How we work
How a job runs with us
Five steps, the same on every job. Each one has a clear purpose, so the decisions that shape your project are made on time and with the full picture.
The five steps
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Step 1: First contact
Tell us what you’d like done, roughly when, and anything you already know about the house. If the job isn’t a good fit for us, we’ll say so straight away.
What happens
- A short email exchange about the job
- Rough timing and budget talked through
- A visit booked if it’s a fit
What you get
- A straight answer on whether we’re the right contractor
- A time for the site visit
What we need from you
- Photos of the area, if you have them
- Any drawings or plans you already have
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Step 2: Site visit
We look at the job, measure, check what we can of the conditions behind it, and ask the questions that affect the price.
What happens
- Measurements and photos
- A look at access, power and water
- Options and trade-offs talked through
What you get
- Honest advice on what’s worth doing
- A sense of next steps and timing
What we need from you
- Time to walk through the house with us
- A rough budget, even a broad one
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Step 3: Written estimate
You get a written scope and price. Each part of the job is listed, with allowances shown for anything you haven’t chosen yet.
What happens
- Itemized scope and price
- Allowances for finishes not yet chosen
- Permit needs identified
What you get
- An estimate you can compare line by line
- A proposed schedule
- A written agreement when you’re ready
What we need from you
- Questions about anything unclear
- Your decisions on scope
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Step 4: The work
One point of contact runs the job. Your home is protected, the site is cleaned daily, and decisions are raised early enough that they don’t hold the work up.
What happens
- Protection set up before work starts
- Work done in the agreed order
- Inspections booked at the required stages
What you get
- Regular updates
- Written change orders, priced before extra work
- Notice before any decision is needed
What we need from you
- Timely answers to questions
- Access to the house as agreed
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Step 5: Walkthrough
We walk through the finished work with you, agree a punch list and finish it. You get the information you need to look after what we’ve built.
What happens
- A walkthrough together
- The punch list finished
- A final clean
What you get
- Product, color and paint details
- Care notes for new materials
- Photos of what’s behind the walls, where relevant
What we need from you
- Time for the walkthrough
- Honest feedback
Estimates
How our estimates work
A price is only useful if you can see what it contains. Ours are written to be read.
Itemized
You see what each part of the work costs, so you can adjust the scope instead of accepting one number.
Allowances stated plainly
Where you haven’t picked a finish yet, the estimate shows the allowance and what it assumes.
Changes priced first
If the scope changes, you get a written change order with the cost and the effect on schedule before the work goes ahead.
Surprises talked about early
In older houses especially, we talk through what could turn up once walls are open, and how it would be handled.
Living with the work
Your house while we’re in it
Most people stay at home during their project. We plan for that from the start.
- Floors protected along the route we use, and dust barriers around the work area
- Tools and materials put away, and the site cleaned at the end of each day
- You know in advance who is coming to the house and when
- Water or power shut-offs planned and announced ahead of time
- If staying isn’t practical for part of the job, we tell you before it starts
Before you hire anyone
Questions worth asking any contractor
Whoever you hire, these are fair questions. A good contractor should answer each one clearly, and in writing.
- Who will run my job day to day, and how will they keep me updated?
- What’s included in the price, what’s an allowance, and what’s left out?
- How are changes priced and approved?
- How will the rest of my house be protected?
- Which parts of the work need a permit, and who arranges the inspections?
- Who does the electrical, plumbing and HVAC work?
- When is each payment due, and what is it tied to?
- What will I receive when the job is finished?
Request an estimate
Start with a conversation.
Tell us about the house and what you have in mind. Getting in touch commits you to nothing.