How To Find A Reliable Contractor For Your Home Improvement Needs
When you want to renovate your house, no doubt you want to do it in the most cost-effective way. You may frequently want to do the home improvements yourself. However, there are projects that are best left to the professionals. They services can be expensive. Typically, the labor itself is two-thirds of the total cost of a project. With such a big investment in labor, you can see why you owe it to yourself to find the best contractor for the job. This article will guide you along in finding the perfect one for your project.
You probably have friends and family who have had work done on their houses by a contractor. Ask them if they would like to recommend their contractors. Get more information on whether or not they were pleased with the work rendered. Ask them if the contractor was easy to work with. Did the contractor respond to phone calls promptly? Were their prices reasonable? Was the work completed on time? If you have the chance, see if you can take a look at the workmanship yourself. You can also find reviews on contractors online, but there is nothing better than to get a recommendation from someone whom you trust.
All contractors should have a valid contractor’s license from their own state. You many find some unlicensed handyman businesses trying to bid for work. However, you cannot be sure about the businesses’ work quality because they are unlicensed.
Also, all contractors should carry their own company insurance. Usually, the employees of a contracting company are covered by the company’s insurance. If any any employee gets hurt on the job, the company insurance will cover their injuries. However, if the company does not have insurance, and one of their employees gets hurt working on your property, you can be liable for medical costs. So, the lesson here is, always confirm that the contractor has a valid state license and that it has company insurance.
Write down a description of your project, including any measurements and your preferred choice of materials. Then, when you talk to the contractors about a written estimate, always refer back to your same notes. You want to keep that part of the estimate consistent so your comparisons will not be skewed by too many variables.
When you get an estimate, be sure that is divided into cost of materials and cost of labor. The cost of materials should not differ too much because contractors get their supplies from similar sources. What you are comparing is the cost of service when you are comparing quotes.
The lowest bid does not necessarily give you the best value. The bid could be low because the company is new and they just want to drum up business. That is perfectly fine, but you have to weigh the risk of hiring a cheaper, untested service for your project instead of a more expensive but seasoned professional for the work.
Take your time with selecting the right contractor. If you make a good choice, you can rest easy that the contractor will deliver what he promised.
