However if one has to make a guess work in city like Pune. Then keeping Items like Bathroom and kitchen apart, rest of the items can take 300-450 rupees per sq ft. This is Economic range we are talking about. Kitchen and bathroom always increase the average cost per square feet.

Same thing if we count for Mumbai, square feet cost for economic goes 400-500 rupees.

Hence these are just approximate cost per sq feet for a very basic economic plan. Things change as we choose materials and designs. talk to your contractor or Interior Designer for exact details and estimates.

The other options is to combine WC and Bathroom. This creates space for a small kitchen. Your kitchen will be small, just enough to hold cooking Platform, dining and other amenities has to be adjusted in other area.

However this will give you one more room. New room that gets created will probably be small in size but that’s the best way to satisfy your need. In  Mumbai, I have seen many homes where balcony area was used up for making Kitchen, this may not work in everyone’s case though.

Lot depends on what Building material you choose to use. In city like Mumbai Pune , Delhi, Bangalore – the simplest Commode seat can cost you upto Rs 500. Commode is selected as per plan of WC changes.

Between what is WC ? A small box you see in floor plan with WC in it? What is it?
The bathroom area on a floor plan is often labeled “WC,” or water closet. A WC is a space designed for a single occupant and is separate from the bathing area. This area might be a separate room or a private area within a bathroom.

The deluxe (mean high end or costlier one) seat can be of Rs. 3000 . This was just one example of how cost varies on what you decide to choose.

There is always a small margin or change in Initial estimate. Say abt 10% plus minus. And the reason being you always get to choose products out of 2 – 3 good options. Good Contractor recommends you and points you items to choose which fits your requirement. But Home Owner always has say in what he wants to choose.

1) Repairing Home as per Vastu Shastra
2) Quantity vs Quality
3) Vitrified Tiles

Here’s what he shared:

Any important suggestion you want to share with respect to Vastu Shastra for Interior designer or Decorator?
vastu Shahstra is too much in trend now-days. Everyone wants to implement it. Now one thing to keep in mind is purpose of Vastu Shastra – that is – Peace and Harmony. Unfortunately if you end up taking service from wrong person he will over-engineer the repair work or renovation. You have to inform Contractor or Interior Designer that you would like to achieve good setup with less damage and replacement inside house. I have heard of cases where people borrowed money to do extra work as per Vastu Shastra. I never understood how can one achieve Peace & Harmony by borrowing money. So point is do not over do things.

You get lot of Inquiries for Home Renovation Contracts in Pune and nearby cities, what do you give more importance – Quantity or Quality?
For sure Quality. I am working in Home Renovation related work for more 25 years now. I am confident that when you do good/quality work, you get more business. Most of the work I do comes through reference from old clients.

How Flooring and Tiling Products have changed in India specially in City like Mumbai Pune Bangalore etc?
Earlier there was lot of demand for using Natural stones – Kota , Marble Granite etc. However in recent times Vitrified Tiles have taken over most of the Home Renovation world. Vitrified Tiles give a feeling of High End Natural Stones, of-course these are tiles made in Factory. But latest technology and material science makes them look really good.

Secondly its also a easy task for Home Owners. Previously they had to figure out which marble to Buy, get it Polished. With Vitrified Tiles, you select a brand and model and thats about it. There is no Polishing. They come Box-packed at your home.

Labour work also gets simplified. Its fast to finish Tiling/Flooring work.

so when we insist our client to go for Vitrified tile,actually the client wants the work to be done fast now everyone wants the work to be done in short so Vitrified tile is going well earlier there were option of marble and kota but now people don have time to go n see the quality of the marble give it for polishing so this is time consuming so Vitrified the option or solution for this in the

With Marbles used for flooring, it is advisable to water the floor for week or two and then do Polishing. Only after this Home Owners and start using it.

In world of Vitrified Tiles, you move in 24 hours after Tiling work is finished.

Having said all this, Natural Stones have their own Glory. Its more money and Efforts to get marble flooring but finally its marble, you see.

Govind Parmar works as Civil Contractor for Home Renovation and Commercial Renovation Projects in Pune, Satara, Karad and nearby cities. We published his Interviewed recently. Govind Parmar – cell# +91-9422401314

I moved to Mumbai in 1978 and worked here till 1985. I Mumbai, I did projects for K Raheja, Nahar Builders, Rajdeep and later for Mayfair housing. I was involved mainly in Tiling related work for all these big builders. It was going good. We had around 200 labours and it was growing day by day. Unfortunately, due to some person family reasons, I had move back to my hometown Satara in 1985.

In Satara, I struggled for 2 yrs. There was work, but no labour/skilled workers. Slowly I formed a team, started finding people to do job and things started falling in place. Even today I am based in Satara, but do lot of work in Pune and nearby cities. Almost every year, I do projects in Pune, Karad, Koregaon and lot of nearby Cities.

