It’s the same with remodeling. Of course you want your customers to love the job, and it might make sense that the way to do that is to offer them every choice available. But the Daily 5 Remodel has an interesting post that points out that this is probably not the best way to go about the remodeling process.

As a building professional, you deal constantly with building and remodeling decisions — it’s second nature for you. But for your customers, all this is new. Remodeling is a major investment of their time and money, and for many, the fulfillment of a long-time dream. If you present them with too many choices, it can delay the project and add confusion.

Now, we certainly aren’t advocating ignoring your clients’ wishes. But as building professionals, it is important  to use your best judgement and experience to present your clients with reasonable choices, so they can actually make a choice.

What do you think? Do you like to give all options to your clients, or offer a carefully curated selection?

Inhabitat recently blogged about the Swiss St. Maurice Abbey. It’s ancient — more than 1,500 years old — and during the thousand-plus years of its existence, it sometimes needs a little TLC.

Recently, the abbey had some rocks fall on it. For protection, it was originally built next to a cliff, and that decision has served it well for thousands of years. Unfortunately, where there are cliffs, there are rocks, and when there’s a structure nearby…

Somehow, the St. Maurice Abbey had to be protected. But how to to do that while keeping with its ancient aesthetics and traditions? Enter Savioz Fabrizzi Architectes. They designed a roof that gently floats over the abbey and achieves the goals of protection and not changing the fundamental character of this historic place. It lets in massive amounts of natural light and looks like a cross between water and sky. Inhabitat has some great pictures of the project; check them out here.

Housing Zone has an in-depth article that lists out examples of builders fined for not following these practices. Did you know that the highest fine for violations is $37,500 for every violation, every day. Can you afford to be fined?

Luckily, there’s something you can do to prevent it: get certified and follow the rules. Housing Zone recommends LeadPaintProfessor.com to get educated.

Additionally, Housing Zone also recommends scrupulous record-keeping. The EPA might be reviewing your records, and will most certainly do so if a complaint is made against you, so it is important to be able to produce records from the job that show you have complied with lead-based paint regulations.

According to Housing Zone, “This is just the beginning of EPA’s enforcement of lead-related issues within the residential construction industry.  More reports of violations are being released constantly. Remember, the Toxic Substances Control Act Section 402(a)(3) directs the Environmental Protection Agency to establish and implement a fee program to recover, for the U.S. Treasury, the cost of administering and enforcing the lead-based paint activities requirements. The EPA is highly motivated to find violators and is actively doing so.”

Have you had any experience with the EPA and the Residential Lead-Based Paint Regulations?

But do people want to hear it? Daily 5  Remodel took a survey and found that remodelers most often ask, but the question needs to be delicately phrased. One remodeler who took the survey said: “I do not use the unfortunate expression ‘aging in place’ because I find very little graceful or complimentary associated with it. We ask questions and explore their needs, concerns and issues to help them determine what’s important for them to consider in making choices.”

Another one of Daily 5 Remodel’s survey respondents made the point that, with a perhaps misplaced sense of positivity, people don’t see themselves as needing any accommodations in their home: “When I asked them if THEY wanted univ. design features, the answer was always ‘no,’ but when I switched to asking, ‘Do you have any older relatives or friends who might benefit from accessible features?’ the response rate tripled.”

How do you as a remodeler guide your clients when thinking about universal design and aging in place? How do you highlight design features while gently emphasizing their usefulness in universal design? Do you see universal design and the aging population as a unique opportunity? Let us know in the comments!

According to the Listed blog, they are among the most requested home improvements currently. Listed says:

Saunas have been at the core of Finnish culture for thousands of years, a traditional toasty respite in a cold and snowy climate, according to the nonprofit North American Sauna Society, an organization for those who use, build and sell saunas.

Unlike a steam shower, saunaing can be a communal activity (the Embassy of Finland in DC has a sauna that becomes a centerpiece of cultural events and parties) and unlike a hot tub, there’s not constant mixing of chemicals and worrying about drowning. It’s healthy and feels wonderful in the winter.

It can cost as little as $3,000 to make a closet into a small sauna. The larger or more luxurious the sauna, the more it can cost.

Have your customers expressed interest in a sauna when doing a home remodel? What do you think of this trend?

Image courtesy of Video4Net on Flickr

Fine Homebuilding offers a few provocative answers to this question. One of their readers wondered if offering some sort of incentive, or making a small payment to potential customers, could reap rewards beyond what offering a free estimate would. Does investing in $50 gift cards to a local business lead to jobs?

Fine Homebuilding readers point out that this could lead to people getting consultations just for the swag, without any intention of hiring you to do a remodel. On the other hand, some people might be enticed enough by the offer that they decide to pull the trigger and actually hire someone to start the remodeling process.

