By Sheila Before & After Remodeling April 5, 2017

Home Remodel Checklist: Preparing for a Consultation

Have you thought about a remodel for a while? Has your neighbor’s recent remodel given you fresh ideas? If remodeling is on your mind, then it might be time to schedule a consultation to discuss your project. What can you do now to get the most out of this meeting? Here are a few ways to prepare:

Think about what you are trying to achieve with your remodel. Knowing the answers to the following questions will help your designer understand what will be important to you and what will need further discussion.
Why are you thinking about remodeling? What types of problems are you having in your current space? How do you intend to use your new space?
Are you looking for more space to entertain friends? Or to celebrate special events and holidays with grown children and their families?
Are you embarrassed to entertain because your kitchen is so out of date?
Is your bathroom old and hard to keep clean? Are there safety concerns like fears of slipping while getting in and out of the tub?
Is your bathroom too small to accommodate a growing family?
Are you looking to create a space to keep your mother close by to help her as she ages?

Create a wish list.

What things are really important to you? It is especially helpful to split your list into two sections: must haves and nice-to-haves. Must haves are the most important things to you. Whereas, nice-to-haves are things you want but may be open to alternate ideas depending on your budget and schedule.

Have fun researching before your appointment.

Scroll through websites like Houzz and make an ideabook of pictures that you love, or look through design magazines and cut out pictures. Next, take it one step further and think about why you love each image. What is it in the picture that appeals to you? Is it the windows? The countertop? A skilled designer can take those details and incorporate elements of them into your remodel. You will appreciate a project that is designed to your unique wants and needs.

Spend some time on the remodeler’s website.

Look at pictures of past work that they have done, and reviews they have received from their clients. Are the projects on their site in line with the level of quality that you expect in your home?

Consider your time frame.

When do you want to be “under construction”? Do you need to be finished by a certain date, say for a graduation party or a wedding? Depending on the size and scope of your project, how quickly you make decisions, and the remodeler’s schedule, you want to have this first meeting no later than 10-12 weeks before your desired completion date for a small project. For a larger remodel, you’ll want to give yourself 6 months or more.

Consider how much money you are comfortable investing in your home.

Think about how you will pay for your project. If you’re applying for a loan, then make sure to discuss this in terms of scheduling with your remodeler.

Once you’ve spent some time thinking about your project, relax and enjoy your meeting. This should be a fun and exciting time when the ideas and dreams you’ve spent months (or years) thinking about are finally starting to take shape. Are you just getting started? Then don’t forget to download your free guide on how to make an ideabook on Houzz.

“I recently employed your company to design and build a 24′ x 26′ garage with an open living space above. Scott is an excellent salesman and front person for your company. He was always responsive to questions and problems and also demonstrated very good listening skills to what my wife and I wanted. He communicated well with us and also with his resources available in your office.”

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Steven

Husdon, MA

“Although, we had hired an architect for the original design, the design proposal developed by Harvey was much more creative, very well thought out, captured all the needs of our family and was functionally better. We cannot thank them enough for this creativity in design. Another important attraction in selecting your design and build firm was what we called the “one stop shopping” factor. With our busy lives, the fact that we could speak to our lead carpenter, re: any issue and he could convey the problem to Harvey whether it had do with design issues or construction issues and get it resolved in a time efficient manner was very important to us. Lastly, we would like to acknowledge the efforts of the entire Harvey crew for the hard work and making this process truly one that we would engage in again. On our behalf, please extend our gratitude to your employees for making our home into the dream home we had envisioned. It truly has surpassed our imagination.”

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Wendi & Vijay

Brookline, MA

“They are a first-class operation from the administrative assistant to owner. I have been enthusiastically happy with them and do not see that changing. They really care about your needs, meeting your goals, and performing quality work.”

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Kathy & Rick

Wellesley, MA

“Although, we had hired an architect for the original design, the design proposal developed by Harvey was much more creative, very well thought out, captured all the needs of our family and was functionally better. We cannot thank them enough for his creativity in design. Another important attraction in selecting your design and build firm was what we called the “one stop shopping” factor. With our busy lives, the fact that we could speak to our lead carpenter, re: any issue and he could convey the problem to Harvey whether it had do with design issues or construction issues and get it resolved in a time efficient manner was very important to us. Lastly, we would like to acknowledge the efforts of the entire Harvey crew for the hard work and making this process truly one that we would engage in again. On our behalf, please extend our gratitude to your employees for making our home into the dream home we had envisioned. It truly has surpassed our imagination.”

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Wendi & Vijay

Brookline, MA

“We are writing to say how happy we are with the addition that Harvey did to our home last summer. The work was of the highest quality and the staff very professional and friendly. The lead carpenter was excellent at communicating the progress and made us all feel comfortable with everything going on. The project was completed on budget and easily in time. We never imagined that the process could be so hassle-free. We would definitely recommend Harvey to anyone requiring a contractor. Thank you once again.”

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Stephen & Lorna

Braintree, MA

“I want to be sure you know how wonderful and hard-working your men are. Mark and Ben have worked from sunrise to past sunset to get my windows installed and I am very grateful. They just kept going hour after hour with hardly any time taken for their lunch. It’s such physically demanding work! I appreciate their competence, their very professional attitude and behavior, work ethic and friendliness. You are both blessed and wise to have them working for you. Thank you so much!”

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Zonda

Cambridge, MA

“I thoroughly enjoyed working with the entire team. They were very patient and quite responsive. I’d hire them again in a heartbeat.”

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Julie & Greg

Sudbury, MA

“Thanks for all of your efforts and beautiful handiwork on our kitchen!”

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Steve & Frances

Auburn, MA

“Having experienced very bad contractors at the time we had a major addition to our house several years ago I was somewhat concerned that I might experience the same thing. What a surprise I received! Paul was absolutely superb in his job and extremely respectable. I am truly enjoying my new bathroom and am looking forward to the Harvey team creating a new kitchen and eat-in area in my house. Many thanks! Keep up the good work in creating great teams who do very good jobs.”

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Carole

Weston, MA

“Our lead contractor Tracey was very professional and very, very good. I was very pleased with him and his responsiveness. He went above and beyond. I felt that they had very trustworthy people working for them and I would use them again in a second.”

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Andrew & Maggie

Sherborn, MA