• What Do You Really Get with 3 Bids?
  
  
• How to Find an Honest Contractor (coming soon)
  It's not an oxymoron, but they are in the minority
  
  
• What Does a General Contractor Do?
  
  
• Questions to Ask of ANY Contractor
  
  
• Questions to Ask a Contractor's References
  
  
• Types of Design Professionals
  Do you need an architect for your renovation?
  

a Saint of a Contractor

• Lead-Safe Remodelers/Renovators in RI
  as licensed by the Rhode Island Department of Health 401-222-5960
  Lead-Safe Remodelers know how to control dust and keep your family safe, as well as keep your home clean.  Your contractor is required to have an EPA or RI license in all US states if your home was built before 1978.
  
  
• RI Contractors Registration Board
  See if a contractor is truly registered to do business in Rhode Island.
  Tips: only put once piece of data in at a time.  For example, if you know the contractor's last name is Brusco, only put Brusco in the last name field, don't put in his first name.  If you know his phone number is 401-632-0765, only put 0765 in the phone number field.
  If the contractor does not show up in the results, call the CRB at 401-222-1268;  the data is not always perfect.
  Always always always call the insurance agency to verify current insurance coverage.
  
  
• RI Contractors Watchlist
  Bad contractors, but just the ones the State of Rhode Island knows about.
  
  
• Licensed Plumbers and Electricians in RI
  On the Rhode Island Department of Labor & Training website 401-462-8000.
  See the tips above.

• Remodeling Magazine’s Cost Vs. Value Report for the Providence, RI area
  
  
• Budgeting for a Remodel
  
  
• How to Remodel on a Small Budget
  

• an article from AARP:
  A New Kind of Loan: In Reverse
  
  
• The Rest of What You Need to Know about Reverse Mortgages
  
  
• an article from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention):
  Falls Among Older Adults: An Overview
  "Among older adults, falls are the leading cause of injury deaths. They are also the most common cause of nonfatal injuries and hospital admissions for trauma."
  "More than one third of adults 65 and older fall each year in the United States."

• Lead-Safe Remodelers/Renovators in RI
  as licensed by the Rhode Island Department of Health 401-222-5960
  Lead-Safe Remodelers know how to control dust and keep your family safe, as well as keep your home clean.  Your contractor is required to have an EPA or RI license in all US states if your home was built before 1978.
  
  
• The Lead-Safe Certified Guide to Renovate Right
  Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers and Schools published by the EPA and HUD.
  If you own a home built before 1978, by federal law, your contractor must give you a copy of this booklet before work begins.
  
  Rhode Island has had this law in place since 2002.  Any kind of contractor who works on a pre-1978 residential property and disturbs 6 square feet of painted surface in a room (or works on a window in any way) must have a Lead Safe Remodeler License.  This would apply to general contractors, carpenters, painters, plumbers, electricians and plasterers.  Tens of thousands of contractors are affected.  As of March 2010, only 788 licenses were current, and many of those contractors were more concerned about making profit than protecting your family.
  

• $1500 federal tax credit for energy saving products
  Get back up to $1500 for stuff that will save you money.
  
  
• incentives available on a state-by-state level
  Find rebates available from utility companies in your state and from your state government.
  
  
• Rhode Island Energy Efficient Rebate Program
  Rebates from the State of Rhode Island for the purchase and installation of Energy Star appliances and heating units.
  

• The Homeowner's Emotional Roller Coaster
  
  
• sample change order
  A good faith use of change orders is to document modifications from the original plan, as they happen.  This is a good way to avoid the "You said", "No I said" argument which can ruin a remodeling experience by causing you and your contractor to lose faith in each other.  Use this even if there is no cost difference, because no one has a perfect memory.