Welcome to Return on Design, the podcast where beauty meets strategy and interiors become assets that perform. I’m your host, Rachel Niederhofer, designer, investor and builder of high impact spaces that deliver real results. Alongside my husband, I run both a design firm and a real estate investment company, where I live at the intersection of creativity and ROI every day. Each week, I’ll be unpacking what most people overlook: how strategic design decisions can grow your investment, elevate your lifestyle and unlock the full potential of your property.
When it comes to interior designer vs contractor roles, most renovation problems don’t start with a bad contractor. They start when an owner hands a good contractor a job that was never theirs: deciding what the project should be. A contractor’s job is to build and execute the plan. When they’re also asked to create it, you tend to get the version that’s easiest or most profitable for them, not the version that serves you.
We see it as designers brought in to fix finished work, and we see it as investors running our own projects. Here’s how to keep the roles straight, ask better questions, and stay in charge of your return.
A contractor executes. A designer, or you acting as your own strategist, decides what’s worth executing. That’s the heart of interior designer vs contractor: they’re different skills, and blurring them is where money quietly leaks out of a project.
Hand a contractor your idea and your budget, ask “What do I need to do?”, and the answer will usually favor what works best for them. Sometimes that’s the easiest build. Sometimes it’s an upsell on a piece you don’t need. Neither is malicious. It’s just not their job to weigh every dollar against your goals for the space.
There are exceptions, and some builders do think strategically. But you have to know what a given contractor is capable of before you give them the lead.
If you hand them that baton, you may never get it back.
Return on Design, Episode 06
We’re correcting one of these right now. A design client hired a contractor for a renovation, and the work got done, but there was little strategy behind it. The design was purely aesthetic, filling in the voids rather than solving anything. The client spent a lot of money and isn’t getting either kind of return: they don’t enjoy the space the way they should, and they aren’t seeing the financial payoff.
The real need was optimizing square footage. Instead of blanketing extra space with finishes because no one knew what else to do with it, the better question was how that space could be used differently, possibly even in another room, so it actually made an impact. Nobody asked whether the room had enough storage for everyday necessities. That isn’t a question most contractors are there to raise.
Wasted footprint isn’t limited to renovations. We see it in new construction builds all the time, and in older homes whose original layout never suited how the owners live. The goal is that after you spend something like $20,000 on a renovation, you walk into the space and think, that was worth doing, instead of feeling buyer’s remorse.
The quickest way to tell whether someone can be a strategy partner is to change the question. “What should I do?” invites a single answer, often the easiest one or the one they get paid the most on. Ask these instead:
If a contractor can’t give you options, that tells you something. It may simply be the limit of their experience, not bad intentions. Either way, they’re not the right partner to set strategy for your project.
Justin has a test of his own: he asks a few questions he already knows the answers to and watches whether the person heads down the same path. The trades worth keeping come to you with a problem and two solutions: I can do this or this, and here’s how each one will look. That’s someone with forethought.
I want somebody who’s going to think, not just do.
Return on Design, Episode 06
Character matters as much as skill. Small relational questions early on show whether someone has the integrity to show up consistently, and that’s the foundation of a team you can trust.
On one kitchen project, the electric and gas were already stubbed in from the previous design, and nothing was being relocated. But the gas outlet for the new stove came out of the wall too high, and the stove wouldn’t sit correctly.
The first answer from the trade was the extreme version: cut the line, then a string of additional work and more material. Justin asked what options there were, then asked what kind of line was run behind the wall. It turned out to be a flexible polyline, not solid steel pipe. If there was enough slack in the attic, could they slide more pipe down through the wall and drop the outlet to where it needed to be?
There was more than enough pipe in the attic. They straightened it, lowered the outlet, and what could have been a major job became a 30-minute solution that saved thousands in new material, wall costs and testing.
Without that probing question, the work would have been done the way the trade knew how, at full cost. A first reaction often jumps from zero to 100. Pausing to look at the existing structure and ask what else is possible is where the savings come from. And it only happened because Justin was involved. The standing rule was simple: if there’s an issue, call me, and we’ll figure it out together.
The biggest mistake we see is owners underestimating their own role. You hire the contractor, but the contractor reports to you. They can bring ideas and solutions to issues they spot, but you make the decisions, because you’re the one writing the check and it’s your return on the line.
