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when the time comes that i want to spruce my house up, like:
*changing the pitch of the roof so that my attic is taller.
or taking the roof off and making a 3rd floor out of the attic and finishing it.
*adding a front porch. in the front entry i have a door, then an area to be under the awning and then 3 steps. i would like to make a porch in the front.
* finishing my garage by insulating it, adding floors and walls and storage cabinets.
now for these jobs, is it better to just go with a builder or hire people seperately?
like if i want to change my bathroom setup with new bath surround or whatever, should i go with a bath and tile person or because i want to change the whole set up of my bathroom do i go with a builder then too?
ok thanks, i dont know if they do remodeling here in my area. i guess i have to look up remodelers! i figured builders because they would be building on and adding to what i have and new homes get finished and all that stuff so i figured it would all be builders.
Something that might factor into this is how will you pay for it? If financing through a bank, they will most likely require the work to be performed by a licensed general contractor. Also, for major things you mentioned like changing roof lines and the footprint of the home, you will need a building permit from your local city/county and inspections will be made along the way. Engineering diagrams and the like would also be required.
For the big jobs, I'd recommend a contractor, but for the other things like garage work, you could probably hire it out individually. Although, in working with a GC to do something like your third floor, they might be able to get you a good deal to do the other things. Wouldn't hurt to get a few estimates to see what it would cost.
thanks caspian65, it would def b financed thru a bank so i guess i would have to end up using a licensed general contractor. is that what they are actually called. like if i look in the yellow pages therewould be a section for them. dumb question i know i just have no idea as i never remodeled or changed/finish things with my house before.
all i know is that i would like a front porch, my garage to be finished and have storage cabinets, my bathroom and stand up shower changed and redone with fiberglass surround instead of the tiles it has now. and make my attic taller with more space and finishing it with insulation and walls.
right now my attic has pink insulation( iguess its the fiberglass kind) everywhere. i dont know if i can even store stuff up there. it has a floor but i dont know if putting my stuff up there would be safe. the previous owners had their stuff jam packed in the attic but with all that insulation i dont know if thats a good idea and/or if its safe to put any stuff i have up there in the meantime until i can remodel the attic.
thanks caspian65, it would def b financed thru a bank so i guess i would have to end up using a licensed general contractor. is that what they are actually called. like if i look in the yellow pages therewould be a section for them. dumb question i know i just have no idea as i never remodeled or changed/finish things with my house before.
A general contractor is someone that will handle all aspects of a construction job, which usually includes clearing/grading, foundation, water/sewer, electrical, framing, roofing, carpentry, etc... I'm not sure if they will all be under that type of heading in the yellow pages. If there's a city-data forum for your locale, you can ask for recommendations from others for local contractors. Your bank can also provide a list of contractors they normally do business with.
Quote:
all i know is that i would like a front porch, my garage to be finished and have storage cabinets, my bathroom and stand up shower changed and redone with fiberglass surround instead of the tiles it has now. and make my attic taller with more space and finishing it with insulation and walls.
While it is important for you to be happy with where you live, I'm somewhat skeptical that you're going down the right path (i.e. replacing tile with fiberglass surround). You may want to get a local interior designer to do a walk-through and bounce your ideas off of them. They should be able to help make sure you don't make any mistakes that could affect resale value down the road. Interior designers usually charge $50-150 and hour and I doubt they would spend more than 2-3 hours at your house.
Quote:
right now my attic has pink insulation( iguess its the fiberglass kind) everywhere. i dont know if i can even store stuff up there. it has a floor but i dont know if putting my stuff up there would be safe. the previous owners had their stuff jam packed in the attic but with all that insulation i dont know if thats a good idea and/or if its safe to put any stuff i have up there in the meantime until i can remodel the attic.
As long as you have a floor up there, you could always cover items stored with plastic to keep dust/settling from getting on them. If you have a furnace or hot water heater up there, be sure to keep items at least 10ft away to be safe.
HIre a general contractor for the entire job. It will cost 10% more, but it will save you mone. If you hire individually you will be bumped to the bottom of their priority list. You are nto a source of potnetial repeat business - a genearl contractor is. You cannot spend time hounding them, a contractor can. You do nto know when their excuses are BS. A contractor does.
Further, if you hire indiidually, and there is any kind of problem, they will balme to other people you hired, or blame you for not coordinating properly. If you hire a general contractor, you have one source for resolving problems and you will nto get caught in the middle.
Finally, it is the genral contracotr's obligation to make certain all notices get posted or recorded properly and all necessary releases are recived. You should still be on your toes on this, but a GC give you a better liklihood ot not missing simething. It is what they do all the time. Do you know much about liens and releases?
when the time comes that i want to spruce my house up, like:
*changing the pitch of the roof so that my attic is taller.
or taking the roof off and making a 3rd floor out of the attic and finishing it.
*adding a front porch. in the front entry i have a door, then an area to be under the awning and then 3 steps. i would like to make a porch in the front.
* finishing my garage by insulating it, adding floors and walls and storage cabinets.
now for these jobs, is it better to just go with a builder or hire people seperately?
like if i want to change my bathroom setup with new bath surround or whatever, should i go with a bath and tile person or because i want to change the whole set up of my bathroom do i go with a builder then too?
thanks!!
You need a licensed general contractor for most of these projects because they involve structural changes. The way things would work in general is you find a general contractor (GC) you like and draw up a contract. He'll probably have someone he uses to draw up plans (although you may have someone you prefer to use for plans). At least where I live - the plans have to be signed and sealed by an architect or an engineer. Then the GC will pull permits and start work. The process is somewhat complicated. There are usually inspections done by local authorities - and draws taken by the GC - during the course of construction.
The stuff Coldjensens mentioned is important. He's taking about mechanic's lien laws. They're designed to protect workers and people who provide materials for your project from being screwed by your GC - or any subcontractors involved in your job. If the homeowner doesn't cross all the "t's" and dot all the "i's" - he can wind up paying twice for work and materials - once to the GC - and once to any sub or materialman who's been screwed. The way it works in Florida is the homeowner files a "Notice of Commencement". It has to be filed in the courthouse - and posted on the job site. People who work on the job send you a Notice to Owner. Before you make any payment to a GC (other than an initial deposit - which should never be more than about 10-20% IMO) - you have to get Releases of Liens from the people who sent you a Notice to Owner. Note that - at least in Florida - this is a homeowner responsibility. The GC doesn't enter into the equation legally (and certainly not practically - because the GC isn't going to tell you if he's screwed his subs or materialmen). FWIW - when we built our house - well there's a standard Florida form for a Release of Lien. And our GC (although a good builder) and his subs and materialmen (also good) didn't get the form right about 50% of the time.
My husband and I have done this stuff ourselves. But we're lawyers. If you're not a lawyer - you have to familiarize yourself with the process 100% - and get it right. Or hire a lawyer to do things for you. Note that we have always paid cash for construction - no financing. But banks here screw up all the time if you trust them to get the necessary documents in this area before they release money. IOW - you can't rely on your bank either. Remember - it's your money that's at stake - so you have to see that everything is done properly.
FWIW - without knowing anything about your house - I can maybe see improving your house by doing the garage and porch projects (although I have to wonder why your garage doesn't have a floor). OTOH - redoing the roof is major major work. I'd probably move before I'd do work like that on a house. Keep in mind that if your house is older - you may - depending on where you live - have to bring parts of your house to current code depending on what work you wind up doing. Robyn
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