Our Process

The bullets below explain our general process for design/build residential remodeling projects

Know what you’re getting into before you start.

“You get what you pay for”. You’ll wait an extra hour or two and pay a higher price for your favorite restaurant, because of the quality. When it comes to investing in your home, the place where you spend half of your life, and the resale value, do the same with your remodeling contractor. You won’t be disappointed.

• 1. Initial Consultation

  Phone call, Microsoft Teams web conference or In-Person Meeting. We will find out as much information as possible in order to be able to come up with a budget.

• 2. Budget Estimate

  Provide a Preliminary Budget Estimate

  • If construction budget falls within the Budget Estimate range (+/-15%), proceed to Design Development

  • Examine existing site conditions if necessary

  During our 2nd meeting, we will provide an Opinion of Probable Cost (OPC) based on our experience with projects of similar size and scope.

  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 selections, we can steer the project costs towards a construction budget and help keep the overall costs of the project down.

  If your construction budget falls within the OPC range (+/- 15%), you may opt to proceed to Design Development. In the event you have architectural plans already, we can also provide a proposal through a modified Pre-Construction Development Agreement.

  At this phase we will begin examining existing site conditions, your electric panel, HVAC and plumbing, taking a walk around your house, taking measurements, and discussing the finer details of the project.

• 3. Design Agreement

  • Outlines a high level scope of work, design budget, and details the Design Retainer Fee

  • Explain work that takes place in the design phase

  This is the point where we execute a Design Agreement. The Design Agreement outlines a high level scope of work, design budget, and details the Design Retainer Fee. The Design Agreement explains the work that takes place in the design phase, which includes three

  meetings with the Architectural Designer or Draftsperson, four meetings with the Design Coordinator, and multiple trips to showrooms to assist you in product selection.

  During the 6-14 weeks of the Design Development period, we will meet approximately every 10 days (about every week and a half) depending on your availability and how much homework we have to accomplish. The Initial Design & Style meeting will be a site visit to your home with our Draftsperson and Design Coordinator to become better acquainted with the space, confirm measurements, and discuss design aesthetics. Following that meeting, we will develop four to five conceptual layouts for your consideration. We will then narrow things down to one to two variations of a plan and continue to make selections. Spatial planning is included in this process, including furniture placement.

  Payment Note: The retainer fee runs between 5% and 8% of the OPC, depending on the complexity of the project. This fee covers our time to explore options, develop plans, elevations and perspective drawings, 2D renderings, develop a detailed scope of work, including a trade walk through, a GANTT construction schedule, as well as the cost of the project.

• 4. Architecture & Selections

  • Complete questionnaire prior to selecting products

  • 6–14 weeks Design Development period

  • Meet every 10 days (about every week and a half)

  • Budget and aesthetics guidance provided at every step

  Concurrently, our Design Coordinator will assist you with design selections. A series of selections will need to be completed during this phase. The sequence of these selections is critical to efficiency of this stage. Your Designer will walk you through a detailed questionnaire of your project prior to recommending any solutions or products.

  Example: If installing flooring over concrete, consideration has to be given to moisture, levelness of the floor, temperature of the finished surface, transitions to other flooring heights in adjacent rooms, and more. All of these factors need to be weighed when making product selections. By asking a lot of questions, and using this methodical approach, we are able to provide better solutions for our clients.

• 5. Trade Walkthrough & Team Meeting

  • Trade Walkthrough with our production staff and trades

  • Discuss mechanicals and make sure project is constructible

  • Critical step for avoiding surprises

  Approximately two thirds of the way through the Design Development period, we will perform a Trade Walkthrough with our production staff and team of trade people specific to your project. During that visit, we will peak behind walls and discuss mechanicals and make sure it’s constructible. We don’t like surprises and neither do our clients. By doing this, we are confident that we can give you a firm price for the scope of work.