Storm Damage Repair

Hi, and Welcome to Klein Developments Blog on Storm Damage Repair. We are often asked questions on some of the following issues.

1: My roof was damaged in a storm or tornado and I do not have insurance, what should I do? Unfortunately, this problem does not allow much of a remedy as the storm damage repair expense will be "out of pocket".
However, depending on the extremity of the storm or tornado watch closely for your area to be considered a "state of emergency" or disastrous storm area. You may then be eligible to apply for local government grants or loans to repair your storm damaged home.

2: I have insurance on my home, but now how do I proceed with collecting the correct amount of money to fix my storm damaged home? This can be a grueling process, however these following tips may help.

A: Report the damage to your insurance company immediately, schedule for your insurance company to meet with you to access the storm damage, and be prepared to immediately perform temporary repairs that may keep elements from your home such as wind, rain, etc.

B: Call your local Better Business Bureau and ask for 2-3 Accredited companies that you may call and get estimates. You will need these estimates to prove the real cost of your storm damage repairs to your insurance company, otherwise they will most likely give you a sub-standard generic cost for the repairs. Never sign a document stating that you agree with the insurance company's cost until you have acquired the Accredited Contractor's Estimates. Even though the insurance company may not agree, be prepared to pay your chosen Accredited Contractor a deposit or Down Payment (normally 1/3 to 1/2 down is Ok as they will procure that money to buy the repair material needed but also this should be clearly stated in a Signed Contract). Should you choose a BBB unaccredited Contractor, be aware of paying very much of a deposit.

C: The insurance company may require inspections as work is being performed before finalizing payments for storm damage repairs.

Klein Developments hopes that this information is helpful and wishes a speedy recovery for your home and its storm damage repairs.

How much will a home addition cost?

 
When customers call me the first question I get asked is "How much will my new addition cost?".

This is a difficult question to answer as it has many factors involved and cannot possibly be estimated without some important factors.
Some of these will include:

1. Size of home addition and will it be constructed on the first floor of the home, will it have a basement, or will it be added as an upstairs (second story) addition? The first floor addition with just a foundation will generally be the most cost effective. The first floor addition with a basement will most likely be the most costly addition. The second floor addition may be near as costly as the first floor with basement depending on its size. I.E. Is it going to be the whole house or just a dormer (small room) addition that will require a part or whole new roofing system?. When you have an idea about these items then contact Klein Developments for your free consultation and we will be able to help you configure the rest. 
2. The new addition: what purposes will it serve? Will it contain a new bathroom or kitchen ? These will be important as you may need new plumbing service, electrical service, and heating and cooling services. These items may inflate the cost of you home addition according to the size of the home addition  and municipal building code requirements. 
3. Once you have the above items planned then your next part of cost will be your interior finishes. Do you like marble or granite flooring and counter tops? Are you more satisfied with a carpet flooring and normal cultured stone or Formica counter tops? Would you like your wall coverings to be elaborate wall paper or just finished drywall? Will you have windows or skylights installed and how many, what type of quality are you wishing for? All of these items may inflate your cost depending on your choices and should be discussed with your General Contractor and their interior design expert. 
4. The final thing you may consider of an inflation of cost of your new home addition will be the following: Are you going to have any concrete or stone sidewalks added to the exterior? Will you possible want a deck, porch or patio added?  Or maybe you will wish for a master bedroom with a garage connected to it. 

Please inquire with a BBB Accredited General Contractor such as Klein Developments for all of these items listed above concerning your "New Home Addition". Thank You for reading our blog and feel free to call with any questions. Please come back to our site soon for a new construction blog.

How much will my basement remodel cost?

Hi, welcome to Klein Developments blog. We are happy to help you with your question of "How much will my basement remodel cost?".  Any legitimate construction contractor will tell you that their are many different variables that need to be considered. We advise all of our customers to consider the following items when considering their basement re-model.

1) Plan a budget of what you can afford to spend, look at different pictures of basements, and look at the materials that you may wish to use on walls, floors, bathrooms etc.

2) Sketch out a floor plan of how you would like your basement to look when finished. Don't worry about measurements we just need an idea of your design concept. The floor plan will only show your basement space and how you would like the rooms to layout. You may visualize this by thinking of looking at your finished basement as a bird flying over it may see it I.E. birds eye view. Be sure to add bathrooms and/or kitchens as they are the most expensive part of the basement remodel.

3) Make sure that your basement walls and floors do not leak water, if so you may inquire with us on how to fix this problem before putting your money into the basement remodel.

4) Your contractor may then meet with you and take measurements to be able to figure their accurate material calculations.

5) Klein Developments recommends a flooring system that let the concrete floor breath and also deliver any water underneath the flooring system to drain properly to existing floor drains. This is very important to keep your new basement remodel smelling clean and minimizing the risks of mold.

6) Be ready to match your budget with the contracted cost of your basement remodel. You may have room on the cost to add more items or you may need to reduce some of your item costs to meet your budget.

7) As always, we recommend that you obtain at least two estimates from different qualified contractors. Please refer to bbb.org to find those qualified contractors.

