I am currently doing an extensive renovation on my 2 Bdrm Coop unit (about 1000 sqft) which has been ongoing for close to 1 1/2 years. I did my own demolition, framing, tile work, insulation, cabinetry and will complete the project by doing my own sheetrock, taping, painting and more. I eliminated quite a few seperating walls that subdivided my space into smallish sections with little flowthrough. Now I have a much more open space with a VERY open kitchen plan. I brought in an electrician to upgrade my electric service from 40amp to 80amp, completely gutted my kitchen, bathroom, hallway, living room & dining room adding more built in storage, architectural areas & features of interest, architectural lighting, in wall wiring for tv & internet, and plan on adding a home theater when completed along with all new top of the line appliances. My new bathroom features a jaccuzzi bathtub with spa shower, an ultra modern toilet (Kohler Hatbox) and lots of built-in storage in the form of 2- 6 foot tall 10" deep built-in closets, a 2' x 2' niche in the rear wall of the shower stall/bathtub for soaps & shampoos etc... and a natural beach pebble flooring for a more spa-like feel, although the bathroom is quite small, it should feel more spacious with the built-ins and lighting and minimalist fixtures. I even plan to make my own porcelain sink someday based on an existing design for a larger space (I only have 15-18" to place a sink in). I have had to wrestle with building codes for multiple family dwellings in NJ which can lead to some nasty surprises and expenses. The toughest part of doing this as a DIY project are the Coop rules which prevent me from doing any work outside of business hours (M-F 9-5) which means I have to take vacation time from work to work on my home, plus the fact that both myself & my wife are living in the apartment while I am renovating (can you say mission impossible?) I am getting closer to completion having passed my rough inspections (I still have to correct some bad work done by sloppy lazy plumbers who WAY overcharged me for the bad work which I have to re-do) but once I am done, I will have about $100,000 worth of work done on roughly a $30,000 budget. Not too bad!! Sweat equity has definately afforded me better appliances and fixtures for this renovation but I can see why it isn't for everyone. You have to be a very hardy and determined and focused individual to do something like this. It is very easy to get overwhelmed and give up. Know your limits and your abilities and never assume anything and you too can have a great project!!!