That doesn’t mean you have to be on site every day. It means someone on your side has to play that role, and it shouldn’t be the person doing the craft. Investors with larger teams need real project management oversight, ideally an internal person, rather than handing all the control and all the money to one contractor. That representation is exactly what we provide as a full-service interior designer for our clients, and what we do for ourselves as investors.
It’s no different from overseeing a project in a corporate setting. The owner carries the risk, so the owner sets the direction. As Justin puts it, he wants his contractors to make money, but their return doesn’t get priority over his.
None of this has to be combative. The best projects are collaborative, with the contractor as a true teammate. But someone has to lead the team, and it should be you. Before your next project starts:
Your contractor is a teammate, not your coach. Stay in charge, stay strategic, and you protect your return.
And that is one of the biggest mistakes that people make, is they underestimate the fact that you’re actually the CEO of your own project, and you have to step into that role and own it.
Yeah, you hire the contractor, but they ultimately report to you. So you’re the one that makes the decisions, and you have to keep the mindset of, you are working for me, and you can bring me ideas, you can bring me a solution to an issue that you see. But ultimately, I’m making that decision because I’m the one writing that check. It’s my return on the investment that I’m after, not necessarily your company’s return.
Welcome to Return on Design, the podcast where beauty meets strategy and interiors become assets that perform. I’m your host, Rachel Niederhofer, designer, investor, and builder of high-impact spaces that deliver real results. Alongside my husband, I run both a design firm and a real estate investment company, where I live at the intersection of creativity and ROI every day. Each week, I’ll be unpacking what most people overlook, how strategic design decisions can grow your investment, elevate your lifestyle, and unlock the full potential of your property. You’ll get real tools, proven strategies, and unfiltered conversations with industry experts who are doing it right. So if you’re ready to invest with purpose and leverage design as a powerful tool, this podcast is for you. Your contractor is not your coach. Their job is to build and execute the plan. If you are giving them, I’ve seen so many investors give their contractors way too much control and authority over their project, and it ends up costing them money in the end. My name is Rachel Niederhofer.
And I’m Justin Niederhofer. And this is Return on Design.
The podcast where beauty meets strategy and interiors become assets that perform. Today, we are going to talk about why your contractor should never be your strategist and how you can actually take back control over your own renovation project.
Like a contractor’s job is to execute, not necessarily plan the design. That’s where you come in. Yes. Giving them your plan, giving them your budget or giving them your idea and your budget and saying, what do I need to do? You’re going to wind up with what works best for them, is easiest for them, not necessarily what you want.
Yeah, it could cost you more time, more money, and definitely more heartache in the end. So we’re going to talk to you about how to take control over your renovation process and what role you need to be in and what role your contractor needs to.
Because sometimes they’re going to prioritize giving you a little bit, you know, the easiest thing for them or upselling you on the next piece that maybe you don’t need or it’s just winds up being easier for them and more money in their pocket.
Yeah. Or we see it all the time in design, you know, where we’ll come in and we’re having to fix what a contractor never strategized to do. Maybe they just had a little extra space in a corner and instead of making it an impactful space, the client later realizes, oh, this is a huge waste of space and I paid a lot of money to do that. So we end up having to fix it. I mean, we’re working on one right now. It didn’t happen with us, but a client, a design client, hired a contractor to come in and do a renovation and they did, but there wasn’t a lot of strategy behind the design. It was more purely aesthetic, just kind of filling in the voids and it just hasn’t had that full Return on Design for the client. Experientially, they’re not enjoying it to the way, you know, they should be. They spent a lot of money, so they’re not seeing that financial return. And, you know, it happens. It happens a lot. Wasted square footage. We even see it in new construction builds all the time. A separate project we’re working on and the house has never been renovated, but the original footprint is just so much wasted space that doesn’t make sense and it doesn’t suit the client’s needs. So you can’t rely on your contractor or your builder to be your strategy partner when it comes to interior design and even fund allocation to meet those goals for the space. So the design client that I mentioned that we are currently correcting poor design that was already executed through a renovation project by a contractor. What happened was they were relying on the contractor to lead charge from a design standpoint, and that’s not their role. They’re not going to fall into that mold. Of course, there’s always an exception, but like strategically, you have to know what they’re capable of. And like Justin said.
From a design aspect, what is the function of the space? What are you wanting to do with it? Does what the contractor is thinking of doing or saying they’re going to do, does it make sense to do that?
