When budgeting for a project I find that homeowners and entrepreneurs budget for all the things that are tangible—the furniture, fixtures and built-ins. But there are several other items you should be including in your budget that really do add up. But no worries, I'm going to list these items here so that you can account for those expenses. The less surprises down the line, the better!

Shipping

It’s something that’s often overlooked if your pricing spreadsheet isn’t as detailed as it should be and it will add a huge chunk to your expenditures. The reason I think most homeowners forget about shipping is because until they work with an interior designer, they’re used to going to the store, picking out very few items at a time and then either taking it home that day or picking it up once it arrives at the store. When you’re redesigning several spaces at once, that’s just inefficient. Once pricing is approved, we order everything at the same time because at that point the client has seen the design presentation in it’s entirety. That’s the advantage of making all selections before construction starts. have a clear idea of what they’re getting since process isn’t as piecemeal.

Overall, ordering everything at one time can also save money on a project. Many vendors have a flat fee for shipping, and if there are a few large pieces on your project like sofas, that can be to your advantage.

Sales Taxes

This expense is such a huge part of our everyday lives, so it’s easy to forget about when ordering furniture, art and accessories. But if you’re ordering all the items for a living room, and your budget is $30,000, I can almost guarantee that most aren’t factoring in sales tax. If you’re in New Jersey where the tax rate is 6.625%, that $30,000 quickly turns into $31,987.50—that’s almost two thousand dollars that wasn’t accounted for.

Storage

If you’re doing a full home remodel, I can guarantee you’re not going to want your brand new, custom upholstered sofa in the middle of it. Storage space is an extra expense, but in my experience it’s well worth it. If anything gets damaged on a job site, it’s a headache trying to get that issue resolved. Those involved start pointing fingers, and it often ultimately comes down to, “why did you have that valuable piece onsite in the first place?”

Movers

Again, I have found that most budget for the items that are tangible. Most want to have lovely pieces in their home, but sometimes all the labor by others that goes into a project is overlooked. A lot of professionals work very hard to make a project successful—this includes movers. Movers can cost thousands of dollars depending on the size and complexity of a project. They are doing tough work and they have a huge amount of liability, so their fees need to cover things like liability insurance in case anything gets damaged.

The clearer you are on budgeting going into a project the more confident you’ll feel about the entire process. That’s why we’ve developed a 12-step process that includes comprehensive, transparent budgeting in conjunction with your design so you can see the full picture. The first step is scheduling a commitment-free 30 minute information call.