Renovations are an exciting process. You will want to be involved in what is going on, walk through the site, see the progress happening and that is exactly what you should do. Site walkthroughs and management meetings between Project Managers and homeowners is absolutely a huge part of the communication process and often required. You will want to make sure that these meetings are efficient and effective.

Site Walk-throughs and Management Meetings:

• Management Meetings: It is common that a set number of in-person management meetings between a Project Manager and a homeowner are budgeted for, for every week that the project is originally scheduled for. Each project is different and unique to it’s own situations. The more complex the project, the more management that may be involved. If more on site meetings are required, the contractor may charge an additional rate for this time. It is important to make sure that meetings are pre-arranged in advance to ensure that your Project Manager can make the meeting work within their schedule. Before signing an agreement with a contractor, be sure to discuss the level of attention that your project will get and what sort of expectations they have for regularly scheduled meetings.
• After Hours Meetings: It is important to understand that the contractor’s standard on site working hours are from usually Monday – Friday. In compliance with BC Labour laws, employees must be paid 1.5 time their wage if they exceed full time hours. Overtime hours are not always budgeted for in the construction contract. If meetings must be scheduled for after working hours, an additional hourly rate may be charged to cover the overtime costs. Be sure to discuss with your contractor how they plan on handling this scenario.
• Un-responded communication: Throughout the project, your contractor should be communicating with you to the best of their ability. Communication typically takes place via email, phone calls, text message or through a CRM system that your contractor is using within the company. If your contractor doesn’t get back to you right away, it is unlikely that they are just avoiding you. They are probably busy as everyone usually is. They should be getting back to you ASAP, but it is good to have a conversation about their policy on returning phone calls and emails. In turn, if your contractor cannot reach you, it is equally important that you respond back to them as there may be crucial information that they need or decisions that need to be made with your authorization. Over communicating is always better than under communicating.

We hope that this information has been helpful! If you’ve found this information helpful, make sure to keep an eye out for next weeks’ information blast about deficiencies and finishing up your project!