Home builders

[vNmd]

I tried googling for some information, but I don't even know where to start. I inherited a house that is in pretty bad shape. I would like to make it into a nice place to live. So far all of my searches have returned individual components of building a house, plumbers, dry wallers, electrician, etc. I am hoping to find some sort of company that does everything. Remove old parts that need removing, and do the new construction, electric, dry wall, etc. I am not even sure what to call something like that. General contractor doesen't mean what I thought it would. Remodeling doesn't seem to fit the searches I did. Most of the remodeling I found were centered on a specific type of room to be remodeled, not an entire house.

Any ideas?

 

[TechyDork]

I tried googling for some information, but I don't even know where to start. I inherited a house that is in pretty bad shape. I would like to make it into a nice place to live. So far all of my searches have returned individual components of building a house, plumbers, dry wallers, electrician, etc. I am hoping to find some sort of company that does everything. Remove old parts that need removing, and do the new construction, electric, dry wall, etc. I am not even sure what to call something like that. General contractor doesen't mean what I thought it would. Remodeling doesn't seem to fit the searches I did. Most of the remodeling I found were centered on a specific type of room to be remodeled, not an entire house.

Any ideas?

Sounds like you need a General contractor. They should be able to manage the project and the subcontract out to the plumber, electrician and dry wall guys.

 

[Natdavis777]

Agreed.

It might be difficult to find one company that does it all. Not saying they arent out there, but most companies take care of one aspect or another. Honestly, if you have any DIY ability, I would do the drywall work yourself. Its not real complicated, and its forgiving. Just a money-saving thought.

 

[30_Ounce]

A General Contractor is what you need. They will assess what needs to be done and line up the appropriate subcontractors like me... I do flooring; carpet, tile, hardwood, Lino, etc. They will know what order things need to be done and be able to schedule things properly.

 

[arturo7]

Maybe hire a home inspector to give you an assessment of everything that needs to be done. Then go to the yellow pages or Craigslist to find the contractors for each item. I'd give the DIY route some serious consideration. You'll save a ton of cash.

Good luck with the project.

 

[Rhumbline]

I don't know what your comfort level is with doing home improvements yourself, or what your finances are but I'd suggest going with a GC unless money is the prime factor.

You can act as your own GC but it's a steep learning curve and a never ending series of hassles. The GC will offer several advantages...

He knows subs and they want to stay on his good side, so they will be more likely to actually show up to do the work. If it's just you, this is the only job they are going to do for you and you'll be their last priority. The GC who gives them a dozen projects a month is their first priority.

He knows the timing and sequence of work. This is critical, scheduling one sub to come in out of turn means that someone's work will have to be ripped out and redone. The subs won't tell you this, because they get paid to work, not to save you money and time.

A GC will know the codes and when to call for the appropriate inspections. Messing up on this one can have you ripping out work, waiting months, and/or paying some fines.

Lastly, you need to be prepared for scope creep. On a renovation of an existing structure there are always unanticipated problems that are encountered after the work begins. Tearing out a wall exposes water damage, which points to a roof leak, etc.

Don't think that the guys are taking advantage of you on this, they don't have X-ray vision any more than you.

If you want to stay sane through this, hire a GC, tell yourself that it will end up costing twice what their bid came in at, and that it will take twice as long.

I've been a project manager for a long time and if anything, the comments above are optimistic.

Good luck.

 

[vincentAlpha]

Even if you get a general contractor I'd suggest finding stuff you can do yourself if you have the time. Nothing major if you are not comfy with it but just cleaning stuff up or ripping out drywall or flooring can save your contractors a lot of time before they come in, and time saved for them translates into more time of them working and not dealing with crap inherent in a rough house(or it should anyway...).

 

[vNmd]

Thanks all. I have done a lot of the home building stuff before, but time and distance will be an issue here. I suppose I will have to break the overall project into smaller parts and contract it out.

Thanks again for the suggestions.

 

[DrunkleJon]

Wow, are you going for a full gut and renovation or are you going for a renovation while you are living in it? If you are going extreme do not do it while living there (it is highly inconvenient and usually gets delayed). Save up a little more than is quoted to you by a good General Contractor (as said above they will sub out individual portions), and budget a little extra time as well. Crap happens to delay or cost more, especially when walls start getting pulled out. I do not think you can get a hard bid price in residential renovation.

Basically you have a General Contracter who will run the job.
They can either do the work themselves, or sub contract parts of the job out.

I would reccomend though that if you are doing a gut job that you make sure there are enough electrical outlets. For some reason older houses seemes to like to skimp on electrical outlets. Also, if you are in the walls already, its not a bad idea to wire network cable drops into every room so that you can do phone or office anywhere (wifi hates going through walls (especially old ones) and hates metal more.

While you are renovating, may want to consider your ideal brew room and build accordingly. A nice utility sink and either gas or electric sufficient for whatever style you brew and a vent hood? Now is the time to dream.

 

[TxBrew]

GC's tend to use the same crews for their subs and timing them all correctly takes time. If time is a factor, sub that work out yourself and ask the subs for recommendations on other niche contractors like HVAC, plumbing. A GC is going to tack on a percentage and their crew might do demo/framing/clean-up but they usually sub out HVAC, plumbing, float, texture and paint.

 

[vNmd]

I actually have time. Like I said it is an inherited house. Unfortunately the house could be featured on that reality tv show called horders (I had no idea). I found the crew that actually does the clean ups in that state for that show. I am sure they will put it to me for cleaning all that crap out, but it will be worth it. Once that is done, depending on what can be salvaged, I am probably looking at a full gut & renovation. I live about 3 states away so I definitely won't be living there (my house is clean with only dirty laundry on the floor until wash day) which is why I was hoping to find a single entity to take charge of doing / subbing out the individual components to get it where it needs to be. I can go back every few weeks and see the progress and sign checks. Its bad enough that a family member passed away but to walk through and see that someone actually lived like that is still freaking me out. I lived there growing up so I know it has potential and is in the middle of nowhere so I am looking at either renting it out or spending long relaxing weekends there once it is fixed up or maybe eventually selling it. Just trying to get as much information as I can before I start.

 

[DrunkleJon]

Do you know anyone in the area that you can get to walk through randomly (at least once a week or so)? It helps keep contractors honest. Unfortunately there are crooked contractors out there. Having someone to look for glaring cut corners can really set your mind at ease. Sometimes it is the subs or the workers. Don't trust anyone implicitly.