A Checklist For Hiring A General Contractor

08 Dec A Checklist For Hiring A General Contractor

If you are interested in having a new home built or your existing home’s kitchen or bath remodeled, do not hire any old contractor. Build checklist consisting of the components outlined below. Once you’ve found a general contractor who meets this criteria, you’ll be able to move forward with your construction project in full confidence. Don’t sell yourself short by allying with a general contractor who meets merely a portion of the checklist’s contents. A home improvement project gone awry can turn into a very expensive nightmare.

Work History

A general contractor who has established a footprint in the area will have solid relationships with local suppliers and subcontractors. He’ll also do his best to maintain his standing within the community by performing high quality work on your home.

Bid Itemization

Ask all potential contractors if they will itemize the bid. Do not accept a single price for the entire project. You deserve to know exactly what each general contractor charges for each component of the job. The itemized bid should include detailed costs for each element of the job, whether it is plumbing, demolition, carpentry, tiling etc. Imagine a patio project that includes a wainscot. If you end up deciding against it, you should know how much of a credit you will receive for removing that component from the job. If the contractor has merely provided a bottom line price for all of the work, you will have no means of knowing.

Find out if the Bid is a Fixed Price or an Estimate

Plenty of contractors float out bids that are estimates. An estimate is a red flag as it is an indication that a bill will end up higher when the job is complete. If the general contractor refuses to provide a fixed bid, find one that will. If the contractor’s logic in refusing to provide a fixed price is that the job has too many unknowns, clarify those issues as best as you can in an effort to obtain a fixed price.

Meet With a Job Foreman to Inspect an Existing Job

Ask contractors if you can head on out to an existing project and meet the job foreman. Observing and interacting with the job foreman who will be working on your project will provide valuable insight into his knowledge base, skills and professionalism. Take a close look at his current work site to see if everything is running smoothly.

If the contractor states that he’ll perform the job himself, find out if he will be on-site every day. If he responds in the affirmative, you will be able to hold him to his word as the job gets under way. If he says “no”, ask why.

Find out the Identities of the Main Suppliers

Contractors need supplies. They should have relationships with a number of local suppliers who will provide materials at an affordable cost. Once you find out who the suppliers are, reach out to them to check up on the contractor’s legitimacy, reliability and overall quality.

References

All contractors should be more than willing to provide references. They should jump at the opportunity to provide you with the contact information of past clients. If a general contractor directs you to look up his reviews online, it might be a red flag. Online reviews are often fake write-ups composed by employees of the business in question.

An Address

Do not do business with a general contractor who provides merely a P.O. box as an address. He could be a fraudster. Instead, only consider hiring contractors who provide an actual street address that is within reasonable driving distance from your home.