Our new house is an old house. And she has needed more than a little attention since we moved in. Because Bruce and I are the “stay-on-top-of-it” types, we have checked off more than a couple of repairs to our old gal in the last six months. This has meant finding and hiring a few contractors. We have learned a lot in doing so – some good and some bad. Today I’m sharing a few best practices that might make this easier for you the next time you are selecting a contractor.
Photo by Jacky on Pexels
Check References When Selecting A Contractor
If you don’t know a contractor for a specific type of job, you’re going to have to rely on some outside sources. The best one is going to be a friend or colleague who has worked with this person before. Or another resource is a contractor that you know and have worked with before but for different types of jobs.
Bruce and I needed a very large, dying tree taken down. It was leaning in the general direction of our house. Yikes! I called around and got a few estimates from tree companies that I saw working in our area or that I’d heard of. Then I asked my friend, Holly. Always a better move. Of course she had a “tree guy!” The company she referred me to had worked for her several times. I asked her a lot of qualifying questions like:
What exactly had they done for her?
Had they been on time?
Were they true to their estimate?
Did they clean up after themselves?
Did she feel safe having them around?
Then I called the company and scheduled a time for them to look at the job and give me an estimate. We hired them and they did a great job, by the way!
Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels
And Speaking of Estimates: Will They Provide a Written One?
This is really important. In most states a written estimate is required for a contractor to be paid, so it should not be a big deal for them. It actually protects them. But more importantly, it protects you! We recently made the mistake of adding something to another job we were doing (not the tree) without altering the estimate. What resulted was the contractor screaming at me in my yard, when I sought to understand what had gone into the total. This was completely unprofessional on his part. It was 100% stupid on mine. We paid him, but won’t work with him again. And we certainly won’t recommend him. Getting it in writing would have protected us even if it wouldn’t have made him behave civilly. Make sure you do it.
Photo by Mikhail Nilov on Pexels
Selecting A Contractor? Are they licensed and insured?
You might not think to ask this question, but it’s essential! If your contractor is not licensed and insured, you could have big and I mean BIG problems. Contractors who are worth doing business with do things right when it comes to running their business. And this means applying and paying for their state licenses. Paying their workers fairly and carrying disability insurance for them and liability insurance for you is also critical. This may make them a bit more expensive but it is so worth it. And speaking of insurance, god forbid anything goes wrong on your property while this contractor is there, your carrierwill not take kindly to contractors working for you without licenses and insurance. And they may even deny a claim for injury or damage to your home when you need them. Enough said.
Photo by weCare Media on Pexels
Finally, What Are Their Online Reviews
If you can’t get a personal reference you may have to rely on online reviews. We found one great contractor this way and a few pretty bad ones too. Online reviews can be tricky because there are a lot of ways that reviews and testimonials can be manipulated. Yes, his mother can post how amazing he is. And yes, there are services you can pay for to remove bad reviews That being said, if someone has a lot of reviews, with pictures, and their rating is still pretty high, your chances are better that they will work well for you too. You can also ask them to provide names and numbers of people they have worked for and call them yourself. You’d do this if you were hiring them to work at your business. Why not do the same when they are working on one of your most valuable assets?
No Comments