Since last 6 months I am completely occupied with work in Pune. There is one big project by K Raheja. I have a big team taking care of  Civil work(Interior), its a big tower and there are couple more towers lined up.

I do lot of traveling across Pune – Satara. Spend 2 to 3 days every week in Pune. I have supervisors in my team for bigger projects. Also get help from Engineers. In satara, most of the projects are Home renovation.

How do you compare work in New buildings vs Home Renovation for Home owner in City like Pune or Mumbai?
Both types of projects need attention and efforts. One big difference is – in complete buildings projects, once you have completed couple of Apartments/flats, whole team knows exactly what needs to repeated for rest of the building. Things run faster as time passes.

In Home Renovation, every project is Unique. Expectations of Home owners, budget, timing, limitations due to size and shape of house. There are lto of things which need to be thought about. Also you have to make home Owner understand best possible solution in given condition. With every project you build a life long business relation. most of these customers later refer you to friends and family for their Home Renovation.

What kind of work have you done in Mahabaleshwar and Panchgini ?
I have done Construction work for many Hotels – soem of them are Rohit Hotel, Lake view, Dream land in panchgani. I did work for New Era School.  Sometimes I feel, small simple Home Renovation projects are more satisfying, because Home Owners make sure to make payments on time, they show sincerity. It would sound contrary but big time companies make it much tougher to complete payments compared to individual Home Owners.

If some Home owner wants to Renovate/ Repair his house – what are some of the top things he/she should take care of?
There are lot of things. A good contractor can make lot of difference. First one or two meetings he explains things, shares ideas. Understands your requirements and expectations. I personally discuss solution as per requirement. Many ask for renovation of only Kitchen. Many owners tell us to renovation only Tiles/flooring and kitchen structure but re-use plumbing connections. So you see things are different all the time. We recommend things and then Owner decide how much he wants to spend. Once decided, we execute project accordingly. Many owners have lot of concern about spending less money, they end up re-using stuff which may not last longer. Also in future same re-used pipelines could cost you more to fix. We explains all such things to owners. We have seen everything that happens before and after a Home is Renovated.

I also take care of suggesting and planning how things should be planned. You want Aqua-Gurad, Oven and lto of other amenities inside Kitchen. I explain how that could be done.

In addition, nowadays Vastu Shastra is given lot of importance. So if asked by Home Owner, I include  that aspect in to planning. There are many DOs and DONTS as per Vastu for every corner of the house. We work with Home Owner to figure out what can be done and what things we will have to let go.

Tell us about some of common challenges you face in Home Renovation projects in city like Pune etc?
I wont be able to answer completely, but there so many aspects to consider. Many people want to make RCC change like shift a wall or remove a wall completely. We have to consider lot of things to make decision – how old is the building, is there any beam conflicts, strength of the building. So whtever is there in the mind of the client that has to be cleared with the contractor or the designer first intself like color choice, Tile purchasing, furniture color etc. I cannot answer you completely, but we do this all the time, we make sure work goes smooth and there are no clashes ahead.

Any challenge you face in doing business?
There is no fun without challenges. Lot of things have to fall in place. I have given up lot of Business Enquiries from Bangalore Chennai etc thinking about language barrier. But I now I feel that is never a problem.  Within Pune and other cities there are so many things that look like a big problem but slowly gets solved. I have had Builders/clients who gave me small project and then added more and more newer projects. You think you have just fetched 3 months work, but you keep getting new work which goes on for years. Sometimes there is labour problem. I have one project where I started with couple of people and eventually new Flats/work got added and at one point I had a big team of 50 people on site.

Payments are one big trouble maker. Most of the projects you have to do balancing act. You start working on a project with complete trust in front party. Most of them turn out to be sincere, very few occasions where there troubles in clearing bills.

Is there any message you want to give to new comers in Civil Contractor work or Interior?
Well…one important thing not only for construction professionals like myself, but also for Home Owners : – never get in to game of breaking market price to fetch more work. You can get new contract that way but eventually you wont be able to manage cost of labour and building material. So neither you will execute project as per requirement and nor Home owner will be happy. Labour and material has their market cost, there is no way you can escape these. Never cheat customers, because dont think of them as just one small project, think of them as life long business partners. I get work from people I have known for decades now.

Unless and until you have enough experience stay close to experienced people and focus on learning. Do not become greedy and rush in to problems.

In recent times I have seen many Contractors who would break market price and take project and then leave project in between. You have done no good to anyone. Neither yourself nor to customer.

Any message for readers of ContractorBhai.com?
Ya if you read this online, I am hoping it helps Home Owners and Contractor Community

If someone wants to Renovate/Repair Home are you available?
yes please! you can call me on my cell +91-9422401314

However in this article, we will talk about going step further. A good Contractor will give you suggestions about where you can save money and still get your house renovated in a economic way. You can work with a contractor and decide if you wish to spend more money and choose to get higher quality material and expensive furnishing.

