Planning & Mid-course Changes
  In this series I'll be chatting about scenarios that can sour relations between consumers and contractors, enhance good relations or cause a project to go bad.

One of the occupational pitfalls of remodeling has to do with the planning. Usually it is the customer who is either ill informed or for lack of a better term, caught in his/her own biases pertaining to architectural design and color schemes.

The contractor's job essentially is to provide a few samples of the finish materials, explain 'what will look good', then allow the customer to choose from what has been laid before him or spent his days off shopping for colors, styles, etc.. Coordinating the design artifacts of the project is up to the customer, whether the contractor likes them or not. Nevertheless, it is his purpose to guide in accordance with what textures, colors, etc..work well together with a good sense of spacial practicalities.

The initial estimate should also include at least a hand drawn schematic with the appropriate measurements and symbols. No matter how well the planning is, the contractor also has to expect what is termed 'midcourse changes'. These are light to medium changes that will inevitably come up at some point between commencement and the last stroke of the paint brush.In the event of any changein the decription of the work, the contractor should provide a change order in which the name of the customer with a description of added or altered work will be performed, along with additional labor and material charges, if appropriate.