Bathroom renovation costs in 2022

[Anonymous]

Just got a quote to redo a small (5x8),1950s bathroom. We were told there was no way we could gut it and replace everything for less than $25k. is this just what things cost these days, or are we being taken for a ride? How much did you pay for a similar renovation?

[Anonymous]

Contractors don't want these small jobs. Have you called around? If it is a pull and replace you should be able to get this below $20,000.

[Anonymous]

Are you going to the studs? I’m about to redo a primary bathroom, and I’m expecting (hoping for) it to be around $60k.

[Anonymous]

A couple years ago pre-Covid a bathroom reno was running around $20k so $25k now doesn't seem crazy to me. Get more quotes if you think that's out of line.

[Anonymous]

I was just quoted $5500 for the same size for labor, tiling and replacing vanity and toilet.
Go to floor and Decor. It’s a massive place. They have the same
Tile you see at the fancy places with “designers”. They will also help you with design.
They have licensed contractors that will do the install

Budget $6000 for the labor, $200 toilet. Vanity $700.

Don’t get taken for a ride by a contractor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was just quoted $5500 for the same size for labor, tiling and replacing vanity and toilet.
Go to floor and Decor. It’s a massive place. They have the same
Tile you see at the fancy places with “designers”. They will also help you with design.
They have licensed contractors that will do the install

Budget $6000 for the labor, $200 toilet. Vanity $700.

Don’t get taken for a ride by a contractor.

Are you using your prior faucets? $700 is very cheap for a vanity. Is it mdf? I just did a powder room and the vanity is one sink and all wood. It was $2100. Faucet and accessories were $600.

[Anonymous]

Im the $5500 poster. I actually paid $1500 for my 36 inch vanity but there are options in the $700 range
My point was, no, no one has to spend $20,000 for a 5x7 bathroom
You can get a faucet at Lowe’s fairly inexpensively. I paid $200 for a Moen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was just quoted $5500 for the same size for labor, tiling and replacing vanity and toilet.
Go to floor and Decor. It’s a massive place. They have the same
Tile you see at the fancy places with “designers”. They will also help you with design.
They have licensed contractors that will do the install

Budget $6000 for the labor, $200 toilet. Vanity $700.

Don’t get taken for a ride by a contractor.

Are you replacing walls for that money? 1950s bathrooms were built to withstand the end times. Everything was set in an inch of concrete, and the floor joists were carved up to hold it. The only way you do a 50’s bathroom on the cheap is to cover over existing flooring (which is not possible if you have water or settling damage), salvage existing walls (which is difficult to do when you have to wrest off tile that was meant to stay on forever), pretend that you don’t have damage or corroded pipes or old wiring behind your ancient walls, use cheap wood wainscoting or drywall in lieu of a proper tile wainscot, and reglaze your existing tub which is probably an irregular size that cant be easily replaced.

I got quoted $15k in labor alone for this job pre-COVID and that was based on some optimistic assumptions about the state of the wiring and plumbing.

[Anonymous]

I highly recommend this company, https://www.yourpropertydr.com/ they also own Miracle Method Kensington.

We used them to reglaze the wall tiles of a 50s bathroom and then remove and replace tile floor, change vanity, light and toilet. Labor was only $3200. This was last fall so it couldn't have gone up so much. We supplied the materials but they could do it for you if you want. Very easy to work with too and did not have to wait too long. We did not remove or reglaze the tub as it was in good condition.

[Anonymous]

Compare this:
Not dc

Renovated really large bathroom, didn’t need new vanity or mirrors.

All new tile over large shower, tub surround, floors. Not high end but not the cheapest
Frameless shower
Some specialized tile designs
One new fixture
New paint

18k

The not DC metro and not fully renovated make it incomparable.
However, the size of my bathroom is very large with very tall ceilings too, so that might even some of it out.

[Anonymous]

(Fairfax)

We just had a 5x8 professionally done for 12k, stripped to studs and rebuilt. High-end everything. Only thing we kept was the tub.

Could have easily gone below 8 if we didn’t go overboard with nice cabinets, plumbing fixtures, etc.

Tip: The big design build shops have a lot of overhead they have to cover. Guess who’s paying for it… find a small place where the owner works with their crew.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Contractors don't want these small jobs. Have you called around? If it is a pull and replace you should be able to get this below $20,000.

OP here. Thanks for your input. The bathroom is one part of a larger renovation, so it's not just that it's a small job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you going to the studs? I’m about to redo a primary bathroom, and I’m expecting (hoping for) it to be around $60k.

This is helpful, thank you. We were told that it doesn't really make sense to redo the bathroom without going to the studs, because, for example, you could be laying new tile on top of pipes that are old/could burst/etc. That's part of why we were told it was so expensive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:(Fairfax)

We just had a 5x8 professionally done for 12k, stripped to studs and rebuilt. High-end everything. Only thing we kept was the tub.

Could have easily gone below 8 if we didn’t go overboard with nice cabinets, plumbing fixtures, etc.

Tip: The big design build shops have a lot of overhead they have to cover. Guess who’s paying for it… find a small place where the owner works with their crew.

This is so helpful, thanks. Do you mind sharing which contractor you used?

[Anonymous]

18k for labor and generic stuff for a small mudded rowhouse bathroom. We supply the nice parts (vanity, mirror, light, tub, fixtures). We had quotes from ~10k-30k.