel may be low if you are hiring all the work, but you need to get actual quotes for your bathroom, including the finishes that you want.  When I replaced a roof I obtained three quotes, and they ranged from $4,500 to $12,000.  Two of the companies walked the roof, measured everything, and gave us a detailed list the materials to be used. The highest quote didn't get out of the pickup and gave us a quote from the driver seat.  From what you describe in your first post, it seems like what you were told as the "average" is more similar to the highest quote I received.

[formerlydivorcedmom]

Definitely ask for details about the quote to see where you can save money.

I had a small master bathroom redone for about $15k - removing a shower (converting to a closet), a new tub and custom tile surround, new floor, new vanity, new lights, etc.  I hired the same guy to redo a larger bathroom (and removed the dreaded jetted tub) for about $20k, but we did all the demo work ourselves.  That saved a significant chunk of money.  Plus, it's fun!  I like hitting things with sledgehammers.

I also had a lot of discussions with the contractor about finishes.  My $15k bathroom has custom cabinets - but there were only a few cabinets - but didn't have the seamless glass tub enclosure I wanted, because that was too pricey for me.

Have you looked yet to see the costs of the main items that you want?  How much is your ideal tub?  What's the range for the grade of tile that you want?  Mirrors, lights, etc?  If you can get a good idea of how much the parts cost, then you can see whether the overall quote seems reasonable or not.

[WalkaboutStache]

You have a tub you have not used in 13 years.  What leads you to think that you need another tub, jetted or not?  You seem to do fine without one.

I'd say focus on the priorities and that will bring your costs down.

[Papa bear]

I will come and redo your bath for 60k. I don’t care where you live, how big it is, or anything. And I will make a shit ton of money. 

We do bathrooms for 2-3k in labor with no changes in layout or structure. That’s been pretty consistent in Ohio, west coast of Florida, or western NY.  Labor would include vinyl floors and tile surrounds.

Go get more quotes.  60k is insane. We did a complete house gut job, All mechanicals, restructuring, 2 bathrooms, and a kitchen for 60k. 


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[WSUCoug1994]

Their average seems high and your expectations seem low.  I also think there is too much work (prior to COVID) for contractors and they will overprice the smaller projects to stay focused on the larger projects (home building, etc).  Their attitudes change quickly when the economy takes a dive and I suspect COVID is likely to have an impact on capacity/flexibility over the coming months.

[twe]

Price the big box store for whatever you want replaced-tile, vanity, lights, etc. Take that number and multiply by 2.75-3 and that's going to approximate what a contractor will charge you. A single person doing everything himself would be less. We did our master bath ourselves for about $15k in materials. That was new vanity, plumbing, light fixtures, tile, heated floor, mirror, glass wall for walk in shower, walk in shower kit, remove the jacuzzi tub and replace it with walk in shower, turn old shower into closet, demolish old closet to expand vanity, and closed off sky light. Plumbing hardware was about $4k for the valves as we added body jets, rain shower, and adjustable wand. We outsourced tile installation for about $1,500.

Quotes we got from 3 separate general contracting firms ranged from $28k-35k for inferior materials and less remodeling than what we did. The value of materials they would have used was under $10k.

Caveat-I live in Ohio in a Medium to Low cost of living area. Like most places, skilled tradespeople are in short supply here.

[ShastaFire]

Well, $60k makes my eyes water.  I would definitely think possible for $20k or less in a midwest location...depends on the bathroom size, how posh you want it to be etc.  We did our only bathroom ourselves (high end finishes, marble tile, new cast iron tub, bidet etc) for $10k.  It wasn't easy, but worth it to us.  It took 8 months to complete.  Yeah.

If a relationship will suffer, or if it will create a lot of stress to have the project take a long time, then I would farm it out after getting several estimates.  Prices might start coming down as the covid-19 effect continues...

[Laura33]

Wow.  By way of reference, we redid a decently-sized bathroom -- two sinks, tub/shower, toilet, lots of floor space -- for around $27K.  But $5K of that was my dream (jetted!) tub -- I do CrossFit, my muscles HURT sometimes, so I wanted the most powerful indoor tub I could find.  We did nice but not high-end stuff elsewhere, with a variety of tradeoffs:  for example, I was happy enough to use a pretty basic white tile in the tub/shower surround, but I found a gorgeous accent tile we used in small amounts, and I fell in love with a marble basket-weave tile for the floor -- that was like $25/foot, but for a bathroom floor, there weren't a lot of feet, so we got a big impact for a reasonble price.  OTOH, we bought two Big Box Store vanities with integral sinks and got our various mirrors/fixtures/lights from them as well.  Kept the toilet, which we'd replaced previously.  We are also in the mid-Atlantic, which I suspect would have been a bit more pricey than yours.

My mom also recently re-did her hall bath -- same neighborhood, used a retired contractor who gave her a good deal.  Similar level of finish, smaller bathroom, single vanity, no tub, and it cost her about $22K.  So I think those are reasonable representations of what you can get a contractor around here.  $60K is just right out -- that was my kitchen budget, which is much larger (and had much more expensive appliances in it)!

