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Published in the Executive Lifestyles Magazine, Spring 2011 issue.
Recently we were honored to participate in a project for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition for the TV episode based in Virginia Beach, Va. It was a worthy project that blessed a needy family in our area and we were happy to donate our talents and resources to the project. Read more about our involvement at http://www.theroofingcompany.com/extrememakeover.
What was fascinating about the project is that for as many times as the producers of the show have completed an Extreme Makeover project, they were not immune to the same problems that plague homeowners when selecting a contractor for a more modest sized project around the house.
The first red flag we encountered when working with the Extreme Makeover team was the phenomenon of “too many chiefs and not enough Indians” . The organization of the leadership was loosely defined. This was a big concern to those of us who were experienced in large scale remodeling. All of the experienced contractors on the job have experienced the confusion and inferior final product that results from a lack of a single point of accountability on a project. Why is this a concern to homeowners? If you’re interviewing contractors for a project, make sure you are absolutely positive who is accountable for your project on a day by day basis. There’s a very good chance that you and the contractor you select could have a miscommunication on this critical point. Better to find out up front before you agree to a contract. Many homeowner/contractor disputes come from miscommunications.
Any experienced, competent contractor will tell you that the hardest, but the most critical part, of any project, happens before the first nail is ever driven. To ensure a successfully completed project, the detailed design of the project is what must be done before any work starts Sadly, instead of designing before they build, many contractors fall victim to the trap of “designing as you build”: a sure recipe for failure. It was no different on the Extreme Makeover project. The designers of the project were making radical design changes on a hour by hour basis and left some decisions to be made in the field. It created massive confusion in the estimating of what the job would entail and even more confusion while the job was being built. It is still yet to be known if some of the attractive design changes made to the home will prove functional, long term. This may not affect you if you have an unlimited manpower and material budget like the TV show does, or if you may not ever see the house again. However, if you are on a finite budget and plan to live with the project for a while and expect it to perform long-term. I would highly encourage you to do the hard “grunt work” of the design before the sledgehammers are drawn to start demolishing what you are currently living in!
Oftentimes I’ll ask a homeowner that has had an unsatisfactory contractor experience why they selected the contractor they did. Many times I hear “they were really excited about my project.” While it is important to select someone who is excited about your project, don’t trade experience for enthusiasm. Usually the most competent, most experienced individual evaluating a project appears to have a more Blood Hound demeanor than one of a Jack Russell Terrier. One of the ways to gauge a contractor’s experience level is to listen very carefully to the type of questions they ask to gain clarification of the project details. The guy saying “no problem, no problem, no problem” over and over , probably has not done enough of this type of project to know where the hidden “land-mine problems” may arise. We definitely saw this trend on the Extreme Makeover project. Team leaders were selected more for their cheerleading ability than their construction experience. The result was that during the construction phase, stronger team members had to step up to help them out. On a small home improvement project, stronger leaders usually don’t exist. As the old saying goes, “don’t concern yourself too much about what the young dog is barking about, but when the old dog starts barking – take notice.”
What was the result of the lack of organization and confusion during construction? The same as on any construction project: frustration. Many contractors that had agreed to donate their time and efforts walked off the job in disgust in the middle of critical phases. Thankfully, other contractors were found to “save” the day. For the Extreme Makeover team it’s a big asset to have a large budget, almost unlimited manpower resources and a huge production staff. Unfortunately, most homeowners don’t have these.
In the end, a needy family was uplifted and all of us that stuck through it received the blessing of being able to help a neighbor in need. But if you’re a homeowner looking to have a project done and don’t have plenty of time & money, remember the rule: only the truly wealthy can afford the low bid contractor because only the wealthy can afford to have it done more than once!
The Roofing Company
The Remodeling Company
757-867-6600
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