True story: After tearing down their house, an insured homeowner called their carrier asking to add builder's insurance risk coverage to the property. Unfortunately, not only were they not granted it, but the carrier also canceled their homeowners insurance policy altogether due to material change in risk. As required by law, they also sent a notice to the bank… which then began foreclosure proceedings.

Talk about a homeowners insurance nightmare.  

Learn from this very expensive lesson: always check with your insurer and bank before beginning major home renovations. Before you begin, get answers to important questions like: How will this change your mortgage? And does home renovation insurance even exist? (Your bank will know and yes, it exists, but it’s called a Builder’s Risk insurance policy.) 

After that, first things first. Begin by selecting a licensed professional and reliable remodeling contractor. Reach out to past customers or search online for their name along with the term “reviews” to get a feel for them and what they do. You want to be sure that the contractor you select performs quality work and that you’ll be comfortable with having them in your home.  

If you get bids from several home improvement contractors — and you should! — be sure they’re all bidding on the same scope and quality of work. Also, discuss any variation in bids and beware of ones that are substantially lower than the others.