Stage 1: Discovery
Stage 1
Initial Consultation
Discover the possibilities.
We desire for our clients to have an exceptional experience. This starts with our initial consultation, making you feel comfortable asking questions, bringing suggestions and us asking you questions about your plans. We don’t want to speak over your head, but for you to understand, after all, it is your project…we are just here to make it all come together.
We try to make our process straightforward as possible, but with heavy emphasis on the planning side.
We begin with meeting to discuss what your vision and dreams are. Just you telling us what you are thinking and we listen.
We will take your ideas and put them down on an initial design as well as a rough estimate
Here we will begin to refine the plans and get quotes. Before moving on, we sign the contact to ensure everyone is on the same page.
To us, the most important part of the construction is communication. We utilize the latest cloud based software for both scheduling as well as communication.
Before closing out your project, we want to ensure everything is exactly what you expect. Clients have an opportunity to have any detail addressed.
Discover the possibilities.
We meet with you at your home to do an initial consultation and review your ideas, thoughts and sketches.
Some items to think about: your likes (pictures, Pinterest boards), must haves, wants, etc.
Do you have an initial budget to work within, are you going through a construction loan, do you have sketches, how do you plan to use the space?
Where: current house, looking at a “fixer upper”, survey, set backs, design review board, HOA, etc
What: this goes into your homework…sketches, ideas, etc
Why: a home is most people’s single largest investment. Why are you wanting to do this project? More room, better use of space, updating, expanding?
When: When are you wanting the project completed? Is there a firm deadline? Do you know when you want to start?
How: One of the biggest questions…how much? Do you already have a budget? Are you utilizing a construction loan? How much are you wanting to invest, trying to recoup before selling? Do you not even know where to start? It's ok!
To formulate a starting budget: what are your must haves, what is on your wish list. Helps us determine from a budgetary standpoint, what has to be included and if we can, what “extras” that you wish will make it to the final stage.
Starting the process
To formulate a starting point, we will take some before pictures, initial measurements, and note all of your ideas/wishes. We will use these to begin an initial design and rough estimate.
At the end of the day, our conversation focuses around making sure we have an understanding of your project and the right fit to move on to Stage 2.
We take your ideas / wishes and pair them with our pictures and measurements for a design plan. From this plan we will begin to rough out an initial estimate.
This estimate is based on previous work we have done. It may include some items that are actual quotes, but most will be ballpark. We tend to include everything we have heard the owner discuss. It is our desire to be accurate in our estimating so you can make an informed decision; however, we tend to over-estimate at this 20,000 foot view. We would rather your estimate come down with actual quotes rather than sell you a low price, and continually add to it. We tend to do the Rough Estimate without getting every sub-contractor on site to get quotes.
Once we sign an engagement letter, we will meet vendors and sub-contractors at your house to get quotes.
Again, at the end of the day, our conversation focuses around are we the both the right fit to move forward, refining the Estimate into a proposal and sketches into design plans.
Signing the contract
Before moving into the proposal, we will povide you with a full scope of work. This will have all items listed from the demo and waste removal, to portable toilets and paint. We will go though everything in a scope that will outline the process and what steps are reliante on others.
Once you engage Five Development to be your contractor, we will sign an Engagement Agreement. This assumes you already have plans ready to submit to the city for permits. We will begin making selections at showrooms and vendors such as Countertops, Appliances, Lighting and Plumbing Fixtures as well as Flooring.
This agreement entails a non-refundable 1%
While you are working on selections, we will be working on finalizing the important construction details, so we can have all the construction documents ready. This includes final job site visits, dimensional drawings, important notes, engineering evaluations for code compliance, etc.
If you want us to do the design work for your plans, we will are doing the design work for plans...
We want to find the right fit for each client. We offer a Fixed Cost Model as well as a Modified Cost Plus Model.
With the Fixed Cost Model, we will give you a fixed cost contract that will be your cost.
With the Modified Cost Plus Model, we will create the same proposal as Fixed Cost, but will have the transparency of passing along our cost, plus a Management Fee to coordinate and oversee your project.
For more information about the difference between the types, see our FAQ page.
No matter what you choose, we desire to be as transparent as possible. Our proposal will be line item detailed to be able to decide what wants can be needs and what wants can be done without.
Once a final scope of work and proposal is agreed upon, we move into the contract phase of Stage 3. The Construction agreement outlines the scope of work, schedule, payment terms as well as clear and concise expectation for the Owner and Contractor. It is our desire that all selections be made prior to moving into the Construction phase. This allows the process to be much smoother and easier for the owner.
LEt’s build
To begin, everything we do will be though our cloud based software program. From your design plans, pictures and schedule to communication, everything is housed in one location. Access it from any device 24/7.
We place a heavy emphasis on our planning stage. This allows the construction phase to go seamlessly, although things will arise such as weather, unknown things behind sheetrock, etc. What we do not want is for things not to go as desired because of a lack of planning.
We will submit your design plans and pull all the necessary permits with your local city. This will include all permit fees, inspections and such. This be as quick as a week or could take up to several weeks depending on your local city.
We invest in the latest cloud based customer integrated software system to keep our clients informed and up to date.
With project scheduling, everything is done online. You can access through our app or on your computer at any time.
As stated previously, we want the majority of the work to go into the design process, to reduce the change orders, increasing time and cost. solid design phase leads to a smoother and quicker build phase.
If weather or other unforseen delays occur, your schedule will update. Everyone involved will be updated and you will be able to see the latest schedule.
We will schedule a “Pre-Construction Meeting” to review final walkthrough, ensuring everyone is on the same page. This reviews everything from parking to dumpster location. We will discuss any final questions you may have about the project or schedule at this time.
As with scheduling, our cloud based customer integrated software system allows us to communicate with our clients as well as keep them informed and up to date with a record of their selections, upgrades, any changes, scheduling and so on. Anything you may need can be found in one place.
We will document progress weekly, as well as any milestones, with pictures/video that you can download or post to social media should you want to.
Project scheduling: everything is done online. You can access through our app or on your computer at any time.
Our main focus is on on clarity and timely communication during your project. You can expect daily project visits and we can go over any questions you may have. We also utilize an online shielding software to easily communicate back and forth.
As stated previously, we want the majority of the work to go into the design process, to reduce the change orders, increasing time and cost. a solid design phase leads to a smoother and quicker build phaseWe limit the number of projects annually, so we can dedicate the proper time we would want invested if it was our project. As such, we make it a priority to be on site each day.
Completion of this stage takes our clients to Substantial Completion/.
Finalizing the project
We want to ensure everything meeting your expectations. you will be provided with a final punch list before closing out.
You will have a chance to walk through the entire project where we will answer any questions final you may have.
We want you to celebrate wherever it is you came from, even if it was the napkin sketch with a few Pinterest pictures.
We are committed to the quality of our work and believe that a well thought out and organized process leads to a great customer experience. if you have questions, we will be there for you.
It is our desire and goal that at the end of your project you have the space you dreamed of within the budget you desired. At the same time, that you would do it all over again, because you had an exceptional experience. Everything that happened along the way you were
Clear expectations and a commitment to a well laid plan and clear communication.