What Happens in Pre-Construction, and Why It Is Worth It

Most homeowners have heard the word pre-construction and are not sure what it buys them. It is a fair question, especially because it is the first stage of our process that you pay for. The short version: it is the work that turns an idea and an early range into a scope, a schedule and a price that will hold.

Here is what comes before it at no cost, what actually happens during it, how long it takes, and why we will not build a large renovation without it.

What you get before pre-construction, at no cost

A lot of the work happens before you spend anything. We would rather you understand a rough idea of cost before you decide to move forward, so the first three steps are on us.

1. Discovery callTen to fifteen minutes with our pre-construction team: where the home is, your timeline, and whether we are a fit.
2. Room-by-room deep diveYour wants and needs, the full scope, and your tastes in selections, room by room.
3. The Red Light ReviewWhen a project is a fit, a healthy range for where it is likely to land, from our own project history.

The Red Light Review is not a guess. We pull historical data from projects we have built, count the cost of your scope against it, and show you the assumptions that went into the range. It is not for every single project, but when we do one, you leave knowing whether the project makes sense before any money changes hands.

What happens during pre-construction

An early range is built from what we know about projects like yours. A fixed price has to be built from your house. Pre-construction is the work in between, and most of it happens in places you never see.

1. 01

   Exploring the house

   We go into the crawl space and the attic, look at framing, mechanicals and wiring, and walk the house with the specialty trades. A deep dive here is what keeps surprises out of construction.

   What it means for youWhat the house is hiding gets found before the price is set, not after the walls are open.

2. 02

   Assembling your team

   Some projects need an architect and a structural engineer, some need a design team, and plenty need neither. We bring in the right ones for your project and keep everyone working toward the same number.

   What it means for youOne team, put together for your house, instead of a separate search for each.

3. 03

   Meeting the trades

   Plumbing, electrical, HVAC and the rest see the actual house and price the actual scope. That is the difference between a quote and an average from someone else's job.

   What it means for youNumbers that come from your project, from the people who will do the work.

4. 04

   Pricing every package

   Cabinetry and countertop quotes from different vendors, window and exterior door packages, interior doors and trim, heated floors, audio and video. Each one is priced and compared, not plugged in as an allowance.

   What it means for youYou see what each choice costs while you can still change it.

5. 05

   Pricing it more than one way

   Where there are real choices to make, we price the options side by side, so you can weigh one finish or layout against another with real numbers in front of you.

   What it means for youYou choose the direction, rather than accepting a single number.

6. 06

   Finishing the scope and the schedule

   Drawings, engineering, selections and pricing come together into a scope with nothing left to interpret, and your project gets its place in our construction schedule.

   What it means for youA start date and a plan that hold, because the unknowns are settled first.

Why it is worth paying for

Pre-construction is a real stage of work, so it is paid. What you are paying for is everything that would otherwise be decided under pressure in the middle of construction, when changes cost the most.

• It protects your price. Our fixed price is only possible because the scope and selections are finished first. The number comes at the end of pre-construction, not the beginning.
• It protects your schedule. We will not start a project with a ton of unknowns. A finished scope lets us reserve a slot and move once construction starts.
• It protects your decisions. Choosing cabinetry, stone and windows with options priced side by side is a very different experience from choosing them on a deadline because a crew is waiting.

It is also where most of the questions that drive cost get answered, from structural work to an electrical service that has to grow. We wrote about those drivers in what a whole-home renovation costs in Charlotte.

What pre-construction looks like on a real project

Valencia Terrace, SouthPark

A new suite over the garage, and a second floor rebuilt.

This SouthPark project added a bedroom and office suite over the existing garage and renovated the whole second floor around it, with custom cabinetry and tile throughout and a new front porch with radiant heaters.

A project like this is exactly what pre-construction is for: an addition that sits on an existing structure, a long list of selections, and several trades that all have to be priced against the same plan before the first day of work.

See the Valencia Terrace project.

How long pre-construction takes

When the architecture and design are already finished, pre-construction can move quickly, on an expedited timeline about one to two months. When the drawings and engineering are still being worked out, plan on a few months before the project is fully mapped out and placed in our construction schedule. The step-by-step version is on our process page.

Questions to ask any builder about pre-construction

Every builder handles the stage before construction differently. These questions tell you what you are actually getting.

• What do I get before I pay anything?A conversation, or a real look at your scope and an early range.
• Will you open up the attic and crawl space?Hidden conditions are cheapest to find before the price is set.
• Will the trades see my house before they price it?Real quotes, or numbers from someone else's project.
• Will I see options, or one number?Priced choices let you decide where the money goes.
• Is the price at the end fixed?And what would make it change.
• When does my project get a place on the schedule?A reserved slot, or “as soon as we can.”

Questions we hear about pre-construction

If you are planning a large renovation or addition, the discovery call below is ten to fifteen minutes with our pre-construction team, and it is the first step of the part that costs you nothing.