The decisions · Change Orders
Change Orders — Ordinary, and Usually Handled Badly
Change orders are normal. Designs evolve, owners change their minds, and buildings reveal things. What is not normal is finding out about them at the end.
Bring the drawings at whatever stage they are. An honest range and the decisions that move it, before anyone quotes.
Licensed
General contractor, licensed in the state of Florida
Self-perform
Dewatering, SOE and deep foundations in house
Leadership
Delivered Fifth Avenue and Central Park West interiors
Open book
Where the contract is cost-plus, the books open
The process, not the changes
Almost every construction dispute we have seen is about change orders, and almost none is about whether the change was necessary. It is about whether it was agreed in advance, whether the price was explained, and whether the owner felt informed or ambushed. That is a process failure, not a cost failure.
How it should work
- Priced and agreed in writing before the work happens, not after.
- The cost broken down, not presented as a single number.
- Schedule impact stated alongside cost — changes cost time as well.
- A running log the owner can see at any point.
- Owner-driven and condition-driven changes distinguished clearly.
How we handle it
- 01No work proceeds on a change until it is agreed in writing.
- 02Every change broken down into labor, material and schedule.
- 03A running log, visible, updated as changes are raised.
- 04Concealed conditions distinguished from owner requests.
- 05Monthly reconciliation so nothing accumulates unseen.
The distinction between an owner change and a concealed condition matters more than people expect. One is a choice you made; the other is the building. Blurring them is how owners end up feeling that every discovery was somehow their fault.
Said plainly
Where we stop
If a change is a mistake we made, it is not a change order. We will say so and it will not appear on your bill. That is a low bar and it is not universally met.
FAQ
Common questions
- Are change orders inevitable?
- On a custom project, effectively yes. The process is what determines whether they are manageable.
- Can work start before I sign one?
- It should not, except in a genuine emergency, and then documented immediately.
- How do I know the price is fair?
- Ask for the breakdown. A single number with no components is not a price, it is an assertion.
- What if the change is the builder's error?
- Then it is not a change order and should not appear on your bill.
What we build
Custom Homes
A custom home is the only project where every decision is still open, which is exactly why it is the easiest one to lose control of financially.
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Waterfront Construction
On a waterfront lot the building is often the straightforward part. The water table, the seawall, the flood elevation and the permitting are what decide the program and a large share of the cost.
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Whole-House Renovation
Renovating an existing house is harder to price than building a new one, because a meaningful part of the scope is behind finishes nobody has opened.
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Historic Restoration
In a historic district the approval process governs the design, and it operates on a timescale that has nothing to do with construction.
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Additions & Second Stories
An addition is constrained by a building that was designed for a different life. Whether the existing foundation and structure can carry the new load is the first question and it is not always answered yes.
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Guest Houses & Accessory Structures
A guest house is a small building governed by disproportionately complicated rules. Zoning, not design, determines what is possible.
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More the decisions
Fixed Price or Cost-Plus
The contract type decides who carries the risk of the unknown, and both answers are legitimate. What is not legitimate is a fixed price on drawings that cannot support one.
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Choosing a Builder
Three builders will show you three beautiful portfolios and three numbers that differ by a lot. The portfolio tells you what they photograph, not what they are like to build with.
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Allowances & Selections
An allowance is a placeholder for a decision you have not made. A contract full of them is a contract whose final number has not been decided.
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Next step
Find out what is actually wrong with it.
An inspection, photographs of what we found, and a written scope. If the honest answer is that it can wait another season, that is the answer you will get.