The architect came to our house yesterday (he had to postpone the meeting originally scheduled for Wednesday) and took a look at the structural issues before sitting down with us to bounce around a couple of ideas. The end result of the visit is that I am feeling excited about the house for the first time in years.
The structure is bad, but not difficult to fix
The fact that we have gutted or are planning to gut the areas that need fixing works in our favour. Fixing the structural problems won’t add much to the cost of the renovation.
Drawings help visualization
We have all looked at floor plans and tried to picture how they would translate to real life. Well, seeing the drawings of the existing layout helped me see just how poorly laid out that end of the house actually is. With a single swipe of a pencil he opened our eyes to an idea that we hadn’t even considered but which makes total sense when it’s on paper. By removing the front hall closet, we eliminate the hallway to the bedroom and bathroom and we can therefore expand the new rooms by a couple of feet. He also suggested access to the laundry room from the back door landing by building another staircase (three steps). My wife really likes that idea. I, on the other hand, am reserving judgment until I see the drawings.
The next step will be for the architect to actually draw up some plans for us to consider now that he has a feel for what we want.
Our process will be a little different
Normally, the architect would come up with the drawings and we would go back and forth with revisions until we agreed on the final floor plan. Then he would produce the blueprints and put the project out to tender. In our case, he has recommended a couple of contractors who have done work for him in the past. He claimed that in his experience, a larger company would tend to overbid on a project like ours because it looks like much more work than it really is. He is suggesting two contractors who have done work for him in the past. They charge by the hour (as opposed to the job) and do excellent work.
Given that our experience with our the contractor who worked on the second floor for us was less than positive, I am a more than a little nervous. However, that contractor was recommended by a real estate agent and these contractors are recommended by an architect. You can guess which recommendation would carry more weight.
And we will still benefit from the architect’s oversight to ensure that the project progresses smoothly and that we are treated fairly and material expenses are kept reasonable. The more we keep costs in check now, the sooner we will be able to do the addition. And if we never do the addition, at least the main part of the house will be finished.
Another benefit of this arrangement is that I can help with things like demolition and wiring and I’ll have an opportunity to learn more about certain aspects of construction. Having learned my lesson from the last contractor, I intend to be more observant this time around (without getting in the way and hindering their progress). I will not be completely selling out as a DIYer.
Next steps
The architect will have some drawings for us on Monday or Tuesday and the contractors will likely take a look at the house next week.
I agree with the architect 100%. That would be a first for me. Working on a time and materials terms is usually in the favor of the homeowner, but gives the contractor less risk. It is very hard to bid a remodel because there are too many things that pop up or you can’t see until you get into it. Therefore I would have to bid it high enough to cover the unexpected. With a bid you pay for things that might not come up. Time and materials you only pay for the things that do come up. Still if you can get the contractor to agree to a “time and materials not to exceed $0.00″ contract, that is always a good idea. I do this for my customers whether they ask or not. It gives the homeowners a little comfort.
Comment by David Kleine — Wednesday, 11 February 09 @ 1:41 pm
The one possible issue I see with the “time and materials not to exceed $…” clause is that some contractors may take advantage of that and run the bill up to the maximum. The way around that of course is to set the threshold lower than it really is and prepare to go over if necessary. For example, just because I can afford $10,000 doesn’t mean I want to pay 10,000. I obviously want to pay as little as possible while getting a quality job. The advantage to having an architect / project manager is that he will be auditing the bills and we can make adjustment along the way to either stay within budget or make upgrades if we can afford to. As far as things popping up, we are budgeting for a complete gut and remodel. I don’t think there will be any more surprises than what I’ve already uncovered. Stay tuned.
Comment by Thumb & Hammer — Saturday, 14 February 09 @ 2:29 pm