A clearer starting point.
From one owner to another.

01 · The experience

The questions started while I was building my own house.

I built my own house. The hard part was finding the right people, asking useful questions, and knowing which information I could trust.

I searched government records, contractor websites, reviews, forums, and industry documents. Each source gave me part of the picture. I still needed to understand what that information meant for my project.

“The hard part was finding the right people, asking useful questions, and knowing which information I could trust.”

AI was useful sometimes. It also invented facts, reached conclusions the sources did not support, and tended to agree with the way I asked the question. An answer that sounded convincing still needed to be checked.

02 · The idea

A place for the information I needed.

So I built PrepareToBuild.info to keep the sources, questions, and checklists I needed in one place. The aim is to help you understand what you have checked and what still needs an answer.

Project guides explain the decisions at each stage. Checklists help you prepare questions. Contractor profiles give you a way to investigate relevant project experience before you decide who to contact.

Start with the ADU project steps, learn how to compare bids and scopes, or explore contractors by project and location.

03 · The owners

For owners learning as they go.

This site is for people planning an ADU (an additional home on a residential property), a new single-family home, or a restaurant tenant improvement in California. A tenant improvement means changing the inside of an existing commercial space for your restaurant.

You may have an idea, a set of drawings, or a project already under construction. The questions change with each stage. The ADU overview brings the steps together, and City ADU Rules helps you find local requirements and official contacts.

The website provides public information and contractor research. Private project accounting, payment records, and collaboration belong in a separate product.

04 · The approach

How we handle information.

You should be able to understand where information comes from and what it can tell you. These principles guide our contractor profiles, project guides, and checklists.

Your choice stays yours.

The site does not choose a contractor for you. Use project history to prepare conversations, compare relevant experience, and decide what to check next.

Experience needs context.

Public records, published information, and site analysis are labeled separately. Google and Yelp reviews are not used to select listed contractors or assess their project experience.

Rules and facts can change.

Changing facts show their source, coverage limits, and last-reviewed date. Check local requirements with the responsible City or County department for your property.

Corrections have a place.

If you find an error, request a documented correction. Include the page and the source that supports the change.

Project Analysis stays separate.

Project Analysis stays separate from contractor profiles, so you can understand which information describes a company and which relates to your own project.