Luckily, Fine Homebuilding readers offer two other great suggestions for remodelers: try door hangers advertising your company, but be sure to carefully target the neighborhoods where you are placing them.

Also consider an open house using a recent house you have worked on. See if the homeowners would be willing to open their home to the public for a Sunday afternoon. And if you are desperate to hand a gift card to somebody, this might be your chance: the homeowners would probably appreciate it, and Fine Homebuilding suggests that you can collect leads with a gift card drawing.

What do you think of these ideas? Have you ever tried any creative ways to get new remodeling business?

It’s everything from wheelchair ramps, to height of the windows to door hardware to toilets. With this growing focus, building professionals and homeowners are realizing that universal design doesn’t have to mean institutional-looking spaces: it’s possible to have your cake and eat it too when it comes to homes that will stand the test of time on the scales of both life and design.

Below are two videos from our sister brand, Marvin Windows and Doors. They feature Esther Greenhouse, an environmental gerontologist at Cornell University, covering some hot topics on universal design. What do you think?

Via the New York Times, we found this cool product: it’s a bathroom in a box! From Bath Simple, it’s designed to take  the guesswork out of designing for bathroom building and remodeling.

Mr. Crowley’s answer is a “bathroom in a box,” with every item needed for the job — paint, tile, fixtures, tub — arriving in one crate, ready to install. Customers of Mr. Crowley’s new online company, Bath Simple, answer a few questions about style and budget, enter measurements, then choose all items needed for anything from a simple powder room to an elaborate master bath.

Almost everything you need is in the box, from appliances to paint. What do you think? Is this something you would take advantage of or recommend to your clients?

• Focus on marketing. Getting the word out can differentiate you from your competition. This might mean anything from renting billboard space to targeted mailings to allowing a recent customer to open their home for a private event to showcase your company’s work.
• Take a look at your website. To tie in the the point above, marketing is important, especially e-marketing. More and more people research and get most of their information online. Make sure your website is up to snuff. Don’t have one? It’s time to look into that. We offered some more tips here.
• Think about social media. This is yet another important part of marketing! Does your company have a Facebook page or Twitter account? How about a Flickr page full of project photos?
• Learn a new skill, or brush up on one. Is there some sort of technical or business skill that you wish you knew? Now is the time.
• Go green. It’s here, it’s happening. How can you build green?
• Attempt to have fun. It’s easier said than done of course, especially in this economy, but what a great thing builders and remodelers can do: create and transform houses and buildings, build houses, apartments, buildings etc. From us to you, thanks for all your work!

Sub-Zero/Wolf Shares Kitchen Design Trends
Residential Architect
“Kitchen appliance manufacturers Sub-Zero and Wolf have collaborated with three notable designers to identify current kitchen design trends and predict future directions for the space that has become the heart of the home. New York–based interior designer Jamie Drake, Chicago-based kitchen designer Mick De Giulio, and Atlanta-based kitchen designer Matthew Quinn joined together to analyze kitchen designs entered into Sub-Zero and Wolf’s biennial Kitchen Design Contest, track the design trends illustrated therein, as well as through their own practices, and pinpoint potential evolutionary developments that may yield future trends in kitchen design.”

Socially Connected Remodelers
Daily 5 Remodel
Remodeling professionals talk about their experiences with social media.

Can We Build in a Brighter Shade of Green?
New York Times
“A so-called passive home like the one the Landaus are now building is so purposefully designed and built — from its orientation toward the sun and superthick insulation to its algorithmic design and virtually unbroken air envelope — that it requires minimal heating, even in chilly New England. Contrary to some naysayers’ concerns, the Landaus’ timber-frame home will be neither stuffy nor, at 2,000 square feet, oppressively small.”

Product Pros and Cons: Asphalt Roofing vs. Metal
BUILDER
“The roof is arguably the most important surface in a home, perhaps even more essential than the exterior walls. As the most exposed plane, the roof has a mammoth task. It’s under constant assault from the sun and rain, and, if leaky, could result in thousands of dollars worth of direct repair as well as ancillary damage. Still, a roof is one of those things that many consumers don’t think about until there is a blizzard, hail storm, or rainstorm.”

Right-sizing Your Price: How Architects Are Tweaking Fee Structures in a Touch-and-Go Economy
Residential Architect
“To sustain their businesses during what likely will be a long, slow recovery, some firms also are getting creative with their pricing, without cutting too deeply into their profit margins. Call it phase two in the survival of the fittest: When overhead is cut to the bone, the only thing left to flex is the fee.”