Design Build VS General Contractor

It is extremely risky being locked into a construction agreement with a regular remodel contractor without knowing what design items you will go with, how much those design items cost, how much the total remodel will cost, how the remodel will look, and not having it all planned out. 

We plan out everything in advance which allows us you to know what items will be used, what it will look like, how much it will cost, and then you decide if you want to sign the construction agreement.

A basic general contractor spending 30 minutes at your home and then giving you a correct price in unrealistic and irresponsible on their part.

The Feasibility, Planning, & Design phase ensures everything is planned and helps with having a more controlled budget before getting to the construction phase.

As a design-build firm, you work with an integrated team of design and production staff who all adhere to our renown customer service standards.

Specific design & construction details are being developed throughout the entire process and the focus stays on owner “value”.

The communication benefits of working with a design professional and a construction expert at the same time ensures that potential problems are discovered before the project starts.

This creates transparency a general contractor cannot provide.

The homeowner saves money by eliminating redesign fees and receiving valuable cost-saving advice during the design, planning, and construction process.

Potential cost savings due to a more practical approach to design since the design-build company is more likely to design with an eye toward construction costs versus a general contractor.

Having your designer, project manager, and contractor in one place saves you money. Rather than paying multiple companies for individual jobs.

Design-build remodel companies get your project done faster since almost everything is planned out in advanced.

One of the reasons is the planning and design phase handles all those decisions that would normally happen after the regular contractor already demoed your space.  So by planning the majority of the remodeling in advance there are fewer changes that can cause project delays.

That means we are in your house for less time - weeks sometimes even months compared to some general contractors.

At the end of the feasibility, planning, and design phase, we produce a detailed written description of all work to be performed during your project, presented to you in the form of a proposal with a lump sum price.

Attention to every detail during the estimating process ensures that we will deliver your project without numerous “surprises” and unwanted additional change work orders.

The design build method helps to remove ambiguity that may arise in material and construction specifications. Since the designer and contractor are from the same firm, the focus remains on protecting the homeowner's interest.

A design build company manages a project from beginning to end; from the initial planning stages to post-construction cleanup.

Because of this, design-build contractors are able to work more efficiently, and the opportunity for things to be lost in translation is greatly reduced.

There are far fewer “places to hide” during the construction process because everyone is on the same page.

The smoother workflow and closer connection creates a more positive and supportive working environment.

Single point of responsibility, so there is no finger pointing.

The design-build process eliminates the need for the homeowner to act as a referee between the general contractor and the designer/architect/subcontractors. If something is wrong or missing, there is a team approach already in place ready to resolve the challenge.

Because everyone on your Design-Build team works for the same company, everyone will be on the same page with all the design and construction needs.

This makes a significant difference in the team's ability to work together seamlessly with better understanding of what the homeowner wants to achieve.

Most importantly, you only need to contact one person to understand what's going on at any given moment with your house, rather than calling back and forth between 3 to 8 different companies to find out who has the "ball" right now.

We have all heard the stories of construction getting out of hand and messy. However, design and construction should not be so stressful or chaotic.

The design-build contractor acts as a trusted advisor to homeowners throughout the construction process, guiding the way to the best possible outcome.

Homeowners can't be expected to understand all the intricacies and challenges with construction and the remodel process.  

The Design Build model is setup to walk the homeowner through all steps and the backbone of the process is the planning phase. This is a big difference in Design Build VS General Contractor.

With design-build, singular responsibility drives quality and performance in every stage of the process.

During the design phase, we are highly motivated to generate designs that are accurate & error-free.

This motivation continues throughout the construction process, since we alone are accountable for the quality of the final product.

Have a project coordinator saves you time from managing contractors, subcontractors, designers, architects, structural engineers, inspectors, etc.

If you go that route you have to collect all of their initial paperwork like general liability insurance, license, bond, workers comp, and all the other things you need to evaluate them properly.  Then you to get bids and evaluatee which ones will do a good job.  After that, you have to watch over them to ensure they are completling the construction properly.

Design-Build takes all of that is off of the homeowner so they don't have to be chasing people all day long for several weeks if not months.

The design and construction team and the homeowner work together as a team to create a relationship that would be impossible with each working in isolation.

No disputes between the designer and contractor over design errors or interpretations, or the “right” way to build.

All of the planning, design, demo, construction, clean up, project management, and other items are “under one roof”.

Construction is stressful no matter how good a contractors process is.

If a contractor doesn't have a process or a mediocre one, the homeowner will greatly suffer.

The Design-Build ensures there is a process in place from the first initial phone consultation, until after the project is completed.

This provides a smoother process that homeowners love being a part of.