The average bathroom remodel in Massachusetts and Rhode Island is around $26,000 (semi custom, if done properly by a reputable company)
For a full bathroom remodel you can expect to pay upwards of $13,000 for the most basic remodel you could think of: tile floors with drop in 4 piece shower with no bells and whistles. When it comes to large fully custom bathrooms I have seen people spend upwards of 60 to 80 thousand dollars.
What makes it so expensive?
Let's first look at all the trades involved in a bathroom project. You have demolition, plumber, electrician, carpenter and tile guy/girl (yes tile is its own craft).
Demolition can be tricky, a typical bathroom has limited room making it difficult to have more than one person working at any given time. Removal of debri without getting dust in the rest of the house can also be a hassle.
Let's dive into plumbing. Typically a plumber is charging anywhere between $800-$1200 per fixture. Your toilet is one, then vanity, shower/tub, main stack (vent) is priced as a fixture if needs to be moved or altered. That cost alone adds up to $2400-$3600 at the very least. Then start adding in features like additional shower heads, handhelds, body sprayers, rain heads, steam shower, double vanity, bidet, maybe a niche right in the middle of the wet wall, and the list goes on and on.
Great Carpentry is key in a good tile job. You can pick the best tile in the world, but if the walls are not plumb and straight it will look terrible. Same goes for the floor, no one wants a wonky floor or even a wonky ceiling. Getting everything nice and straight, plumb and level in even a newer built home takes time and money.
I won't dive into every trade to bore you, but remember most of the trades are their own separate companies. This requires the general contractor to not only schedule these various trades but he also has the responsibility to find and hire reputable companies. It takes years to build a team of subcontractors to be able to work together and keep a bathroom remodel within a given timeline.
Even though it may be one of the smallest rooms in a home, the square foot cost of a bathroom is high making it one of the most expensive rooms in a house. It takes knowledge, passion and hard work to tie in all these pieces to make a fully custom bathroom remodel into a work of art.