When you have a vision for how to reinvigorate your home with a remodel, it’s essential to find a professional who can deliver the project on time, on budget, and on spec.
Unfortunately, too many homeowners struggle in this process and wind up hiring a contractor who lacks the expertise or attention to detail necessary to make their home renovation a success.
In this post, I’ll explain the impact of hiring a great remodeler. I’ll review the types of remodeling firms you can hire and the characteristics of the most successful remodelers. I’ll also give practical tips for finding a high-quality firm for your project.
Why Is It Important to Hire a High-Quality Home Remodeling Company?
If you want a job done right, you need the right people to do it. It’s that way in almost every industry, and remodeling is no exception. In fact, the scope and budget of home renovations amplify the impact of hiring a great remodeler.
If your project is not completed according to the specifications, it can dramatically lower the satisfaction you get when renovating your home. Inexperienced or inattentive contractors may create problems that require future renovations to fix. Even worse, shoddy work may create safety risks for you and your family.
Even when they do the work properly, low-quality remodelers may cause the project to drag on or exceed the proposed budget. Lost time and money can convert what should be an exciting project into a drain on your energy and finances.
When you work with a remodeler with exceptional craftsmanship and a commitment to excellence, you don’t have to worry about these problems. Instead, you can confidently let the entire process unfold, resulting in a rejuvenated new space that moves you closer to having your dream home.
What Are the Characteristics of a High-Quality Firm for Remodeling Services?
Every great remodeler has their own style, but they share certain core characteristics that enable them to do great work time in and time out.
- Organization: Remodeling projects have a lot of moving parts. Organization is essential to stay on top of all of the components of design and construction, including permitting and managing subcontractors. While not all top-tier remodelers use the exact same system, they all have a tried-and-true way of keeping all of their projects organized and on track.
- Process: As part of their organizational prowess, great remodelers have a proven process to account for every step required to finish the project. Many of the best firms have experienced project managers who manage the flow of information between the firm and their clients, suppliers, and subcontractors.
- Attention to detail: While lots of builders can put up cookie-cutter homes, high-end remodelers see each client’s house as unique. Even if it’s not a true custom home remodel, they recognize that no two projects are exactly alike. That allows their quality craftsmanship to shine through, ensuring that the work is done to the highest standards.
- Accountability: True professionals take great pride in their work, but they are also accountable if something goes wrong. No one is perfect, and mistakes can happen. Great remodelers minimize those mistakes, but if they occur, their mindset is to make it right rather than play the blame game.
- Collaboration: Renovations aren’t done by a single person alone, and high-quality remodelers recognize that communication is an asset, not a burden. They treat their customers, employees, and subcontractors with respect and foster a team-oriented approach that draws on everyone’s contributions to get projects done efficiently.
What Are the Options for Hiring a Builder for Renovations?
Remodeling projects involve two main phases: creating the design and doing the construction. As a homeowner, you can hire one firm to handle both phases (design-build) or hire separate people for each phase (design-bid-build).
Design-Build
With the design-build approach, one remodeler is responsible for the project from start to finish, all managed under a single contract.
At the start, the firm’s in-house designers work with you to understand your existing space, your ideas for different improvements, and what kind of look and style you prefer. They prepare conceptual designs and drawings and get your feedback, a back-and-forth process that zeroes in on the final design. During this stage, they can consult with the firm’s construction team about design issues and start preparing for the transition to the construction process. Equally important, they will start the cost estimation and bidding process at the beginning of the design phase, so you will have clearer expectations about how much the project could cost and can make adjustments to the design to stay within your budget range.
For homeowners, the design-build model offers the convenience of having one trusted partner for the whole project. This enables more direct communication and more efficiency in the timeline, which translates to better cost control.
Design-Bid-Build
The design-bid-build approach involves separate service providers for each of the main phases of the remodel. You first need to find and hire someone to create the initial design. Once that is finished, you get contractors to bid on the project as designed. After selecting a contractor, you move to the construction phase and have to interview and hire another team to handle the build.
While design-bid-build can work efficiently, the reality is that it often doesn’t, especially for residential remodeling projects. It can take time and effort to find and interview contractors. Because the designer and contractor work independently, questions or concerns from the contractor about the design can gum up the works and leave you stuck in the middle.
Budget management is also a challenge with the design-bid-build approach. Since the designer doesn’t actually do the construction, the best they can do is give a general cost estimate. If the bids exceed that estimate, you may just have to pay more, or you have to go back to the designer for changes, further delaying the project.
How Do I Find Home Builders and Remodelers?
Word-of-mouth is the most reliable way to find a professional firm for home building or home renovation services. It often helps to ask family members, friends, or even coworkers if they know a remodeler that they can recommend. You may find that people often don’t know a firm’s name offhand, so it’s important to follow up with anyone who may have a referral.
Beyond asking your network, you can also search online for remodeling firms in your area. Check out a company’s website and portfolio, and see if there are reliable reviews for them posted online. You can then schedule a phone call or in-home visit to learn more about their experience, communication style, and process. Each of these steps can help you find the right contractor or remodeler.
Can Any Firm Do Custom Home Remodeling Projects?
Custom home remodeling involves more in-depth and tailored work compared to a standard “face-lift” style remodel that merely replaces your existing finishes with new ones. As a result, not every remodeling firm can do it well.
Custom remodeling often involves structural changes that must be carefully planned, and firms with an architect on staff are frequently better equipped to create the design. In the end, firms that specialize in high-end and custom remodeling have a process that’s fine-tuned to deliver better results for these projects.
How Do I Choose Between Different Remodeling Companies?
Picking a remodeling firm is a big decision. When you’re deciding who to hire, you can focus on three main factors.
- Communication: Look for someone who listens and responds thoughtfully and follows up when they say they will. You want a remodeling partner who communicates in a way that will make all your ongoing interactions more productive and positive. Likewise, you want a design team that is skilled at active listening and will take the time to understand the needs of your family so they can design spaces that will fit your life perfectly.
- Experience and reputation: High-quality work should show in their track record. Whether it’s referrals from past clients or a portfolio of prior jobs, you should have confidence that they do all their work to high standards. For custom remodeling, consider the benefits of hiring a team that includes a certified architect.
- Price: Cost is obviously important, but don’t select a lower bid if it means compromising on a remodeler’s abilities or communication skills. Sadly, less reputable remodelers will often provide an unrealistically low estimate, knowing they will make up the difference during construction with change orders and additional hours or materials.
Design-Build Services in West Chester, Pennsylvania
Hazley Builders is a family-run business that has been serving the West Chester and Chester County, Pennsylvania, community for over two decades. We utilize an architect-led design-build process and work hand-in-hand with our clients to deliver high-quality results on all types of remodeling projects.
Regardless of whether you’re hoping to design a new kitchen, do a primary bathroom remodel, expand your living space with a home addition, or any other project, we would be proud to be the trusted partner for your remodel. We invite you to contact us to schedule an initial meeting or read more about us and our work on our website.
