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Under a new house warranty, the builder is obliged to repair items when contacted (usually in writing) by the homeowner.

Ask about the new house warranty before buying–and be sure to get a signed warranty document.

In addition, be sure you receive a package with product warranties at settlement– the roof, appliances, and so forth– that are offered by the various manufacturers of your home’s materials.

If something goes wrong with these parts of your home, you must contact the manufacturer–not the builder.

Some builders offer an extended new-house warranty, called an “insured warranty.” This generally covers any systems– plumbing and electrical, for example– for a 2-year period.

It may also warranty the structure for up to 10 years. Insured warranties are actually issued by an insurance company; your home is covered even if the builder goes out of business.

Competitive bids are just that! If I shave labor or materials to get your job, is that the house you really want? There are hundreds of ways to lower the price of building, which often lower the quality and workmanship also. The best drawings and specifications don’t protect you from poor trade practices.

–The Well Built House, Page 23

The quote from The Well Built House sums it up well. There are plenty of ways to cut corners to create a lower price. Competitive bidding just rewards the lowest price, it offers absolutely no advantage to good workmanship and actually encourages cost overruns and completion delays.

In one survey of satisfied owners of completed projects, the most important personal attributes of a good contractor were:

1. Honesty and Integrity
2. On-time Performance
3. Good Organization
4. Good Scheduling
5. Good Subcontractors
6. Good Communication Skills
7. The Ability to Empathize
8. Long-term Relationship Oriented

Cheap price isn’t even listed! In the same survey of satisfied homeowners, here are the attributes listed as being present in good construction companies in order of importance:

1. Quality Construction
2. Clear Builder Specifications
3. Good Company Organization
4. Ability to provide price checks
5. Ability to provide value engineering
6. Company Responsiveness
7. On-time Performance
8. Fair Price

Price was only the eighth most important attribute customers considered important in a contracting firm, and even then, the word used was “fair” price, not “lowest” price.

Do you really want a contractor always trying to figure out the cheapest way of doing everything for the place where your family will be sleeping the week you are out of town? We prefer to do things the best way. “Best” means, in our opinion, the most effective combination of price to performance, getting the most “bang for your buck.”

A competitive bid does not let you see how a contractor works. Referrals do. A competitive bid does not demonstrate how Paramount Construction, as an experienced contracting company, can guide you through the process from beginning to end. We don’t feel that an estimate, driven by price, will give you what you really need.

We have one request: Select your contractor based on reputation not price!

Winter weather can bring ice storms that may cause power outages as trees and branches fall on power lines.  Fortunately, there are some steps you can take to be prepared for such events:

1. Assemble a “storm kit.”  Include a battery-operated radio or television, flashlight, a first-aid kit, battery-powered or windup clock, extra batteries, an insulated cooler, and a list of important and emergency phone numbers.
2. Cover windows with drapes or blankets to minimize heat loss at night.  During the day, open blinds to let the sun warm the space.
3. Dress in loose layers.
4. Using candles for light may sound like a good idea, but be cautious that you never leave them unattended.
5. Keep at least a 3-day supply of nonperishable foods and bottled water, and have a hand-operated can opener available.
6. Check for medical supplies, prescription drugs, and any special health items, such as contact lens supplies or infant supplies.
7. Use portable generators in a well-ventilated area.  Never run it inside your garage since the carbon monoxide fumes can be deadly.

If you do lose power, remember to call your power company.  Homeowners on medical support equipment should identify a location with emergency power capabilities and plan to go there in the event of a pro-longed outage.

Regardless of a home’s size or style, all construction follows a consistent pattern and pace.  Excavation and foundation work will be followed by the framing phase, which will be followed by rough mechanical, electrical, and plumbing work.  As soon as those stages are complete, insulation will be installed.  These steps follow each other quickly and are easy to see.  The progress is exciting!

But when our focus shifts to the interior finishes of your new home, the pace seems to slow down and daily progress is more difficult to follow.  To the homeowner, it might seem that we are losing focus or paying less attention to the project.  In fact, the opposite is true.  The apparent pace of work has slowed because finishing work is much more detailed than the previous stages.  We much be more focused and pay more attention to the finishing details.

For example, cutting, building, and fastening the pieces of a complex crown molding profile along the ceiling-wall joint of an upscale kitchen requires several hours of painstaking work by a skilled finish carpenter.  Likewise, finishing newly built walls to a smooth, uniform surface is a process that takes multiple cycles of application, drying, sanding, and cleaning to accomplish properly.

There also are more products to install.  The number of cabinets, faucets, light fixtures, door handles, and outlet and switch covers in a modern new house continues to increase as homes become larger and more luxurious.  To get some sense of that task, count the number of outlets and switch covers in your kitchen and family room alone (or in the whole house, if you’re more ambitious), each of which must be installed by hand before you can move in.

Finally, finish work signals the last stage of the building process. Both we and our homeowners are anxious to finish the job after several weeks of anticipation and hard work, not counting the time spent planning before construction began.  It is hard for homeowners to remain patient when the work appears to be moving slowly.

By the very nature of its exacting, hand-applied work, the finishing phase of homebuilding is necessarily slow.  That does not mean that the work is being neglected!  During this final part of your home construction, remember that we remain focused on the highest quality installation and application of your home’s interior finishes.