Our Second Reno Journey

[macuser77 1]

Final review on our contractor Mr. K:

On hindsight, we were glad that we went to a contractor this time round as the home is truly a reflection of our lifestyle and personality. Though some IDs that we met were good (like Cadine from Prozfile), the designs, although nice, seemed to lack the personal touch. In a nutshell, it's not by us. Also, we were glad that we had engaged a contractor as it allows us to have a bigger budget on furnishings instead of paying exorbitant prices on mediocre standard fittings by most IDs.

On Mr K., like what others said, he's good, good and really good.

Our reno has been relatively fuss free thanks to his dedication. He was never late for appointments, and his workers are all top notch and yet humble and friendly. During our first reno, we used up almost a whole roll of masking tape to indicate faults/error subsequent to the handover. As for Mr.K, it was 2 tiny pieces, and they're all cosmetic rectifications. By the way, the sub-con bosses will do the rectification work themselves, which impressed us.

It also helps that Mr K has an artistic streak, though we can sense that he has a preference for industrial raw rustic feel. In the beginning, he kept stressing that our home is 冭白, and also that its very far (though we actually stay quite near him). We had problems deciding on Smeg fridge colour and as my wife has utmost trust in his taste, she insisted that we seek his advice.As usual, he was right (though we do not have pics to show yet as ours is a left hand hinge which needs customisation).

As for responsibility, we can say that he's number 1. It's hard to find such a responsible and committed contractor (our previous ID was only good at chasing us for payment though job was badly done, and likes to pull a fast one by throwing technical jargons). For Mr. K, he doesn't chase payment (which makes us think that he's rich hahah) and he works based on mutual trust. On the contrary, it is us who initiates payment.

After the handover, we were expecting lots of cleaning to be done and were even prepared to pay for "Ah Ma on wheels". Luckily for us his workers did a very good job in cleaning, and the flat was almost spotless.

My wife and I are actually very demanding and fussy customers (previous ID told us he regretted taking up our job), and he has actually surpassed our expectations. Working with him was a breeze and we treat him like a friend rather than another normal business dealing.

Lastly, our reno process may seem very long. But the delay was due to our part as we didn't want to rush through the whole process.

[June 13]

Congrats!! Good to know you and your wife enjoyed your Reno process! Mine was also fuss free and I had to try hard to find some rectifications, but they were minor touch up. I actually told my ID I will never engage someone else!

I'm very amused by the telly in dining area. If you replace the table with a sofa, the dining area will instantly turn into living room!

[ProjectH 0]

So warm n cosy! V lovely place~

Few more weeks to lunar 8th! Counting down for u!

[sarah833 3]

congrats! I enjoyed reading your blog and the conversations with Mr K, and cant tell that you and your wife are very demanding and fussy customers. I thought you and your wife are happy-go-lucky kind haha. Have a question regarding the placement of the lovely yellow lamp in the living room, is it dimmable? I wont be able to tahan the brightness if I am sitting there

I had a few misses during the reno, had to bang table once till the dust on the bar counter rised but compared to what some forummers had to deal with mine is ikan billis, sometimes being demanding and forceful helps Vanessa and her trusted kitchen helper bf were at my place few days ago and she couldnt believe when I told her I banged table and made the countertop guy took back the piece to the factory to make the corrections and came back 5-6 hours later, and apologised for making me so upset.

[Dunno 0]

Congrats!! Good to know you and your wife enjoyed your Reno process! Mine was also fuss free and I had to try hard to find some rectifications, but they were minor touch up. I actually told my ID I will never engage someone else!

I'm very amused by the telly in dining area. If you replace the table with a sofa, the dining area will instantly turn into living room!

Hi June,

It's the Mrs here

We believe that the current dining area is actually a living room, and our current living area is meant for dining. It is a design flaw by hdb as the walking distance from kitchen to the designated dining area will be further.

Before this recent reno, our living area was actually at the current dining area. We ended up having our meals in the living room as it was nearer to the kitchen, and of course we needed the telly haha.

