Do It Yourself How To Hire A General Contractor? |
Even with an architect or professional inspector hired to inspect the contractor’s work, at the end of the day, you’ve got to hire someone you can trust to do good work and act with integrity. So really ask around, check with the Better Business Bureau, and check references. Find someone with an excellent reputation and strong track record in the community.
Find out if the contractor will be on the job site regularly and will be available to you if there are problems. You and your contractor will essentially be business partners for duration of the job, so choose someone with honesty and integrity. Problems will arise during and probably after any large construction job, so it is important to find someone who you feel will act fairly and responsibly in resolving any issues that come up.
Choose a company that fits your style and personality. If you like a warm and personal approach, a small one-crew company might be just right for you. The contractor may be on the job daily swinging a hammer. The crew may do most of the work themselves and use relatively few subcontractors – usually better for finicky, specialized, or very customized work.
Whichever way you go, proceed with your eyes open. Be smart: . By that I mean, make sure the specs provided by the contractor are sufficiently detailed and complete and will meet your expectations for quality (you can get a second opinion from a construction manager or architect if you’re not sure).
Ask to see certificates of insurance. How to Find Home Addition Contractors Des Moines Iowa. Read the contract carefully – have it checked by your lawyer if it seems too murky or one-sided. Finally, don’t expect to the get the best job from the low bidder. If one bidder is significantly below the others, either he is making a mistake (often due to inexperience), is planning to make up the difference in change orders, or is at risk of losing his shirt and may end up cutting corners or even walking off the job.
Instead I look for the person I can trust the most to get the job done correctly. Often, the savings you thought you were getting with the low bidder later evaporate into the haze change orders, extras, inadequate allowances, and headaches. Read more on .
Start with your friends and family and then check in with the National Association of the Remodeling Industry for a list of members in your area. You can also talk with a building inspector, who'll know which home renovation contractors routinely meet code requirements, says This Old House general contractor Tom Silva, or pay a visit to your local lumberyard, which sees contractors regularly and knows which ones buy quality materials and pay their bills on time.
Based on the phone interviews, pick three or four contractors to meet for estimates and further discussion. A contractor should be able to answer your questions satisfactorily and in a manner that puts you at ease. Tom says that it's crucial that you two communicate well because this person will be in your home for hours at a time.
Check in with your state's consumer protection agency and your local Better Business Bureau before you hire a contractor to make sure they don't have a history of disputes with clients or subcontractors. Now that you've narrowed your list, put your research to use. Call up former clients to find how their project went and ask to see the finished product.
Even more important, visit a current job site and see for yourself how the contractor works. Is the job site neat and safe? Are workers courteous and careful with the homeowner's property? You have your short list of contractors whose track records seem clean and whose work ethic looks responsible.
A conscientious contractor will want not only a complete set of blueprints but also a sense of what homeowners want out of a project and what they plan to spend. To compare bids, ask everyone to break down the cost of materials, labor, profit margins and other expenses. Generally materials account for 40 percent of the total cost; the rest covers overhead and the typical profit margin, which is 15 to 20 percent.
Payment schedules can speak to a contractor's financial status and work ethic - How to Find New Home Construction Pella Iowa. If they want half the bid up front, they may have financial problems or be worried that you won't pay the rest after you've seen the work. For large projects, a schedule usually starts with 10 percent at contract signing, three payments of 25 percent evenly spaced over the duration of the project and a check for the final 15 percent when you feel every item on the punch list has been completed.
"This contractor is probably cutting corners or, worse, desperate for work"—hardly an encouraging sign in a healthy economy. Beyond technical competence, comfort should play an equal or greater role in your decision. The single most important factor in choosing a contractor is how well you and he communicate. All things being equal, it's better to spend more and get someone you're comfortable with when hiring a contractor.
Insisting on a clear contract isn't about mistrust, Tom assures us. It's about insuring a successful renovation. Finally, remember that as soon as a change is made or a problem uncovered, the price just increased and the project just got longer. The four most expensive words in the English language? "While you're at it...." Looking for more help with repairs around your home? A home warranty may help.
When choosing a contractor to head up your remodel, these simple steps can mean the difference between complete confidence and sleepless nights. Word of mouth-hands down, is the best way to find a qualified professional to tackle the job. Ask relatives, friends and neighbors whom they've had good experiences with.
With recommendations in hand, do some preliminary research, whether it's with a phone call or a visit to the contractor's website. Find out whether he or she holds all the required licenses from state and local municipalities, along with designations from any professional associations such as the National Kitchen & Bath Association, the National Association of the Remodeling Industry and the National Association of Homebuilders (How to Find Bathroom Remodel Near Me Oskaloosa Iowa).
Be aware, however, that not all certifications are created equal. Do some homework and find out the requirements. Narrow down the list of contenders and set up meetings. Try to keep it to three contractors, because things can get confusing beyond that. How a contractor answers questions is extremely important, but communication goes both ways.
Check ReferencesAsk to see some of the contractors' projects. If you approve of them, request references and call contractors' former customers to check up on them. Ask how the contractors did at executing the projects. Were they on time and on budget? Were the customers pleased with the outcome? Was there anything that could have been done differently? Remember that when you're hiring a remodeler, you are buying a service and not a product.
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