Tips to hire the right contractor

When a contractor shows up to you door to offer services, make sure you get his name, number, business card. Next jump online and do research about his company, if you don't find anything that's a red flag 

Check their reviews or references, of you can do both please do

Once done that, you will find out how they handle job problems. Ask the people that hired them if they would hire again,  if is not an immediate yes then is a good idea to move on to the next contractor 

Before signing anything make sure they have the proper insurance for the job. At the end of the day is your home and you don't want something to happen and not be able to do a thing a bout it. 

When a contractor is referred by neighbors or friends then he's 60% a good candidate as long as he does the type of work you need done, you agree with price and more importantly you feel comfortable. Most of the time contractors are hired based on their price not their work quality and that is why in most cases it back fires. It back fires not because they are bad people, it is because they are limited. Their budget doesn't allow them to provide both quality materials and quality work. So they do either good work and cheap materials or good materials and not so good work. In some cases they don't provide neither one.

And in some extreme cases they are able to provide both quality materials and quality work. We are talking no more than 5% of them, just the ones that were the lowest by accident or take pride on their work. 

At the first sign that your project is not going as planned, speak up there has to be an explanation why it is getting done that way or why your patio is uneven or things like that. 

Sometimes contractors find issues as they go and they will solve them at no cost or they rather not worry the home owner, which in part is a good thing but on the other hand sometimes they will try to solve it and it doesn't work and that's when the real problem starts. As professional contractors It is their responsibility to let you know when new issues come up and give you a solution or discuss with you how that will be handled, as long as both of you agree you are fine. 

Make sure their contract includes; 

1. A clear scope of work

2. Includes and excludes items 

3. Payment terms 

4. Estimated time for project completion 

whether they ask for 10% or 50% upfront payment, make sure that you retain the other 50% until job is 100% completed. You don't want to give them all the money before they are finished for 2 reasons.

1. They will not come back once they leave 

2. And the most common one , they will come back to finish up but you don't know exactly when.