What to Know Before Hiring a Contractor

by Mike G. ,

The very first thing you should ask yourself before even considering hiring a contractor is, “Can I do this myself?” In other words, can I be the General Contractor and oversee the others doing the hands-on-work. The obvious benefit would be the money saved from not having to pay a General Contractor and his/her Subcontractors. But there are other things to consider, such as the many responsibilities entailed in being a General Contractor and the time it will take away from your full time job. And if you’re fortunate enough to find subcontractors that are willing to work on evenings and weekends, you’ll be taking time out of spending time with your family.

Furthermore, to be a General Contractor, you must have at least a rudimentary knowledge of construction or you won’t know if the people you’ve hired are doing a good job. Keeping all this in mind, let’s assume that you want to avoid a lot of hassle and save time by actually hiring a contractor.

Referrals are Essential

This is obvious but deserves repeating – referrals are essential. This one way to determine if this remodeling job has a good chance to turn out the way you’d like it to. Don’t limit this to just getting a list of past satisfied customers. Make sure you visit the homes and personally see the work the contractor has done and be sure to chat with these satisfied clients. Ask if the work was done on time, on budget, and if they would hire this person again for a possible job in the future.

The General Contractor is the Builder but Not the Creator

The General Contractor and his team are skilled in building, but you have to have the vision of how you want your room to look! You must be the creator and be able to share that vision with your general contractor. There are at least two ways to go about doing this. If you have the money to spend on a designer, this person will draw up a detailed design (based on your desires and specifications of course) that will be the blueprint for the General Contractor. If, however, you want to go a much simpler route, you can avoid the designer by looking through magazines that contain many pictures of renovated and decorated homes; House & Home, and O(prah) Magazine are just two such examples to find the layouts you want. Find the homes you like and tell your contractor you want it to look like this, and if you want add some minor modifications like a different color for the cabinets. A qualified contractor should be able to emulate the photo and incorporate any/all of your changes to that picture. It’s a good idea to get final drawings of the overall design so that you know you’re both on the same page.

Finances

Any properly prepared contract will include all the costs, not only for the General Contractor but also for all his/her subcontractors as well. In terms of actual payment, prepare to pay in increments. You obviously wouldn’t pay all the money up front (just in case he/she absconds with the money without finishing or even beginning the job), and it’s not feasible to pay the fee all at the end, since he/she would need the money to pay the subs on a weekly basis.

Once you’ve gotten the referrals, chosen your contractor, secured the finances, and have finalized your vision, embark on a journey for a much happier home!

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