Homeowners rarely get burned by bad doors — they get burned by handoffs, vague quotes and vanishing phone numbers. These ten questions surface all three before you sign anything. We answer each one for ourselves too, on the record, because a company that dodges its own checklist is telling you something.
The ten questions
1. What is the cabinet box made of? The answer you want is specific: plywood, real wood — not “high-quality materials.” Our answer: real wood, no MDF, on every line; raw edges shown at the showroom on request. The full material story is in our plywood vs MDF guide.
2. Is the quote itemized, in writing? Cabinets, hardware, delivery, installation, trades — separate lines. Ours always is; a single lump number is where surprise costs hide.
3. Who actually installs — your crew or a subcontractor found last week? Handoffs are where schedules and accountability die. Our answer: our own crew, the same team across projects.
4. If a part arrives damaged, who replaces it, from where, and how fast? This is the question online sellers fear. Our answer: from our Roswell warehouse stock, typically within days.
5. What does the written schedule look like? Day-by-day, with the countertop templating gap explained. Typical kitchens run 2-4 weeks with us; cabinet installation itself is usually 2 days.
6. Who pulls permits when plumbing, gas or electrical moves? The company should flag permit items in the quote and coordinate licensed trades — we do.
7. Can I see a real recent project, not a stock photo? Every photo on our site is our own work, including the messy middle — the gallery and the Alpharetta before-and-after are the receipts.
8. What happens if I find a problem at the walkthrough? You want a named point of contact who was reachable during the project — not a support queue. Ours is the same person who quoted you.
9. How do changes get priced mid-project? In writing, before the work, against the itemized quote. Verbal change orders are where budgets go to die.
10. Why should I not just order cabinets online? A fair company answers this without panic. Our answer: sometimes you should — a confident DIYer with a standard layout can do well. You are paying a local team for fit, accountability and speed when things go wrong.
How to use the list
Ask all ten of everyone, including us, and write the answers down — the comparison table practically builds itself. If two companies pass, pick the one whose answers were specific: named people, named materials, named timeframes. Specificity is what accountability sounds like before a contract.
What we’d tell a friend
Skip the company that answers question 1 with adjectives, question 4 with a shrug, or question 2 with a single number on a business card. And when you want our ten answers applied to your actual kitchen, the free design and quote is where that conversation starts.