I suspect that, as WSUCoug1994 said, you are getting an inflated price because these guys are busy enough they don't feel the need to take the smaller jobs with the lower budgets.  Remember, you're not just bidding against other people wanting to redo bathrooms; they have to weigh your project against the $75K kitchen remodel or $150K whole house remodel.  ITA that you should wait a bit and see if you can get a better deal from some other folks. 

Also, be very precise about the kinds of finishes you want -- there's a big difference between, say, our HD cabinets with integral stone tops ($900 for 2-42" ones, I think?) and custom-made cabinets with high-end stone countertops and $1200 faucets.  You can have the guys price it with various allowances for the different categories, too -- that way, if they give you say a $5K allowance for lighting and fixtures, and you can go to HD and get stuff you're happy with for $1200 all told, then you just pay that amount.

[Duke03]

Keep shopping and asking friends and coworkers if they have anyone to recommend.  My in-laws just had a small hall bathroom torn down to the studs and everything replaced.  They found a great honest contractor who is a two man show.  The in-laws bought all the material and paid the contractor $4500 for his labor.  Bathroom turned out great.

[Khaetra]

I really think it's worth it to have them come out and physically see your bathroom, not just online quotes.  I also think maybe your budget might be a bit unrealistic.  Having to tear out big things like jetted tubs and all of the trappings like electrical that go with them are an added cost, then perhaps having to redo that area for just a regular tub and it's plumbing isn't cheap.  I don't think it would be $60K, but it'll be up there a bit.  But until you get actual quotes, you won't know.

[affordablehousing]

Check with your realtor, check with your gut also about how much you like a fancy bathroom. You can get Craigslist labor to do it for $5K and buy stuff from home depot or you can get all-nice custom tile and fixtures and spend a lot. The one savings we did recently was not putting in heated floors. I don't get the point frankly, you have to wake up, hit up the app for the thermostat, get it going, wait an hour to be warm, all for the time you'd wait for the shower to heat up and warm the room, and to save you the four steps your feet might hit cold tile rather than bathmat. I just don't get it. The add-on for that is usually steep with extra subfloor prep, electrical to get 220 there, the thermostats and wiring packages are expensive. I also think the Ikea floating vanity is the bomb diggity. $300 out the door gets you a modern, white vanity, easy to hang, and a double sink. Blows Wayfair out the water. Just make sure your drain line hugs the wall and your adapter is flush with the drywall. Also look for leftover tile. Tile under $7psf isn't usually that good but you can often find remaindered good tile. You can save money getting open box bath fixtures on Amazon. We got a Kohler Purist showerhead, tub spout and valve trim for $135 when it normally goes for $600 all because the box was dented. If you aren't doing any labor, scrounging for discounted materials is your best bet to save a few grand.

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

Whoo, that's a pricey bathroom. Unless you have to do a full plumbing set up OR you're springing for gold plated fixtures.....

[Padonak]

Can't you just buy another house a two in the Midwest for this price?

[Laura33]

The one savings we did recently was not putting in heated floors. I don't get the point frankly, you have to wake up, hit up the app for the thermostat, get it going, wait an hour to be warm, all for the time you'd wait for the shower to heat up and warm the room, and to save you the four steps your feet might hit cold tile rather than bathmat. I just don't get it.

We connected ours to a timer, so it goes on an hour before we get up and goes off after we're finished with our normal morning bathroom time.  It's awesome.  They have electric mats that they just lay out under the tile, so it was fast and easy and relatively cheap. 

[WSUCoug1994]

The one savings we did recently was not putting in heated floors. I don't get the point frankly, you have to wake up, hit up the app for the thermostat, get it going, wait an hour to be warm, all for the time you'd wait for the shower to heat up and warm the room, and to save you the four steps your feet might hit cold tile rather than bathmat. I just don't get it.

We connected ours to a timer, so it goes on an hour before we get up and goes off after we're finished with our normal morning bathroom time.  It's awesome.  They have electric mats that they just lay out under the tile, so it was fast and easy and relatively cheap.

+1 - the thermostat that controls the forced heat in our bathroom is connected to two other rooms that we don't want to heat.  The heated floors are like any other thermostat - program in the time an hour before we typically shower and we are good to go and we don't have to heat the rest of the house.

[big_owl]

The one savings we did recently was not putting in heated floors. I don't get the point frankly, you have to wake up, hit up the app for the thermostat, get it going, wait an hour to be warm, all for the time you'd wait for the shower to heat up and warm the room, and to save you the four steps your feet might hit cold tile rather than bathmat. I just don't get it.

We connected ours to a timer, so it goes on an hour before we get up and goes off after we're finished with our normal morning bathroom time.  It's awesome.  They have electric mats that they just lay out under the tile, so it was fast and easy and relatively cheap.

Yeah electric floors are the bomb. Installation is cheap and we end up just leaving ours on all winter.  Unless it's a very large room you can get by on 120V right off your gfci for basically free as far as installation is concerned. I wish I could do heated floors with hot water in our whole house but we don't have natural gas in the sticks so I'm stuck with electric.  It's such a luxury at 5am on a January Monday morning when your master bath is in the NE corner of your home...

