Model Living

General

What is Model Living?

Model Living makes beautiful home renovations affordable and stress-free. We specialize in projects that increase the value of your home – bathroom and kitchen renovations, as well as painting and flooring. For each service, we start with design, helping you select materials that work together functionally and aesthetically by providing expert advice and free samples. For bathroom and kitchen renovations, we work off of our design collections – proprietary designs developed in collaboration with world-class architects and designers. We then pair these high-quality materials with the best trade professionals, and eliminate all of the dealer, franchise and retail markups, to offer you a premium renovation at a mid-market price.

What is Model Living's role during my project?

Simply put, Model Living is your direct point of contact throughout your entire project. We provide the estimate, help you choose your finishes, obtain building approvals, select the trade professionals and guarantee the finished outcome.

How is Model Living able to save me money?

Model Living is able to offer savings in three ways:

● Better labour rates: By providing our trade professionals with consistent work and handling all the details of design, planning and material procurement, we’ve been able to negotiate better labour rates.

● Discounted materials: Since we’ve standardized our renovation designs, we buy materials in-bulk directly from the manufacturer and pass the savings along to our customers.

● Lower fees: We operate with less overhead than traditional general contractors, painting and flooring companies and are able to charge substantially lower fees.

Can I use Model Living for a single service?

Yes. Model Living is designed to benefit those undertaking a full home renovation, as well as, those doing a single project. In either scenario, you will receive high-quality work completed at a 20-50% lower price.

Where does Model Living operate?

Model Living services the entire Greater Toronto Area. If you’re unsure whether your home falls within our operating radius, please reach out and we will let you know.

Where does Model Living buy its materials?

We work with many of the largest manufacturers in North America like Kohler, Benjamin Moore and Miele. As opposed to buying individual products at their retail price like a traditional contractor, we purchase our materials in bulk directly from the manufacturer and pass along those savings to our customers.

What if I want to do more than the services advertised?

We are often able to accommodate requests to extend the scope of a project beyond our advertised services. Doing so allows for one point of contact and ensures all work completed meets our rigorous Model Living quality standards. If you’re interested in expanding your project, reach out to your project planner and they will let you know if we can help.

I've already purchased some materials, can I still work with Model Living?

Yes, we can incorporate already purchased materials into your project. An additional labour rate may apply however depending on the added time required to install the new material. To avoid an additional labour fee and take advantage of our material discounts, we recommend purchasing from our supply partners.

How does payment work?

Model Living requires a small upfront deposit to reserve your project followed by three equal installments throughout the project. Deposits for painting and flooring projects are $100 while deposits for bathroom and kitchen renovation are $500. Installments are paid upon material selection, on the project start date and on the project completion date.

All payments can be paid using cheque or any major credit card.

Does Model Living offer financing options?

Yes, we offer financing plans to eligible customers through our partner Financeit. If you’re interested in financing your renovation, please reach out and we will guide you through the process.

Does Model Living help with building approvals when necessary?

Yes, we will collect all of the necessary information for you to submit to your building management. This includes, but is not limited to, all design plans, work schedules, insurance policies and city permits.

Are Model Living projects protected under warranty?

Model Living offers a 1-year workmanship warranty across all services. In addition to this, all materials included in your project carry their own manufacturer warranties. We will provide you with the warranty information for each individual product in the case an issue ever arises.

How does Model Living calculate its estimates?

We’ve developed a sophisticated pricing model that takes into account thousands of past projects to determine the labour hours required from each trade professional and the materials necessary for your project. We then use these outputs to determine your project cost, with no markup added for negotiation. Standardizing our pricing allows us to remove the bias and inaccuracies that lead to higher prices.

What is included in a Model Living estimate?

Unlike most contractors which only cite labour costs to make their bid more attractive, all Model Living estimates are broken down into three components: labour, materials and our service fee.

Labour includes raw materials and the cost of each contractor involved in the project. Materials consist of all fixtures, finishes and delivery costs. Finally, our service fee allows us to offer architect-grade designs, 3D renderings, product samples, project insurance, material procurement, project management, and bulk discounts on fixtures and finishes.

Bathrooms

How did you create your bathroom design collections?

We worked with Canada’s top architects to design our bathroom packages. Each bathroom collection offers a unique aesthetic and features thoughtfully selected fixtures and finishes from leading brands. Working with one of our architects on a standard bathroom design would cost between $5,000 to $10,000; we offer these designs to our customers at no additional charge.

How much does a bathroom cost with Model Living?

