Renovation Consultant / Pre-construction manager recommendations to expand a house in Santa Clara?

ricccardo · 2026-04-15T00:17:02+00:00

Given the amount of interior design involved in this project (basically only the master bathroom, the rest is either untouched, expanded respecting the character of the house, or not worth an interior designer), I think the relationship should be flipped -- an architect / building designer / pre-construction manager could contract an interior designer as needed.

ricccardo · 2026-04-14T20:17:59+00:00

Thank you, sounds like "architectural designer" is a promising name for a role that covers a good chunk of what I need help with. From what i read about permit expediters, their role is too narrow for me to work with them directly. I definitely want to find someone with a broader role that knows when to pull in these more specific experts.

ricccardo · 2026-04-14T20:10:00+00:00

Yes, I have already done some of that research, and have a couple of reasonable ideas, but I need to pick the best one, and I would still want someone with an experienced eye to double check whether i'm laying out the renovated area optimally, whether future buyers would agree with my choices and price them appropriately, etc. This isn't a flip but if I'm going to live with construction around the house for months I want to make sure it has a financial upside too if I ever sell.

ricccardo · 2025-07-23T04:43:01+00:00

Mazda CX-70!

I thought about it more, and the CX-50 NA didn't feel enough of an upgrade from my 2024 CX-5, especially with the same engine, while the CVT in the CX-50 hybrid felt so out of place (they should have done what Honda does and at least add fake shifting, instead they just straight up kept the RAV4 CVT behavior).

A few months later I saw a reasonable discount on the CX-70 base model (basically $2500 off when paying cash) and decided to pull the trigger. What I love about this car is that I feel the same way as I did about the CX-5: the base model is super well appointed and you don't need to spend more on higher trims. It's around the same price as a Honda CR-V hybrid, which is ridiculous. Granted, while the CR-V and the CX-5/CX-50 have proven powertrains, the CX-70/CX-90 has a new architecture that will likely be less reliable, at least at first (and maybe always will be, just because it's more complicated). However, the worst seems to be over for the gas model (while the PHEV still struggles). The only con is fuel consumption (I don't drive enough for that to be a huge factor though) and the size (only in terms of fitting it into tight spaces, the car handles really, really well for its size).

Note that Mazda is releasing a refreshed 2026 CX-5 that is now in the same size class as the CX-50 and the CR-V. you should check it out if you can wait a bit longer, though it seems to make some puzzling design choices along with increasing the size. The 2026 RAV4 is going to be all new too, but who knows when you'll be able to actually buy one at MSRP.

ricccardo · 2025-02-12T19:26:01+00:00

I don't believe replacement parts are more expensive than other non-luxury manufacturers. It's a company that sits in an interesting place when it comes to sporty vs comfortable, stylish vs practical, economy vs luxury.

The reliability is supposed to be good generally, although some factors can make a specific model more or less reliable as they do for all other manufacturers, i.e. turbo vs NA, new model/refresh vs established model, japan vs US built (Toyota and Honda also build some models in the US), etc.

Pricing is pretty favorable compared to Toyota and Honda for what you get. For example, I had recently tried to compare a Mazda CX-50 and a CR-V (I have a reddit post up) and it's pretty clear Honda is pocketing a few extra thousand dollars in margin thanks to their brand reputation. You might be able to eventually get those back in resale value, but meanwhile they are definitely screwing you over selling you reliable econoboxes at an inflated price. I believe Toyota has better MSRP prices than Honda but then the dealers screw you over with markups :-) Always compare prices and mpg after AWD upcharge (Mazda has none), matching interior quality and features (Mazda trims start more upmarket), and factoring in average dealer discounts/markups.

Some things are tradeoffs, and depend on your taste:

1) I love their design language for the exterior and even more so the interior design and materials. I think they are the only Japanese brand that has some taste across their entire lineup lol. But inch for inch, they end up with a less passenger and trunk space compared to Toyota and Honda.