8) You will need to have the basement area clean for the remodel process I.E. furniture removed, any living facilities vacated etc.

9) Any job of this kind may require permits, especially if you wish for new plumbing, electrical, or HVAC systems. Your contractor will obtain these for you but they are an additional cost of building.

These are enough steps to get you started on your basement remodel and being secure with the cost. However, there are many other details that you will need to discuss with your contractor. Feel free to contact Klein Developments at 314-322-7896 any time for advice. Thank you for viewing our Blog and visit us again soon for new pictures and construction advice.

How do I start building my new home?

So you think that you would like to build a new home? Let me try to briefly help you understand the critical processes of building your new home.

First of all, are you going to consider this new home your "home for life" or an "investment property. Typically if it is going to be your home for life then you might consider that you may spend more money as you will wish to acquire settings that will fit your tastes, I.E. custom tile or marble, custom wood working, large rooming, and custom blueprint designs etc. On a investment property you will probably only wish to have normal grade materials, minimum design features, and feasible  marketing features enough to quick sell or rent.

Next, we always get a question over the phone or a website inquiry of "How much would this cost"? Be aware that if a contractor can tell you that cost over the phone or email reply they may not be very credited as a home builder. The following will show the ways to get your accurate cost for your new home.

To start, you have to envision of how you want your new home to look like. A good way to start on this process is sketching out a floor plan on a piece of paper. This does not need to be accurate as it will help you and your preferred contractor/architect understand what you would like to see as your new home. Another way is to view floor plans via the internet and get ideas from those. You may even wish to purchase them which should include a full set of code compliant building plans. Each of these ways will help you to get an idea of the square footage of your new home which will allow your contractor to estimate materials properly.

Have you already purchased the property for your new home? This cost should be added in above the cost of the new home itself. Will you need a well, septic system, possible ground excavation? We recommend that you would call a contractor to help you decide these items. Also you should contact the city,county, and/or the neighborhood associations to help you understand the rules and codes you may need to follow in the process of building your new home.

Choose a good contractor that can show you homes that they have already built. See if they an accredited company with the Better Business Bureau and if they have any complaints or bad ratings. Make sure that the hold and carry proper insurance liability. Klein Developments takes pride in the fact that we work on quality and Not Quantity. A lot of times we end up re-doing  poorly built homes built by companies that choose quantity over quality. So please choose your contractor carefully.

Thank You for reading our Blog and come back soon for more valuable information on any of your construction needs. Also feel free to call us anytime at 314-322-7896 for advice.

What is Green Construction?

As a general contractor, I'm often asked what the heck is 'Green Construction?'.  Simply put green construction is the process of construction that promotes energy efficiency and environmentally friendly building materials.  This means minimizing the environmental impact of construction in all phases of the 'green construction project'.  To do so requires general contractors to use environmentally friendly products such as recycled materials which help reduce waste.  You may be wearing right now a good example of what could one day help someones green construction project--unless you have some 'fancy solar paneled hat' I'm guessing you didn't realize the jeans your wearing can be make a great insulator for your home.  The folks at Blue Jeans go Green, a company that specializes in turning everyday products into materials for green construction, estimate over 600 tons of denim have been diverted from landfills to help insulate thousands of homes.  Many of these homes, including those being built by Habitat for Humanity ( a great cause by the way), convert denim into UltraTouch (TM) Denim insulation that is distributed to communities in need across the country to be used as home insulation.
 There are many other factors involved in Green Energy Building. Some of these will be our own renewable energies as the following:
1: S.I.P. (Structurally Integrated Panel) Construction {These are prefabricated wall sections already insulated with a styro-foam based filler}
2:  Solar energy (panel systems collecting solar light and transforming into electric to power your home)
3: Geothermal energy ( a series of piping buried underground that will collect the earths natural 60 degrees temperature and fan forced into your home creating a lower heating and cooling cost)
4: Hydro-electric power ( a system that will utilize a near by running water source to generate electricity via turbine technology)
5: Wind Energy ( simple wind mills that will use natural air currents to generate power and preserve into a battery type system that will then be converted to the normal voltage your home needs to operate)
6: Off the Grid  construction using Adobe built walls for construction (a mixture of  clay mud, grass, and roots to build walls).


These are all new Green Energy Construction methods that may help you in determining your renewable energy sources. Please follow our blog as we will describe all of these in great detail to help you better understand Green Energy Building.


Klein Developments in St. Louis, Missouri can help you with your next green building project.  Give us a call at 314-322-7896 and let us help you make your next construction project green.

photo credit: Wayne National Forest via photopin cc

Is Your Contractor Accredited with the BBB and why is this important?

Hi there, and welcome back to Klein Developments Blog. Today we will focus on the Better Business Bureau (also known as the BBB).  We wish to help you understand why they are so influential on your next construction project.

First let's start off with the BBB's personal quoted Mission which may be found on their website www.bbb.org .

