WHEN SHOULD I SELECT A CONTRACTOR?

We believe that you should select a contractor as soon as possible.  The traditional model of selecting an architect, creating a plan set, and then sending them out to bid in order to select a contractor is broken.  This is the main way that the process has been undertaken for generations.  The vast majority of projects undertaken this way, result in a set of plans that are outside of the client’s budget, leading to revisions in the general plan and further design costs.  This stems from a lack of understanding of building costs on the architect’s side.  You can bet on this.  By bringing your contractor into the fold early on in the process, you can get real time pricing on your design decisions to ensure that you are on budget.  Establishing this “team” early provides a set of checks and balances.  Trust your architect or designer to design, manage space, comply with code, meet planning guidelines, and create a holistic plan set.  Trust your contractor to price it, build it and hand you the keys.  Both are important and both have different roles.  They must see eye to eye.