Tubs are mostly a thing of the past, at least when it comes to master bathrooms. For families with kids, a tub in the hall bathroom is still a necessity, but in a master bathroom, the tub has become a space-wasting nuisance.
That’s what Jeff Pregman of Two Poor Teachers told me when I met him on Saturday afternoon at the Home and Remodeling Show at Dulles Expo Center in Chantilly. The exhibit hall was packed with exhibitors showcasing the latest in home renovation.
If you don’t take a bath in your master bathroom, there’s no law in Virginia that says you’ve got to have a tub in there,” Pregman said. “Now, if you have a massive bathroom, it makes sense to have a tub because it looks funny if you don’t. But if it’s a medium-sized bathroom, and it felt cramped in there before, let’s get rid of the tub that you don’t use. Let’s make it a bigger, spa-style shower.”
Bathroom remodels are big business for Two Poor Teachers. Founded in 1999 by two Fairfax County teachers — Ken Nies and Tom Pennell — the Annandale-based full-service residential construction company does about 300 bathrooms, 30 kitchen and 15 basement renovations a year in northern Virginia.
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I asked Jeff if most people were remodeling their homes these days in order to sell them or if they were making the renovations for themselves. He said about 30 percent of the work Two Poor Teachers does are for people who are looking to sell their homes. But he expects that percentage to increase as home prices rise.
Two Poor Teachers doesn’t use subcontractors. They do all their own carpentry, plumbing and electrical work. They take pride in their ability to turnaround their jobs quickly. Pregman boasts that the firm can redo a bathroom in a week or less and a kitchen in two weeks or less.
“We’re not the high high or the low low,” Pregman said. “We want to be in the middle. Our average kitchen project is [$30,000 to $40,000] complete.”
Read more at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/where-we-live/post/trends-in-bathroom-remodeling/2013/01/20/58812a30-634d-11e2-9e1b-07db1d2ccd5b_blog.html
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