Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, and we’ll hand you the paperwork before you ask.

• Nebraska contractor registration — number listed in the footer of this site and on every proposal
• $2,000,000 general liability coverage

Worth knowing how this works in Nebraska: the state does not issue a general contractor licence the way some states do. Contractors register with the Department of Labor, and individual trades like electrical, plumbing, and mechanical are licensed separately. Anyone telling you they hold a “Nebraska general contractor licence” is describing something that does not exist.

If you have questions about coverage on your particular project, get in touch and Owen will walk you through it.

The five services listed on this site are the projects we take on most often, but they are not the whole list.

• Window replacement — often a single-weekend job, including whole-home replacements
• Tile work — floors, showers and backsplashes, as a standalone project or part of a larger remodel
• Smaller interior and exterior projects that do not amount to a full remodel

The same person quotes your job, does the work and answers the phone afterwards, whether it is a full kitchen or a single room. If you are not sure whether your project is a fit, get in touch — it is a short conversation either way.

We’re a design-build firm, which means design and construction sit under a single contract with a single point of accountability. When something doesn’t work, there’s no one to point at but us.

In-house: kitchens, bathrooms, basements and interior reconfiguration are handled by our own designer, including 3D renderings and full materials selection.

Brought in and coordinated by us: additions, structural changes and anything requiring stamped drawings go to a licensed architect and structural engineer we work with regularly. They’re contracted through us, so you still have one point of contact and one invoice.

Already have an architect? That’s completely fine. We build from other people’s drawings often and we’re happy to join at whatever stage you’re at, including bidding a completed set.

Honest ranges for the Lincoln area, based on what we actually build:

Project	Typical range
Kitchen remodel	$30,000 – $120,000
Powder room	$10,000 – $20,000
Primary bath suite	$15,000 – $60,000
Basement finishing	$55 – $95 / sq ft
Home addition	$350 – $550 / sq ft
Whole-home renovation	$180 – $400 / sq ft

The spread within each range is mostly driven by three things: whether structural work is involved, whether mechanical systems need replacing, and the cabinetry tier.

What we won’t do is give you a number with vague allowances buried in it. If we budget $8,000 for tile, we’ll show you what $8,000 of tile looks like before you sign.

Every change order is priced in writing and signed by you before the work happens. Not verbally agreed on site, not added to the next invoice, not “we’ll sort it out at the end.” If a change is needed urgently, work in that area stops until it’s signed.

Concealed conditions get a visible contingency. On any pre-1980 home we include a 10–15% contingency line in the original proposal, shown as its own line item rather than folded into the price. When we open a wall and find knob-and-tube wiring or a rotted stack, it draws against that line. Whatever’s left over at closeout is money you never spend.

The result: the final invoice matches the signed proposal plus whatever change orders you approved along the way.

Two separate clocks, and people usually only think about the second one.

Before construction (4–10 weeks): design, materials selection, ordering, and permitting. We deliberately complete materials selection and get everything delivered to our warehouse before demolition begins. It feels slow. It’s the single biggest reason our projects finish on schedule.

On site:

• Bathroom — 2 to 8 weeks
• Kitchen — 4 to 14 weeks
• Basement — 8 to 16 weeks
• Addition — 4 to 9 months from design to move-in
• Whole home — 6 to 12 months

You get a written schedule with named milestones at contract signing, re-issued every Friday with actual progress marked against it.

Almost certainly yes, and we handle all of it. Permit management is included in every proposal, never billed as a surprise extra.

Work that requires a permit in Lincoln: anything structural, all electrical and plumbing changes, mechanical work, basement finishing, additions, window openings cut into foundations, and most re-roofing.

Work that generally doesn’t: paint, flooring, cabinet refacing, and like-for-like fixture swaps.

Be genuinely wary of any contractor who offers to skip the permit to save you money. Unpermitted work surfaces at resale during the appraisal or inspection, and the buyer’s lender may refuse to finance until it’s legalised retroactively, which costs far more than the permit would have.

For most single-room projects, yes. We plan for it properly rather than just hoping you cope.

• A functioning temporary kitchen with a real plumbed sink, your refrigerator, and an induction hob
• Zip-wall dust containment with negative air machines at the work zone boundary
• Floor protection along every path our crews walk
• Daily cleanup, because you still live here
• Defined work hours, agreed with you before we start

For whole-home renovations and second-story additions, we’ll tell you the honest version: if you can move out, move out. Phasing a whole-home project so you can stay adds roughly 15–20% to the schedule and 8–12% to the cost, and it’s genuinely unpleasant for the months it lasts. We’ve done it many times and we’ll do it for you, but you should choose it with clear eyes.