FAQ · Twelve questions
Straight
answers.
The questions from the last two hundred site visits, grouped by how we price, timeline, permits and working with us.
How we price
Why is there no price on your website?
Because every house is different and we will not promise a number we have not measured. After a site visit you get a written scope, and after design you get a line-item contract. That number is the one you pay.
Do you give fixed prices?
Yes. After design and selections you get a line-item contract. The price changes only if you change the scope, and every change is written and signed before the work happens.
What does the deposit look like?
California law caps a contractor’s down payment at a small fixed amount or ten percent of the contract, whichever is less. We follow it. Progress payments are tied to stages you can see: foundation, framing, rough-ins, finishes.
Timeline
How long is the wait to start?
Typically 4 to 8 weeks after contract for a kitchen or bath, and 8 to 12 for an addition, mostly permit and cabinet lead time. We book your start week when you sign.
How long does each kind of job take on site?
Bath 4 to 6 weeks. Kitchen 6 to 10. Addition 14 to 18. ADU 16 to 24. Whole-home remodel 16 to 28. Custom home 9 to 14 months. Every service page has the week-by-week.
What happens if you run late?
The schedule is in the contract with a start week and a keys week. If we slip for a reason that is ours, we say so in the daily log and tell you the new date the same day. In the last two years, 94 percent of our jobs finished on the promised week.
Permits
Who pulls the permit?
We do, in our name, with the City of San Jose or your town. Plan-check comments are ours to answer, and the permit weeks are on the schedule.
Does my kitchen or bath need a permit?
Yes, for the electrical and plumbing, but it is over the counter: issued in days, not weeks, with no drawings beyond a sketch.
How long does plan check take?
For an addition in San Jose, 9 to 13 weeks with two rounds of comments. ADUs are 6 to 9. We submit complete so it is usually one round. The journal has the week-by-week.
Working with us
Can we live in the house during the work?
Usually. Kitchens and baths yes, with a temporary set-up. Additions are built from the outside and opened into the house last. Whole-home jobs are sequenced so you move once, if at all.
Who will be in my house?
Our own crew of four, the same people every day, with one foreman who is your single contact. Electrical, plumbing and HVAC are trades we have used for over ten years.
What areas do you serve?
San Jose and the valley: Willow Glen, Almaden, Cambrian, Rose Garden, Evergreen, Campbell, Los Gatos, Saratoga, Cupertino and Santa Clara. About twenty minutes from our yard on Lincoln Avenue.