Since this blog is specialized in advocating for homeowners, the stories and situations will be geared toward that.  Some clues can be applied to other service professionals, but this will be directed to those looking to hire a contractor or design professional.

Both remodeling an existing home and building a new home can be filled with headaches.  Any homeowner needs to be sure that he or she is very comfortable with the person(s) with whom they will be working in the next bit of time.   People work together best when there is a high level of trust and accountability between them.  A professional must trust that the client will pay for the services on time and is telling the truth during any decision process.  The client must be able to trust the professional for the expertise he/she brings.

This is not to attack any industry as a whole, but a challenge to recognize those individuals within any industry who will not provide professional service.  Unfortunately, we are hearing of more clients being soaked by the professionals they chose.  One architect drew plans that the client realized did not meet the needs of their handicapped son – tens of thousands of dollars later.  One homeowner had their project red-flagged (and work stopped) by the building department because there were too many code violations.

Here are some thoughts that can help you stay out of the fire!

• Does the provider return your communication quickly and with the right information?
• Is the professional listening to your needs and your ideas? (discussed in Remodeling:How to Find a Professional)
• Is the salesman pressuring you to buy today? (Today Only sales are for retailers – not professionals)
• Can the salesman provide a clear plan for the future of your project?  (step-by-step with inspection, 3D modeling, pricing, and project delivery)
• Can the salesman answer tough questions without being defensive?

If you had to answer “no” to any of these questions, you may not want this professional on your short list.

Today, I found a list of items that someone else posted to try and help people find a professional.  I’d like to address this list and hopefully give some perspective.

• No Contract Labor – Make sure the people performing the repairs work for the company.
• Financial Commitment – Does the contractor own or rent his equipment?
• Supervisors on Site – Is the company large enough to provide full time supervision, or will the crew be dropped off at your home to do the work?
• References – Make sure references are not hand picked.
• Warranties – Warranties are only as good as the company that offers them. A reputable company who has been in business for at least 25 years should be your best bet.
• Insurance – Ask for current insurance certificates.

First, No Contract Labor.  I do understand the intent of this point, but disagree with the premise.  Generally, sub-contractors are experts in their field.  If someone cannot control a sub-contractor for purposes of quality, how can they say they can control an employee?  The same personnel system that controls quality for employees should control the quality for sub-contractors.

Financial Commitment – does the contractor own or rent their equipment.  I’m not sure what this would prove to a homeowner.  Surely we all agree that a contractor most likely doesn’t rent his hammer, tapemeasure, shovel, etc., but some equipment is specialized.  A light hydraulic trac-based power machine can be used to pull landscaping out, without tearing up the rest of your lawn like the bob-cat he does own.  Now, renting equipment might affect the time schedule, but the financial commitment doesn’t make sense at this time.

Having supervisors on site would be important.  Knowing who can make decisions is vital in case you have a question or need to make changes.  This supervisor is the link between you, the field crew, and the company.

References are important, but I am curious how to ascertain that they aren’t hand-picked.  When a company is handing you a list of references – whether there are 3 or 100 on that list – how do you know that these are not people who are hand-picked.  Now, getting a referral direct from one of your friends or neighbors is a different story.

Getting Warranted work is important, and having a track record of business history can help ease your concerns.  I cannot argue with this point, but make the observation that I’ve know of many companies that do excellent work who have been in business for less than 25 years.  An important perspective is to see if this company is financially stable enough that it will still be around during the warranty period.

Seeing a contractor’s proof of insurance is very important.  If they don’t have it, your insurance will be liable if someone gets hurt on your property.  Another item to check is bonding and / or licensing.  Not all jurisdictions have bonding or licensing in the trade that you need, but be sure to ask.

I may not agree with someone else’s points, but I’m sure that both of us intend to help homeowners make the right decision, and reduce the instances of Contractor Hell we all dread.

A search on Facebook or Twitter can yield conflicting reports.  Many companies are creating their “Facebook fan club” or tweeting about the latest product or project.  Yet recently, some friends on Facebook replied to a question about their first thoughts on “remodeling”.   The responses ranged from “expensive” to “dirty” and “tiring”.

So, if you want to update your home, and you aren’t planning to do it yourself (or maybe you will hire part of it to be done), how does one select a contractor?  Selecting based on price will almost always lead you in the wrong direction!  But how else can we base our decision?

In Remodeling: Where did Customer Service go? three questions were raised as a starter to answer the question of how to select a contractor.   1) Did the person listen to me, 2) can they prove it, and 3) do they have a system that repeats this process?

First, empower yourself by remembering that this kitchen project, bathroom project, family room addition, or whatever are dreaming is your dream and your project!  It is not intentional on the part of contractors and/or designers to talk so much; we just love what we do, and wish to share that with everyone.  During the interview, ask yourself, did this professional listen to your needs and goals.  Did he or she ask pertinant questions about your needs and goals, or just focus on the project?  Remember this, a professional is there to serve you, not your kitchen upgrade.  In other words, the kitchen upgrade is not the professional’s focus (ie: “I’ve done some great cabinets, and I’m sure you want granite with stainless steel appliances right?”).  On a side note, please notice how many times the person you interview puts him or herself at the beginning of the sentence.  Instead a professional will ask what you dream to do in this area; the feeling you want to evoke, and the level of detail you want included.  A professional will gently guide you thru the process of selection without overwhelming you.

Closely tied with the question of “did s/he listen to me” is the question of “do you have substantial proof that the professional listened to you?”  In otherwords, watch for a meeting recap within a day or so of your meeting in your email.  A professional can articulate the basic needs you presented and return that to you in a written form.  This helps you know for sure that this person was listening, and has it written down to refer to your goals later during the process.  When designing a project, our standard procedure requires that we review “the list” to assure we’ve heard our clients wishes.  Depending upon our memory will sink us every time.