[affordablehousing]

Keep justifying. I still think it's a waste of money for five warm steps. If you figure it's three hours of electrical work, the thermostat is $100, the mat $300, I would rather put the $500 I'd save not doing it into better fixtures or adding a bidet.

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

There must be such a thing as a heated bathroom rug that plugs in. If not, someone invent it. Have overfloor heating instead.

[Dicey]

I think it's funny that people tear out jetted tubs they never use to put in impractical freestanding tubs they're never going to use. I say skip the tub and give me a big, bright shower instead. And heated floors crack me up. Our house came with them. Apparently the owner/builder left them on when they moved out, which we didn't realize until we got our first astronomical utility bill. We shut it off and haven't used it since. Our floors are stone. Couple of bath mats is all we need. Oh, and don't bother with dual showerheads either. Takes twice the plumbing, plus the extra valve and showerhead. We have all that and never use it, but then, our house came that way and we bought it on a short sale. Why? Because the builder had overimproved it. Don't be like him.

[AnnaGrowsAMustache]

I think it's funny that people tear out jetted tubs they never use to put in impractical freestanding tubs they're never going to use. I say skip the tub and give me a big, bright shower instead. And heated floors crack me up. Our house came with them. Apparently the owner/builder left them on when they moved out, which we didn't realize until we got our first astronomical utility bill. We shut it off and haven't used it since. Our floors are stone. Couple of bath mats is all we need. Oh, and don't bother with dual showerheads either. Takes twice the plumbing, plus the extra valve and showerhead. We have all that and never use it, but then, our house came that way and we bought it on a short sale. Why? Because the builder had overimproved it. Don't be like him.

I'm with you, not a tub person.

The thing that cracks me up is rain shower heads. Dumbest idea ever. You have to step out of the water completely in order to lather your hair or anything else, and it's COLD. Give me an adjustable tilt-y shower head any day.

[Dicey]

I think it's funny that people tear out jetted tubs they never use to put in impractical freestanding tubs they're never going to use. I say skip the tub and give me a big, bright shower instead. And heated floors crack me up. Our house came with them. Apparently the owner/builder left them on when they moved out, which we didn't realize until we got our first astronomical utility bill. We shut it off and haven't used it since. Our floors are stone. Couple of bath mats is all we need. Oh, and don't bother with dual showerheads either. Takes twice the plumbing, plus the extra valve and showerhead. We have all that and never use it, but then, our house came that way and we bought it on a short sale. Why? Because the builder had overimproved it. Don't be like him.

I'm with you, not a tub person.

The thing that cracks me up is rain shower heads. Dumbest idea ever. You have to step out of the water completely in order to lather your hair or anything else, and it's COLD. Give me an adjustable tilt-y shower head any day.

I totally agree. And good luck taking a shower and not getting your hair wet either.

[Cranky]

Taking out the tub and putting in a walk in shower with grab bars proved to be a great decision when I had knee surgery last year. Actually, I still can't easily step over a tub side, so my bath days are over anyway. Dh likes the rain shower - he doesn't have any hair to wash. ;-) And you can switch it off.

[Dicey]

Taking out the tub and putting in a walk in shower with grab bars proved to be a great decision when I had knee surgery last year. Actually, I still can't easily step over a tub side, so my bath days are over anyway. Dh likes the rain shower - he doesn't have any hair to wash. ;-) And you can switch it off.

Only if you buy/install the type that can be switched. They're not all that way.

[Cranky]

Taking out the tub and putting in a walk in shower with grab bars proved to be a great decision when I had knee surgery last year. Actually, I still can't easily step over a tub side, so my bath days are over anyway. Dh likes the rain shower - he doesn't have any hair to wash. ;-) And you can switch it off.

Only if you buy/install the type that can be switched. They're not all that way.

The contractor dealt with all that, but really - that rain shower was not very expensive.

[Laura33]

Keep justifying. I still think it's a waste of money for five warm steps. If you figure it's three hours of electrical work, the thermostat is $100, the mat $300, I would rather put the $500 I'd save not doing it into better fixtures or adding a bidet.

To each their own, right?  For us, DH likes sleeping in a very cold room, and I got tired of shaving my legs with goosebumps, so underfloor heat that's limited to the bathroom was a nice compromise.  Plus I'm not a morning person, you know?  So anything that removes an excuse to stay in bed is a net win IMO.  ;-)

[Cassie]

We gutted our master bathroom. The big jetted tub was 1100, free standing shower 600, toilet 200, sink and cabinet 300, mirror 100 and floor 200.  We did it ourselves but labor wouldn’t have added too much. 60k is ridiculous.

[LD_TAndK]

There must be such a thing as a heated bathroom rug that plugs in. If not, someone invent it. Have overfloor heating instead.

We have a cheap space heater we'll turn on 15 mins ahead of bathing, leaving the door closed it gets balmy in there quick. Could get creative with a Christmas light timer and I think this would be a frugal alternative.

A thick bathmat should minimize the cold floor issue.