How To Choose A Contractor

Do you plan to have your house repaired or remodeled?

Unless you are planning to DIY, you need to find somebody who will do the work for you. Settling on somebody you had a previous experience with (i.e., somebody who did your kitchen tiles, for example) is not enough.

Here are the following steps you should make to ensure your house repair will not give you sleepless nights.

You have to make sure that you are paying a fair price to the contractor who will do the work for you. Shaking hands with him after a verbal agreement is not enough. You have to put everything in writing in a written agreement or contract. This contract should have details on the contractor like his license number, his street address, his phone number, a detailed narrative on how the work will be done, a breakdown of how much will the work cost, what materials will be used, work program, terms of payment, etc.

Do not sign the contract if you haven’t read it thoroughly. You must both agree on the terms.

Ask for recommendation from relatives, friends and neighbors. They may have encountered a contractor whom they had a good experience with. Go beyond asking them how the contractor’s work went, but also ask them how problems were handled by the contractor 

If you are a contractor, do not go around peddling your job and offering prospective clients a great deal if they hire you on the spot. Make sure you have a contractor’s license. If you do not have a license , go to great lengths on how to get your contractors license. You as a contractor should know all the details of the job you will do. You should have a clear work program along with what you will charge. Completely explain the job you will do. Also allow your prospective client to shop around and get estimates from other contractors.