Depending upon what option you choose in materials you will end up spending 500-1000 rupees per Sq. Ft. A typical house in prime city like Mumbai Pune (or any big and medium city across country) is 500 Sq. ft. in area.

Economic Home renovation estimate in Mumbai

500 rupees/ Sq. Ft.

1 BHK(500 Sq. Ft.) = 2.5 Lakhs

Deluxe Home renovation estimate in Mumbai

upto 1000 rupees/ Sq. Ft.

1 BHK(500 Sq. Ft.) = 5 Lakhs

So depending upon what level of amenities and interior you choose you will end up spending anywhere between 2.5 Lakhs to 5 Lakhs in your 1 bedroom hall Kitchen.

Some of the example where a House owner gets to choose better material or interior are:

•  Expensive Plywood

•  Expensive Tiles

•  Sanitary & bathroom equipments

•  Shower unit

•  Make to order color coating for taps etc

•  Commode seat

So economic Home renovation starts at at the range of 2.5 lakhs and can go upto 5 Lakhs if we choose to have deluxe features inside our house.

All above figures are rough numbers. When you start working with Contractors you will know the actual figure. A good Contractor will make you aware that even after giving a Final estimate or quotation sometimes material prices go up or down or you end up buying a different product for some reason, hence a home owner should always be prepared for 5-10% plus or minus in the estimates.

Lets consider a scenario where you are an owner of an 1BHK house and this house has approximately area of 500 square feet. You are looking forward to renovate your house and want to have all basic amenities. You are not dreaming of costly luxurious furnishing. In such situation you should expect home renovation cost of roughly 500 rupees per square feet.

1 Sq. ft. = 500 rupees

500 sq. ft = 2.5 lakhs

At the cost of 2.5 lakhs you can renovate whole 1 bedroom Hall kitchen house.  This will include all necessary items for regular lifestyle. Just to give an idea at this expense some of things you will get in your house are as followings:

Bedroom will include Bed, side table, dressing table and a small wardrobe closet.

Kitchen will get I or L type platform with a good planning for placing Fridge, Sink, Oven, Exhaust Fan [appliance not included in cost estimate]. Good Flooring . Windows with Aluminum sliding window and granite top.

Hall gets TV showcase, good flooring, sofa com bed & two chairs.

Overall this looks like a good home renovation plan. So by spending approximately 2.5 Lakhs on complete home renovation you will get good value.

The approximate cost mentioned here [500 rupees per Sq. ft.] is to get a quick idea and  should be used as reference. This figure is for planning purpose. When you actually start working with a Contractor you will know the exact cost. A good Contractor will give you suggestions about what to avoid and what to opt to keep your home renovation economic.

Neela? Pila? Ki Safed? Colors do matter a lot over here

Choosing an appropriate color makes a lot of difference, so depending upon your house color decide your taste. It can really create a huge impact. It not only brightens up the area but also make it lively for you to cook delicious food. After all who likes to enter a Kitchen which is dull …Hain na?

The perfect Layout for your kitchen

Placing the appliances in correct position is also very important, so as to make the kitchen user-friendly. for e.g.

•  Do I need an eating area in the kitchen?

•  Will I have room to store the cooking oil near the stove or will I have to go across the room to get it

•  Where will I place the refrigerator?

•  Where there be any place for the microwave?

Floorings

Change the old kitchen tiles with the new stylish ones. Nowadays ceramics tiles or Marbonite go very well and one can buy it from some places of Mumbai where they are really very cheap and quite affordable.

Modify your Ceiling. That’s one more tip

Select a good Ceiling color. Use hanging lamps if you want to. It can make the kitchen to brighten up. One can buy these lighting with different shades to give it a nice look. So depending upon your need select your seller.

Backsplash

Very creative options are available at most building material stores in Mumbai, Pune and other different cities. Ceramic subway tiles are another trendy backsplash look.

New Hardware and Accessories also play an important role

One can also change the hardware of the kitchen so as to make it look more sophisticated by getting new cabinets and drawers. Buy a microwave if you have enough room left in your Kitchen. Update your accessories with newer designs to make the kitchen look stylish. A new set of cutlery can also help sometimes.

Ventilation

It is imperative that your newly renovated kitchen is properly ventilated. Be sure to make choices about your ventilation system before kitchen renovations begin. Make sure you discuss with Contractor the type of ventilation system you wish to have before the project begins.

The beauty of nature

One can also add few hanging plants to have a fresh look.

Last and not the least are the Walls

If you like fine arts than finish your wall with framed posters which go well with the color combination.

Same Indian culture applies to people when it comes to Home renovation in India. We look for value for money and anything that can be lasted longer has to stay.

