Communication Between Client, Builder and Trades During a Renovation
Are you planning a renovation on your home this year? While it is an exciting period, it can also be quite stressful, especially if you don’t have a great communication plan in place with your builder and tradespeople.
Communicating between numerous parties can be difficult at the best of times, but when one job relies on another being done, it’s certainly something you want to stay on top of. So how can you manage your project in a simple and easy way?
Set Your Timelines and Budget Early
One of the first things you need to do when speaking to your builder about your renovation is to ensure your project timeline and your budget are set early. If homeowner and builder are on the same page about what needs to be done, when and what the budget is, the various tradespeople working on the project will then be able to schedule their work around the project timeline.
The timeline should allow for any delays in deliveries, weather, illness and anything else that might hold up the renovation for more than a day or two.
Contingency Plans
Contingency plans are essential – and this is when you really need an open line of communication between all parties involved in the renovation. Issues that you weren’t expecting arise during most renovation projects, and often it will be your builder or tradespeople who discover the condition of the wall when the rip the old kitchen out or issues under the carpet when it’s pulled up.
Having a good communication plan in place allows the homeowner to find out these issues quickly, as well as the possible solutions and prices. There should then be a record of the decision made, and any changes that need to be made to the timeline and budget.
Project Management Software
The good news is that most builders have project management software that takes care of everything – notifications pop up when items are due, reminders pop up when payments are due; everything is taken care of and everyone is mostly kept on track.
One problem with many project management programs however is that they are only used in-house. So only the builder and their team have access. As a property owner you might be sent notifications, but generally you can’t see where the project is up to, and what’s coming up, let alone what work has already been paid for and what is due to be paid for.
The knowmybuild app is the simple solution on the market. The app lets everyone see what’s happening, and as the homeowner, lets you manage and keep on track of your budget, the reno progress and whether you might need to shift your timelines around. One of the great things is that you can chat to your tradesperson or builder direct through the app – perfect for when you are at work and can’t get the time to make a call.
Make sure you ask your builder if they are using the knowmybuild app – the small fee is well worth the headaches it saves.