How to Work With Clients Who Are Concerned About Cost
Pros share tips for making sure clients have realistic budget expectations
As a home renovation professional, you undoubtedly encounter some homeowners who have overly rosy expectations of what their dream home renovation project will set them back. Debunking these unrealistic assumptions about renovation and decorating costs is a necessary part of the sales process. So how do you best handle that all-important conversation? We asked pros to share their top tips.
Address cost throughout the project
Of course, it’s impossible to know the precise project cost until a design plan is completed and all the materials have been selected. Design is, after all, an evolving process. That’s why it’s critical, as plans progress, to keep bringing up the costs.
Architect Amy Gardner of Gardner Architects always recommends that her clients have a contractor review the drawings at an early stage to get a ballpark budget estimate. “We recommend this during our initial contact discussions, and bring it up periodically during the early stages of the project,” Gardner says.
Once the initial design is completed and preliminary bids have come back from contractors, Jimmy Crisp tells his clients, “You can have your heart attack, then we revive you and you can tell us to pull back on the design, or phase the design, or just go forwards with working drawings to get a really tight bid.” Reminding clients that they are the ones making the choices that affect the bottom line really seems to help, he says.
Similarly, every time a client makes a request to change products or materials, it’s important to mention – right then – how this change would affect the cost. That way, clients won’t be surprised later in the project and feel like charges have snuck up on them and become too high.
Builders can use Houzz Pro business management software to track and bill for change orders and send them to clients for approvals. Designers can use Houzz Pro to share proposals with clients for approval, or to allow clients to accept or decline each item line by line.
Of course, it’s impossible to know the precise project cost until a design plan is completed and all the materials have been selected. Design is, after all, an evolving process. That’s why it’s critical, as plans progress, to keep bringing up the costs.
Architect Amy Gardner of Gardner Architects always recommends that her clients have a contractor review the drawings at an early stage to get a ballpark budget estimate. “We recommend this during our initial contact discussions, and bring it up periodically during the early stages of the project,” Gardner says.
Once the initial design is completed and preliminary bids have come back from contractors, Jimmy Crisp tells his clients, “You can have your heart attack, then we revive you and you can tell us to pull back on the design, or phase the design, or just go forwards with working drawings to get a really tight bid.” Reminding clients that they are the ones making the choices that affect the bottom line really seems to help, he says.
Similarly, every time a client makes a request to change products or materials, it’s important to mention – right then – how this change would affect the cost. That way, clients won’t be surprised later in the project and feel like charges have snuck up on them and become too high.
Builders can use Houzz Pro business management software to track and bill for change orders and send them to clients for approvals. Designers can use Houzz Pro to share proposals with clients for approval, or to allow clients to accept or decline each item line by line.
Know when to go your separate ways
If you’ve clarified costs at the beginning and as any changes are made, the topic of costs shouldn’t be controversial as the project progresses. So really the decision about whether a client and a budget are a good fit must be made early on.
If the budget simply won’t stretch enough, you might gently offer would-be clients alternatives. Jimmy Crisp sometimes points out that clients can do a lot with a good contractor alone, while Gia Milazzo Smith mentions a standalone design consultation or design plan as an alternative to full design services. After all, taking on a project with a client whose budget is simply too tight can be stressful for everyone and won’t lead to a great outcome, so don’t be afraid to walk away.
“During the initial contact discussions, if the budget is too lean for the owner’s goals, I generally do not take on the project,” Amy Gardner says.
Tell us…
Is this a challenge you’ve come up against in the past? Was this advice helpful? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
If you’ve clarified costs at the beginning and as any changes are made, the topic of costs shouldn’t be controversial as the project progresses. So really the decision about whether a client and a budget are a good fit must be made early on.
If the budget simply won’t stretch enough, you might gently offer would-be clients alternatives. Jimmy Crisp sometimes points out that clients can do a lot with a good contractor alone, while Gia Milazzo Smith mentions a standalone design consultation or design plan as an alternative to full design services. After all, taking on a project with a client whose budget is simply too tight can be stressful for everyone and won’t lead to a great outcome, so don’t be afraid to walk away.
“During the initial contact discussions, if the budget is too lean for the owner’s goals, I generally do not take on the project,” Amy Gardner says.
Tell us…
Is this a challenge you’ve come up against in the past? Was this advice helpful? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
It’s no secret that home design shows have helped to popularise home renovation, but these programmes don’t always explain to viewers the realistic costs.
Educating clients about true renovation costs is part of the sales process, and a great place to start is determining what their budget is. “Most clients don’t want to share their budget, because they think you’re going to spend it all,” says designer Gia Milazzo Smith of Designs by Gia. “It’s so much better if you can have those conversations early.”
Knowing the budget can help you steer clients towards an appropriate project scope or, if necessary, give them the bad news right away. “If the homeowner is so far below what I know the minimum is to build whatever they’re talking about, I’m very up-front about that,” says architect Jimmy Crisp of Crisp Architects. “I say, ‘I’m really sorry, but for what you’re talking about, I can’t tell you exactly what it’s going to cost, but it’s got to be in a range of X to Z.’”
Sometimes, Jimmy finds his frank assessment triggers a client to admit that a budget has some wiggle room, and then they can begin to discuss real options. Perhaps the initial goal of replacing the kitchen and adding a new second storey is too costly, but the budget could cover a kitchen renovation alone.
Early conversations are also an opportunity to educate clients about what’s really involved in a project – namely, not just the products and materials to be installed, but labour for both installation and design. This can be helpful, because clients often don’t realise that the scope of the project itself – not saving £2 per metre on a particular fabric for kitchen curtains – is what really affects the bottom line, Gia says.