What Should You Do First When Planning a Whole-Home Remodel?

The first step in a whole-home remodel is defining your goals and establishing a realistic budget range before making any design or construction decisions. Homeowners who skip this step often face scope changes, budget overruns, and project delays that could have been avoided with upfront planning.

A whole-home remodel is one of the most complex residential construction projects. It may involve structural changes, full mechanical system upgrades, layout reconfigurations, and finishes across every room. The sequence of early decisions matters because each one builds on the last. Here is a framework that experienced remodelers in the Twin Cities, MN, recommend.

Step 1: Clarify What You Want to Accomplish

Before contacting a contractor or browsing inspiration photos, write down what is driving the remodel. Common motivations include:

The home layout no longer fits how your family lives (closed-off rooms, inadequate kitchen, cramped bathrooms)
Major systems are aging (HVAC, electrical, plumbing, windows) and need replacement
You want to modernize an older home rather than sell and buy new
Accessibility improvements are needed for aging in place
You purchased a fixer-upper that needs comprehensive updates

Separating your reasons into structural necessities versus cosmetic preferences helps you prioritize when budget decisions come into play later.

Step 2: Establish a Budget Range

Set a realistic budget range early, even before you know exact costs. A whole-home remodel in Minnesota varies significantly based on the size of the home, scope of structural work, material choices, and whether systems (electrical, plumbing, HVAC) need full replacement. Consulting with a design-build remodeler early helps calibrate your budget range against what the work actually requires.

Avoid fixating on a single number. A range gives you flexibility to make trade-offs during the design phase. The most effective approach is to identify your absolute maximum, then work backward to determine where that budget delivers the most impact.

Step 3: Decide What Stays and What Goes

Every whole-home remodel involves decisions about which elements to keep, which to modify, and which to replace entirely. A few guidelines:

Structural elements: Load-bearing walls, foundation, and roof framing typically stay. Modifications require engineering review and permits.
Systems: If your HVAC, electrical panel, or plumbing supply lines are more than 30 years old, plan on replacing them. Retrofitting new finishes around failing systems creates expensive problems later.
Layout: Identify which walls can be opened or removed to improve flow. Non-load-bearing walls are straightforward; load-bearing walls require beam or header installation.
Finishes: Hardwood floors in good condition can often be refinished rather than replaced. Original woodwork and trim may be worth preserving for character.

Step 4: Choose a Design-Build Partner Early

Many homeowners make the mistake of completing detailed design plans before selecting a builder. In a whole-home remodel, this often results in designs that exceed the budget or create construction challenges that a builder would have flagged early.

A design-build approach solves this by keeping design and construction under one team from day one. The designer and builder collaborate during plan development, ensuring that every design decision is buildable, code-compliant, and aligned with your budget.

New Spaces in the Twin Cities uses a structured discovery process called Needs, Wants and Wishes® to capture your priorities before any design work begins. This proprietary questionnaire identifies your must-haves (Needs), meaningful improvements (Wants), and aspirational features (Wishes). The result is a minimum of three design plan options that reflect your stated priorities and budget range.

Step 5: Develop a Phasing Strategy

Not every whole-home remodel happens all at once. Phasing allows you to spread the work across stages, which can reduce the financial burden and let you remain in the home during portions of the project.

Common Phasing Approaches

Approach	Best For	Typical Timeline
All at once	Homeowners who can temporarily relocate	4 to 8 months
Floor-by-floor	Two-story homes where you can live on one level	6 to 14 months
Zone-by-zone	Homes where kitchen/bath can be separated from living areas	8 to 18 months
Systems first, finishes later	Older homes needing full mechanical upgrades	12 to 24 months

Your design-build team can recommend the most practical phasing plan based on your home’s layout, the scope of work, and whether you plan to live in the home during construction. Projects in communities like Bloomington, Medina, Lakeville, and Minneapolis often use a floor-by-floor approach when families choose to stay during the remodel.

Step 6: Address Permits and Inspections

Whole-home remodels in Minnesota almost always require building permits. Structural modifications, electrical upgrades, plumbing changes, and HVAC work each trigger separate permit requirements and inspections. Your design-build partner should handle all permit applications and coordinate inspections as part of the project scope.

Permit timelines vary by municipality. Eden Prairie, Minnetonka, and Minneapolis each have their own review processes. Allowing 2 to 4 weeks for permit approval before construction begins is standard in most Twin Cities suburbs.

What Not to Do First

Certain actions that feel productive early on can actually create problems:

Do not purchase materials before design is finalized. Appliances, tile, fixtures, and cabinetry should be specified during the design phase so dimensions, connections, and lead times are coordinated with the construction schedule.
Do not hire trades individually. A whole-home remodel requires tight coordination between demolition, framing, mechanical rough-ins, insulation, drywall, and finish trades. A design-build firm manages this sequencing; hiring trades separately puts coordination responsibility on you.
Do not start demolition before a complete plan exists. Opening walls before design is finalized can reveal surprises that require plan changes, and you will be making decisions under pressure instead of during a structured design process.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the single most important first step in a whole-home remodel?

Define your goals and set a realistic budget range. Every subsequent decision, from design scope to material selection to phasing strategy, depends on having clear priorities and an honest understanding of what the work will require financially.

Should I hire a designer or contractor first for a whole-home remodel?

Ideally, you hire a design-build firm that provides both under one roof. This ensures design decisions are buildable and budget-aligned from the start. Hiring a designer first often results in plans that exceed budget or create construction challenges a builder would have caught early.

Can I live in my home during a whole-home remodel?

It depends on the scope and phasing strategy. Floor-by-floor or zone-by-zone approaches allow many families to remain in the home during portions of the project. Your design-build team can recommend the best approach based on your home’s layout and the work involved.

How long does a whole-home remodel take in Minnesota?

Timelines range from 4 months for a focused all-at-once renovation to 18 or more months for phased projects. Variables include home size, structural complexity, permit review times, and material lead times. A detailed schedule is developed during the design phase.

What is the Needs, Wants and Wishes process in home remodeling?

Needs, Wants and Wishes is a proprietary discovery framework used by New Spaces. It captures your must-have features (Needs), meaningful improvements (Wants), and dream elements (Wishes) through a structured questionnaire. This input drives at least three distinct design plan options tailored to your priorities and budget.

Start Planning Your Whole-Home Remodel

The best first step is a conversation with a team that has done this before. New Spaces has guided homeowners across the Twin Cities through whole-home remodels of every scope, from focused main-level renovations to comprehensive, floor-to-ceiling transformations.

Contact New Spaces to begin the Needs, Wants and Wishes discovery process and take the first step toward a home that works the way you need it to.