Looking for GC to do a walk-thru
Hi, I am a first time home buyer looking to buy a small building in NYC that will work as live/work space (my partner is an artist) and also have units that we can rent out to help pay the mortgage. We are semi-experienced builders and our dream is to find something below market that…
Hi, I am a first time home buyer looking to buy a small building in NYC that will work as live/work space (my partner is an artist) and also have units that we can rent out to help pay the mortgage. We are semi-experienced builders and our dream is to find something below market that we can improve with sweat equity. I have found a likely candidate but would like to hire a GC to walk-through with me and give me a pro’s opinion about how much work this place would really need and a rough cost estimate before I submit my first bid. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good Brooklyn GC (maybe someone who is used to dealing with homeowners who like to do the work themselves)?
Thanks!
I have worked with J Thomas Construction based in Brooklyn. My experience with them was nothing less than amazing – efficient, reliable, dedicated and the best customer service I’ve received. The owner is JT Stewart and the website is http://www.jthomasnyc.com. The portfolio section speaks for itself…Give them a call.
Best of luck with your remodel!
http://bstoner.wpengine.com/forum/archives/2007/05/gut_renovation.php
Here’s a good post on it.
That is a great concept, in theory, and one I have though of as well. But execution could be tricky. Not sure too many reputable GC’s would find providing that service worthwhile for a fee that you or I would find reasonable. Same for an architect. Unless you pre-commit to either, which is probably not a good idea. Also, it would be very hard for a GC to provide even a rough guess of cost without knowing what were “the plans”. No recs for you but good luck, and if you find a good GC who does this, pls post on it.
You might search these forums for rough estimates of cost by sf or by type of room. When we were at your stage, we kept hearing “rule of thumb of $200/sf (for gut level work)”. I thought that was nuts bc I thought what I wanted to do was a “small job”. Guess what, it’s coming in at even more (altho we did go with lots of “premium” stuff). My main point is, if the bloggers here say “$x/sf” is “normal” or what they paid, don’t assume you’ll come in at half of $x. Good luck.
try a walk thru with an architect. they see everything and have ideas that you might not think of.
Looking in various neighborhoods in Brooklyn 1:20–Mainly Sunset Park, Clinton Hill (I have noticed places are listed as “Clinton Hill”, but are actually just on the East side of Bedford Ave–hmmmmmmm) Prospect Heights, and South Slope.
Thanks for the rec 6:42!
I am currently working with Matt DiFrancesco
(http://newyorkcitygreenroof.com/)
in a similar way, and I think he is GREAT at this!
We found him after doing a lot of work ourselves. He did some trim and other finish work for us in our rental unit, and is now framing out our owner’s duplex.
We love working with Matt. He is very interested in eco-stuff, cares a lot about quality but not to the point of being boutiquey about it, is a good communicator, is very flexible, understands a fixed budget, and is fine with us doing work ourselves, offers advice, etc.
in which part of brooklyn are you looking
Don’t know about the GC question, but submit a bid first, then get the place inspected. If the inspection finds problems (they always do — be realistic about what work is really necessary) ask the seller to fix it and/or reduce the price accordingly.