Eastsouth / Process
Six stages. No surprises in any of them.
A renovation is a long relationship with a lot of money in it. Here is exactly how ours runs, from the first phone call to the eleven-month walkthrough.
The Principle
Most overruns are decided before anyone picks up a hammer.
Budgets do not break on site. They break in the weeks when nobody wanted to have a difficult conversation about a drawing.
So we front-load the discomfort. Structure gets tested against the design while it is still cheap to change. Allowances get named and priced instead of politely deferred. Selections get locked to a calendar, and long-lead items are ordered before the schedule depends on them.
By the time we break ground, the interesting problems have already been solved on paper — which is why our sites are quiet, and why our clients hear from us on Fridays rather than at midnight.
Consultation
We walk the house with you, listen to what isn't working, and give you an honest read on feasibility and cost range before anyone signs anything. Usually ninety minutes. No charge.
Design & Feasibility
We work alongside your architect and designer — or introduce you to ours. Structure, systems and budget are tested against the drawings while they can still change cheaply.
Transparent Proposal
A line-item proposal built from real subcontractor bids and named allowances. You see the cost of every assembly, our fee stated plainly, and what remains an estimate.
Preconstruction
Permits filed, long-lead items ordered, selections locked to a calendar, and a week-by-week schedule issued. Most overruns are prevented here, not on site.
Construction
One superintendent on your job. Dust walls, daily clean-down, protected floors, and a written update every Friday with photographs and the next two weeks laid out.
Handover & Warranty
A walkthrough with a punch list we finish before final payment, a bound manual of every product and finish used, and a two-year workmanship warranty we answer ourselves.
What You Can Expect
Weekly, in writing, without having to ask.
Communication is not a soft skill on a construction site. It is the deliverable that every other deliverable depends on.
- A written Friday report with site photographs and a two-week look-ahead
- A live budget showing committed cost, remaining allowance and forecast at completion
- Selection deadlines issued eight weeks before they are needed, not two
- Direct mobile access to your principal — not a call centre or a shared inbox
- Every change order priced and signed before work proceeds
- Monthly on-site walkthrough with the superintendent and, if you wish, your architect
Questions
The things clients ask first.
A single kitchen or primary suite typically runs 10 to 16 weeks on site. A whole-home renovation is usually 7 to 12 months, and an addition adds 2 to 4 months for foundation and frame. Design and permitting sit ahead of all of that — allow 8 to 20 weeks depending on your municipality.
We work honestly rather than cheaply. Most kitchens land between $120,000 and $350,000; primary suites between $95,000 and $280,000; whole-home renovations from $450,000 upward. We give you a range at the first consultation, before you have spent anything, so nobody's time is wasted.
No. If you have one, we join the team early and price the drawings as they develop — which is when our input is worth the most. If you do not, we will introduce you to two or three whose work suits your house, and you choose.
Usually, yes. We build sealed dust partitions with negative air, protect every route the family uses, and sequence the work so you retain a kitchen or a bathroom wherever the scope allows. We will tell you plainly if a phase genuinely requires you to move out.
Every change is priced and signed before the work is done — no exceptions, no verbal approvals. Our average change-order value across 2024 was 1.8% of contract, because most changes are designed out during preconstruction rather than discovered on site.
You receive a bound manual covering every product, finish, warranty and paint code used in the house. Our workmanship warranty runs two years and is serviced by our own crews. We schedule a walkthrough at eleven months so anything seasonal is caught inside the term.
Begin
Start with a walkthrough.
Ninety minutes in your house, with a principal, at no cost and no obligation. You will leave with a realistic cost range and an honest read on feasibility.
Or call 763-215-9340 · xgeng780@gmail.com