To celebrate National Home Improvement Month, the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI), professional remodelers who voluntarily subscribe to a strict code of ethics, is offering homeowners three pieces of advice for planning their remodels.

Long before the groundbreaking, homeowners need to make sure that they carefully research to find the best remodeling company for a room addition or renovation. The remodeling industry is rife with companies ranging from the inexperienced, and sometimes unlicensed, to the long-time established, full-service design-and-build remodeler.

“In today’s world there are a lot of companies going under, so consumers want to make sure whatever company they’re doing business with has a track record of happy clients—people they can talk to, projects that they can go see that mirror the type of project they’re looking for,” says Gary Marrokal, President of Marrokal Design and Remodeling.

His company has been remodeling homes in San Diego, California since 1981. His construction background, business knowledge, and 80 years of family history in San Diego, helped lead his company into the national news media spotlight for its award-winning, green-certified designs, and company ethics in the marketplace. Marrokal Design and Remodeling is the recipient of several awards including:

• Better Business Bureau 2008 Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics
• 2007 Market Leader
• Contractor of the Year / National Association of the Remodeling Industry

That’s why I contacted Gary Marrokal to provide insight on how to choose a remodeling company. We’ve all heard the horror stories about remodeling projects going awry and many of us have survived them—even if just barely. Hindsight, while it proves to be 20-20 vision, doesn’t help recoup lost dollars or fix a muddled renovation. Instead, knowing which important factors you should look for in a remodeling company can help your project turn out to be a dream remodel.

The National Association of the Remodeling Industry's 2010 Evening of Excellence™, culminating with the CotY Awards, is commonly regarded as the premier event of the year throughout the remodeling industry. It was attended by more than 200 of the industry’s elite.

Contractors from seven regions nationwide vie for the awards on an annual basis. Most projects submitted for judging were an improvement or an addition to an existing structure, with the exception of one category, “Residential Exterior Specialty.” Otherwise, new construction projects were not eligible.

Twenty-six national CotY winners were named at this year’s ceremony. Regional winners were announced in January. These regional winners advanced as finalists at the national level. To be considered, a company must be a NARI member in good standing. NARI members represent a select group from the approximately 800,000 companies and individuals in the U.S. identifying themselves as professional remodelers.

Entire House Over $1,000,000
Marrokal Design & Remodeling
San Diego, CA

Marrokal Design and Remodeling was named a finalist in the 2010 International Torch Awards announced April 20 in Washington, D.C.

Winners of a San Diego BBB Torch Award become eligible to compete on the international level, which is organized by the parent organization of all local Bureaus, The Council of Better Business Bureaus.

In 2009, 65 entries were received on the International level.  Nineteen semi-finalists were selected to advance to the next level of judging. Of those 19 semi-finalists, the San Diego BBB was proud to have one international finalist and three semi-finalists.