Pricing
How we price a second home
What moves the price
The slope, the distance to utilities, sewer or wastewater, the size of the unit, the kitchen, the wind and termite design and what has to be shipped. Two houses of the same size can differ a great deal.
What the estimate includes, and what it doesn't
Each stage of the work, with the scope, the allowances for finishes we haven't chosen yet, the exclusions and the schedule. It names who is on site. It leaves out appliances, furniture and landscaping unless you ask.
What happens at the lot visit
An hour, two of us. We measure, photograph and ask about the household. Show us the meter, the panel, the yard and the driveway. We bring a notepad, not a price.
The design and permit step
Drawings and permit work are priced as their own step, so you can stop after it with the plans in hand. The permit and utility fees are listed as pass-throughs.
Materials and shipping
Windows, cabinets and trusses are priced on the day they're ordered. The estimate says how long its numbers hold and what happens after that date.
If something changes
A change to the plans, or something we find in an existing wall, gets a written change order with its price and its effect on the schedule before we do it.
When you get the number
In writing, after the lot visit and the drawings. Until the drawings exist, we can give a range and say how it could move.
No prices here: your lot and your plan set them, and the lot visit is how we find out.
Paying
Deposits and payments
The schedule is in your contract and follows Hawaii's rules for contractors.
At signing
A deposit, as Hawaii's rules allow. It covers scheduling the crew and the first orders.
During the work
Payments tied to stages of the work, not to dates on a calendar.
At the end
The last payment comes after the final inspection and the walk-through.
Paying for it
We don't arrange financing. If you plan to borrow, ask your lender early. We'll give them the scope and schedule they ask for.
Permit and utility fees
Paid to the agencies and listed in the estimate. We don't mark them up.
Material price changes
If an item's price changes after your estimate expires, we tell you before we order, and you choose.
Why no price per square foot
We don't print an average
An average for an ohana unit would mix a flat lot on the city sewer with a steep one on a cesspool, and a studio with a two-bedroom. It would be a number nobody has paid.
So we print what moves the price. After the lot visit you get the number, in writing, for your lot.
Ask for a lot visit
We'll tell you what to expect before you pay for drawings.