How much will the
work cost ?
We develop a price from discussions with you about your needs,
your budget and the plans. We prefer to negotiate prices with clients,
rather than bid competitively. Working up
a realistic bid is time-consuming, so we’re fortunate that usually our clients have already chosen
us as their
contractor, rather than putting their work out to bid. We then negotiate the price to one that meets your budget and aesthetic
concerns.
When clients do put their project out to bid, we rarely submit the low bid, because we give you the best value
for your money, not the lowest price.
How do payments work ?
Payments are linked to progress
benchmarks and are spelled out in the contract. Additional costs, for example, are handled by change orders, which we work
out with our clients.
How long does it take to build a house ?
There
are two parts to building a house. The first is the design and city processing and the second is the actual construction of
the house.
The first part can vary widely depending on the city your working in and the magnitude of the project.
The design process consists of "programming"
which is figuring out all of the features you want in the house.
Then comes design development where the floor plan
and elevations of the house are developed.
At this point you generally go to the city for design review to see if your
plan is acceptable to the city. Upon acceptance by the city,
the next step is construction drawings, which turns
the design into working plans that the contractor can use to build the house.
These construction drawings are then submitted
to the city for a building permit.
Once a building permit is issued by the city, construction can begin. Construction time is a function of how large the home is and how complex it is.
What does it cost per sq. ft. to build a house ?
Comparing cost per square
foot from one builder or architect to another is problematic because there is no set formula for computing it.
The basic
problem is that you don't know what is included in the number.
Sometimes it's just the hard cost of the work,
other times it might include supervision and contractor fees and interest costs and architectural costs
and more.
How many jobs do you take on at a time ?
In order to provide the highest level of service and quality to our customers, we limit the number of jobs
we take on at any one time to
5 simultaneous
projects. We have found over the years that when people get over extended, everyone loses.
Do you do remodels and additions ?
In a word,Yes.
As a "Full Service General Contractor"
Banker Construction
is able to provide the same level of quality services
for many types of projects.
Does a builder have to honor a written estimate ? Typically, No.
An estimate is not a binding contract,
but a rough calculation of the cost of the project.
I've changed my mind about what I want.
Can I make a change to the project?
Typically,
Yes.
The type of change and when the request
occurs can greatly impact the ability to
physically make the change, as well as the associated costs. Changes should
be agreed to in writing
with a "change order" noting what is to be changed as well as the costs.
