Have you ever done a rehab job that just hasn't gone like you planned? If follow the guidelines I'll present in this article, you'll get your rehab done on time, under budget, and done smoothly and professionally.
Most of the biggest problems you'll ever have with rehab projects are a result of hiring the wrong people for the job.
A complicated job (full rehab) includes framing, plumbing, sheet rock, paint, and flooring.
You might have to do some roofing.
This might include some kitchen or bathroom cabinets.
On a big job like that, your general contractor's job is to tie all those different jobs together.
The general contractor is really the project manager.
You cannot short circuit the process.
Someone has to be the project manager to pull all those people together.
If the project manager has a good plan to start with, and pays attention to the execution of that plan, things run smoothly.
If the job is ignored by the project manager, then mistakes start to happen.
For example, the sheet rocker might do his installation before the stuff that needs to go behind the wall has been installed and inspected such as the electrical.
The electrician has to get hold of the sheet rocker and coordinate his work.
If you put up the sheet rock before the wiring has been inspected, your contractor will have to tear out the sheetrock.
You'll get charged extra.
You can hire a project manager to hire, coordinate, and supervise contractors on the job.
The other way is to hire a general contractor who's got a crew that can do all those things.
A general contractor is going to charge you for that, but it's just part of the job.
It's not enough to just add up all the cost of the various sub contractors you'll need to complete the job.
You need to include the project manager (or general contractor), and that takes an extra 30 percent cost of your total cost for the job.
The system that we like the best is to have a general purpose handy man who has a versatile crew.
You will also need to have a licensed plumber, heat and air contractor, and electrician in the mix.
Specifically, this is one guy who has two to five guys underneath him (not literally underneath him - most general contractors are too heavy to have anyone underneath them).
They just go in and kind a do it all.
Your job in all this should be to train that guy how you like to have your job done.
Once you've trained him how you like your job to be done, he can do most of what you want done for you with minimal oversight.
You don't want to pay people by the hour.
You get a contractor who you are paying by the job.
Get a written contract with your contractor that has a written scope of work.
Just talking about like what you have done is not good enough because I guarantee when that contractor calls you and says ''hey I'm all done with the job" and you say "No, what about all these other things that I said to you.
" At that point you're done for as far as your leverage over that contractor unless you have it written down.
Remember that a short pencil is better than the longest memory.
You need to have absolutely everything in writing.
Remember, what really runs up the cost of a rehab is when you don't manage it properly, and you waste time and/or have to redo work because it wasn't done right the first time.
Or, it was done out of sequence.
Your contract will need to specify the total cost of the project and the time line for completion.