When my neighbors in Sacramento finished updating their 1980s ranch house last year, they didn’t gut the whole place. They worked…

My client Maya rented a 450-square-foot studio in Wicker Park and called me frustrated. She had one main room that was…

A homeowner in Sarasota recently told me her contractor quoted $42,000 for a kitchen remodel, but she’d budgeted $25,000 for. She…

Introduction A homeowner in Tampa recently called me about her living room. The popcorn ceiling was sagging from years of humidity,…

Introduction Last spring, a homeowner in Astoria, Queens, called three contractors for a kitchen quote. The numbers came back: $28,000. $41,000.…

My neighbor in Astoria spent three weekends redoing her bedroom last fall — no contractor, no designer, under $400 total. The…