A guide for homeowners doing renovations.

Specifically - Hiring Contractors, How to Save Money and Disaster Prevention.

THE BASICS - CRITERIA YOU SHOULD LOOK FOR IN A CONTRACTOR

Literally whoever you hire, should have these basic requirements.  I mean, it's no wonder sometimes people get burned because this sort of criteria or lack thereof is a flag and, no offense, but if you did your homework, your chances of having a blown up project starts to go down.


"The Basics" Criteria



  • Insured
  • Bonded (Only commercial or bigger jobs like general contracting a home)
  • Writes a clear contract
  • Writes a clear pricing agreement
  • Asks for a reasonable deposit
  • Has a verifiable licence.  Red-Seal.  Don't over weigh experience, diversity counts for a lot.
  • Safety Record
Now there's a whole customer service basket you should look for too, but you only learn that after meeting with them.

Why isn't WorkSafe Coverage included in the basics?  Well it is but it matters more that they safe and the coverage clearance letter should be checked before the job starts.  This is a thing that depends a lot on the scale of the job and some trades - especially sub trades might not have WorkSafe because the general has agreed to pay for it.

"Extras" Criteria you should use to make your hiring decision

  • Check reviews.  The problem with this is that someone can have their friends and family all give them 5 star reviews.  Also, quite often the reviews won't be consolidated on one platform or they are repeated over several platforms.  Some reviewers are more harsh than others.
  • Check Relevant Experience.  There are major pitfalls with experience checks.  I'll list them in another article.  The point is, you need to make sure they are diverse, knowledge and experts.  Having done one kind of job doesn't mean they can't do another kind and vice versa.
  • Cost - but more importantly trust.  Don't get smart quoted.
  • Quality, 
  • Value,
  • Availability, 
  • Project Duration/Scheduling


Basically, make sure they have the basics, and check the big picture on the extras.  If they don't have the basics, that's a red flag!


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8 STEPS FOR STARTING YOUR RENO

  1. Decide on a project priority
  2. Find some features you like
  3. Research the kind of contractor you need
  4. Research the kind of plan maker you need
  5. Consider finding & including a contractor in the designs for big projects
  6. Develop a budget from the concept designs
  7. Tweak your concept and budget until it's affordable
  8. Continue saving for more contingency until the project is ready to start!

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