ᐅ Experiences with companies that offer complete home renovations.
Created on: 15 Mar 2021 20:36
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FrankxxxHello everyone,
The ground floor of a two-family house is going to be renovated. The upper floor is still occupied under a right of residence by the aunt and is completely self-supplied (own heating, gas, electricity connection, etc.).
The grandfather lived on the ground floor (75 sqm (807 sq ft)), and now the entire house is being sold within the family.
The problem is that we hardly know anyone who can help or knows how to proceed. Therefore, the idea is to hire a company to handle everything.
Work that needs to be done includes wiring from the meter, sewage and water pipes, windows, complete heating system, bathroom fully renovated with the bathroom door moved. Interior doors and a new main entrance door for the apartment.
The basement used to be a pigsty long ago. In this basement room, the ceiling is 1 meter (3 feet) higher than in the rest of the basement, which takes space from the room above in the apartment. The concrete ceiling (12 sqm (129 sq ft)) must be removed and replaced with a new ceiling that is one meter (3 feet) lower. Additionally, a wall needs to be broken through inside the apartment with a steel beam installed to combine two rooms. The new ceiling is not yet included in the offer.
The floor is in good condition. Tasks like painting and wallpapering are no problem and will be done by ourselves.
Offers from companies have already been received.
Company 1 quoted about €120,000 with a very questionable offer and attitude. No good feeling, and at the meeting there were very vague statements regarding execution, dimensions, quality, and methods.
Company 2 quoted about €90,000 and also seemed very competent. The offer is attached. This is a family business. She is the interior designer, and he is the practical part (certified master in gas, water, and heating installation). This company does everything with its own staff. No subcontractors.
Questions:
What do you think of the offer?
What should be considered in advance when dealing with such companies? Was anything overlooked? Does anyone have experience with a similar process?
What should be paid attention to during the renovation? Where might there be pitfalls or hidden issues?
Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!
Best regards,
Frankxxx
The ground floor of a two-family house is going to be renovated. The upper floor is still occupied under a right of residence by the aunt and is completely self-supplied (own heating, gas, electricity connection, etc.).
The grandfather lived on the ground floor (75 sqm (807 sq ft)), and now the entire house is being sold within the family.
The problem is that we hardly know anyone who can help or knows how to proceed. Therefore, the idea is to hire a company to handle everything.
Work that needs to be done includes wiring from the meter, sewage and water pipes, windows, complete heating system, bathroom fully renovated with the bathroom door moved. Interior doors and a new main entrance door for the apartment.
The basement used to be a pigsty long ago. In this basement room, the ceiling is 1 meter (3 feet) higher than in the rest of the basement, which takes space from the room above in the apartment. The concrete ceiling (12 sqm (129 sq ft)) must be removed and replaced with a new ceiling that is one meter (3 feet) lower. Additionally, a wall needs to be broken through inside the apartment with a steel beam installed to combine two rooms. The new ceiling is not yet included in the offer.
The floor is in good condition. Tasks like painting and wallpapering are no problem and will be done by ourselves.
Offers from companies have already been received.
Company 1 quoted about €120,000 with a very questionable offer and attitude. No good feeling, and at the meeting there were very vague statements regarding execution, dimensions, quality, and methods.
Company 2 quoted about €90,000 and also seemed very competent. The offer is attached. This is a family business. She is the interior designer, and he is the practical part (certified master in gas, water, and heating installation). This company does everything with its own staff. No subcontractors.
Questions:
What do you think of the offer?
What should be considered in advance when dealing with such companies? Was anything overlooked? Does anyone have experience with a similar process?
What should be paid attention to during the renovation? Where might there be pitfalls or hidden issues?
Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated!
Best regards,
Frankxxx
H
HilfeHilfe16 Mar 2021 05:38Are you being blinded by the price?
Otherwise, the second offer sounds interesting because they handle everything from a single source. Maybe compare both offers to see if number 2 has forgotten anything?
Otherwise, the second offer sounds interesting because they handle everything from a single source. Maybe compare both offers to see if number 2 has forgotten anything?
Unfortunately, they cannot be compared. The first provider kept everything very vague.
For example, the type and quantity of electrical installations. They neither specified the brand nor the number per room or anything else. It only said "standard will be installed." In offer 2, there are a total of 100 items for this apartment. That at least gives you something to work with.
For example, the type and quantity of electrical installations. They neither specified the brand nor the number per room or anything else. It only said "standard will be installed." In offer 2, there are a total of 100 items for this apartment. That at least gives you something to work with.
What I notice:
The quantity specifications are inconsistent.
For many items (e.g., tiles), there should either be roughly appropriate quantities listed (a 10% margin is acceptable—you would then pay more or less after measurement, and anything beyond that could be renegotiated) or it should say "1 lump sum." But definitely not 1 m² (10.8 sq ft) at €400!
On the other hand, sometimes it says 3 lump sums and in the detailed description: billing based on weight (for disposal, for example).
Or something like: 6x "Deliver and install new radiators without radiators," and then later the positions for the radiators themselves. I've never seen something phrased like that before... (by the way, I find €700 (!!) for one radiator quite expensive... what are you installing there?).
Yeah... I would have this whole thing clarified again. At least those 1 m² (10.8 sq ft) items, because if they try to interpret these as unit prices later on, you might end up paying €260,000 for plastering 100 m² (1,076 sq ft) of ceiling, which is ridiculously high.
The quantity specifications are inconsistent.
For many items (e.g., tiles), there should either be roughly appropriate quantities listed (a 10% margin is acceptable—you would then pay more or less after measurement, and anything beyond that could be renegotiated) or it should say "1 lump sum." But definitely not 1 m² (10.8 sq ft) at €400!
On the other hand, sometimes it says 3 lump sums and in the detailed description: billing based on weight (for disposal, for example).
Or something like: 6x "Deliver and install new radiators without radiators," and then later the positions for the radiators themselves. I've never seen something phrased like that before... (by the way, I find €700 (!!) for one radiator quite expensive... what are you installing there?).
Yeah... I would have this whole thing clarified again. At least those 1 m² (10.8 sq ft) items, because if they try to interpret these as unit prices later on, you might end up paying €260,000 for plastering 100 m² (1,076 sq ft) of ceiling, which is ridiculously high.
O
Osnabruecker16 Mar 2021 11:49The submitted offer is very good and worth taking a closer look at.
Tamster’s notes are a great starting point for what you should pay attention to. Print them out, then go through each item one by one—read, understand, check quantity and unit of measure for plausibility (not 12 or 14 m² (130 or 150 sq ft), for example)—then tick off or mark with a question mark. Afterwards, review everything with the company over a cup of coffee.
Many things are to be provided by the builder/client. Make sure this is exactly what you want.
Tamster’s notes are a great starting point for what you should pay attention to. Print them out, then go through each item one by one—read, understand, check quantity and unit of measure for plausibility (not 12 or 14 m² (130 or 150 sq ft), for example)—then tick off or mark with a question mark. Afterwards, review everything with the company over a cup of coffee.
Many things are to be provided by the builder/client. Make sure this is exactly what you want.
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