Edited August 18, 2013 by Dunno

[Dunno 0]

congrats! I enjoyed reading your blog and the conversations with Mr K, and cant tell that you and your wife are very demanding and fussy customers. I thought you and your wife are happy-go-lucky kind haha. Have a question regarding the placement of the lovely yellow lamp in the living room, is it dimmable? I wont be able to tahan the brightness if I am sitting there

I had a few misses during the reno, had to bang table once till the dust on the bar counter rised but compared to what some forummers had to deal with mine is ikan billis, sometimes being demanding and forceful helps Vanessa and her trusted kitchen helper bf were at my place few days ago and she couldnt believe when I told her I banged table and made the countertop guy took back the piece to the factory to make the corrections and came back 5-6 hours later, and apologised for making me so upset.

Hi Sarah .

We actually thought of the lamp issue, and due to space constraint this is the best solution we can think of. Hanging it in the middle of the room looked disastrous !

[sarah833 3]

hi Mrs Dunno

nvm, you can treat it like a hair spa corner while you are watching reruns of Grand Designs on starhub haha

Edited August 18, 2013 by sarah833

[Stanley Ng 0]

Hello, can email me your contractor Mr K detail to trdseal@hotmail.com thank you

[ucypmas 0]

Hello, can email me your contractor Mr K detail to trdseal@hotmail.com thank you

Don't think that people here are tao for not replying you but it is in his signature...

[ucypmas 0]

Hi

That's a very fair review of him. I think he is trying to complete jobs as they come so that he can shuffle his teams to new projects, and he mentioned to me sometimes the carpentry factory can get a bit busy with various jobs (including non-renovation jobs - those from the bigger housing projects) so he tries to get things moving so as not to be hit by traffic jams when you want him to move.

You must be the homeowner he said is taking 4 months to complete. Haa haa...

[macuser77 1]

Hi

That's a very fair review of him. I think he is trying to complete jobs as they come so that he can shuffle his teams to new projects, and he mentioned to me sometimes the carpentry factory can get a bit busy with various jobs (including non-renovation jobs - those from the bigger housing projects) so he tries to get things moving so as not to be hit by traffic jams when you want him to move.

You must be the homeowner he said is taking 4 months to complete. Haa haa...

Hahaha I guess so. We decided to take it slow this time round as we rushed through during our first reno, resulting in shoddy works. Furthermore we added quite a number of last minute carpentry.

So I presume you have engaged him too ?

Edited August 19, 2013 by macuser77

[ucypmas 0]

So I presume you have engaged him too ?

Yes. Mine was a rather major piece of work - 5-rm resale full reno.

We started in early July - and is now about 2-3 weeks from finishing. The dirty stuff is over now. The house got cleaned and the marble floor polished yesterday - today or tomorrow the carpentry should start installation. End of next week will probably finish and then painting / doors / touchup / here and there work. Moving in mid-Sep.

One thing about K's houses is that he does not waste any time - I actually go to my house nearly everyday (98% of the time) sans Sundays and there are things done every time you go up. I would not say that my renovation is completely fuss-free - but more often than not it is due to us (owners) not being that clear and some rework here and there is needed.

I personally think his pricing is rather fair. However i think most people who come here are somewhat unrealistic in their expectations and wants a cheap and super contractor who will do whatever they want, very quicly at the lowest price. K belong to the fast and good, but not that cheap category.

Anyway enjoy your house - it looks good!

[macuser77 1]

Hi ucypmas,

Wow yours is real fast considering ours is also a major overhaul 5 rm resale. It shows how slow we are (not he slow, but fault lies with us).

By the way we totally agree with you on cheap good fast doesn't coexist as we have learnt it the hard way.

I missed a point. He's not generous with discount. This is good as it goes to show that his pricing is "real". We have encountered some giving ridiculous discounts, which shows that their quotations are heavily inflated. One of my favourite part was no limits on power points. We now have lots of power points and it really helps in vacuming and also saves us the trouble of buying extension plugs.

Do invite us to your place when it's done. You're more than welcome to drop by ours too. Haha. Alternatively we'll ask K on pics of your home as we figured that you won't be interested in posting pics ;-)

Edited August 20, 2013 by macuser77

[ucypmas 0]

We now have lots of power points and it really helps in vacuming and also saves us the trouble of buying extension plugs.