On average, a high-end bathroom renovation in the GTA costs upwards of $20,000 according to the Reno-Assistance 2019 Report. (www.renoassistance.ca/en/bathrooms/what-is-the-cost-of-a-bathroom-renovation)

By standardizing the renovation process, we’re able to build more efficiently, buy materials in bulk and offer designs developed by the industry’s best architects. The result is a premium renovation with an average cost of $10,000, 50% less than the industry average.

How long does a bathroom renovation take?

The average build time for a Model Living bathroom is 2 to 3 weeks. An accurate timeline will be provided once we’ve completed your home visit and discussed your renovation goals.

Can I personalize my bathroom finishes?

Yes. Our bathroom packages are meant to serve as the foundation of our renovations and are designed to be customized by you. Every collection offers multiple options for each fixture and finish, allowing for thousands of possible combinations. All fixtures and finishes included in our design collections work together both aesthetically and functionally to ensure a desirable finished product.

Can I make structural changes?

Yes, we can remove any non-load bearing wall and rearrange any plumbing fixtures. These changes will result in additional labour charges and extend the length of the project.

How do I know I'm going to like the design changes I make?

Once you’ve selected your finishes with your project planner, we will prepare a final design rendering to show you what your bathroom will look like. Upon seeing the rendering, you can make as many design changes as you would like. Construction will not commence until you’ve approved your design.

Please note that design renderings are only available for bathroom and kitchen renovations and only 1 is included with your project. Additional renderings are available for purchase at a cost of $200 (plus HST).

Can I see the materials before they are installed?

Your project planner will bring product samples to the meeting when you select your finishes. Samples can include tiles, light fixtures and small metal fixtures. For larger products like toilets, vanities or tubs, please let us know that you are interested in seeing them prior to construction and we will arrange for a time for you to view them.

Kitchens

How did you create your kitchen design collections?

We worked with Canada’s top architects to design our kitchen packages. Each kitchen collection offers a unique aesthetic and features thoughtfully selected fixtures and finishes from leading brands. Working with one of our architects on a standard bathroom design would cost between $10,000 to $20,000; we offer these designs to our customers at no additional charge.

How much does a kitchen cost with Model Living?

A high-end kitchen renovation on average costs upwards of $40,000 according to Reno-Assistance 2019 Report. (www.renoassistance.ca/en/kitchens/cost-of-a-kitchen-renovation)

How long does a kitchen renovation take?

The average build time for a Model Living kitchen is 4 to 6 weeks. An accurate timeline will be provided once we’ve completed your home visit and discussed your renovation goals.

Can I personalize my kitchen finishes?

Yes. Our kitchen packages are meant to serve as the foundation of our renovations and are designed to be customized by you. Every collection offers multiple options for each fixture and finish, allowing for thousands of possible combinations. All fixtures and finishes included in our design collections work together both aesthetically and functionally to ensure a desirable finished product.

How do I know I'm going to like the design changes I make?

Once you’ve selected your finishes with your project planner, we will prepare a final design rendering to show you what your kitchen will look like. Upon seeing the rendering, you can make as many design changes as you would like. Construction will not commence until you’ve approved your design.

Can I see the materials before they are installed?

Your project planner will bring product samples to the meeting when you select your finishes. Samples can include tiles, wood floors, countertop and cabinet samples, as well as, small metal fixtures. For larger products like stovetops, ovens or refrigerators, please let us know that you are interested in seeing them prior to construction and we will arrange for a time for you to view them.

Flooring

What flooring options does Model Living offer?

Model Living offers solid hardwood, engineered hardwood, laminate, vinyl and tile flooring options.

Can I get flooring samples?

Yes, once you’ve selected the materials and finishes you’re interested in, your project planner will provide you with samples to help you finalize your selection.

Is there a catalogue I can browse?

Following your home visit, your project planner will provide you with a digital copy of our flooring catalogue. Our catalogue contains over 1,000 unique options from leading Canadian and foreign manufacturers.

Painting

How quickly can you start painting?

We can typically start a project with as little as 72 hours notice. If you’re on an extremely tight timeline, please reach out to us at hello@modelliving.com and we will do our best to accommodate.

What type of paint does Model Living use?

We have a deep relationship with Benjamin Moore and offer our customers discounts on all of their products. For walls and trim, we default to Benjamin Moore Regal Select and for ceilings we use Benjamin Moore Waterborne. If you’re interested in upgrading to Benjamin Moore Aura or using paint from a different brand, simply let your project planner know.

Will you help with colour selection?

Yes, upon receiving your request for an estimate, we will assign you a dedicated project planner that will be your point of contact throughout your entire project. Your project planner has helped hundreds of homeowners in the GTA select the perfect colour(s) for their space and will set up a meeting to help you select yours.

Do you offer paint samples?

Yes, once you’ve selected the colours you’re interested in, your project planner will provide you with large colour samples to help you finalize your selection.