3 questions I wish I would’ve asked my tiny builder before hiring them.

When you're purchasing your tiny home you're going to get consumed naturally with Pinterest images & ideas of pretty compact things that "pop out of nowhere" but somehow have loads of storage. You can thank Netflix for that one. But the reality is - if you don't ASK for those things or if they are not included - you're not getting them. Here are three questions I wish I would've asked my builder. Buying a home is a big deal (even if it's tiny), let's treat it like one :) 

Does it come with window coverings / blinds? 

Silly me, I made an assumption & didn't even think to ask if the tiny home would come with window coverings. RV’s come with blinds, but a tiny home is NOT an RV.

For some random reason I just thought — the windows would be covered. I’m not trying to be snarky or sassy (#maybealittle) but I think that it would be a really great bonus to toss in some blinds, its a heck of job to find the sizes because your tiny may have custom windows. If you're a tiny home builder - ask the customer if they want to add window coverings and I think you'll make a little sale.

So if you’re building and have committed to hiring a builder - just ask does it include blinds and if not get the window sizes asap and start shopping around. If it's not included I bet if they hear the question enough they'll start to ask "do you want window coverings included?" 

Do you do anything once the house is delivered? Do we have a follow up call or walk through? 

Once again Silly me - in the past when you buy a home you do a walk through…or the realtor hands you the keys and is available if you have questions. 

I kind of assumed  it was the same with a tiny home. Assuming makes an ass out of YOU and ME. Which in my case it really did. I kind-of-sort-of-thought that the things I paid for would be in the home, because well ….I just trust. 

 This is a HOME purchase after all. Realistically I know things get missed - I do. But I think you should ask your tiny home builder what the process is for when the house is delivered — what’s next? Do they call you, do they do a video walk through to make sure it’s accurate before it’s delivered then after? Ask your builder “what happens once the house is delivered”, outside of the warranty do we have a process in place to make sure the house is 100% okay after delivery? 

I thought  that when the home was delivered someone would call me to see if things were okay, if anything was missing, to go over a check list. SO check with your builder - once it’s delivered if you’re far away — how do they check to make sure you’ got the house you expected. 

My warranty was up when I discovered that for an entire year I thought I was using a furnace, you may laugh but there are furnace "knobs" in the home - and I thought I was turning up the heat. Even when I called the company to see why my heat wasn't working they said I must not be doing it properly (haha.)  I was using electric heat this entire time.

I'm embarrassed to say that, but I think my builder should be more embarrassed to say that they FORGOT to install an entire furnace system. Then they chose to pay  me $2000 to "cover costs".

It's going to cost me a lot more than 2k to put a furnace in after getting quotes - the entire home has to be ripped apart.

So -- ask the questions, check the list twice, three times, and when it's delivered ....see my next question.

One of my non negotiable for building a tiny: two sources of heat in case my electricity goes out (which it does on the mountain) I would always be able to keep the kids warm. 

What if the home is delivered and there’s things that need changed, how does that work, what happens, what’s the process?

I think this one is a MUST on your question list - because companies forget things, it really does happen but how do they handle it if a shower is broken when the home is delivered, or a furnace is missing (#fuck). What is the procedure? If they don’t know that’s okay — but I definitely think getting something in writing and putting it into a contract would help clarity. 

 So if you’re in the process of building, just ask these questions - ask ANY and all questions. If you walk into a home in Calgary, Vancouver or anywhere you’d ask - tiny home builders expect to be asked even more questions because it’s a “newish” industry. No question is silly - and I wish I would’ve asked more. 

If you have any questions for ME, reach out, find me on INSTAGRAM HERE, or email me. If I can’t answer I’ll guide you to someone who can. 

On a personal note - it’s still snowing…and it is NOT stopping.  

Tomorrow - I’ll be back to chat about our Mount7 Microgreens adventure & of course — I want you to check it out early because I am like a kid before Christmas. 

Loves of love - 

Megan