Hiring the Perfect Contractor

Welcome to this months edition of Remodeling Success Tips. In this edition we will be looking at how to hire your perfect contractor.

But first, I would llike to apologize for getting this months out so late. I have received many requests to put my ezine and website information into a book format for those who prefer to read off line.

So in May I started working on my first E-book. I will try not to let it interrupt the timing of my newletter in the future.

So who is your perfect contractor? Well that depends on a lot of factors.

Yes of course there is the typical information that you can find on every remodeling website in existance including my own. And we will cover those as well as they are important.

But just as important is the emotional experience. This is one area where a project can go astray as the fit between homeowner and contractor is not a good one.

Table of Contents

So how do you hire the perfect contractor?

1. More Than Numbers
2. The Breakdown
3. The Nuts & Bolts

More Than Just Numbers

Discuss it in terms of priority.

If budget is most important than make that known right then and there. If it is quality or time do the same.

Construction is made up of those three items that basically will make a homeowner happy and deem the project a success.

Rarely are all three available. Usually two out of the three can be achieved successfully but rarely ever all three.

So think about these three things time, quality and money.

And decide which two are most important and out of them which is the highest priority.

The Breakdown

If you pick quality and time, than you can expect it will cost you a bit more as the energy and effort to maintain top quality while keeping to a tight schedule is high.

If quality and money is what you are after, then chances are you may have to scale back your scope a bit. The two of these often appear opposite each other.

The Nuts & Bolts

Here is a list of 10 questions to ask.

1. How long has your business been in existance?
2. Do you have a contractors license?
3. Do you have Workman's Compensation and General Liability insurance?
4. Have you done similar type projects to ours?
5. Can we call previous customers?
6. Can we visit their projects?
7. Will you be obtaining a building permit?
8. What type of contract will we be working with?
9. How will we be billed and what are your terms?
10. Will you provide a written schedule?

These questions or better yet the answers should give you a good understanding of their operation and if they are a good fit.

Just remember, no matter the credentials, if it doesn't feel like a good match then it probably isn't and you may end up with an unpleasant experience.

In our next newsletter, we will take a look at Holding Effective Meetings.

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Until then, Happy Remodeling!