Let’s talk in terms of real life situation: You have a house in some Indian metro city, could be Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Bangalore, Delhi or any other city, you are thinking about home renovation and looking for Home renovation Contractor. Some part of the house is pretty decent condition, like your Bedroom is simple & does satisfy your need, however bathroom & Kitchen needs some major fix.

Should you just renovate area of your house which needs attention? Or renovate complete house?

Will you save money by doing partial renovation? or Will be more economic to renovate complete house in long run?

Will it be good economic decision to spend some extra money and get whole house renovate?

Should you delay non-urgent work and get back to it sometime in future?

There is really no correct answer to any of above question however I will talk about some of the factors which lead you to one or the other decision

1) Budget

If you have limited budget and there is no way you can afford complete renovation. In such case Home owner goes for partial home renovation.

2) Urgency

You were not thinking about Home Renovation but something has broke and needs urgent attention. You decide to fix what is needed and don’t go for home renovation.

3) Economic decision

Home renovation is one of the important but non-urgent requirements. You live in a home, which is one of your biggest emotional and financial investments. Sometimes we not realize that the home we live in needs a upgrade and just live with it. If you think you have money to spend and your home definitely needs care. You should go for renovation. If correctly done it can increase quality of your life in general. If you end up doing partial fix every year for next few years, it will increase the cost and inconvenience. the better decision would be to do complete Home renovation.

4) Re-Using existing good stuff

In either case you decide to do partial of complete Home renovation, a good Contractor will recommend you what needs to go and what can be re used. This will bring down cost and give a sense of well being that you are not spending unnecessary money, but trying to be smart and re-use things material which can stay.
It is very important to find a experienced Home Renovation Contractor who is full of Ideas and honest in his work. A good Home renovation contractor should be able to make suggestions and help you in decision making process.

You spend almost half of your valuable time at home. You will offourse want your home to look more beautiful, elegant and secured.

Your home furnishing and decorating will probably change as time goes by to accommodate changing needs and wants. Strive for a balance between long term investments. The goal is to create a home that is comfortable and says “I”m happy to be here”.

Making a house a home is an ongoing process. The best is to have a master plan in mind before you go ahead.

So are you thinking about doing some Home Renovation now? Or, maybe you recently moved and are beginning the decorating process. There are lists of areas or rooms on which you need to focus before starting the project for e.g.

• Your living Room – Main attraction of a house
• Bedroom – Peaceful place
• Bathroom – The first place we enter when we open our eyes
• Kitchen – For healthy living
• Storeroom, guestroom, extra bedroom etc.

1. Planning is very essential in all the field of life. So plan things before you start working for your home. Take time deciding where you want all your above rooms to be. Think about the space you would want for your living room or bedroom. How much area would be required for your Kitchen? Etc. Concentrate on one space at a time. It will be far more satisfying than trying to tackle too much at one time. This also allows you to refine your choices along the way. Contact the contractor and explain him the look you would want. It can make things simpler for all.
   

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2. Decorate your home in budget and still make it look like a castle. If you are decorating on a budget you may only have a certain amount of money to spend, make it count. If your are buying some stuff for your home ask yourself twice “Will this be good in my room”. So decide carefully. Consider other matters also like how much can you afford to spend on floorings, paint, furniture and accessories? Spend your money on furnishing that are well-built and will get the hardest usage. Remember that a room doesn’t have to be completed all at once if your budget does allow it. Some of the best designs develop over time
   

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3. Colors play a very vital role in home renovation. There is so much variety like paint color, fabrics, wallpaper and flooring that you have so many options. Saturation, intensity and value are interrelated terms that describe color and color theory. Combining all these together can give you awesome results sometimes .So use it with confidence.
   

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4. Furniture’s are the backbone of a house so find the ones which go well with the paints as well as which satisfy your needs and budget. Prefer the ones which are comfortable rather than just seeing the size or color. Invest in quality furniture rather than quantity .Ask your contractor to help you choose the best for you; also make sure that they are safe if you have children’s at home.
   

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5. Another integral part of home décor is the carpets and flooring (tiles) .They not only enhance the appearance of the floor but adds elegance to the interiors. You have to be clear about the design, color and quality of the carpet or tile before you buy the same. Marbles are a good choice and can make the room feel cool during summer heats.
   

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6. Use decorating stuffs at home to make it presentable and artistic.  May be few wall pictures or say a few indoor plants can freshen up the dull look. Lights also can play a major role when it comes to decorating the home. Using lamps and different kind of lampshades may give that cozy and intimate look.

A healing environment in these fast cities like Mumbai, Pune etc reduces stress. Home decorating design that holds comfort in mind is the greatest luxury and can put you at ease. Without comfort you may go home but you won”t want to stay there. It should be a pleasure to walk into your home at the end of the day and have it be as harmonious as it is beautiful.