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Steve Kunkel began building new homes in 1975 and started remodeling homes in 1984. Steve Kunkel Master Builders, Inc. was formed in 1990. Our team of designers, subcontractors, and employees has worked together for many years, fine tuning the skills needed to plan, design, and build your residential project. You don’t want your home to be training ground for someone trying to learn the business.
Contractors are required to be licensed in the localities in which they work. Steve Kunkel Master Builders is registered with the State of Washington as a general contractor, and has business licenses in every city in which we do work.
Membership in this organization reflects a contractor’s desire to support our industry and community. Steve Kunkel Master Builders has been a member of the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties since 2002.
CGR stands for Certified Graduate Remodeler. This designation is given to those contractors who have successfully completed a course curriculum set forth by the National Association of Home Builders. Steve Kunkel has completed this training and has been recognized as a CGR.
Sure, but remember that a list of satisfied customers is no guarantee that you will be happy.Our happiest customers were people that could openly engage with us about budget, time, design and any fears they had about remodeling.Good communication makes for happy clients, workers and contractors.
It is important to know that your contractor will make timely payments to material suppliers and subcontractors used for your project. Steve Kunkel Master Builders can furnish a list of suppliers and subcontractors, if requested, so that you can check our payment history with them.
More problems and misunderstandings develop in this area than any other. Be sure that you clearly understand what your contractor will and will not be doing. Steve Kunkel Master Builders will thoroughly review the project with the customer before starting construction and will produce a very detailed scope of work.
Nobody likes cost overruns, so getting an accurate cost estimate for your project is essential for knowing in advance how much money to budget and for securing financing if necessary. Accurate cost estimates require good plans and specifications. Good plans require careful project planning and design work. Steve Kunkel Master Builders will provide a free initial consultation, which includes a “cost guesstimate”. After the initial consultation, a retainer is required to do a feasibility study which leads into the remainder of the planning and design work. This work is billed by the hour plus expenses and includes scope of work, designs, drawings, specifications, and cost estimates at various stages of the cost planning process. The final cost estimate will become the basis for a lump sum contract to construct the project.
A good remodel begins with good design. If you don’t already have them, we will furnish you with a floor plan and, if appropriate, elevation views for your project. For kitchen remodels, we also provide 3-dimension computer aided design.
Permits are required for certain types of work, but not all contractors adhere to the law. If a building permit is required, we will get one. This insures that inspections will be made of the work performed, which is especially important for plumbing, electrical and structural work. It may also be important when selling the home to have a record of inspections.
You wouldn’t want your remodel to come to a halt because of the untimely illness of one individual. Steve Kunkel Master Builders has a “Client Protection Plan” which provides assurance that your project will be completed no matter what happens to Steve Kunkel.
Yes, of course. However, you should keep in mind that it is sometimes difficult to evaluate a product that is sold on line for quality, durability and reliability. We can help you evaluate these products and/or recommend products that meet the project design criteria.
Selecting and coordinating all the products for a project can be overwhelming. We have a showroom that offers many products to look at. We also have an interior designer on our staff who can assist in the planning and selecting of materials.
If someone gets hurt on the job, and it can happen, you may have to pay for that worker’s injuries if your contractor is not properly insured. You may request a copy of our insurance policy.
Read and question the guarantee. At Steve Kunkel Master Builders we provide a typical one-year guarantee for our work. Beyond that we offer free support to help you trouble shoot problems with your home and assist with the appropriate action.
We pay the State of Washington insurance premiums for injuries that may occur on our jobs. All of our subcontractors do the same for their employees.
Be careful here, just because a contractor offers financing doesn’t mean they also do good work. Steve Kunkel Master Builders does not directly offer financing but if needed can refer you to someone who can help with getting a loan.
As a general rule, you should not be expected to provide a large down payment. Steve Kunkel Master Builders will require retainers to cover the Planning and Design work and then a material deposit when the contract is signed. The amount of this deposit depends on the size of the job.
Supervision of your project has a big impact on when and how the job is done. Steve Kunkel and a project manager will oversee your job from start to finish and be available to address any issues that arise along the way. Weekly meetings for large jobs are also part of our service.
Planning and coordination of workers is essential for timely completion of your project. Steve Kunkel Master Builders will create and work from a schedule for your project that will complete the project in the shortest possible time. You will receive a copy of that schedule. There may be a few days when work cannot be performed while waiting for granite to be fabricated, drywall mud to dry, or wood floor finish to cure. Otherwise you can expect work to be done each day.
At Steve Kunkel Master Builders, we work with trusted subcontractors, with whom we have developed a relationship. Our employees and subcontractors will treat your property with respect, maintain a clean work site, not smoke on site, and make sure your home is properly secured before leaving. In most cases, a portable toilet will be provided for workers to use during the project.
Extras and changes will be handled with a “Change Order” form that itemizes the costs for any extras or changes that come up during the project. Your approval is necessary before we go forward with any work of this kind.
The most common cause of cost over-runs are caused by changes and additions after the construction phase begins. Most of these costs can be avoided with the proper amount of time spent on planning and design. There are always a few unforeseen problems in remodeling work, but we can usually limit the cost for these issues to less than 5% of the total, again with the proper amount of good planning and design work.
At the end of the job we will give the client all the manuals and care instructions for all products and equipment that have been installed. We will review operating procedures for any equipment that requires some initial instruction.