What Scares Homeowners the Most About a Remodel
A major remodel has two main components, the design and construction. Homeowners call us for the design, but they seem most nervous about working with the right professional to actually build out the design. Contractors are amazing, they make our projects come to life with a ton of responsibility on their shoulders. If you find an amazing contractor your project will turn out so much better than you ever dreamed. However, if you work with the wrong contractor it can be a nightmare.
Working with the right contractor is an investment in your home as well as your emotional and physical health. Emotional health has most to do with any miscommunications, the wrong expectations or working with someone who isn’t professional. If you work with a contractor that doesn’t know what they’re doing, it can be physically dangerous in extreme circumstances.
Having major work done in your home is usually very stressful, even when things go right. You’ll also feel the effects of a project more when you’re living in the home during construction. Construction throws off your routine, there’s often a good chunk of money involved and for a period of time, it looks like parts of your house exploded. With the right contractor, you don’t need to worry about how it’ll look when they put your house back together.
We help many of our clients find the ideal contractor after design and documentation is complete. We’re a lot more comfortable with interviewing and reviewing a project because that’s what we do ALL THE TIME. There are a number of ways to minimize the amount of stress associated with a project on your own.
Ask for referrals
Referrals are the best when it comes to doctors, restaurants and hotels—why should that be any different for finding a contractor? Someone who cares about you won’t want to steer you wrong.
Get more than one estimate
I also recommend that homeowners get multiple estimates for comparison. If this is your first major remodeling project, it’s likely you have no idea what it’s supposed to cost. It’s alright, I find that most homeowners don’t because they’re not in the business. With that in mind, if you only get one estimate you won’t know if it’s reasonable, given the scope of work and their level of expertise.
Make sure you communicate well with prospective contractors
The smallest remodels take about 4-6 weeks to complete and there’s a lot of communication that happens over that time period. Imagine if you don’t like talking to your contractor? Those 4-6+ weeks are going to feel a lot longer.
The goal is to find a contractor that’s an absolute pleasure to work with. If you’re looking for more information on how to make that happen, check out our guide to vetting a prospective contractor!