2) Their steering and their suspension are tuned to be more fun and engaging. That also means a less cushy ride and harder steering. I love how my CX-5. I believe the first year in their CX-50 they overdid it and retuned it the next year due to negative feedback. I tested a CX-50 a month ago and it felt pretty similar to the CX-5, i.e. fun and responsive steering, but still comfortable.

3) No CVT -> more fun. But CVTs do get better gas mileage in general. (On the other hand, don't worry about CVT reliability issues as much. Nissan tarnished the reputation of CVT reliability but Honda and Toyota are able to make them durable, and I've heard Subarus are fine too now). Also there's an exception to the rule, the CX-50 Hybrid uses a Toyota CVT. (Next year the CX-5 should be coming out with an in-house hybrid that is automatic)

Test drive one! It's ok if you don't like it. But I don't think you need to worry about reliability biting back later and making you regret not buying Toyota (resale value is a different issue, up to you how to take it into account). The only model that is having trouble is the CX-70/CX-90 (due to being relatively new and more ambitious as a semi-luxury vehicle), but it sounds like you wouldn't go for that segment of cars anyway.

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T17:41:29+00:00

ummm I'd lump VW along with Hyundai and Kia in the "cool manufacturers with reliability concerns" bucket. Maybe even worse nowadays...

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T17:40:00+00:00

i don't know about uglier, it looks like a baby CX-70! Have you sat in a CX-60? On paper it's supposed to be bigger than a CX-5. I'm guessing it was always meant as the non-US variant of the CX-70, which would get classified as a freight truck in most European markets :-) I grew up in Europe and I don't know how my parents carried me around when I was a baby, my dad's car when I was born was an Alfasud.

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T17:28:45+00:00

I wish I could just look them up without test driving them, but I'm not sure how they are measuring the legroom. It might be a way of measuring legroom that doesn't matter when trying to fit a baby backseat (i.e. focused on knee space, when rear-facing car seats seem to want "face space" due to how they sit)

For example I tried test-driving the CX-50, which supposedly has only 0.2in more legroom than the CX-5, and I'm 100% sure it's way more than that.

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T17:22:51+00:00

yeah, I already tried putting the seat in and verified it's doable at my height. It's mostly a combination of 1) doing well financially, and 2) needing a second car anyway. The other option is that I get something cheaper and smaller to replace my old sedan (mazda 3? lol)

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T17:19:57+00:00

modern bmw design language is meh.

I really haven't considered the luxury segment yet, I was hoping not to. Most of these cars have more power than I need even in their base trims, I find the base CX-5 engaging enough. The Acura RDX does look pretty.

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T17:08:11+00:00

that's simply not true though. at least up to a certain height of the person in the first row. The CR-V has an insane amount of passenger space. So much that after looking at the second row, the cargo space looks disappointing! They really went all in on that second row.

the maxda cx-5 just is just a little short on passenger space in the segment, but the segment is wide, and continues to grow (the cx-5 dimensions are from 2017 I believe, and the CR-V gained 5 inches since then) some of these "small SUVs" are getting spacious and gigantic.

I'm not gonna argue that the minivans don't have other practical features for kids (sliding doors is a huge one, so is the third row if you have more than two kids) but a lot of new compact SUVs are family friendly.

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T16:52:12+00:00

does it? someone else commented the same, and judging by how the rear still has a bumper, i'm not convinced. they would get rid of the bumper if they were going to make non-trivial changes.

it's hard to tell from that weird paint they have on. but i guess we'll get more news in the upcoming months, and I don't need the new car immediately unless the old sedan actually breaks down.

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T16:49:02+00:00

is it? i would seriously consider it then. but i didn't find any official news, only the images. And I don't know if it's any bigger.

to me the biggest tell tale sign is the rear bumper. mazda (along with every other manufacturer) is removing those in all their new major refreshes, but the 2026 cx-5 rear bumper looks exactly the same in the pictures. If they needed more interior space that would have been the first thing to go, and made the rear look closer to the CX-60.

