Contract Signature
It is done! Today I got the contract and signed. I’ll also get the first payment in the mail to the contractor.
We wound up going for what I thought was a reasonably modern experience. The architect shepherding my project prepared the standard A105 (a standard contract for small projects), which was first executed by the contractor, and then given to me for signature.
From here, I need to mail the contractor a check for the first payment. At that point, they’ll get going on the permitting process, which formally gates the construction beginning in earnest. That’s supposed to take about 30 days, and then adding the three months of construction, the project should be substantially complete around the middle of July.
As I mentioned in the last post, this included a not-so-fun extra $1,000 or so for an additional chunk of wall to facilitate the necessary electrical upgrade.
The final contract’s cost breakdown was:
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Permitting | $810 |
| General conditions | $7,428.24 |
| Preparation and demolition | $3,645 |
| Carpentry (including flooring material) | $18,250 |
| Electrical | $14,842.25 |
| Plumbing | $7,672 |
| Patching and painting | $4,290 |
| Countertops | $11,853.70 |
Among those costs, a few were broken out to account for potential variance. This is meant to make it fairer should one of the more speculative items cost more or less than anticipated. For instance, I really hope running a new feeder wire does not do $1,000 in damage to the common areas.
- Flooring: $4,800
- Fire sprinkler changes: $900
- Painting and patching common areas: $1,000
- Countertop material: $5,692
This is then broken out into a payment schedule based on milestones, which someone from my architect’s office will assess and gate payment for as part of their construction administration.
- Payment 1: Contract signature: $9,015.72
- Payment 2: Work begins: $17,462.89
- Payment 3: First fix electrical and plumbing plus framing: $16,146.39
- Payment 4: After millwork installation: $8,843.90
- Payment 5: After flooring is installed plus second fix plumbing and electrical: $10,322.80
- Payment 6: After final inspections and completion: $7,000.00
Now my attention turns to finding somewhere to store all of my large furniture when the project is moving. The clock is ticking!