We have provided jobs to five residents of our short street, from a several-days clean-up, to security system expert, to major wood work (all trim, doors, etc.), to our general contractor.

We have provided work for local crews: five framers, three foundation layers, the cement truck crew, three plumbers, one electrician, two woodworkers, two tile setters, three granite installers, four painters (exterior and interior), three drywaller/texturers, three stucco appliers, one landscaper, four rockwork installers, one window installer, one fence builder, three driveway block paver installers, one kitchen designer and one cabinet installer. Still have to install hardwood floors. Plus we rented a dumpster and portapotty early on and have had a storage pod on our lot since early May.

Yesterday fifteen different guys were at our house at various times.

Then there are the various vendors I've purchased from, most local, but some online, for wood, roof materials, windows, tile, pipe, paint/stain, paving stones, granite boulders, granite counters, and appliances. Also, the delivery guys who brought all of the materials and appliances to our job site.

We had hoped that prices would be down on materials--some are but others have gone up quite a bit. We are finding that vendors are keeping a lot less inventory in stock--can't afford to carry costs of lots of materials if they might not sell this season.

OTOH, labor costs are down dramatically in some cases, as craftsmen bid for the jobs. Granite installer told me his bid for labor on our job was 60% lower than it would have been three years ago at the height of the building frenzy.

Our GC, who has been in the local area for decades and has worked with all the best local craftsmen, has been superlative at "stacking" the best artisans. A few years ago it would not have been possible to schedule one crew after another to keep our remodel moving as "fast" as it has. Even so, we started in early May and still have a lot of the interior to finish.

This is snow country, with a usual deadline of Oct 15th for any kind of excavation. We did get a brief extension to finish the driveway.

Oh! I forgot all the folks up front in our project beginning last fall with the architect, the engineer we hired to take care of the permitting process, the clerk, engineers, and inspectors at the county building services dept, and the engineer who designed the metal beam work that allowed us to take down a load-bearing wall.

Our project has been blessed by touches of magic all along. With each new addition, it just gets better and better.

I forgot the elevator vendor and installer. This is how our project began, with my need to get upstairs in a two story home that we love and don't want to leave.

Thank you, suzannesl, for the nudge to put down in writing what I've been thinking about all summer.

It is because we have been living frugally for decades, planning carefully, and then been blessed with delightful serendipity, that we are able to do this now in such a tough economy.

No one can say we aren't doing our part. As it happens, there is a ton of road work being done along with horrific amounts of time being wasted sitting at flagman stops. Those are short-term jobs. The ones we are contributing to are living, breathing businesses, that we hope we are helping to sustain for the long term.

A toast to you, Cheers!

I was just telling my in laws how I was feeling guilty about spending $$ on my kitchen and wondered if we should just hang on to our $$ until we see what the future brings, and she said "no, you are spurring our economy, you saved, not borrowed for your project. that's the right way to do it." i still feel guilty though :)

I agree with your in-laws, MIssV. It's your money that you earned and saved. Actually, your money has done its pittance of good in your community. For us that was one more sale at the tile store, the granite place, the hardware store, lighting store, the cabinet company, multiple sales at the paint store, and another job for the upholstery guy, the plumbing guy, and the electrician. It doesn't seem like much one family at a time, but every bit helps someone put food on the table and get through one more month until things get better in a bigger way. If you were spending the kids' college money or taking a loan you might not be able to pay back, that would be different. Think of your contribution as a "mini-personal stimulus."

Not to offend, but I react negatively to this mentality. It reminds me of Bush's call to the American people after 9/11 that the way they could support the country in the wake of the terrorist attacks was to "Go Shopping". It's my humble opinion that our consumeristic (my made-up word) mentality and associated living-in-debt financial decisions as individuals and as a nation have propped up an illusion of growth at the expense of security and actual wealth, which is funneling to a smaller and smaller number of increasingly rich individuals and corporations.

My objections are not about people spending money to renovate their homes, but the "spending-as-patriotism" philosophy. I'm not renovating my home as an act of patriotism, I'm remodeling because the house really needs it for both energy efficiency and cosmetic reasons - and I want to. The fact that my carbon footprint has already decreased by half is something I am quite proud of and something that impacts the greater whole as well as myself in a good way. And, I've always seen my efforts at my home, whether it be as small as keeping junk out of my yard, putting in a garden or the larger projects we have done since moving in to improve our property, as having a civic side in that it benefits my neighborhood and community and makes it a better place to be.

I'm glad to see others with the philosophy to save not borrow for things they really want. And, I'm glad to contribute to the economy through both my taxes and my spending. But materialism and a spending mentality are pervasive in our society, and it sets up failure on a national and personal level, IMHO.

