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John:
If you are asking this question, you are already easier to get along with than most of my clients.
I would add:
Don’t watch, you can certainly stop in once in a while to see how work is going but please don’t pull up a chair and watch me tape sheetrock all day.
Ask before helping. I just had a lady put an electric heater and a fan on a wet bed for tile over night to help it “dry” faster. (concrete needs water in it or it can’t cure).
If you won’t be home when work is going on, find out how you and the contractor can stay in touch. I have a small wall mounted mail box that I hang at the site. We leave notes for each other in that.
Comment on work every day so your contractor knows what your thinking. I like to hear that the home owner is happy with the work I’m doing but I also want to know if I’m not up to snuff on something.
Resolve yourself to the fact that there will be dust in your house and debris in your yard for a while. It is reasonable to expect dust control measures and that debris and materials are stacked neatly but even that can get to you eventually.
Good luck with your project.
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Just completing a $300+K custom designed house from the client side We found that the most important thing was to have a good working relation with the builder with agreement on the ground rules up front. Which means a contractor that you can get along with and trust as mentioned several times.
The house was built on a handshake. Something I would never thought I would do, but has worked out. It is probably not recommended in most cases.
The parameters were set up front: the materials are at cost and an agreed upon percentage added on. The contractor still did his best to save us money. Changes were T&M unless it was correction of a mistake.
We spoke to the contractor regularly and made ourselves available at the site for decisions [but rarely did more than walk through the working area during the day unless asked. ]
We cleaned up for them at night or on the weekend.
We supplied beer at the end of the day on Friday.
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I'm getting ready to hire a contractor for a $50-60K addition and remodeling project. I figure we'll all get along better if I know how you guys expect me to act.
Since there's no class on stuff like this...what attributes do you look for in a good client? If you could lay down the rules, what would they be? The more specific you can be, the better. Thanks!
*Hello John, You should actually be asking YOUR contractor what he expects. There is really no way for us to answer this question for him. He is the one you will be dealing with, and he is the one you should be directing these questions to. Do not be embarrassed, or afraid to ask these questions. It seems like you want a good relationship with the contractor, and you are willing to find out what it will take in order for your relationship to be as pleasant as possible. This is a very good idea, and I commend you for it.James DuHamel
*John,
Joseph FuscoView Image"The price of apathy towards public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." -- Plato
*Ditto, to what has been said. I can tell you a few things not to do. Never tell your contractor how easy a job is. Dont not let a person in because his feet smell. NEVER EVER TRY TO HELP!!! All of these things have happened to me. One client decided to clean up some one afternoon. (he was dusting, do not expect more than broom clean) He pulled 7 sheets of 5/8 x 12' sheetrock down on himself. Luckily The painter was working late and got him to the emergency room. If you want to talk come around at break and lunch and ask questions. If you are in the house keep a pot of coffee on for the workers. A few sasague biscuits can butter up the workers too. Remember your contractor cannot be everywhere at once so getting the crew to like you is a good idea. Hope this helpsRick Tuk
*John:If you are asking this question, you are already easier to get along with than most of my clients.I would add:Don't watch, you can certainly stop in once in a while to see how work is going but please don't pull up a chair and watch me tape sheetrock all day.Ask before helping. I just had a lady put an electric heater and a fan on a wet bed for tile over night to help it "dry" faster. (concrete needs water in it or it can't cure).If you won't be home when work is going on, find out how you and the contractor can stay in touch. I have a small wall mounted mail box that I hang at the site. We leave notes for each other in that.Comment on work every day so your contractor knows what your thinking. I like to hear that the home owner is happy with the work I'm doing but I also want to know if I'm not up to snuff on something.Resolve yourself to the fact that there will be dust in your house and debris in your yard for a while. It is reasonable to expect dust control measures and that debris and materials are stacked neatly but even that can get to you eventually.Good luck with your project.
