This blog is for people who have already bought a new home, and are about to attend their first appointment at the Design Centre to make their custom selections.
As part owner/executive manager of Tartan Homes, one of the things I do is host a quarterly meeting with our once and future customers — people who are getting ready to move in to their brand new Tartan home. These are people who have competed all their interior colour selections with the Design Centre. The next event for them is the Pre-Delivery Inspection (PDI), then moving day. The time for custom selections is over.
We call it the My-Move Seminar (now presented as a video series on the website). The purpose of the meeting is to provide our customers with details about the important milestones related to taking possession of their home — the PDI, moving day, the 30-day list, and so on. And besides thanking them profusely for choosing Tartan, I highlight the specific things that Tartan do to help them navigate these events, remain protected by Tarion, and book the work for deficiency repairs in a manner that is least disruptive for them.
The My-Move Seminars end with open questions, followed by individual customers talking to members of our hosting team. I learn something new every time.
Following our most recent seminar, a gentleman said to me that he had just attended his PDI, and was unhappy that the height of his bathroom vanity was too low. He said his son is 6’2”, and that he himself has a bad back. He needs a higher vanity, and he was disappointed to hear from our PDI host that we will not replace his standard-height vanity with a higher one.
I assured him that the vanity was standard height. I said if he had asked for a higher one during his Design Centre meetings, we would have been happy to price it, and, if acceptable, provide it for him.
He said he didn’t think of it at the time. And now it’s too late. He is disappointed.
Tartan, like all other new home builders, love to say “yes” during the buying process and the Design Centre custom selection process. Before specific instructions are sent to our tradespeople, we can consider all kinds of changes, including higher counter heights.
But once the Design Centre sessions are over, the Change Orders are signed, and the specific details have been broadcast, we say “no” to subsequent changes. Our deadlines around this are firm.
The reason is that we are building 200 houses a year, or more. In order to do this is an efficient manner, information needs to flow in an uninterrupted and timely manner from our Sales and Design Centre offices, to our Head Office, to the trades and to the construction site. A late change is disruptive in that it can affect the flow of information potentially leading to errors or additional expense, which is why we only allow them in exceptional circumstances. In our highly competitive industry, this is one way we can try and control prices.
Which brings me to the point of this blog. I don’t want to have a disappointed customer. When you visit the Design Centre, really think about the things you want in your home. They will provide you with helpful documents to assist you in the process of making your selections. Thinking about flooring and colors and cabinets is obvious. But are there other things you might want, like raised or lowered countertops or wider countertops? Grab bars in showers or custom built-ins? Lighting and connectivity? I know there are a thousand details to consider, but try and take a moment to step back and reflect. Our communities have standard finished model homes as well as upgraded models so that you can see what’s included but also what you can add or change. If some particular notion comes up, ask us about it. As I said, we are happy to say “yes”, until the Design Centre documents are signed. Then we say “no”. We certainly don’t take any pleasure in telling people it’s too late.
Having said all that, I remember some years ago when a gentleman bought a big house from us, and wanted to redesign the secondary upstairs bathroom to accommodate his twin teenage daughters. He sketched out a bathroom plan that included two sinks, extra cabinets, and so on. We turned it into a proper drawing and priced it. It met the building code, and so on, but our design person told me it wouldn’t work. There wasn’t enough room, it wouldn’t function. I related this to the purchaser, but he said he didn’t agree. I spoke to him again after he signed for it. I recommended that he cancel it, that he was paying us to build something we thought would not function as conceived. But he was convinced in his own design. I foresaw trouble, but didn’t feel I could cancel it myself. Isn’t the customer always right? Well, it didn’t work. Our design person helped him with the planning of an expensive and disruptive renovation, undertaken in the first year of occupancy.
We like saying “yes”. But we are professionals, and we can help you ensure the “yes” you want will work for you.