Quality Over Price When Comparing Renovation Quotes From Contractors

No matter if you are doing a renovation or having a custom home built picking your contractor solely based on price is going to leave you disappointed in the end and probably poorer for it. 

When comparing quotes or prices you really shouldn't be looking at the cost first, you should be looking at the quality and the trust factor of the contractor. The last thing you should be looking at is the price.

When contractors do good quality work, hire proper professionals, use the right material and do it in a timely fashion then the price of the job is basically the price of the job. You can't compare other contractors if they aren't doing all of those things. You have to compare apples to apples, if your lucky enough to have two contractors that measure up on quality, trust and they are both using the same materials (then your lucky to have found them) then by all means choose the one with the lowest price.

But most people aren't that lucky.

I have seen it time and time again a homeowner is presented with a price or multiple prices for a service like painting and they think that the price is to expensive, so they go out and find someone that can do it for their price. Usually they end up compromising to get the price they want by;

1. The overall scope of the work.
2. The quality of the work.
3. The timing of the work.

Once you have comprised on those 3 things then you basically are not comparing quotes anymore, you are settling and in residential construction settling is usually not a good thing.

The contractor that does the work properly, hires the right sub trades and usually is one of the higher priced companies. They also usually have the most detailed quote laying out what work is to be preformed and the materials to be used. The point of the detailed contract is so that there is no misunderstanding between contractor and homeowner on what they are getting with the price that is quoted. The more detailed the contract the more accurate the price and the more accurate the price the harder it is to compare that quote to other less detailed quotes.

The less detailed the quote the more assumptions that you have to make about what they are supplying. This creates friction later when disagreements arise over what is an extra and what isn't.

So when you are looking for that contractor to do your next project start by looking at who best fits your job by the quality of work they are going to perform, then what they are supplying in their quote and finally what their price is compared to other qualified contractors.

Remember you get what you pay for when it comes to residential construction.

Rob Abbott
Village Builders Inc.

The Modern Country Home

Most people when they think about country homes think about wood sided, brick or stone covered exteriors with big veranda's or covered porches. The insides have wood timbers and lots of wood trim. Well it's time to change your thinking, welcome to the modern country home.

The modern country home is becoming more popular these days, these homes are usually a single story, open concept, the open concept design allows for the home to be built smaller then conventional homes but still feel like there is a lot of space  inside to live. They have metal exteriors that are good for a life time without the need to repaint or replace after several years of severe country weather.

The home that was recently featured in the winter addition of Our Homes Magazine 2016 was built in that image. If you haven't seen the article here is a link to it:

www.ourhomes.ca/uploads/pdfs/OH_SGB_SKI16_H_B.pdf

Modern single story bungalow fits the live style of an aging population and the smaller size of the home overall lends it to the younger generation of people who are looking to live in a home with little overhead or carrying costs and don't see the need for more space that they have to spend time cleaning or up-keeping.

Built right these modern homes with there clean and simple lines inside and out require less maintenance and allow for a wider range of unique decorating options.

Modern buildings usually have simple roof lines that allow for low maintenance, long life roofing materials to be installed. This not only helps keep your maintenance costs down it helps raise the resale value of your home in the long run.

If you want to incorporate a little of the country into the home you can still install fireplaces, wood floors or other natural details that will bring a little natural beauty to the home without compromising the look and feel of the modern effect.

Remember when you are planning to build that country home you don't have to be stuck with the conventional country home, you can think more modern and make yourself and your home standout!

Rob Abbott
Village Builders Inc.