Yeah. And looking at it, like in this specific example, they have a need for optimizing square footage. So instead of just blanketing square footage to nothing because you don’t know what else to do with it, like having that strategy of, okay, well, how can we take this extra square footage and maybe use it differently, maybe not even in the same room, maybe to make it make more sense and have an impact, not just so that you don’t have buyers remorse after you spend $20,000 on the renovation, but that you are actually enjoying it. Every time you go over there, you’re like, oh, that was worth doing because this is making my life so much easier. And it’s meeting the needs that I have in the space. And most contractors are not going to think that way because that’s not the design of the role. I mean, they’re going to come in and they’re going to execute. They’re not going to say, oh, well, have you thought about, do you have enough storage for all your necessities in the room? Should we think about that? Again, there’s exceptions, but for the most part, if you hand them that baton, you may never get it back. It’s going to cost you because you didn’t think about that in the initial planning phases.
We’ve got to think about how can we change the strategy behind how we ask our questions instead of what should I do? What options do I have? What are the cost of those options? And what is that going to look like? Yeah, great point. Sometimes it’s not necessarily what question you’re asking is how you phrase that question because what should I do versus what are my options? You’re asking the same things. What can I do in the space?
Well, I don’t even know if you’re asking the same thing because to your point, I mean, it’s like a very strategic thought process of, I mean, you can weed out. Do they know what they’re talking about just by asking that question? If they’re unable to give you options, then they’re probably not the right strategy partner to help you. A solution isn’t always the best response.
Yeah. Again, this may be the easiest option or the most expensive option that I get paid the most on.
And it may simply just be like that’s their capacity. That’s their knowledge base. They don’t know and therefore you can determine like, okay, you’re not the right partner. Not because your intentions aren’t good, but because your experience level is not where I need it to be. You’re just not the right partner. I mean, Justin, you’re so good at formulating questions in a way that you’re taking someone on a journey. It’s almost like reverse engineering is how I think of it. But how do you ask better questions to help pull out the information that’s going to help you make a better decision?
Well, for me, sometimes one of the ways I’ve learned to weed out is this person going to help me or is this the right person? Or how do we get this? Asking a few questions that I already know the answers to to see if they can start going down the same route. And if they can give me the details that I’m needing and wanting, then that tells me this is somebody that is thinking. I want somebody who’s going to think, not just do.
But it depends on what you’re doing. Because if you’re looking for a strategic partner, yes, you have to be able to think.
But even in some of the work, in just some of the trade, because inevitably there’s going to come a point in a project or a piece of a job and it’s like… Problem solved. We have a little bit of an issue right here and we’ve got to problem solve it. Can you come to me with a solution to the problem and say, hey, we have this. I can do this or I can do this. And these are the looks that it’s going to give you. Yeah. And which one do you like? Yeah, and I can solve this. That tells me that’s somebody who has the forethought in their job. Yeah, true. Sometimes, I don’t know that I have a great…
It’s not like a set of questions.
I don’t have a direct set of questions that I ask all the time. But as I have grown and broaden my knowledge base on aspects of the construction and doing specific jobs, I’ve learned little bits and pieces watching and just kind of learning. And it’s like…
Yeah, it’s something we do often for just character too. Is this person and the person of integrity that is going to show up and be consistent to actually help us achieve the goal? So sometimes subtle relational questions can help us weed out early on. Like, no, not the right person. Or yeah, I think there’s something there, which is important when you’re cultivating the right team and you’re trusting. Like it takes a level of trust. And sometimes you’re going to get it. Sometimes you’re not. I mean, I was going to say that plumbing was the way into that.
We had a job that we were working on. And working in this kitchen and we had electric and gas already ready, stubbed in from the previous design. And we weren’t relocating where everything was going. But in the process, with the new stove, we were going to put in the gas line where it was coming out of the wall. It was too high. It was actually going to cause us not to be able to put the stove in correctly. And asking, it’s like, well, okay, what options do I have? It was one of the first questions I asked. And it’s like, well, they told me, well, I can cut this and then I have to do this and this and this. And they could add more. I’m like, okay, well, what kind of line do we have run back there? Well, it turned out we had a, it was called a polyline. It wasn’t a steel solid piece of pipe. It was a polyline, which is very commonly used, especially nowadays. And it was a great option. Well, it dawned on me. Hey, if we have enough excess in the attic, can we just slide a little bit more pipe down through the wall to drop this outlet? And it’s right where it needs to be. Well, we crawled up there and sure enough, there was more than enough pipe in the attic just kind of laid out. We straightened it in the top and we’re able to put the pipe right where we needed to. And what turned out to be a 30 minute solution and saved us thousands in new material, wall costs, tests.
