Nov 4 2009, 07:06 PM
i can share with you my experience, well, not exactly experience cos still on-going..but i was in the exact same dilemma before.
i got the key to my apartment unit in March...i tot damn happy and can start reno immediately...and in my mind, i always wanted to do my own design & monitor the works on my own to stick to the budget...but as time passes & as i begin to understand reno works...i begin to change that mind set..i consider myself quite a handy man, able to DIY many things...i even thought i can DIY my own reno works...
yes, its a lot cheaper if you can be your own ID/main-contractor...i'm in sales & i can be wherever i want whenever i want...plenty of time to monitor any works but still...the biggest problem is, you need to know exactly what needs to be done & who does what when.
for example, u need to know, when electrical works must starts, before or after plaster ceiling? or what's the first thing to start with?? all knocking works needs to be carried out before anything else...but when shud the next phase of works commence so that they wont get in the way of one another..
if you're hiring 10 different contractors on your own to do 10 different things in the house, chances are, they are not gonna be talking to each other sweetly & nicely...contractor A will blame contractor B for defects & contractor B will blame contractor C for delays...all works needs to be coordinated properly...plumbing & kitchen works for example, needs to work hand in hand...
electrical works & air-con works & plaster ceiling works & painting works...you need to plan precisely...or the plaster ceiling might be in the way of the air-con unit..or the air con guy might start hacking or drilling on wall after painting & patching...or the ceiling guy will blame the electrical guy for missing a light point.
then the fit-in works..when flooring needs to come in? before the furniture...then if anything happen to the floor after that? they'll start yelling at each other...
to be your own main-contractor, you can only be as good as monitor their works...unless you know reno or contracting works in & out...these contractors might take you for a ride one way or another...and as said, you can only monitor their works, you cant make them work nicely with others...
all these adds up to one thing -> HEADACHE for owners...
you probably dun need an ID guy/girl..they are expensive.not to mention they will take a slice of everything you pay to the contractor. if you can do your own design, then all you need is a contractor, 1 single contractor who will monitor everything from A-Z.
i'm into engineering line, and i work with Autocad on a daily basis...for me to produce drawings & design is not a problem..plus you will feel more comfortable with your own design rather than some maybe very out of the world design by an ID guy...the one staying in the house later on if yourself & who else would understand your taste & design better than yourself??
true, there are many things you may not be sure of...i'm electrical & i understand everything electrical, but when it comes to plumbing & kitchen or furniture works, i'm totally lost...
the contractor I got actually had a degree in ID. but he's more into renovation works & built in furnitures. all i did is give him my proposed design and we will both sit down and go through the details. his input is highly useful & important. becos there are alot of small details we will miss out which they will know & able to advise.
i got him to do the basic & necessary stuffs, all knocking works, painting works, kitchen, plumbing, ceiling, electrical, flooring plus a few built in cabinets cos i think his price is reasonable. wardrobe i'm getting another guy to fix it at a later stage.
so my advise, forget ID guy, but get 1 main guy to handle everything. at least he's got a team of workers/contractors who works with/under him & they able to communicate amongst each other...
price will definitely be higher this way...but at least u will hv peace of mind..u deal with 1 guy & not 10...& u dun hv to worry if they not coordinating with one another...and the thing is, you will till buy majority of commercial things yourself...like fan, lights, switches, plug points, tiles, laminated flooring, WC unit, shower, water heater, Air Con etc etc...they only make money from the reno & built in furniture which unless you wanna get those ready made ones, you cant really run away from letting them make the little profit...
the way i see it, the more money you 'allow' them to make, the happier they will be...and they will then do a better job for you...if you're those really kedekut type & wanna cut their profit in every possible way, chances are you will get what you pay for...get quotes from everywhere...see what's the market rate like...and give a little allowance from the market rate...so that they will be happy...
e.g. ceiling cost...in papers you see some can get <RM2.50 per sq ft...but he might charge you RM3.50...if you can nego to RM3 then consider good liao...
btw, if you're in a condo/apartment unit like mine, you might wanna get someone who's done job there before for other units. my apartment management quite strict...so the contractor i hire knows what to do or what not to do when...and they understand the layout or any known problems with the unit already...another plus point is you can view the quality of their works on other units before hiring them...
but this contractor i got is not those to set-up a show unit there...he's from outside, hired by a friend of mine who happened to own a unit 2 level above me...
for those contractor who set up their show unit there, there's two type.
1 is really genuine type..and they wont have problems with you getting someone from outside to do works...usually for medium-class to high-class apartment/condo you get these contractors.
another type is related to gangster type - usually for those low-class (no offence) apartments. these contractors will not allow contractors from outside to do any reno works in that particular apartment, cos they already 'pau' the place...if any outsider tried to come in, they will usually sabotage their works, or kacau the contractors so badly the contractor will not wanna continue with the works...
normally these gangster-linked contractor's price is a lot higher, but no choice, unless you wait for a couple of years until they move along....this is from personal experience...
hope this will give you an idea...
as additional info, i've been looking at various different ID/contractors throughout the months...and i can tell you one thing...for those ID guys...normally they wont layan unless you have really deep pockets...for my case, RM60k reno budget (which to me is a humongous budget for a apartment) they also "see-how first"...unless your budget exceeds couple of hundred k's....no need to consider those well established & always promo their company in reno magazines type ID or contractor...
New House -To get ID or NOT TO GET, New House Reno
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