Reno Mistakes? What to Avoid
Builder/ Trades approach
With time at home either the holidays or Covid enforced we have all found a few parts of home that need:-
- Maintenance,
- Don’t work for how we live today,
- A grand plan to upgrade.
So we ask our network for advice for some local builder/ tradesman to help out. Here we get to our Reno mistakes to avoid for trades. First of all, can we even get our tradies attention to make an appointment? Then are you able to clearly describe what you are hoping to achieve? Is this written down with some plans? If not chances are you will have various conversations, ultimately a bit frustrating because each trade has their own experience and opinion on what will address your requirements.
This is not to say that there is any ill intent however professionals can only advise based on the information at hand which can be fairly vague to start with. Typically builders and trades are not being paid for their time to have these discussions and there are likely to be competitors also offering their solutions, so naturally they should be cautious with specific information or ideas that address your concern. In the past I have seen clients persuaded to go elsewhere based on how water was going to drain off their proposed shower screen!! Really there can be some confusing arguments to make these very significant decisions.
We know from extensive experience building, designing and delivering change for the construction industry that clear communication of the goal up front can save countless hours of poor quality discussion and rapidly progress your renovation. Here we get to our Reno mistakes to avoid for trades number 1 is confused conversations.
The pen is mightier than the sword
This is particularly true in the case of building work. There are multitudes of compliance and regulation to meet as well as technical challenges to deliver great housing. If a clear plan exists described starting points then your professional tradesman will be excited to help. Great starting documentation assists a tradesman to:-
- Deliver what you want
- Reduce their risk
- Understand if the solution is their type of work
When presented with a clear Scope, Specification and a concept plan it is manna from heaven for a tradesman. They know that you, the client, have done excellent work defining the problem and what is required to meet their needs.
“Renovation Insider a better way to start your home improvement”