Well, it’s like the probing question of like, the first reaction often with a contractor or subcontractor is, oh, well, let’s go to the extreme scenario. Like zero to 100, it’s going to cost this and be this versus coming in through the lens of like, okay, wait a minute, let’s think about it. Like what’s the existing structure and what are the solutions that could come of this? And just getting people to think.
Not making rash decisions.
Yeah, I mean, if you wouldn’t have asked that probing question and viewed it from a creative strategy driven standpoint, they probably would have never done that. They just would have went in and executed with what they knew would get them the result versus the problem solving component that actually ends up saving money, saving time.
And this is also one of those situations where it takes you being involved in your project and not just giving them the right to make all the decisions because had I not been there or had I not, if I had just said, go in, take care of it, it could have cost me a lot more money. He could have just said, well, they said to take care of it, fix it. So this is what we’re gonna do and they may not have thought about it, but by saying, hey, we’ve got an issue. If there’s an issue, you call me, you talk with me, let’s figure it out. I took back the control of I make the decision. Ultimately, I’m the one writing the check. I make the decision.
Even if you’re not the direct day in, day out point of contact to be involved, you have to have the right team around you to play that role on your behalf and it should not just be your contractor or your tradesmen that’s doing the craft. You have to build a very strong relationship over time before you really start delegating that. Whether you have like a, in our business, that’s exactly what we do for our clients. We do it as investors, but we also do it for our design clients and we bring them a whole lot more strategy and representation than just somebody who doesn’t. And if you’re like an investor and you have a big team, you need to have the right project management oversight. And I would say it needs to be an internal person, not someone that you’re divvying out all control, all money. And yeah, because at the end of the day, that, that
That contractor’s out for their return from their company, not necessarily yours.
Exactly. I mean, that is one of the biggest mistakes that people make is they underestimate the fact that you’re actually the CEO of your own project and you have to step into that role and own it.
You hire the contractor, but they ultimately report to you. So you’re the one that makes the decisions and you have to keep the mindset of you are working for me and you can bring me ideas, you can bring me a solution to an issue that you see, but ultimately I’m making that decision because it’s, I’m the one writing that check, it’s my return on the investment that I’m after and not necessarily your company’s return. I kind of view a lot of it like, I want my contractor, I want them to make money, but I need to make money too. And your return does not get greater priority than mine though.
Right, yeah. And not everyone’s going to like that, finding the right people that work for you and just people you’re aligned with for your project because your contractor is not your coach. It’s a collaborative effort as a teammate.
But ultimately you’re the one leading the team.
Yeah, absolutely. You should be.
And approaching your project like a business, then you get to dictate and have more control over your return, over your investments, over what ultimately happens.
Yeah, yeah. I mean, just like if you’re working in a corporate environment, right? Like you’re overseeing your project that you’re assigned to and it’s no different. It shouldn’t be viewed any differently. Like you’re writing the check, you’re the one that’s going to be responsible, you’re the one, yes, that can make the money. And you know, people want to throw that out there. Oh, well, you’re making all the money. Well, yeah, but you’re also hedging all the risk. And so your reward is going to lend to that as well. And we’ve seen that over and over again with tradespeople, you know, like, oh, the illusion of like, no, they’re making so much money. They can’t, but we’re also writing all the checks. We’re hedging all the risks. And we’re the ones on the line. So you collaborate with us and you can make a little bit of money too, or some money too, but it doesn’t have to be a combative, like challenging thing. So that was bonus content, maybe. Kind of got off into a different segway there.
Yeah, your contractor is a teammate, but you’ve got to take the lead. And by doing so, you protect and you hedge your investment and ultimately take back control over the success of your projects. Yeah. So remember to stay in charge, stay strategic, and you’ll always protect your returns.
And remember, your contractor is not your coach. You set the place. They are your teammate. They are a teammate. So if this episode has inspired you to think strategically on how to lead your own projects and gain control of your ROI, make sure you like, subscribe, and follow along with Return on Design so you can get all the latest episodes.
And make sure to connect with us on social media and stay tuned for all the projects that we’ve got coming up.
Thanks for joining. See you next time.
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