Remodeling

Remodeling is a unique challenge that requires a creative approach & skillset that is different from designing or building a custom home.  Our goal is always to modify or create the spaces that our clients want while trying to blend the remodel or addition in a way that is seamless with the original design. Sometimes we’re working with the existing home & maintaining the form, feel, & detail while adding needed interior or exterior spaces. Other situations arise where people love the flow & layout of their home & don’t want to add any space, but want to change the feel & aesthetic of the home, potentially opening up interior spaces or modifying roof forms or exterior details to fit their style. Regardless of the specific scope of work, we strive to create remodels or additions that feel like they have been there from the time the home was originally built. Don’t be offended if friends come over & say, “Wait, where did you remodel?”; that is actually a compliment.

We use BIM (Building Information Modeling) software to create 3D models & renderings of the spaces we will be working with to allow our clients to visualize the project in relation to their existing home & building site. This lets them see how the project will look compared to their existing home to help them prioritize & make budget decisions without any demolition or construction work being done to their existing home.  We can also evaluate the solar impact of the remodel of the home, creating digital solar studies, to make sure we’re keeping the sun out when we don’t want it & letting it in when we need the light & heat. Having an in-house architect on the project can also help keep the project on track with the ability to address changes in the field quickly & produce stamped letters or drawings for the City or County The ability to provide legal documents addressing structural discrepancies or surprises immediately can be the difference between getting an inspection on time & staying on schedule rather than waiting weeks for a letter from a third party, which is common in our busy market, & can postpone projects significantly.

Reveling in the challenge of the unknown is one of the things that is necessary for a good remodeler. The construction side of remodels requires a very specific set of skills that is not identical to those required in new construction. Our remodel project manager is always making educated guesses about how things are constructed & thinking about how to make things work  prior to pulling walls or ceilings apart to see how things were actually built. That said, if things aren’t built as we assume, having the ability to make adjustments on the fly while maintaining the integrity of the design is more challenging than it sounds to someone who has never faced that reality in the field. inspectors.

The difference between a decent remodel & a great remodel can often be found in the ability of the project manager to meet these challenges & overcome them without compromising the vision of the architect & the homeowner.

Another advantage to the design/build model is that the project manager can be involved early in the process, giving critical input prior to finalizing the design, avoiding changes that would otherwise happen in the field & cost the homeowner more time & money. Integrated interior design is also critical when working with budgets, which everyone has. Having the whole team in-house makes the project run more smoothly for everyone involved from the homeowner to the individual sub-contractors.