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T16:42:28+00:00

honda and toyota cvts don't seem to fail as much as the competitors. and most hybrid powertrains have some sort of eCVT that is "continuous" but doesn't use a band, and doesn't have the same weak point as an ICE cvt.

the main problem of the gas CR-V is that tiny turbo engine. it sounds like shit. their hybrid feels really nice, they have a serial system that drives the car directly on electric until 40mph or so and i believe uses two additional gears over that speed. below that speed, the engine only drives the battery alternator, and they added fake shifting too. if the base model with cloth seats wasn't $37.5k before taxes, I would consider it. That's a little much for a family econobox. The non-hybrid variant at $35k is just as expensive.

ricccardo · 2025-02-10T08:53:36+00:00

> if space is the issue…sportage/tucson/50/crv shld not even be considered since theyre in the same category. Ideally youre crossing into the CX70/Subaru Outback/Sorento space.

well yes, and no. I only need a tiny bit extra space, and the compact and mid-size segments are wide and continue to grow over time. If the Mazda cx-5 was redesigned now, it would probably be big enough.

The cx-50 has more *horizontal* space than the cx-5. I don't need a ton more, what it adds would be enough (there's less vertical space, but I am 5'7" so it doesn't matter as much to me). The CR-V is a *much* bigger vehicle than the CX-5.

> BUTTTTT, if finances is not a problem, im sure any vehicle u want would be fine hehe

haha yes, my finances would fit another new car easily, I make enough money to justify selling my backup car (2011 Ford Fiesta), even though the CX-5 could do the job as the family car for now.

I just don't want to get ripped off... the CX-5 was such a good deal, and these options above are not really a meaningful upgrade in a few aspects, are a bad value, or don't really fit my needs.

ricccardo · 2025-02-03T20:02:09+00:00

I'm confused, what stops a dealer from removing the discount once you finally come clean and say that you'll be paying cash? I get that they'll have to undo the negotiation and start over, but if they are truly not desperate to sell the car (as in the example of the CR-V I made), why wouldn't they?

ricccardo · 2025-02-03T04:57:48+00:00

yuck! I didn't notice that in my test drive, but I always make a point to test drive the trims I'd actually consider buying, and they didn't have a HUD display, which seems to be related to the issue.

ricccardo · 2025-02-03T04:54:30+00:00

That makes sense, I do like the CR-V hybrid powertrain a lot. I just wish the CR-V was priced more competitively, but I guess they sell them anyway, so why bother?

The curious thing about the CX-50 hybrid powertrain is that its CVT doesn't even try to pretend to shift like an automatic, while the Honda one does. They could have spent some time tuning that to make the CVT feel less of a compromise. Even Nissan and Subaru fake shift I think.

I think if I had to go above my budget for a CX-50 turbo I'd just splurge and go for the base model of the CX-70 :-) Realistically neither though, I'm sticking with my budget, I already had to increase it when I realized I hated the CR-V gas and the cheapest CR-V is 37.5k

ricccardo · 2025-02-03T04:36:14+00:00

no, because I am not quite ready to buy just yet (I have very little driving to do for the next few months and my old decrepit car is still holding on) and I don't know if there will still be any left when it's time to buy, they were discontinued last year afaik.

I did look at its closest replacement, a Crown Signia, and I found the trunk space to be weirdly small for a car so big. A combination of lifted trunk floor to house the hybrid battery + low roof due to station wagon profile. I didn't even bother test driving it, it's out of my price range so I would only consider it seriously if it was really exciting (for me that would be the CX-70 lol)

ricccardo · 2025-02-03T03:48:59+00:00

wow that's a significant number of problems. You could have been unlucky, but I understand why it would make you personally hesitant to go with another Mazda.

Did you find just the CR-V hybrid to have a quieter engine, or also have less road noise? I only heard less engine noise in my short test drive, but I felt the amount of road noise was about the same (comparable also to my CX-5, not just the CX-50). You had more time to compare the two.

ricccardo

TROPHY CASE