A home renovation can be rewarding in many ways. It means refreshing your living space, increasing the value of your investment, and creating more function for everyday life. That’s if you’re prepared. If you haven’tproperly planned and thought it through, renovating even one room, never mind multiple rooms, can become an unwieldy disaster. Our clients often have many questions at the start of a project.

Here are the steps to ensure your home remodel succeeds. 

1. Gather recommendations from trusted sources

There are hundreds of general construction contractors in Winnipeg. To be frank, some are better than others. To start your search, talk to family and friends who had renovations completed in the past. What were their experiences like? Would they recommend the contractor they used?

2. Conduct research

Conduct independent research on your own terms. Take the recommendations into account and analyze the options that interest you. The internet can be a great resource for your research. Review the company’s website, its Google results, and their social media accounts. Look for reviews to gauge how you feel about each company. We encourage creating a “pro’s and con’s” list or a rating system, so you’re able to measure each company. Chances are, if the business doesn’t appear to care or focus on their online presence, chances are they will bring this same attitude to the job site. Having said that, take anything you read on the internet with a grain of salt.

3. What’s happens online, stays online (usually, forever)

Should the business have a Facebook page or other social media accounts – sort through past reviews and material. Are there negative comments or reviews? If there is negativity present, not all hope is lost – see how the company addressed the issues via this public forum. Were they approachable and professional? Chances are they respect their customer’s opinion and want to help. Did they respond back with negativity or did they not respond at all? Count this as a red flag.

The next logical step is to reach out to the companies which peak your interest. Like a Human Resource Manager would conduct a short interview, either through a call or email, asking the questions most relevant to you and your needs. Pending the response, it is now time to move forward to the next step with your selected companies.

4. What the renovation quotation process looks like

Each home contractor will handle this process differently – but be wary of any team willing to give you a quote before reviewing your home in-person. Any quote from Hammerdown starts with an in-person visit from a senior team member. During this consultation process, we will examine the space you would like to see remodelled, ask any relevant questions to the potential job, and make recommendations as we see fit.

5. What materials should I use?

The materials can be a large part of the quote’s cost. We ask for any potential customer to extend us the professional courtesy of being prepared on the agreed date to conduct the consultation. This may seem obvious, but knowing what you want may be the single biggest factor in overall satisfaction with any renovation. But, of course, we are here to guide and help – for example: not sure if you want the granite or quartz counter-top—just ask us for our opinion!

6. Get the details you need to help make the decision

The quote process requires analysis, so we aren’t able to deliver a price at the time of the first visit. However, after our meeting, we will create a detailed, itemized list with associated costs for materials, labor, and other resources. We want you to know where and how your investment is going to be used. Consider omitting any companies not willing or able to prepare a quote for your project in this manner. As well, once we create the quotation for your home renovation project, we will contact you to arrange an in-person presentation within five business days.

Looking at your renovation as an investment

At Hammerdown, we have a distinct advantage over some of our competitors! Located in Winnipeg, our showroom at 893B Redonda Street will give you an in-person, hands on, experience with choice of materials and options available to you. Our interior designer is on-hand and ready to help with recommendations for your project. We’ll ensure you make the best possible decisions taking into account your personal style, all the while sticking within your budget.

Lastly, while it may be tough, any home renovation project should be considered in the light of an investment. Typically, for most individuals, our homes are the single largest investment we have. It’s important to put money back into the home as an investment from time to time. We will always recommend for any homeowner to renovate their kitchen or their bathroom(s) first should they want to be savvy with their funds. 

We hope this will help guide your decision process when selecting a home contractor. Here at Hammerdown, we feel we are the best match for our clients, due to our years of expertise and passion for the work we do.