"BBB is an authority on trust in the marketplace.  BBB sets and upholds high standards for ethical marketplace behavior.  BBB accreditation is a coveted honor earned by elite businesses and charities.  BBB is a valuable resource to turn to for objective, unbiased information on businesses and charities.  Our free BBB Business Reviews and BBB Wise Giving Reports help you make the right purchasing or donation decision.  BBB is also a significant distributor of consumer and business education information and tips and alerts about marketplace scams.  And BBB offers dispute resolution programs for consumers and businesses when there is difference in viewpoints."

"The first BBB was founded in 1912. Today, 113 BBBs serve communities across the U.S. and Canada, evaluating and monitoring more than 3 million local and national businesses and charities.

The Council of Better Business Bureaus(CBBB) is the network hub for BBBs in the US and Canada. Like BBBs, CBBB is dedicated to fostering honest and responsive relationships between businesses and consumers -- instilling consumer confidence and advancing a trustworthy marketplace for all."

Now lets define how consumers, contractors, and the BBB all work together. First and foremost the BBB is you the "Consumer" and we the Contractor"s'  referring relationship.  For you the consumer the BBB will provide you with ratings A-F about the company that you are inquiring about.   Ratings A-F will be based on many factors including past history with the BBB--for example if a consumer is unsatisfied with the work that the contractor performed. As in school A+ will mean that the contractor has no complaints and an F rating is a Fail.

Next, we need to focus on what makes a Company/Contractor have a rating. A+ will mean that their are no complaints and an F rating will mean that this company has had many complaints and has not resolved them. Often this happens because there is no Construction Contract or a very ill-defined contract. It may be caused by verbal agreements which you the consumer should never participate in.
A Professional Contractor will always provide you with a detailed Professional Contract to be signed in agreement by both parties. This will allow you the Consumer and the Contractor to be on the same page.

Now that you understand ratings, lets work on what "Accreditation" means. When a symbol like this

 

is shown on a website or construction document it will constitute that the Contractor is Accredited by the BBB. The BBB does not investigate each contract, but only the contractor. This means that the Contractor must go through a series of back-ground checks and investigations that may include the following: No criminal records for the Contractor and it's employees, any complaints registered with the BBB. making sure the contractor pays all due taxes and maintains employment and unemployment status, Qualifications such as Licenses and Insurances and much more. All of these allow our company to be Accredited with the BBB and to say the least we pay the BBB for this Accreditation.

In closing we would encourage all consumers needing construction projects to visit the BBB at www.bbb.org and view their simplified system of  Accredited Businesses that they may call and inquire about their projects. Hopefully you will find that companies website to further discover the contractors potentials relating to your project.

We are happy to know that you have viewed our Blog today and we hope it has been informational and helpful. If you should have any more questions or are interested in hiring a contractor for your next construction project, please visit us at our website.  Please join our next blog as we will focus on a mini-series of blogs helping you to understand your home building projects.

Permits, why do we need them?

Welcome to our informational blog on permits--when and why you may or may not need them.

To start off we have the answer to your #1 question "What is a permit for?". Permits are designed and legislated by the ordinance of the city, state , or municipality that you reside in. They serve several functions, the first being that they protect you the consumer on your construction projects. You may ask "In what Way?". The answer to that question is that they will make sure that your chosen Contractor will perform your construction project to a "correct Set Construction Standard". This means that your Contractor may not be able to come in and just throw your project together. The Contractor will have to work by a set of construction rules that we will refer to as "Code Compliant".Hereby Code sets the proper Building and Construction standards and practices . If you have chosen your contractor according to our previous blog on "Choosing Your Contractor" then you can be safe assured that they will already be knowledgeable in Code Compliancy.

In addition your Chosen Contractor will be responsible for obtaining these necessary permits. They will schedule, at necessary points of your project, to have your city inspector come to your project and make sure that it has been performed to these set standards. Your Architect or Contractor will provide the plans necessary to obtain the permits, have them approved by your city or municipality, and execute the entire inspection process to the final, finished construction project..

Lastly, Permits serve a couple of other reasons. One being that they will let your city or municipality know how much money that you have spent on your rehab or construction project. Unfortunately they will increase your personal property taxes by increasing the assessment value of your home. Yes, we have to pay these taxes...but GOOD NEWS --you have increased the equity value of your home. This may help you in paying your mortgage early, take out or refinance for future construction projects, or to simply up-crease the value of your home for re-sale.

Our #2 question asked is "When do you need permits?". The rules on obtaining permits will always vary from city to city or municipality however we can sum it up for you in describing some of the most code compliant demands for permits as follows: Any construction project that processes a load bearing circumstance I.E. removing a wall that may be holding your roof up, concrete foundation work that would support load bearing walls on an addition, or any garage or out-building projects that will be considered Load-bearing.
You will need permits for any process that will require a Licensed Electrician, Plumber, or HVAC Mechanic.
Other common instances when a permit is needed will be fences, retaining walls that are beyond minimum requirements allotted by your City or Municipality.

Ending we would encourage you to call your city or municipality to describe your construction project and they should be happy to let you know if you will need permits. In addition you may also call a Contractor, hopefully BBB Accredited, that may to give you this helpful knowledge. Speaking of BBB Accredited companies please join our next blog on the Better Business Bureau, its functions, and why they are a very important resource for your Home Construction needs and projects. Thank You and see ya next time.