Returning the notes to you also gives you the opportunity to correct any mis-perceptions of your needs.

Third, and lastly, be watching for an underlying system that is repeatable.  During any project – no matter the size or price – communication is vital to the success of your project.  This goes back to the first point – empower yourself!  At every point of contact, is the person friendly, helpful, and know how talk with you?

When ABC company promises to return your calls, do they?  When there is a meeting, is that person on time, and do they come prepared?  Has ABC company sent you a meeting agenda prior to the meeting, or use one during the meeting?  Do they use technology (not just email) to coordinate your needs, their staff, and any vendors or sub-contractors for this project?  Can ABC company give you the assurance that they’ve carefully reviewed all options on your project?  Do they ask about your comfortable financial investment range?

By using a system such as would answer these questions will show you that the person you interviewed is a professional.

The stories are sadly both atrocious and frequent.  There is the neighbor who had the case of the missing contractor.  A friend has the Family Circus visit her dining room, complete with muddy footprints on the upholstered dining chair.  The shutters are the wrong size, the dormer is leaking again, the change orders piled on, the project cost more than desired, and the list keeps growing.

I believe the biggest travesty of lost customer service is the mis-handled expectation.  Many businesses are moving too quickly to allow for correct Customer Service.  Oh yes, names could be published, but that isn’t the point of this piece – you know who they are.

With building technology changing, energy concerns growing, and economic maps re-arranging, today’s homeowner has many questions and sadly few answers.  Blindly throwing money at anything is rarely the answer.  Having a well planned project coupled with a professional team is the answer that many owners are experiencing.

It is time for homeowners to be professionally represented by highly trained Design & Build professionals that are acting in the best interest of the homeowner.

But, how can you tell if the team is professional?

I recommend reading the list of what you can expect from a Professional Project Handler.  This boils down to three questions for me.  1) Did the person listen to me, 2) can they prove it, and 3) do they have a system that repeats this process?

Next time we’ll address those three questions and what that means to you.

In the meantime, do you want to avoid the mistakes others have made? Sign up for the FREE list Top-Ten Biggest Mistakes Homeowners Make.  It will make a difference for you!

While watching this video, think of the message…and do you agree, or not?

So…What message did you hear, and do you agree? Dis-agree?

Two that come to mind that I’ve heard recently are as follows:

One woman was having an addition built onto her house.  The dining room was next to that addition, and was getting a light fixture changed.  When she came home from work one evening, she found her light fixture changed and muddy bootprints on one of her nice dining chairs.

The second story could be one of the worst kinds.  My neighbor and I were chatting last weekend about the lawn, the weather, and other neighborly stuff.  He then asked me if I liked the new windows on his screened porch.  I looked a couple of times and said, “Sorry, I don’t see them.  Are they special windows?”  He laughed, “No, I don’t see them either.”  My neighbor had signed a contract with the contractor LAST FALL, and paid some money up front to begin the ordering process.  Apparently, the contractor hasn’t returned any calls recently either.

What’s your remodeling nightmare?

This means that you, the homeowner, have some serious decisions to make when choosing your remodeler.  We’ve ALL heard of the remodeling headaches, and this could be a receipe for disaster.  When dealing with one of the largest investments of your life – your home – you want to REDUCE headaches.

This leads us to accountability, which I discussed earlier.  The MOST important aspect to consider in choosing your contractor is communication.  Many of my clients use a communication tool, myDesign/BuildProject.com, or others have created something similar to this.  Notice that these are “tools” only!  The contractor must have the practice in the background to make these tools work properly.

Here’s a short list to help when selecting your contractor’s communication skills…

• Does the contractor return phone calls
• Does he or she arrive at meetings on time?
• Do meetings stay in the agreed time frame, or go overtime?
• Does the company have professional memberships (NARI,  BBB, local chamber of commerce, etc.)?
• Ask for references (either the contractor’s list, or your own contacts)!
• Does he or she follow thru with promises (meeting time, returned calls, information, etc.)?
• Does the salesperson offer a “Today Only sale” – BAD NEWS!
• Does the contractor offer planning and design services? (if not, this could indicate inability to control a project appropriately)
• Can he/she repeat your goals and needs back to you?

Trying to protect your remodeling dreams from becoming nightmares!

I’m sure we’ve all been in one of those high-pressure sales situations, only we were on the receiving end. And, I’m sure we can all agree that it wasn’t a great feeling place to be.

In a service business, the question is how to merge the two opinions and feelings, those of both the salesperson and the client, into a win-win situation. This is the million dollar question, right?
After reviewing my conversation with my business partner, we realized that the word ‘upsell’ doesn’t have a great connotation for today’s client. No-one wants to have their arm twisted into buying more project.

My wife and I just recently watched a comedian give a great example of this very thing. He was talking about how a contractor will lure a client in with ads like “From the 120s!” but when they’re in the model, the beautiful greeter will start asking questions such as: “Did you want doors on your house?” or “Where is indoor plumbing on your list of priorities?” We laugh, but how often does that happen in today’s sales call?

Does this sound familiar? “You want a 16×24 master suite? Ok, I’ve done plenty of those – that’s going to be right around $75,000.” But someone forgot to do the real investigative work to find out exactly how much the project will entail.

So, I submit to everyone reading, both homeowner and contractor alike, to combat “the great upsell” – to truly give the homeowner the freedom to purchase the project they want, the service provider must be professional and effectively, efficiently open the lines of communication between potential client and the service company.

This does not mean that the most expensive contractor is the right one for the job, but I will say that experience has often proven that the least expensive contractor is definitely NOT the one you want either.

More to come on how to be professional and effective in communication.