Broadcaster Press 13 April 10, 2018 www.broadcasteronline.com Spring Home and Improvement The Benefits of Hiring Professional Contractors Your Vehicle Has a Recall, Now What? The DIY movement has inspired many homeowners to tackle home repair and remodeling projects on their own. DIY projects can be rewarding, and many homeowners who have embraced the DIY movement have discovered talents they never before knew they had. But no matter how simple popular home renovation television shows make remodeling projects appear, homeowners should know that such undertakings are far more difficult than they appear on television. Homeowners who overestimate their abilities and the time they have to complete projects can cost themselves substantial amounts of money. In fact, there are a variety of reasons homeowners might want to work with professional contractors when tackling home improvement projects. Vehicles are expensive. When motorists drive their vehicles away from a dealership, they hope to travel many miles before they need to come back for maintenance. But manufacturers sometimes issue recalls that can affect drivers of both new and old vehicles. Recalls are safety precautions taken should a portion of a vehicle or the entire car or truck not operate in the manner it was intended. In many never have thought up on their own. labor costs might be lower on DIY instances, auto manufacturers will directly contact projects, the cost of materials can Homeowners without specific ideas customers who are affected by a recall via a letter, in mind can ask contractors to come offset those savings. email or both. Individuals also can stay current up with various scenarios before on recalls by visiting the National Highway Traffic Resale value committing to a particular one. VetMany homeowners renovate their Safety Administration’s website (www.NHTSA.gov). eran contractors can draw on years Experience • Don’t panic, but don’t ignore recalls. Recalls homes with eyes on improving the of experience to create designs that A trial and error approach can do not guarantee vehicles will malfunction or break work with various projects and prob- DIYers might be incapable of coming resale value of those homes. But down. However, consumers are urged to take recalls if homeowners want to showcase lems. But applying such an approach up with and/or incapable of seeing seriously, adopting a ‘better safe than sorry’ apa newly remodeled kitchen when through to completion. to home improvement projects is proach when recalls are announced. selling their homes, they should be risky and potentially dangerous, • Follow the instructions. A recall notice should prepared for prospective buyers Cost not to mention costly. Experienced come with instructions. Instructions often advise to ask who worked on the project. Conventional wisdom suggests professional contractors with strong Fearing potential problems down the drivers to take their vehicles to the dealership it’s less expensive to do something track records (seek recommendawhere the cars were purchased. Notices may proroad, some buyers might be put off yourself than to hire someone tions from friends or neighbors) vide information regarding nearby dealerships for by homes that were remodeled by else to do it for you, but that’s not won’t have to go through trial and DIYers and not professional contrac- drivers who have moved since buying their cars or necessarily true of home improveerror and are therefore more likely trucks. tors. than DIYers to complete a project on ment projects. Labor costs typically • No payment should be necessary. The cost of Renovating a home on your account for a substantial amount of time and on budget. repairing the recalled part should not fall on your own can be a rewarding project for professionally contracted projects, but homeowners can cut those costs homeowners. But it’s important that shoulders. Such repairs are paid by the manufacturInspiration er. Save all receipts for the work. If work was done homeowners recognize the many by volunteering to do some of the One oft-overlooked benefit of benefits of working with professional by a private mechanic, drivers still may be eligible simpler tasks themselves. In addiworking with professional contracfor reimbursement. contractors before making any final tion, contractors often purchase tors is the likelihood that they can • Be patient. Dealerships are not responsible for decisions with regard to who will materials at a much lower cost than draw up ideas for projects that making repairs until the date indicated on the recall tackle their next project. individual homeowners because homeowners might otherwise notice, so motorists may need to wait before having contractors buy in bulk. So while ?Metro Creative Connections their vehicles repaired. • Request a loaner vehicle. In some instances, recalls may take a few days to fix. Although not every dealership may make loaner vehicles available, it’s still worth requesting one so you are not inconvenienced. Anyone having difficulty with a recall can contact the NHTSA online, by phone or by mail. Those Many homeowners have lofty goals for their homes. Such plans may inwho suspect a safety problem also can contact the clude extensive renovations or even additions. While many of these projects agency and report their concerns. create beautiful changes in a home, it’s important to consider the impact that renovations can have on property value before beginning a project. ?Metro Creative Connections Many home improvement projects do not add as much value as homeowners may think they do. In fact, some homeowners ‘overbuild’ for their neighborhoods. This means the amount of money invested in improvements can likely never be recuperated because the house value simply exceeds those around by too much money. To avoid overbuilding, homeowners can ask themselves several questions before beginning a renovation project. • Will my house be the largest house in the neighborhood? Larger homes tend to have a lower price per square foot, so you may not want to improve to this extent. Hours: • Will the house blend with others in the area? If your house will stick out Monday - Friday like a sore thumb, it will detract from its own value and could impact the 8AM - 6PM value of other homes in the area. Saturday 8AM - 2PM • Have I examined the cost vs. value of the project? Many home improvement resources analyze the cost of a project versus the overall value of that 900 W Cherry • Vermillion • 624-8681 project with regard to property value. For example, a $100,000 basement remodel may not add $100,000 to the value of the home in the event you choose to sell down the line. It’s important to know which projects provide the best return on investment. Did You Know? ?Metro Creative Connections Call Kalins Indoor Comfort for an AC Precision Tune-Up! AC Tune-Ups should be done by a Kalins Licensed Technician... Hartington Tree LLC Why? 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