As a Singaporean interior design company that’s been around for decades, we have worked with many types of homeowners. Most of them fall within three main categories.
The Calm One
Calm homeowners don’t sweat the small stuff. They have solely a rough vision of what they’d like to accomplish and they’re open to new ideas. The approach these homeowners adopt is laidback and they don’t feel pressure or a rush to move ahead and finish conceptualising interior design projects fast.
The calm homeowner isn’t in a hurry to partner up with an interior design team. In fact, many of these people approach interior designers six months or less before coming in possession of their BTO flat keys.
Having such a character ensures peace of mind but it can also result in some problems.
Not panicking about timelines is obviously amazing. Finding the right interior design team on a short notice, however, isn’t always easy. Due to the manpower shortages, reputable interior design companies are currently finding themselves overbooked. Hence, calm homeowners who wait too long to get started with project execution may end up having nobody to partner up with.
If you plan to do extensive work like tiling, masonry or wall hacking, the time may be right to begin researching companies. Reaching out and getting quotes right now makes a lot of sense. Managing to book an interior design team will ensure immediate commencement of work after you come in flat possession. Waiting until the last moment could mean nobody’s available to execute the project, contributing to additional delays.
For best results, do your preliminary communication at least eight to nine months in advance. This is especially important if you intend to do a thorough makeover that involves sufficient reconstruction. By doing so, you’ll have a “slot” with the respective interior design company reserved in advance. Once you come in possession of your new flat, you’ll commence the renovation immediately.
The Kanchiong Spider
This is the homeowner on the opposite end of the spectrum from the calm one.
Such homeowners are usually eager to get stuff done. As a result, they’ve probably gathered a couple of quotes already and they’re looking at the fine details to choose the best opportunity as soon as possible.
The problem with this approach is that it often happens to be rushed. By pushing too far and too soon, many of these homeowners don’t have a good and thorough understanding of the interior design project’s scope. Hence, they may end up making a decision that’s based solely on pricing or other superficial selection criteria.
Taking into consideration the complexity of the job that needs to be done is essential. Very often, cheap quotes will lack depth and they will not represent the renovation works thoroughly. Going for a quote that seems very affordable at the time being will usually result in additional expenses later on, expenses that haven’t been put into the initial calculation due to the limited scope of planning.
People who are in a rush could commit another very serious mistake. They will avoid going through a comprehensive vetting process. Since they are in a hurry, they wouldn’t check credentials, licensing and background. Hence, they may end up with quotes provided by industry representatives who don’t have the best reputation out there.
Are you one of the people known to rush stuff because you like to get things done and finished as soon as possible? If so, you could be making a serious quality compromise that will come back to bite you later on.
When communicating with interior designers, you will often get verbal promises that are impossible to meet. For many businesses, closing the deal is more important than actually delivering. And if you’re in a rush, you’d be happy to hear what you want.
Instead of adopting such a superficial approach, slow down. Take some time to do your research. Construction delays right now warrant a few additional days.
Seek out interior design companies in Singapore that are a part of CaseTrust. CaseTrust guarantees a fair deal between service providers and homeowners. If there are any renovation delays, you’ll be promised and delivered some form of valid compensation.
The Visionary
The visionary is a homeowner who’s somewhere in between the two personality types already mentioned.
A visionary has some idea of what they’d like to accomplish but it’s not set in stone. They also understand practical consideration without being in an extreme rush to identify the best service provider right here, right now.
Visionaries have big ideas that they’d like to see fully-developed. This is why they’re often willing to put more time and work in the communication with an interior design company. They enjoy the brainstorming, getting a model of the upcoming upgrade and seeing an actual visualization of what a flat is going to look like in the future.
When it comes to seeking out service providers, visionaries aren’t drawn to the cheapest quote. Rather, they’d like to have clarity and a comprehensive vision that is going to bring a specific project to reality with as little delays and alterations as possible.
A visionary enjoys the process of working on interior design upgrades. That person knows the cheapest quote isn’t always the best one. A visionary is also open to professional input that modifies and elevates the initial concept to a brand new height.
If you are a visionary, do focus on the practical side of things a bit more. It’s definitely nice to enjoy the planning of interior design work. At the same time, you’ll need to get into specifics like costs, packages and schedules. Paying attention to both will result in the home of your dreams that’s delivered in due time and within a reasonable budget.
As a visionary, you can benefit from interior design packages. These cost a quarter or a third of a 10-percent downpayment contract. In addition, design fees will often be waived if one and the same company handles all aspects of the renovation work.
It’s ok to be open-minded but you’ll have to pursue your financial interest, as well. Hence, it’s not a bad idea to seek out packages, discounts and other perka that could potentially give you the outcome you want at a very reasonable price.