Steph, I see where you're coming from. It's unlikely that anyone here is spending with the primary intent of being "patrotic." It just so happens that at this moment in history the economy is tough and the decision to go ahead with planned renovations vs. sitting on the set-aside money until things look better is a boost for the economy such as it is. Many big money interests seem to be doing the sitting it out routine which just prolongs the misery. As a group, we've taken the leap of faith that things will be better and we're contributing to that end. Things will get better, and if our kitchens help that tomorrow get here a little sooner, well then, good for us.

I'm with you on consumerism. It leaves much to be desired. Our renovation is 90%+ maintaining our property, 10% indulgence (bamboo floors vs. something else, tile backsplash which isn't absolutely necessary), but 100% exciting. Our actions can have both intended and unintended results. The unintended ones in this case just happen to be good for the larger picture.

Mental shortcuts have been created. (Here is one: Patriot = spend.) Associations of ideas have been created.

Once created, a concept takes on a life of its own.

Creating an exact antonym or anti-concept is a lot of work. It's also a lot of work to refute exactly the new concept. Even if one succeeds, the new concept just pops up again the next day.

Building another concept might be the best antidote.

Let's agree on another concept. Here is one suggestion: "Investing in people."

I was just at the granite place here in our town and the owner had a phone call while I was there. He was being asked to hire someone for a friend but he told the man he was barely hanging on and that he was probably going to have to close if something didn't happen for him soon and that he had someone interested in his inventory and that he couldn't afford to hire anyone right now and couldn't even afford the people he had. I was shocked! I was also a little afraid to give my deposit...it's so sad..I want to cry for our country everyday and some days I do...some of these mom and pop places have been around for at least 20 years. I had some painters over here on Monday for an estimate and they have called back several times a day and left several e-mail messages practically begging me to hire them. It's almost harassment but I know how desperate times are here and while we are not wealthy we are just doing some updates and trying to keep up with maintenance so we aren't hit with it all at once when we go to sell. We know we can probably better afford it now rather than in several years when my husband retires. So anyway, I think I am doing things to a point to help some people out it's almost secondary that I like it. Oy...such sad times for so many...and we are all worried. God Bless those who are in such dire straights and bring lots of work their way, ours too!!!

I also see where Steph is coming from, but for those who can afford it, saved for it, and were planning for remodeling, it does the economy no good for them to hold back now.

Well-said Steph! Thank you.

I am consciously devolving my (probably) already-minimized ambitions for my reno.

The rationalization linking spending with patriotism is both facilely attractive and at the same time, somewhat repellant to me.

I would never consider borrowing to finance a house upgrade, so my project would always have to work around current (and saved) resources. But I haven't the heart to over-indulge myself in these days when it's clear that many people in my own community are suffering the loss of their houses - only disease and death would be more upsetting to the home-body in me.

I am working with the raw material of a 19th c building and making a big effort to stay in tune with what it can teach me about the long-lasting benefits of modest, low-bling style combined with investments in solidity and permanence.

This may not generate many jobs (mine is almost exclusively a DIY project anyway) but what it does is build on what can be produced locally as I am trying to use local materials where possible: using locally-sourced wood from local sawmills and not choosing imported granite or soapstone, as examples.

WARNING, SOAPBOX RANT: Isn't there something more than little bizarre about the enormous energy costs of bringing container-loads of rocks clawed out of the mountains of South America and Central Asia, more than likely by workers whose job safety conditions wouldn't bear close scrutiny? Just to turn the rocks into suburban kitchen counters and loss-leaders at Home Depot. I feel the same way about exotic hardwoods like wenge and mahogany and teak - even those supposedly grown on certified plantations. I'm not saying the materials aren't attractive - they most certainly are, but I can't get over the whiff of Third-world exploitation that clings to them for me. It's possible that having lived outside the US for much of my life, I am over-sensitive on this score. And I am not personally completely rigid here as I plan to use some materials from IKEA cabs almost all of which are made overseas. END OF RANT!

Anyhoo, I think that deliberately choosing a more moderate, perhaps more locally-focused renovation can be a satisfying and socially beneficial choice because it strengthens local economic resilience without succumbing to the dictates of hyper-consumerism.

Discarding some of my former gotta-haves is also quite liberating.

L.

There are certain granites that come from the USA. Elberton, GA is known as the granite capital of the world. There's lots of granite in this country if the market weren't flooded with stuff from other countries it would be a good thing. Loved your rant!

>some materials from IKEA cabs almost all of which are made overseas.

