House Renovation News launched in 2018 from a single, frustrating spreadsheet. After our founding editor, Sarah Chen, watched her 1980s split-level kitchen renovation in Portland, Oregon, balloon 47% beyond the contractor’s initial quote—despite what she thought was meticulous planning—she realized homeowners lacked a critical tool: a public, peer-driven record of what projects actually cost versus what was promised. She gathered three friends: a former construction estimator from Chicago, a project manager who had overseen her own 14-month bathroom gut-and-rebuild in Denver, and a data analyst from Atlanta. Together, they built the first cost-tracking database from 137 personal renovation receipts. That database became this site.
Our mission is straightforward and data-driven: to expose the gap between renovation estimates and final costs across the United States. Every article we publish includes a verified cost-tracking table—comparing the original line-item estimate against the final paid amount, adjusted for local material and labor rates. We cover roofing in Texas, basement finishing in Ohio, and historic window restoration in the Northeast with the same journalistic rigor: we interview contractors, review signed change orders, and analyze permit data from county assessors. Our editorial team does not sell contractor referrals or accept payment for coverage. We believe that a homeowner armed with accurate, region-specific cost data is a homeowner who can negotiate honestly and avoid the surprise 22% overrun that caught Sarah eight years ago.
If you are tracking a project right now—a kitchen reno in Phoenix, a deck replacement in Seattle—we want your numbers. Submit your original estimate and your final cost breakdown through our Contact Us page. Every submission is anonymized and added to our public cost index. We do not offer advice; we offer evidence. Join the thousands of homeowners who have already contributed data to make renovation budgeting less guesswork and more science.