If you’re thinking about renovating your Markham home, you’ve probably read a few articles that mentioned the “design-build” method. This innovative approach to renovation streamlines the entire design and building process and can save you time and money.
How Does Design-Build Differ from the Traditional Renovation Process?
For years, homeowners relied on the three-step design-bid-build process if they wanted to renovate their homes. During the first phase, homeowners met with an architect who created the plans for the addition or renovation. Then, an interior designer is brought in to finalize the home design. Once the plans and designs were approved, construction companies were invited to submit bids for the jobs. The company with the winning bid then set a construction schedule and began work on the project.
The design-build approach simplifies the process. The same company that designs your renovation also builds it.
6 Benefits That Make Design-Build a Good Choice
Design-build offers these advantages for Markham homeowners:
- Fewer Interviews: Although construction is usually the longest part of the renovation process, choosing the companies that will work on your project can also take considerable time. If you use the design-bid-build approach, you’ll need to interview both architects and construction contractors. Researching and interviewing these firms will take weeks. Luckily, you’ll spend 50% less time on interviews and preliminary meetings when one company will handle your renovation needs.
- Shorter Timeline: The bid process extends the renovation timeline by weeks. When you eliminate the need for bids, construction can begin much sooner. As soon as the design is finalized, your project will be added to our schedule. Design-build also helps prevent snags that could delay your project. During the design process, everyone works together to identify possible obstacles and work together to provide solutions before the building even begins.
- No Slowdowns Due to Communication Issues: Squabbles and differences of opinion can be a problem between two groups of people who’ve never worked together before. If your architect and builder aren’t getting along, you may be forced to step in as a mediator to ensure that the progress of your renovation isn’t affected. Luckily, that’s not a problem you’ll have to worry about when you choose a design-build firm. The designer and builders are in constant communication throughout the entire process and have worked together on many renovations in the past. They rely on their shared experience and their commitment to customer satisfaction to ensure that your job meets your expectations.
- More Accurate Estimates: Thanks to our expertise and knowledge in both design and construction, the estimate we give you will be much more accurate. Because we identify and remedy obstacles during the design phase, costly change orders due to design issues are much less likely to be an issue. Of course, you can always put in a change order if you decide that you want to make a change during the process. (Keep in mind that change orders will increase the total cost of the project and may cause delays, depending on the type of change.)
- One Point of Contact: When your renovation is constructed using the design-build method, you’ll work with the same contact person throughout the process. That person will provide you with regular updates, answer questions and let you know when you can expect the construction crew or subcontractors to arrive at your home.
- Cost Savings: Although architects do have a general idea of costs, they might not be aware of recent increases in the price of building projects. If their design includes pricey materials, you may suffer sticker shock when the construction company tells you how much you’ll actually have to pay for your renovation. If the entire design ends up being too expensive, you might even have to ask your architect to create new plans, which will increase your costs. Creativity is encouraged in the design-build method. We can offer suggestions for less expensive alternatives if a particular product costs too much or find other ways to incorporate the features you want. In fact, brainstorming is one of the things we enjoy most about the design-build approach.
A Few Examples of the Design-Build Renovation Process in Action
Our project gallery offers plenty of real-life examples of design-build projects, like this Unionville renovation that expanded the homeowner’s living space and renewed their entire home, or this project that upgraded the kitchen and main floor in a Beach heritage home. Our design-build team also helped these Angus Glen residents maximize the space in their home with a basement renovation that included a bathroom, living space, and a wine cellar.
Is your home due for a makeover? Our design-build team can help you improve, enhance or expand your home. Contact us and tell us what you have in mind!