*Following up on Ryan, keep abreast of the day's work and if there's a problem, question or issue, take it up as soon as possible. Some things can be easily changed when the work is happening, but becomes a nightmare a week later.I use e-mail to communicate nightly. It's worked incredibly well, as it allows daily communication while still allowing everybody to have some privacy and a life. When you see something and absolutely have to communicate, it's there for you. And you contractor should check the e-mail every night, and will know what's on you mind.As far as the "don't help" advise goes, I find that sometimes it can be very useful for the customer to actually be there and see, if not try, to do something that he wants done. Many customers reject the concept of physics, wanting something that simply isn't possible. Or thinking something is "easy" without realizing all the detail work that goes into it. You can either discuss it, argue about it, or actually see it. When discussion doesn't convince you, see it or try it and you'll have a better appreciation of what you're asking for. Then, you can make an informed decision.SHG
**Know what you want. Know what your family wants. Have your "wants" figured out so they can be discussed prior to the first nail being hammered.*Pictures convey much more than word ever can. Showing me a picture of a paint color is much easier then me matching your desire to have walls that are "painted a light teal, with just a hint of off-color cinnamon and taupish ecru peeking through." That, BTW, was an actual request one time...*I like client involvement. I like informed clients. Don't make me make decorating decisions for you. Your tastes and mine may not be similar.*Regarding "Client Involvement"...As others have stated, don't be on-site, asking questions all day long. You can be on-site, but don't expect this to be a private tutorial in construction with the worker explaining everything step-by-step. Definitely keep track of how the project is going. If it doesn't look right, (wall in wrong location, etc) ask why NOW. However, don't pepper the help with miscellaneous questions while they are working. You have any non-emergency concerns, talk to the contractor, not the help. Have communications expectations set up in advence with the builder. You want to talk at the end of every day? Make sure your builder knows that in advance. Respect on-site safety issues as well...*Have your finances in order. Ensure your contractor has the same.*Everything in writing. Everything. Verbal exchanges can be forgotten, words mixed. Keep a copy for yourself and one for your builder. Signatures, dates, initials, etc.*Change orders will kill you. So will inadequate allowances. If you're not sure of what specific hardwood flooring or what specific carpet will be installed, at least know that the hardwood you want cost about $8 per foot and that your builder hasn't estimated the cost at $3 per foot. Ouch!*Ensure your personality meshes with that of your builder. Some homeowners, as well as some clients, are autocrats, others are milktoast. You don't want to get steamrolled, nor do you want to try to usurp the builders authority over his crew.*If you are a "hands-on" person, some arrangement will be made where you can help out somewhere in the project. I will personally be on site while you "help" if safety issues or other workers will still be there. If it's painting you want to do, you can do that after our work is done and we are gone, etc.All of the above may sound basic, and it is. However, it's also quite important. To me, anyway. I just came back from an out-of-state visit to my brother-in-law's, he is having a huge piece of crap built as his house. 7000 sq ft! They break ground in a few weeks. They've been "planning" this for over a year. At a builder/architect/client meeting I sat in on, their specifications were "any tile for this floor, just make it green...we don't care what type of hardwood flooring, just make it match the cabinets...cabinet color?...just make sure it doesn't clash with the floor or the tile." That house is a disaster waiting to happen.You seem to be miles ahead of others already. You seem to be a fine person to work for and to work with. Best of luck.
*Mongo, you didn't even mention the Indian burial ground and the pizza oven (my wife's favorite).
*andrew, if I told everyone else what you already know, that post could have gone on forever. However, Sean asked me to limit my individual posts to less then 3.2GB. Brevity, brevity! And failing as usual...I'll tell you the rest later...REALLY sad. A glimmer of hope, but still sad...if my bro-in-law was my client, I fear that there would be more then just indians buried under that mound before the job was completed. Based on talks with my B-I-L and his wife, additional chats with the builder, and three-way conferences, they are looking at either around 265K in change orders or a house they will be very, very unhappy with. Maybe both. If I were the builder, I'd walk...change that, I'd run.