Contractors

The Importance of Proper Planning for Your Construction Project

One of the pit falls home owners run into when remodeling or adding on to their home is not completing the planning phase of their construction project.

Phase One: Creative Input

Phase one is easy and fun for you, the home owner, as it really is your dream of a new kitchen, bathroom, remodel or addition. This is the step where your creative input is so important. Many times home owners will do simple sketches or floor plans to get the idea of what they want.

Bid Jobs Versus Cost Plus Jobs

A bid job consists of the anticipated (worse case scenario) labor and materials to do the job plus the contractor’s profit and overhead added in to the total.

A cost plus job consists of the actual labor and materials plus the contractor’s profit and overhead.

Cost Plus Job

With today’s economy every one is trying to save money and that includes money on home remodeling. Cost plus can be a viable way to achieve this. However, you must trust your contractor implicitly. By doing a job on a bid basis the thing you must consider is that the contractor has to bid worse case scenario for your home remodeling project.

Roof Leaks and Water Damage

With all the rain this season it is important to make sure you do routine roof and flashing maintenance.

Hidden water damage and leaks can cost thousands of dollars if not properly located and repaired. Where as routine maintenance and repair can be very inexpensive.

How do you locate leaks?

The most obvious is water stains on the walls and ceilings. Instead of painting over these stains you need to have a professional come out and determine if further damage has been caused by the leak.

Termites, dry rot and mold can result from an unresolved leak source.

Paint Maintenance for Doors & Windows

With summer right around the corner it is important to check your doors and windows for any signs of failing paint or stain finishes.

Wood windows and doors that are hard to open and close will typically have signs of failed paint or stain finishes which cause the wood to swell and eventually fail at the joints. If not properly maintained this could turn into replacement rather than repair.

Areas that receive excessive exposure to weather (sun and rain) deteriorate faster than areas that are covered from exposure.

We also notice here in Southern California the southern facing doors and windows need more maintenance than the northern facing doors and windows.

Home Inspection Repair Estimate for Home Buyers

Why Get a Home Inspection?

For the last 2 decades or so property home inspections have become routine when purchasing a home in Los Angeles, Burbank and surrounding SoCal areas.

After the home inspector has completed his report and finds deficiencies with the property the next step is to budget these repairs.

It is important to have a qualified, licensed, general contractor go over the report and do an on-site evaluation of the deficiencies listed in the report and provide a detailed budget to repair these deficiencies. Sometimes we even spot items that your inspector failed to identify.

On-site Evaluation Cost and Time

While doing our on-site evaluation we anticipate the cost related to repair each item. This service generally takes a total of 2 hours at a cost of $350 for your average 2,000 to 3,000 square foot home.

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