Clayton Nelson & Associates

I believed that Mr. and Mrs. Mehta and I had entered into the design-build process and a design contract with a clear understanding of the advantages of the process.

The greatest advantage of the design-build process is that construction estimates are produced as the schematic design evolves, which keeps the client’s design goals and budgets aligned. Years of experience have taught me that this is the most successful way to ensure that I can provide my clients with a remodeled home that exceeds their expectations of quality and comfort while staying within their budget.

Working together through the Schematic design development for any project, my clients and I define their design aesthetic, discuss their lifestyle needs and preferences, materials and finishes. I then use my years of remodeling experience and work with my collaborating architect to craft a schematic design that balances the goals of the client, the structural and mechanical challenges of the existing house, and the scope of the renovation with the client’s budget guiding the possibilities. In the schematic budget estimating process, I solicit estimate proposals from suppliers and trades to craft an evolving budget as the design evolves.

It is typical with most projects that the initial goals of the client and the initial schematic design they most want often exceed their target budget. It is then that we roll up our sleeves and work together to modify the design, the scope of work, and the materials selections in the most practical ways to align the client’s goals with their target budget.

My design agreement with the Mehta’s specifically stated “we propose to serve as design/build contractor to develop a schematic design, a scope of work and budgets for the project. We can then work together to complete the construction of the project.” I did make it clear that they were not obligated to have me do the construction, however it was our agreed upon intent that I would complete the construction of the project. I assumed that Mehta’s had already interviewed other designers and contractors and had decided to work with me.

After working together for 6 months, Mr. Mehta informed me that he would like to proceed with finalizing the design phase of the project which entails drawing up the construction documents, but with a caveat to “please note that this is not an intent to proceed with the permitting and the construction. We would like to show the architectural plan documents to a few other contractors to get their estimates for the work.” This announcement came as a surprise to me but as our written agreement stated, the client is free to end our relationship at any time.

At that juncture I told Mr. Mehta that he was free to work directly with my collaborating architect or any other designer of his choice to finalize the construction documents and wished him well with his remodel project. He would need to enter into a contract with the architect directly as previously the architect was contracted with and paid by me. I have no control over the details or fees involved in any other service contract other than my own so Mr. Mehta is correct in stating that his cost for construction document services may be different than working with me.

The unfortunate divergence became clear when Mr. Mehta stated his lack of confidence in my seeing his project through to completion. I do my best to please each and every client while maintaining my standards for quality design and construction. I agree with Mr. Mehta “we are fortunate this happened during design phase” and I am proud of the service and creative design solutions we crafted for the Mehtas. I wish them all the best for a very successful remodel project.