Lessons From The Id Selection Process

[zhiz 4]

I believe those new Id who are hungry would give 3d when quote price. Experienced ones wouldn't do it cos it takes time and effort to do so and some ppl are just free loaders

[RenoHelp 0]

yes this is important as recently I had engaged a wrong contractor name LWT design & build pte ltd

it is causing many delays in the house A&A works, they did not pay the QP architect and after collection of payments

from us, they didnt even pay the QP the money, now QP architect was saying they will stop all works

but still LWT design & build office at balestier road shaw tower still did not provide solution to pay the QP

this is very bad for us

now we are stuck and cannot proceed onwards

help! anyone please .....

[RenoHelp 0]

do not engage lwt design & build pte ltd as your contractor in anyway at all!

Please be very wary of them!

[razorking 0]

I believe those new Id who are hungry would give 3d when quote price. Experienced ones wouldn't do it cos it takes time and effort to do so and some ppl are just free loaders

err...kinda unfair saying that...giving additional service like 3D drawings when quoting=hungry ID? Well, there are lots of 3D variations out there...like the basic 3D space planning type with no textures etc. This will take less than a day to complete with available software. This is to help home owners have a visual concept of their space planning etc. Not everyone can "See" what the ID see..especially to older folks out there...Just my point of view (=0)

[razorking 0]

can i check.. usually the 3d designs.. when will the id show us?

only after confirming that we're gonna get their services?

or

same time when the quote the prices?

Some do provide elementary 3D visual to help home owners to visualize their space planning. Of course, don't expect those full-blown rendered 3D visual like what you see on magazines etc. Because ultimately, it is you, the home owner to decide what you like, how you like them to be. So i would say for the initial part, they would probably show u some very basic type. If you need, i can mail you some elementary 3D space planning visual for your reference.<=before signing anything. A more detailed 3D drawings with textures will be provided if request by you.(But not everyone provide 3D drawing though...some free, some inclusive or absorbed when contract is signed) Hope this little info helps.

Edited July 26, 2011 by razorking

[danj 0]

Hi Zhiz,

can pm me your contact as well?

thanks!

[pogiman 0]

Guys, We are planning to do some minor renovation on our condo, can you please share your Contractor/ID contact details? Or do their website where we can check their previous works? Thanks again in advance.

Regards!

[YSChen 0]

Guys, We are planning to do some minor renovation on our condo, can you please share your Contractor/ID contact details? Or do their website where we can check their previous works? Thanks again in advance.

Regards!

Hi Pogiman,

Guy you can try my ID , his Hp is 9431 9656 look for Stev and all the best

[zhiz 4]

Be wary of such recommendation. Register today and has two post and straight away recommend his id.

[YSChen 0]

I am not a sale man n I am not a ID it's my ID that ask me to check out Reno talk that y I join n become a member. Thought this is a open forum don't know if some ppl will get reffer fee???

[YSChen 0]

Oh ya by the way if any 1 need biz I believe that they can just advertis in the forum no hush feeling.

[zhiz 4]

I think it's good to share with us your reno pics then and let ppl see the completed works themselves.

If yr Id is great then the more you should. Also start a new thread about them as well.

[watoke 0]

hi Zhiz, can recommend me your ID. Pls PM me.

thank you.

[zhiz 4]

been a while since i posted. Any more ideas and input for id selection process, kindly share with everyone here!

[arowana 2]

the biggest learning point is do not pay too much for what has not been done yet.

As long as you control the money flow, you anytime can get rid of the present ID/contractor and get another to replace him if the present ID/contractor is not performing properly. Problem is most people pay up too much, too fast, reducing incentive for ID or contractor to complete the job on time. I've seen payment plans where it's 30% downpayment, 30% upon selection of tiles. And work hasn't started! OMG!!!

Of course if you have a good relationship with the contractor, can pay up abit faster and in advance. I can assure you, contractors/IDs do not pay their sub-contractors upfront in full. Some do not pay partially also, only paying in full after job is done simply because if they pay too fast or too much, their own sub-con might not work anymore. It really is that simple. Work ethics matter little in this industry. It's mostly about how much money is involved. Sad but this is the general state of our reno industry for small timers like us.

If one finds a good and responsible contractor/ID, great! treat him well and pay him on time. It really is a give and take situation.

Here's my payment plan, it's not the best but it's decent

10% upon contract signing

10% after hacking and upon selection of tile materials

25% after 25% of work is complete

25% after 75% of work is complete or upon starting of carpentry

15% after all carpentry is completed

15% after all cleaning, rectification of defects and handover.

Of course quite a number of contractors/IDs wouldn't give this kind of payment plans out because they always want to have upper hand. But i was able to come to a good understanding with mine that we had fears of this industry and this isn't a small sum we are looking at. And since we were a referral from a previou client, my contractor was willing to go with our payment plans. Now we are starting carpentry i've paid him the next 25% and so far all has been good. Have good feeling from him right from the start so hope that everything proceeds smoothly.

and no.. we didn't have to pay the sky and roof to get a good job done. budget is about 51-52k for complete reno of 5room flat. Will post details in t-blog next time