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Homeowner Contractor Management of a Home
Remodeling Project
How to Act as your Own General Contractor or
Work in an Owner Contractor Management Relationship
By Mark J. Donovan
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When planning a major home
remodeling project, such as a room addition, you need to decide early on if
you are going to act as the general contractor project manager, or as an
owner contractor manager. If you decide to act as your own home remodeling
general contractor project manager, you will ultimately be responsible for
hiring subcontractors, inspecting work, calling for municipal inspections,
and running the finances, e.g. paying the bills. If you act as an owner
contractor manager, you will actually contract with a general contractor to
oversee the construction of the home remodeling project.
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You can decide when hiring the
general contractor if you will have minimum oversight, or will want to include
your approval in all subcontractor work performed prior to making payments.
To act as your own general contractor or want to participate heavily in an owner
contractor management relationship you should have some level of knowledge on
how to work with contractors and subcontractors. In addition, you should have
the abilities to read blue prints and plans. Without this type of experience
your home remodeling project is destined to fail.
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Show Who is in
Charge of the Home Remodeling Project
Managing subcontractors is akin to
herding cats. Each contractor and subcontractor has an independent streak as
they are their own bosses. Consequently, as a homeowner contractor manager, it’s
important early on to let them know who is in charge of the project, and who is
paying the bills. It is also very important for them to understand that you have
some familiarity in the home remodeling or construction process and understand
the builder language. If you do not establish these points with your
subcontractors you may find yourself getting taken advantage of.
Keep Good Records
Make sure you are meticulous on
schedules, budgets and plans. In addition, keep records of each subcontractor
quote, material deliveries and payments. By keeping good home remodeling project
records you can better control costs and prevent disagreements down the road
with sub-contractors.
With good project management records, e.g. schedules, you can also know when
best to contact sub-contractors to show up on the site for their respective
phase of the project.
Paying Contractors
and Subcontractors
Make payments only after the work has
been properly inspected. You, as the homeowner contractor manager, should make
sure the completed work complies with the home remodeling plans. In addition,
the local municipal building inspector should also inspect the work for building
plan and code compliance. Realize that once you hand over the money to the
contractors / subcontractors, it is extremely difficult to get uncompleted work
finished.
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Photo by Mark Donovan |
Show Appreciation
Though you need to make it clear that
you are the owner contractor manager and that you are the boss, and have final
approval on inspections, it is a good idea to show some level of appreciation
time to time. For example, showing up with an afternoon snack or treating the
crew to lunch is always a nice gesture.
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Also, consider including portable toilet facilities and a picnic table on the
site to provide some basic level of comfort to the contractors.
Have Liability
Insurance
Another major item that you need to
have when managing a home remodeling project is liability insurance. It is
important to have liability insurance on the project site for both workers and
non-workers. You would be surprised how many neighbors tour your new custom home
construction project after hours or on the weekends. If one of them gets hurt,
guess who they are going to call.
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Prepare for Change
When managing a home remodeling
project, the most important thing to remember is that change is constant.
Consequently you should prepare for what-if conditions by establishing back up
plans and contingencies. For example, if at the last minute an electrician
subcontractor decides not to do your home remodeling project, you should have a
second electrician ready and willing in the wings. The backup electrician may
not be able to jump immediately onto your project, but at least you should be
able to mitigate some of the schedule slip. I hate to say it, but cash is still
king. Sometimes throwing dollars on the table as a “sign-on bonus” incentive can
help.
By following these simple guidelines you can go a long way in ensuring the
proper construction of your home remodeling project, and completing it on time
and budget.
To obtain accurate and consistent home building contractor quotes, see my
Home
Addition Bid Sheets. They provide a request for quote section
that you can provide to prospective home building contractors. It also includes
a comprehensive cost breakdown table, in Microsoft Excel format, that allows the
home building contractor to include their projected home building costs for every phase of the
project.
How to Finance your Home Remodeling Project -
can help provide funds for your new home improvement project if financing is
required.
Related Articles on Home Construction and Hiring the Right Home Building
Contractor
Additional Resources from Amazon.com on Home
Building
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