The ‘Design’ program
In retaining Sorensen Fine Homes to implement their design program, our clients are embarking on an exciting and engaging process with us.
Our job is to take into account the constraints of each client’s site (topography and orientation), their unique living (floor plan) requirements, and however unclear it may be initially, the ‘look and feel’ for a new home that our client is attracted to.
Our mandate then, is to incorporate all the complex variables of each particular brief into a site plan that takes advantage of views and sunlight, floor plans laid out to be not only efficient but comfortable, and elevations, that if the Gods favour us in our efforts, have a presence and grace our clients will find deeply satisfying.
Nothing is more rewarding to us than to observe our client’s “ah-hah” moment when presented with our carefully articulated 3D presentation drawings. Worth everything, we think.
Once floor plans and elevations are approved, we produce the required ‘working’ and engineering drawings, obtain jurisdictional approvals, and have all the information we need for our construction project managers to take over. The baton is smoothly handed off.
The true key to the success of our design/build program is that from the initial conversations with our clients, both our design team and our construction team are fully engaged in the costing process, based on the stated budget parameters given to us early on by our clients.
In other words, there are seldom any budget surprises between completing the design work and the start of construction. The two teams are structured to work seamlessly together on behalf of our clients brief.
Our goal on behalf of all of our clients is to build strong, timeless and happy homes.
The ‘Build’ program
Here our mandate is both simple and clear: to deliver the best product and service to our clients at a fair price.
The Contract structure: To do so, we carefully arrange our contracts on a “cost-plus” basis (governed by a rigorous budget structure). In our long experience, this is the best vehicle to realize a balanced and successful project for our clients, particularly one as complex as a custom home.
The cost plus contract is not at all open-ended. It is, in fact, the best contract for a custom home construction program because it ensures that the service and quality for each project are the most important aspects of the build. When we have completed a construction contract, what the client has paid will be the precise amount of the cost to build and will therefore be an accurate representation of the value. Our clients will not have paid a penny more than what has been commissioned.
In a cost plus contract there are two critical cost components: items a client has no control over, such as foundations, rough electrical wiring or plumbing, framing costs, etc. and those a client has complete say and control over, such as plumbing and lighting fixtures, cabinetry, flooring, etc.
On the items within our purvue, it is our job to get the best trades and suppliers at a fair price in the industry; again, that is our mandate. And this can be verified by a careful analysis of the budget, and by obtaining comparative quotes.
On the items our clients have full decision-making control, we introduce dollar allowances in the budget for each to consider as these items come up for actual pricing. Our clients will be able to make their own decisions on cost and value and thus have real input into the budget. (Here is a critical observation: when a client engages with a builder in a fixed price manner, the risk on the variables is always borne by the client. All Builders are forced to add to the contract to ensure they do not lose money if materials or labour changes in cost in the time frame of the project. That is why the cost/plus contract is precise and fair, and does not have the 10-15% risk factor attached to it that a fixed price contract must have. Furthermore, in order to engage in a fixed price contract, virtually every item in the contract has to be specified, even those that might be put in as a lump sum allowance. In our experience, it is almost impossible on a custom home to draw every detail ahead of time, let alone specify it or price it out. It is a mammoth job that still can never be 100% accurate and is virtually a recipe for the dreaded ‘work change order’ to kick in; not good for anybody, especially the client).
The Construction Process
As a general rule only, custom homes may take from 10-15 months to build in this present economic climate (trades are still at a premium in British Columbia), even though we are set up to be systematic and efficient with our management.
In this regard, we have been able to attract and bring in-house the very best project management to complement the expertise of John and David Sorensen (we are proud to have David Atkinson, our Construction Project Manager for KING EDWARD BAY on board for one of these critical positions).
Budget tracking and analysis, estimating, reporting, and bi-monthly invoicing keep vital information current for our clients. In many cases our clients do not live near our present projects, and photographs and videos assist in seeing the progress on the ground.
Please check back soon for more information about our unique design/build process.
The team at Sorensen Fine Homes