FWIW, most ikea akurum cabinets are currently made by Sauder in the US, although the doors mostly come from overseas.

Sorry, hit Send too soon. The downside is that what you gain in points for local product you lose pretty much because their labor practices in the US are deplorable, not in the least like the way they operate in Sweden, alas.

Sorry. Didn't mean this to take such a somber tone. It was just a thought I had in the course in thinking about what a big undertaking this has been.

I very much like the idea of investing in people.

We've put a number of out-of-work or underemployed people to work on this project, plus given work to small contractors instead of big ones--the money goes almost directly to the workers.

I do regret that we couldn't route more of it to small suppliers. We choose small companies when we can but sometimes the Big Box gets our biz.

We've come to know a man on the street who we hardly knew previously. Might have Asburger's Syndrome--in certain arenas he's just great but in other matters, esp. interpersonal ones and relationship to reality, he's lost. He has helped with engine repairs and odd jobs. We recommended him as a laborer to a friend whose health demands that he reduce the work in his showplace garden--new low-maintenance plantings, new sod, new walkways, etc. What a great idea this has turned out to be! Both benefitted tremendously and the money went directly to someone who really needed it.

Now that our kitchen's been 85% done for a year, I can look at our locally made oak "shaker" cabs with few regrets (I started out wanting mahogany from a catalog!) and at the many good things in the kitchen that resulted from our decision to spend less on "stuff" and more on "infrastructure." Better design, better thought put into plumbing and electrical, better customization of cabs, etc. etc. etc. We went slow and drove the local code inspectors nuts with our queries and re-starts, but we did it right and a lot of money went into the local economy. Most recently I spent $600 for reupholstery for dining room chairs. Glad I did it and the money went to a very small shop which has just expanded from a garage to a storefront in the local strip mall.

I understand where Steph is coming from. However, I think a lot of people do not really understand that we are in a very bizarre topsy turvy situation, where up is down and black is white. Perhaps that's because the last time this happened was in the 1930s, and many of the Greatest Generation who remember it clearly have dropped out of the picture.

It's called the paradox of thrift. Thrift may be good for a single household, but when everyone does it at once, it's a disaster for everybody--including the thrifty households.

Right now, lots of people can't spend money because they have too many debts to pay off. It isn't necessarily because they were reckless or overspent. The really crazy bad mortgage loans--no income, no down payment, etc.--went into default years ago and most of those people are long out of their loans. It's simply about the credit bubble and housing bubble.

So you have this massive demand shock--when people who otherwise could be spending, can't.

That means people who still can spend more, should spend more.

Trouble is, a lot of them aren't doing it. Businesses are sitting on record-breaking piles of cash. They are making some capital investments but they're not hiring until their own sales pick up (yes, this is a vicious circle--if all these cash-flush businesses went on a hiring spree, their business would automatically pick up as newly employed people went shopping. But businesses don't want to be the ones to go first.) Government at every level is laying off employees like crazy (it amazes me that people don't know this) at the worst possible time. The very rich are in heavy capital preservation mode. So a lot of people who could spend, refuse to.

If you do have it, and you do spend it, then yes, you are helping. This isn't always the case, but it is during conditions like the ones we have now.

Here is an animated political parody with home remodeling references ...

WARNING: If you are unable to enjoy a 2 minute non-partisan parody, please click away and return to your preferred source of news and political turmoil; otherwise, enjoy and please share the link with others who might see the humor!

Then kindly return to your new home or remodeling project!

Here is a link that might be useful: There's No Debate with Showplace Cabinets

An animated presidential debate that's actually an ad for Showplace cabinets? Weird.

Investing in your property is good for the economy. If you increase the value of your home, chances are good that your property taxes will increase and your community will benefit in that regard. Also, we pay sales tax on our materials and give contractors a chance to work.

I think in these times, renovations are more need based and budget oriented. Whether a renovation is sparked by recent flooding, other storm damage, or even just families who for financial reasons have to stay in their starter home that is no longer adequate for their growing family, renovations are good for our communities.

Steph2000 - My home too needs better energy efficiency and I consider the green aspect in each upgrade, but yet I am discouraged that the tax incentives have been greatly reduced. Just my Petpeeve.

Another point is that money in the bank is earning zip. Investing in your home is long term investment and you can enjoy your investment. We are not planning to sell, so I hope to enjoy my house upgrades for a while.

Suzannesl, yeah definately weird on the animated thing. It's just what happens when creative folks take some part of daily reality and play with it.

I don't think you'll see the "ad" anywhere other than on social sites where people might see the fun in it and not take it too seriously.

I thought it was fun, which is why I posted it, by maybe I'm wrong????