Make your mistakes on paper Many times I get calls from prospective clients wanting to remodel thcir kitchen or bath, finish a basement, or put on an addition I enjoy meeting with them but they have no concrcte plans, just a vision. So I have to explain that tley nced to do some preliminary work before I can give them a price to do the job This preliminary step is so important: A consultation with a designer or architect, if a major structural change is planned. Have them prepare scaled drawings and a detailed materials list. Why spend the moncy on a designer/ architect? Because it's much more cost cffective to make changes on paper than in the field. Have it all sketched out by a professional. Choose all the materials and fixtures you want to use, detennine a realistic budgct then, call the general contractors in to bid on the job How clse are you supposed to know if one contractor is going to use the same materials and fixtures as the next? Ifte end product is going to be what you envisioned? Tlhen you are comparing one contractor's proposal to another's equally: apples to apples. When you bought your last car, you knew exactly what options were include. You had a list of items that you could compare from one to the next. This crabled you to go from one dealer to the next and actually compare and decide who gave you the best value for what you wanted. Going to a designer or architect before calling in contractors could be the most cost effective way to get what you really want. Next time we'll discuss how to choose the rght general contractor. Subtted by Chris Frasco General Contractor