Our Services
Construction consulting and homeowner representation services
Every homeowner's situation is unique. Find the service that fits where you are — or start with a personal consultation and I'll help you get clarity. Every service is delivered remotely, so we can work together wherever your project is. When a project calls for an on-site visit, that can be arranged anywhere in the country — travel is a straightforward add-on, and a minor one next to the cost of the project itself.
How to choose the right service
Not sure where to start?
Project Clarity Session
Best first step when you need direction.
Need a second opinion before approving documents?
Design & Document Review
Best before signing off on plans, specifications, or finishes.
Need help understanding costs?
Change Order & Invoice Review
Best before approving bids, invoices, or unexpected costs.
Managing the project yourself but want expert backup?
Owner-Side Project Oversight
Best when you want guidance while staying in control.
Want high-touch support throughout the project?
Full-Service Owner’s Representation
Best when you want an owner's representative involved from planning to punch list.
Project Clarity Session
Clarity before you commit.
A 45–60 minute recorded video call with an expert consultant. You share your situation beforehand, we help you understand your options, risks, and priorities, and you receive a written summary with recommended next steps. This call is advisory — we help you understand what to ask, what to verify, and what decisions may require licensed professional input. For larger renovations and custom builds, the Project Clarity Session is also the natural first step toward ongoing Owner-Side Oversight.
- 45–60 min recorded video call with your consultant
- Pre-call intake to share project context and key questions
- Review of risks, gaps, and priorities from an owner's perspective
- Written summary and recommended next steps delivered afterward
- Credit applicable toward any full-service package
Advisory and coordination support only. MEAA does not replace licensed contractors, architects, engineers, inspectors, or permit professionals.
Design & Document Review
Know what you're approving before you sign.
A thorough owner-side review of architectural drawings, interior design specifications, and finish schedules to help you understand what you're approving, identify possible gaps or conflicts, and prepare the right questions before construction begins. This review is for coordination and owner decision support only and does not replace the architect, engineer, contractor, or other licensed professional.
- Owner-side review of architectural plans and elevations for coordination and clarity
- Assessment of specifications and material schedules
- Identification of coordination gaps or omissions
- Budget risk observations
- Written review report with action items and questions to raise with your design team
Advisory and coordination support only. MEAA does not replace licensed contractors, architects, engineers, inspectors, or permit professionals.
Change Order & Invoice Review
Know what you're approving before you pay.
Structured analysis of contractor bids, proposals, change orders, and invoices to help you understand what you're being charged for — and whether it appears reasonable, clearly supported, and aligned with the agreed scope. Know what you're approving before you sign.
- Bid alignment and scope comparison across proposals
- Contractor qualification and reference review support
- Change order and invoice analysis
- Fee and exclusion review
- Written summary with observations and recommended questions to raise with your contractor
Advisory and coordination support only. MEAA does not replace licensed contractors, architects, engineers, inspectors, or permit professionals.
Owner-Side Project Oversight
Your expert on call — you stay in charge.
You're coordinating your own project, but you don't have to do it alone. We're your expert advisor in the background — reviewing progress, helping you evaluate change orders, flagging issues, and giving you the clarity to make confident decisions. You coordinate; we guide. MEAA provides observations and recommendations to you, the homeowner, and does not direct contractor means, methods, sequencing, or field work.
- Bi-weekly progress reviews and milestone check-ins
- Site visit observations by photo and video submission
- Change order and invoice evaluation to help you decide before approving
- Issue flagging and resolution recommendations
- Guidance on questions to raise with your contractor
Advisory and coordination support only. MEAA does not replace licensed contractors, architects, engineers, inspectors, or permit professionals.
Full-Service Owner’s Representation
Your representative from planning to punch list.
We step in as your homeowner representative — attending key meetings, coordinating communication with your design team and contractor, reviewing documents, tracking open issues, and helping you stay informed before decisions are made. You remain the decision-maker; we help represent your interests throughout the process and track the details, coordinate communication, and help you stay on top of the issues that homeowners often do not have time to manage alone.
- Active coordination of communication with your architect, designer, and contractor — on your behalf
- Attendance and notes at key project meetings and milestones
- Document review: drawings, specifications, contracts, and submittals
- Bid evaluation and contractor selection support
- Site visit observations by photo and video submission throughout construction
- Change order and invoice review
- Regular reporting, issue tracking, and post-construction punch list support
Advisory and coordination support only. MEAA does not replace licensed contractors, architects, engineers, inspectors, or permit professionals. All final project decisions remain with the homeowner and the appropriate licensed professionals.
From Twenty Years on Site
Patterns I see again and again
These are the situations that come up most often on residential projects, drawn from twenty years of industry experience rather than from any one project or client.
I have almost never seen three proposals written to the same scope. Homeowners line them up, choose the lowest, and discover in month four that the low bid simply had less in it — a smaller tile allowance, fixtures excluded, demolition priced as an allowance rather than a number. Comparing bids means rebuilding them to a common scope first. That's the work.
A design set arrives, the team asks for sign-off, and the homeowner signs because they trust the people they hired. The approval is what gets built, and the coordination gaps inside it don't surface until a trade is standing in the room asking which drawing to follow.
Something is different from what was understood. There's a number attached and a reason it needs approval today so work doesn't stop. That pressure is usually real. It's also the worst possible condition for evaluating whether the number is right and whether the change was already covered by the contract.
Billing arrives in a format that doesn't map to the contract, and the homeowner has no practical way to verify what was completed against what's being charged. The question isn't whether anyone is acting in bad faith. It's that nobody on the owner's side is set up to check.
MEAA Consulting provides homeowner representation, construction consulting, project review, and coordination support. MEAA does not perform construction work, act as a licensed contractor, provide architectural or engineering services, provide code inspections, act as a public insurance adjuster, or replace any licensed professional required by state or local law. All final project decisions remain with the homeowner and the appropriate licensed professionals. Where licensed professionals, permits, inspections, engineering, architectural services, or insurance claim representation are required, the homeowner remains responsible for engaging the appropriate licensed provider.