If you are building a new home or planning an addition or major remodeling for your current home, you are taking on a significant workload and may need a level of understanding of construction to ensure that the contractors you are paying are giving you the best service and advice. Many people take on that responsibility and essentially manage their own project.
Self-managing new construction or remodeling can be very risky if you are not a construction professional. Many homeowners have been taken advantage of by contractors. A contractor will size-up the knowledge of the customer and sometimes recommend additional work or specific materials that may not be optimal for you.
Contractors may also encounter problems as the project moves forward and may either not bring your attention to that problem or recommend a solution that adds unnecessary cost to the project. Most contractors are honest and hardworking and will not intentionally mislead you, but even then the recommendations and solutions they make may not take into account the most recent industry materials and techniques.
So what does a Project Manager (PM) do? He or she is a construction professional with years of experience who will represent you to the contractor and even the local building and zoning officials. The PM always acts in your best interest as the only objective of the PM is to get you the highest quality project at the appropriate cost.
As an experienced PM, I have worked with customers who started the project without help and become frustrated with contractors and local officials who don’t always provide the right answers. That happens when the customer is not able to ask the right questions. When they learn the customer has a PM, I have seen their attitude change dramatically. They think carefully about each answer and when they hit a snag, they call the PM for suggestions on how to find solutions. When they see the PM as a knowledgeable peer, the project becomes a team effort.
A professional PM is also able to see signs of contractor problems very quickly. It can save homeowners a lot of money when action can be taken early in a case of contractor mismanagement or failure. Financial mismanagement is the leading cause of contractor failure and the signs of that happening are not seen by the homeowner until lots of money has been lost.
Getting a PM early in your project will give you a knowledgeable professional to review contractor bids, evaluate the plans, and also review the kinds of materials and fixtures being proposed by the contractor. Reviewing the contractor’s contract documents is also important. The conditions under which the contractor can ask you for more money than agreed to may not be written in a way that protects you from unnecessary cost escalation. When the contractor is not compelled by the contract to finish the work for the stated price, the chance of overruns rises dramatically. A project manager will both ensure the contract language protects you and also evaluate any conditions found by the contractor that qualify for additional money from you.
A project manager can often save you more money than the cost of this professional working for you. The Morgan Davonn team has years of experience in construction management. Give us a call before starting your project so we can show you how our professional PM services work.
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