acting as own general contractor

Pre-closing walkthroughs are definitely recommended. I would also suggest you get a building engineer to inspect and report for peace of mind. Feel free to reach out to us for some suggestions and to schedule a time to meet if you’d like.

JPDA

in General Discussion 4 years and 11 months ago

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Guest User | 4 years and 11 months ago

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Thanks very much, cate and jcarch. Still waiting for the seller to sign. If we do go the “hire a GC” route, I am confused about how bids actually work. I can imagine the proposed job saying something like “make the first floor level” , leaving the details of how that is to be accomplished vague. But in presenting a proposed job to general contractors, is one supposed to specify the manufacturer and model number of every kitchen appliance? Every window? The precise tile to be used in a bathroom floor? Which particular toilets? We want to make those choices, but making them all before the job is even bid seems daunting. How do people handle that?

JPDA | 4 years and 11 months ago

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You absolutely will need all of the exact details and specifications for every component, fixture, finish and assembly in order to get meaningful bids that can be compared and used as the basis for a fixed-fee contract. Your architect will work with you to develop all of this based on your preferences. I am happy to walk you through the process, look for JPDA in the Architects section under Find a Pro on the Brownstoner menu bar.

jcarch | 4 years and 11 months ago

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You’ll want/need an architect, which is required to get the project approved by the DOB. Some arch’s just do a very minimal set of drawings, enough to get approval, and then you’re on your own. The risk with this is that there’s lots of room for the vagueness you’re worried about, which means that the bids aren’t really worth much, as the actual scope of work may vary by a lot from what a contractor assumes. My office does full drawings/details/specs, so that GC bids are accurate and complete. We’re also present throughout construction, making sure that the GC’s doing thing as planned, heading off potential problems before they will cost $ to deal with, etc.

FYI, clients often purchase high value items, like appliances, themselves, so that there’s no mark up on appliances, lighting, etc. Even when they do this, we give the GC the specs, so that they can’t later claim that there’s an upcharge because of the particulars on items that the owner buys.

Choosing finishes prior to construction is a bit daunting, but it’s not any easier to make the exact same set of decis ions during construction. Often under pressure from the contractor that they need x “right now” or there will be delays, added costs, etc., all of which leads to the “we just had to run to Home Depot and get what was in stock” look that is not what anyone was imagining when the project started.

Guest User | 4 years and 11 months ago

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That’s very helpful; I can see we have our work cut out for us, even if we use a GC. We definitely need an architect. Once we close, one of the first things we will do is talk to architects. I don’t think we can do that before we close, because we’d like the architects to see the house.

Guest User | 4 years and 11 months ago

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it seems like this might be a more complex closing situation than most but i’ve definitely heard of folks doing walkthroughs with architects and contractors prior to closing.

Guest User | 4 years and 11 months ago

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it seems like this might be a more complex closing situation than most but i’ve definitely heard of folks doing walkthroughs with architects and contractors prior to closing.

Guest User | 4 years and 11 months ago

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Thanks, but when we meet with architects we would want to be able to poke at various nooks and crannies and strange structures to see what can be taken down, and the seller’s agent is very strict. So we will have to wait.

jcarch | 4 years and 11 months ago

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I agree with Maggie O, see if you can get access for a half day, you could make appointments with several potential architects to walk through the house. Walk throughs typically take 45-60 minutes.