Initial Consultation

Our initial consultations generally take an hour or so, depending on the complexity of your project. Our first meeting will cover a lot of ground including examining existing site conditions, your electric panel, HVAC and plumbing, taking measurements, and discussing the project. We will ask a lot of questions as to 'why' you are doing your project as well as 'what' you think you may want. We have found, occasionally, that clients think they need to add space, when we can rearrange the existing interior walls or plumbing locations instead and meet all of their needs. We have also found the opposite to be true, sometimes you do need more space. As we listen to your thoughts and ideas we can gather and understanding of what you like and don not like.

We will also discuss our design process further and answer any of your questions that you might have. At the end of our first meeting, we will know whether we are totally comfortable and a good fit to work with each other. If that is not the case, it is okay to wish each other well and part ways.

Budgets

It may not make sense to proceed if everything else seems to be a fit, but we are miles apart on the budget. We are often able to give you an opinion of probable cost based on our experience with similar projects of like scope and size. However, your selections and the project design will have bearing on the cost of the project. We find by giving practical guidance into the design and helping our clients with the selection, we can steer the project costs toward a construction budget and help keep the overall costs of the project down.

If our opinion of probable cost and your construction budget are relatively close, you have the decision to make whether or not to continue to the Design Phase. Based on the probable cost, you will sign a Project Development Agreement with a retainer fee that usually includes 2 meetings with the design manager and 3 meetings with the designer to include multiple trips to showrooms to assist you in product selections. The retainer fee runs about 3 percent of the probable cost, depending on complexity of the project.

The above process usually takes 4-12 weeks, depending on the size of your project. However, it's the best way to be sure you're getting the best value for your money. Our attention to detail in this process has proven very effective. It’s one reason why most of our work is repeat business and referrals.

Design

We don't just hand you a few floor plans and expect you to fit one of them into your lifestyle. Our designers will take into account all your needs and expectations. And during the initial estimating phase, we will work with you to provide a construction-friendly design. We want to be sure that your project will be everything you've dreamed of.

Turnaround Time

A typical design takes between 4 and 12 weeks, depending on the complexity of the work and whether or not architectural drawings need to be done. During the Design Phase, we will meet about every two weeks, depending on the scope of work.

Our first meeting will be a site visit to your home with our designer and/or engineers if need be to scope out the area to be added to or revised and confirm measurements. After that meeting, we will draw up a preliminary design plan (or a couple, as needed), elevations and perspective views using our professional 3D home design software. Preliminary design plans will be done in 2 to 3 weeks after the Project Development Agreement is authorized and the retainer is received.

Trade Day

During the Design Phase, we will perform a site visit with our team of trades people specific to your project called a “Trade Day”. After answering any questions you may have, we will provide a detailed proposal defining the scope of work you have requested and a price for the project along with a schedule with tentative start and completion dates.

Construction Agreement

At the end of the Design Phase we will invite you to our office, and we will present you with final drawings, final interior design decisions, an accurate proposal (Construction Agreement), and a schedule including tentative start and completion dates, a project flow chart, and final price. We will review every detail of the Construction Agreement with you including a detailed outline of the Scope of Work.

We keep our down payment low at 15% when signing the contract and progress payments in stages to allow you to monitor and approve construction as it progresses. Finally, we allow you to retain a portion of the total until you have ensured that the punch list is completed.

In the event you love the design and are ready to proceed, we will make sure your project goes into our Construction Schedule. We will submit for permits, if required, order long lead items and schedule a Pre-Construction Meeting to kick off your project!

Construction Begins

Prior to construction, we hold a Pre-Construction Meeting to ‘hand off’ the project to our Lead Carpenters and field staff. At this meeting, we answer common questions that every client is concerned about: when will you start, when will you finish, what time of day does work start, where does the dumpster go, etc. We will walk through the Scope of Work, one item at a time, to ensure we are all on the same page.

During construction, we provide a Production Manager who will visit your project on a near daily basis, or as required. You will be provided his cell phone number and are encouraged to call with any questions or concerns you may have. The construction superintendent will communicate with you daily to answer questions, resolve problems in a timely manner, and provide scheduling updates. We also include a dry erase board on site to show weekly project updates to keep you informed of the progress of your job as well as keeping the line of communication open throughout.

At the end of each work day, your job will be broom swept. We find that a clean job site is a safe and efficient job site. We also realize we are ‘borrowing’ part of your home and work to minimize inconvenience to you while the project is ongoing.

At the substantial completion of your project, the point at which the space may be used for its intended purpose, we will schedule a Final Walk Through at your home and ensure you are completely satisfied with the craftsmanship. There may be a small number of odds and ends to take care of, called a Punch list. While we work hard to attain a zero punch list, we will complete these as quickly as possible.

You will be provided all of your warrantee cards, Product Care Guide, and a Warrantee Letter from us.

Warranty

We'll stay in touch long after the last nail is in place to ensure that you are completely satisfied. We offer a one year warrantee and will follow up with you throughout the year after completion to check on warranty work and schedule any rework required within 30 days.

Due to our commitment to exceptional craftsmanship, communication, value, timeliness and ensuring our clients a pleasant journey through, the often stressful process, of home renovation most of our work comes from repeat business from past clients or referrals.