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I am getting turned off by some of the people I have been meeting with regarding kitchen remodeling. Any tips on where to find someone good? Angie's List and friend's recommendations are not working.
Before we moved, we had our kitchen redone by an idiot. It was so bad that we had to have it re-redone. We went to a local kitchen & bath place. Because it was mainly a custom job, they couldn't help us but they got us in touch with a contractor. And when we bought this house, we used that same contractor but went with the kitchen & bath place for the kitchen.
I don't know if you have a kitchen & bath place close to you. I'm not saying that would be your best bet-it just happened to be for us. I would use Google first and see if there are any kitchen people in your area. When you have names, research them. See if there have been any complaints, reviews, etc.
It starts with the cabinet shop and the layout/floorplan.
If they don't also sell the appliances they'll have that contact for you.
Between them they'll have the GC/Home Improvement Contracting License needed
and established relationships with the electricians and plumbers and tile guys etc.
that will allow you to achieve the One Plan One contract One Price goal.
I went with word of mouth and longevity in the market when we chose our contractor to do first the floors, then the kitchen, then the guest bath, painting the house, expanding the driveway, the outdoor living area and finally the master bath.
I knew she had a good reputation for years so I met with her to pick her brain. I brought in ONE thing to show her regarding the kitchen (the floors were easy) - a piece of my Polish pottery. I said, "I want the room itself to be quiet because I have a lot of Polish pottery and it's busy. I want the kitchen to look sort of like the kitchen downstairs in Downton Abbey." She immediately "got" the vision and I knew we would be able to work together.
We started with 5+ years of perusing home design magazines: Fine Homebuilding, Dwell, Kitchen & Bath Design News, Modern in Denver, 5280, Colorado Homes & Lifestyles.
Then 2 solid years of thinking.
Visiting kitchen showrooms many times. (Home Depot does not count.)
Then hiring an architect that we have known for 30 years. He thinks different.
Then designing down to the 1/4 inch. I have 5 pages of design details so far. I did not use CAD software, but I did use graphic software (Omnigraffle).
All this to replace a 6-year old, 15-foot wall of cabinets and appliances.
When you are spending $50K, you want to be sure.
We plan to be our own GC.
Last edited by davebarnes; 05-15-2017 at 09:19 PM..
We've remodeled two kitchens. In 1980, DH and my dad moved walls and my dad redid our wiring. DH found someone by chance, I think, who liked to work with people like us. He gave us a good price on our oak cabs; I believe he took the measurements. DH hung at least some of the cabs. I don't remember who plumbed our new corner sink.
In 1999, we walked into a kitchen remodeling showroom that was local, and we talked to the proprietor and liked what we heard. I gave him the things I wanted, and his son, the designer, drew it up for us. We liked it, and we went with that company. I may have done a BBB search on the company to see if they were legit, and if so, I found nothing bad.
They did a nice job for us. I had a few minor quibbles, and we found out weeks later that they forced a surge which ruined an electric keyboard we had kept plugged in. Other than that, the kitchen was great, and 12 years later that kitchen helped sell the house.
I wish I had been more proactive about some things. But over all, the project was done in good time, and the kitchen looked and worked great.
Without being too judgemental I have to say that if you have interviewed at least three or four remodelers that did work for friends that they are happy with it might just be that the TIMING is bad. The good remodelers are almost certainly FULLY ENGAGED in projects right now that started in the winter and likely will continue through the fall. The "cycle" that most remodelers prefer is to start planning for major projects at least 3-4 months before anything starts. If you are getting turned off it might be because of mismatch between what the remodelers know the lead time is for a major project and their own stress is seeing projects started 6 months come to fruition...
The other reality is that labor is something that does not scale particularly well in kitchen remodels -- if your projects involves either much more space than your friends OR is a significantly less large area the labor costs are likely VERY similar. The difference in time that is takes to install lots more or lots fewer cabinets is pretty minor. Of course material costs do vary by the sq ft as well as quality so that what your friends paid for their whole project MIGHT be quite a bit different than what you are quoted.
One of the biggest factors is how well any remodeling contractor works with sub-contractors and suppliers -- I've interviewed many different contractors and some flat out refuse to deal with anybody that the homeowner recommends. That can really be a deal killer if you have specific "wants" that are only available from sub-contractors / suppliers that the remodeling contractor does not deal with -- the successful contractors have to balance the potential for "losing out" on those kinds of projects to maintaining a timely and businesslike process. If none of your friends have materials or designs in their kitchen that you find appealing you likely will need to reach out to a different pool of firms. In these circumstances it can make sense to review the work of architects or certified kitchen designers who post their portfolio online. When you meet with folks that you've contacted in this way is SUPER important that they present detailed references and offer reasonable ways to contact homeowners and contractors that have been satisfied with their work. The best such architects and designers can take you unique ideas and your specific budget and offer creative ways to get the most of your "dreams" while dealing with the reality of affordability...
Without being too judgemental I have to say that if you have interviewed at least three or four remodelers that did work for friends that they are happy with it might just be that the TIMING is bad. The good remodelers are almost certainly FULLY ENGAGED in projects right now that started in the winter and likely will continue through the fall. The "cycle" that most remodelers prefer is to start planning for major projects at least 3-4 months before anything starts. If you are getting turned off it might be because of mismatch between what the remodelers know the lead time is for a major project and their own stress is seeing projects started 6 months come to fruition...
The other reality is that labor is something that does not scale particularly well in kitchen remodels -- if your projects involves either much more space than your friends OR is a significantly less large area the labor costs are likely VERY similar. .
Huh?
I didn't say any of this. LOTS of reading into this, and as I gave little detail, I will give more.
I interviewed several. I have a historic house. I want a non-HGTV kitchen that fits with the house.
One said "rip out the (original, beautiful and in great shape) HWF and put in tiles that look like wood."-- this person was the friend's recommendation. Friend has tile that looks like wood in her kitchen because her floors were ruined. Mine are not.
Another said he had a line on some nice cherry cabinets. In the first 5 minutes of our consult I said I hated cherry and wanted a white kitchen. Obviously not listening.
Yet another said that they wanted to knock out a staircase (servants stairs) and a wall and "open concept" my Victorian space. Uh, not even on the table as an option. I can't stand open concept and I love that my house has a front and back stairs.
So yeah, none of these are the right fit. It has nothing to do with timing, budget, scope or anything else. I just need someone who gets what I want to do, and I have experience with remodeling kitchens so I know they are out there. Most people seem to want to put in kitchens that are very transitional in look and would fit in a modern tract house. I am not interested in that.
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