There’s no question that remodeling is expensive. An average 10ft x 10ft kitchen, with 12-16 cabinets, costs $2,500-$3,500 (based on standard box store cabinets) for the cabinets alone. This doesn’t include the hardware, new lighting, sink, countertop, faucet, trim/molding, or most importantly, labor.
For a bathroom, the total for a 36” bathroom vanity, standard toilet, and standard alcove bathtub can usually range around $710-$1,000, mostly depending on the type of vanity you decide to go with. Again, this doesn’t include the faucet, backsplash, flooring, new lighting, or labor.
So what can you do to cut costs? Well the only variable cost here is the labor. So, most people take one of two approaches.
1) The first time DIY’er watches a few TikToks and decides they can do it themselves
2) They use their friend’s mother’s neighbor’s sister’s cousin’s nephew who is a self proclaimed master contractor and magically costs half as much as the average legitimate contractor. Sounds like a great idea, because “everyone else is just over charging and this is a fair rate.”
Well, being in this business for nearly 4 years, I’ve talked to countless people who have taken one of these two approaches to save on their costs and I’ll sum up the common results of each approach
1) The TikTok DIY’er - Realizes it is significantly more work than anticipated and would rather pay someone else next time.
2) The “master” contractor who costs half as much as anyone else - collects the check and turns out to be a master of disappearing or does such an absolute hack of a job that the customer spends more money on cleaning up the mess than it would have cost to just pay full price for the legitimate contractor the first time.
Now, there’s nothing wrong with watching a few videos and deciding to take on the labor yourself. Go for it if you want. I’m just sharing that usually the first timer, understandably, gets deceived into thinking that it’ll be quick and easy, and usually would have preferred just paying someone else to do it.
As far as the “contractor” who costs half as much as everyone else. It’s sad to see how many people have put their trust into this person only to have their money stolen or be put into an even worse position due to the lack of skill required to complete the project in an acceptable manner. Again, the general consensus from first-hand conversations with customers who have experienced this is that they wish they would have just paid more, and waited for the availability, of someone who actually knew what they were doing. The damage caused by someone who doesn’t know what they are doing often costs twice as much as it would have to have gone with the right person to begin with.
I hate seeing this happen to people. Sometimes these situations don’t even happen out of ill-intent, just lack of skill paired with over confidence. But good intent and confidence can cost you a lot of money. So I advise this, just pay more for the right person. Ensure they have a license and are insured. Personally, after seeing so many people having bad experiences, I wouldn’t even go with someone who doesn’t have a very healthy reputation through Google/Facebook reviews. Trying to cut costs on labor will ultimately just cost you more. Don’t do it.
So then, if you can’t cut costs on the labor, then where can you cut costs? Well I have good news for you. You can save a lot of money by shopping returns and overstock. How much money? Well, 45% or more than you’d normally spend
This is Sell Co.’s primary function, saving you a significant amount of money on your remodel.
We do this by selling returns and overstock of some of the most common products needed for a remodel, including kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities, toilets, bathtubs, flooring, lighting, and more.
Why are returns and overstock a great alternative? Isn’t there something wrong with them? Not always.
Kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities are often in great shape, and, to be expected with returns, may contain small blemishes/damages. But you’re saving 45% or more off retail. If you want them in perfect shape, the good news is you can find them at Home Depot, just at nearly twice the cost. Usually though, the blemishes and damages are located in spots that often are not visible once it is installed, or can easily be repaired/touched up without requiring more skill than the average person has. This means that kitchen renovation that would have cost $2,500 in cabinets alone, is now only $1,375. $1,125 in savings. The bathroom renovation that would have cost $700 in just the vanity, bathtub, and toilet, is now only $385, $315 in savings.
As far as everything else, toilets, bathtubs, lighting, and other products, we rigorously filter out the products with damage or missing pieces. Usually the products we keep just have box damage. Now we don’t test anything for functionality, as it just isn’t feasible at the moment. However, we do offer 30 Day Return and 60 Day Exchange in case something doesn’t work, or in the unlikely event that we missed a product that is damaged or missing something (we are human and are prone to miss stuff, though it isn’t often), or even if you just change your mind. You can always buy with confidence knowing we have the 30 Day Return 60 Day Exchange for you.
As more and more people find us and shop with us, the top complaint we hear is that they didn’t find us sooner. It’s our duty to get the word out as fast and as much as possible so more people can save. We understand that the funds used for these renovations come from years of savings, investments, or college funds for your kids. The more you save with us, the more you save for yourself. We are seeing more people happily choose this route once they discover it’s an option. At Sell Co., we will always remain committed to saving you money on your remodels so that you can live a more comfortable life.
