What Is Pre-Construction Consultation?

Q. What is Pre-Construction Consultation?

A. As a pre-construction consultant (PCC), I assist home-owners with their residential building and remodeling projects. I prefer to consult with the home-owner prior to beginning the project or even hiring a contractor. A consultation before any decisions have been made allows us to find the best solutions possible before any time or money has been spent.

Residential construction projects can be one of the most stressful events a person can go through. Sadly, many divorces between spouses and lawsuits between home-owners and builders occur due to the tremendous amount of stress involved. By pre-planning the construction project, many potential problems can be preempted and resolved before they even happen.

Can you imagine showing up to your wedding and trying to make decisions about the ceremony as you are going through it? Of course not. But this is how most home-owners and builders approach a construction job.

On a new build, the architectural plans are selected, handed to the builder, and as the foundation is poured and the frame work goes up, the home-owner is hustling to select all the other materials that are going in the home or are pressured to make decisions on the fly because the builder is moving forward quickly but usually with very little communication about what's coming next. For example, the builder calls on Tuesday to say the tile will be laid on Thursday but you haven't been looking at tile. So you are now forced to drop everything, run around to every store you can think of, and try to find a tile in stock that you hopefully love. This is like trying to find a wedding dress three hours before the wedding! Why would anyone do this? But it happens on most new construction jobs.

Remodeling projects are even worse. Because the home already exists, the home-owner has even less time to prepare because the builder isn't busy framing or working on the roof. He's ready to go NOW! Typically, residential remodelers hurry to demo the home, then ask the home-owner to start shopping. You are then left living in a mess until you can make up your mind about products and materials.

Just because this is the way it's always been done doesn't mean the madness has to continue!

So how do you prepare for your construction project if you don't know what to do or how to get started? Over the next few weeks, I'll be posting lists of decisions that need to be made for each room of your home, and the lists will be in the approximate order that items need to be purchased. This will, hopefully, keep you on track, on schedule, and prevent your contractor from surprising you with a deadline for a decision you aren't prepared to make.

Most construction projects, no matter how competent the contractor/builder is, go over budget and over time. The reason for this is a lack of planning, organization and being prepared which result in expensive change orders. Again, think about the wedding scenario. Sure, you could probably pull a wedding together at the last minute, but it would undoubtedly cost you more money, more stress, and you wouldn't get what you really wanted.

The absolute best investment you can make is hiring a pre-construction consultant before you begin your project. This one investment could save you literally thousands of dollars.

New construction? Let your PCC see your architectural plans and have them point out potential areas that may not live up to your expectations (Enough wall space for furniture? Is the "walk-in" pantry as big as you think? Is your refrigerator in a corner? It shouldn't be!). For a remodel, have the PCC look at your home, tell them your plans, and have them make recommendations that you may not have thought of. Your PCC should also be able to help you come up with a budget or, if you have a budget, give you a realistic idea of how far your money will go. If you don't have a PCC in your area, contact me. I can do in-home consultations via Skype or you can send me your architectural plans and we can then meet via Skype while looking over your plans together.

Meanwhile, if you have any questions about your project, please email me at renovatekate@cox.net or twitter your questions to www.twitter.com/renovatekate.

Also coming soon...online videos that will coach you through your project, offer information about cabinets, appliances, tile, countertops, paint selection, plumbing fixtures, electrical fixtures, quick tips and lots more! Become a follower of my blog, twitter account or my website at http://www.renovatekate.com/ for announcements about the videos. They will be short, educational videos (10 to 20 minutes) packed full of relevant, informative information and will be very reasonably priced ($10 to $15). If you like them, tell your friends and family about them. If not, tell me. I value your feedback.

Hire a PCC and make sure you don't waste your valuable time or money, that your relationships stay intact, and that you get the home of your dreams.

Until next time,

RenovateKate
http://www.renovatekate.com/
www.twitter.com/renovatekate