This was one of the reasons why I picked him over other IDs / contractors in my selection list. My electrical list is something like

- full rewiring

- 61 downlights

- multiple cove lights in all bedrooms, living and dining

- 6 light points - toilets, kitchen, yard

- 25 units of 2x sockets

- 5 LAN points

- 5 ceiling fans

- air con

This is something like 8k+ in most other per unit price list. His is .... well lower. The house is now as well-lit as a newly built supermarket at night, as the missus wishes. In fact, it is blinding.

He's not generous with discount. This is good as it goes to show that his pricing is "real"

He actually came in lower than most designers i approached. For the benefit of those who are reading and keep asking for his quote, this is how he stands... quotes are gathered based on a standard request list.

Indexation 100% = K's quote

Contractor A - 90%

ID A - 98%

Mr K - 100%

ID B - 155%

ID C - 185%

Everyone else did not quote electricals - most gave a per unit price list. The benchmark excludes electrical for K as well, who gave lump sum. I also benchmarked my quotes for their pfrs for measurable items

Example standard pfr for master room wardrobe

Indexation 100% = K's quote

Contractor A - 100%

Mr K - 100%

ID A - 105%

ID B - 175%

ID C - 200%

I'm sure some will argue there are differences in "quality", but I don't think I need to pay for ID to spend time shopping with me.

Please do not PM me for his quote. Use the contact here and get it from him yourself.

As for paperwork, he is no good with English. He tells me stories of people who call him and grill him about what is in his quote. Like what does his two liners include - no of drawers, type of laminates etc etc etc. So please cut him some slack.

[Dunno 0]

This was one of the reasons why I picked him over other IDs / contractors in my selection list. My electrical list is something like

- full rewiring

- 61 downlights

- multiple cove lights in all bedrooms, living and dining

- 6 light points - toilets, kitchen, yard

- 25 units of 2x sockets

- 5 LAN points

- 5 ceiling fans

- air con

This is something like 8k+ in most other per unit price list. His is .... well lower. The house is now as well-lit as a newly built supermarket at night, as the missus wishes. In fact, it is blinding.

He actually came in lower than most designers i approached. For the benefit of those who are reading and keep asking for his quote, this is how he stands... quotes are gathered based on a standard request list.

Indexation 100% = K's quote

Contractor A - 90%

ID A - 98%

Mr K - 100%

ID B - 155%

ID C - 185%

Everyone else did not quote electricals - most gave a per unit price list. The benchmark excludes electrical for K as well, who gave lump sum. I also benchmarked my quotes for their pfrs for measurable items

Example standard pfr for master room wardrobe

Indexation 100% = K's quote

Contractor A - 100%

Mr K - 100%

ID A - 105%

ID B - 175%

ID C - 200%

I'm sure some will argue there are differences in "quality", but I don't think I need to pay for ID to spend time shopping with me.

Please do not PM me for his quote. Use the contact here and get it from him yourself.

As for paperwork, he is no good with English. He tells me stories of people who call him and grill him about what is in his quote. Like what does his two liners include - no of drawers, type of laminates etc etc etc. So please cut him some slack.

Hi ucypmas

Mrs Mac here..

I disagree re his quote. In fact I think it is pretty good considering that he is not that good with English. I personally feel that "IDs" enjoy giving detailed (ie more than 2 pages) to justify the crazy prices that they charge. We approached quite a couple of IDs and it seems that the more detailed a quote, the more ex it is. I actually compared mr k's quote to those of IDs and everything that we required was in and all the important things had been captured. I was super impressed! To me, the quote shows that Mr K is a big picture kind of person who can't be bothered with specifics like no of drawers etc (which is good). Bet if it were IDs, they would charge based on the number of drawers. The more drawers you have, the more ex it will be.

Though the important points have been captured, i guess the brief narration may still worry certain people. However, like what my hubby said, he works based on mutual trust. We trust him and he trusts us, as simple as that.

Edited August 21, 2013 by Dunno