Recently I completed a renovation job of a duplex investment property in the upper beach area. Yes, I was on time and on budget! I have been approached by a few people who wanted to know how did I get a 3 month, $100k renovation job right on budget and on time. The answer is simple: plan, communicate and trust.Plan As a retired Engineer who spent 10 years as a project manager, I gained valuable skills in managing projects. Initially, when I viewed the property of interest, I brought in my contractor to show him the scope of work I intended to do and my vision for the property once completed. We sat down and created a timeline with contingency factored in over the 3 month period. Based on the timeline and required manpower, he was able to complete his quotation. During the renovation period, I had weekly reviews with my contractor to see where we were per the timeline and if there were any issues that we didn't plan for. An important factor I was always 2-3 weeks ahead in having materials ready to avoid a situation where work would stop since they didn't have tiles or vanities or kitchen....
Communicate I stopped by the property 3-4 times a week in the first month, 2-3 times in the second month and 1-2 time in the last month to communicate with the contractor and subcontractors (HVAC, electrician, plumber...). I also clearly stated to the team what I wanted and how I wanted certain things to save them the time/money of redoing the work.
Trust You might be wondering what does trust have to do with renovations. In my opinion, it's very important since I trusted my contractors' skills to do an excellent job and I trusted the professionals that were referred to me. By trusting the contractor and subcontractors, I gave them the space and confidence to do the job without micromanaging and being overbearing. Imagine you being at work and your boss pops in every half an hour to see what you are doing. I'm sure it would drive you crazy! I choose to treat my team the way I like to be treated.
We did have problems and challenges, we dealt with them and got the job done on time and on budget.
I hope you find this blog post helpful and if you ever need to connect with my trusted team (contractor, electrician, realtor....) or to discuss financing your home/investment property renovations, please contact me.