Home Improvement Contractors

You got the home. You got the guy/girl. You got a couple kids. You got a nice car. You got the dream job (or at least one that doesn’t keep you up at night with a boss you’d like to mysteriously disappear off the coast of Iceland). But now comes the hard part – remodeling. No home, no matter how awesome it originally was, can live without a facelift. The reason why – stuff breaks down, gets worn out, becomes dated, and if you’re living with more than one person likely that other person or people have their own interests and will also push for changes.

So now that you know you need to remodel, it gets even harder folks – picking the right home improvement contractor. For some this is a stressful proposition. Tackling a “do it yourself” project is out of the question so the contractor is a must. But keep in mind, when you choose a contractor, you are choosing an employee. Make no mistake about it, this person will be working for you, so you need to put that employer/employee relationship front and center.

The first step in the process is to get recommendations. Likely you are not a home improvement specialist otherwise why would you be contracting this out. Recommendations in this business are critical, and there are several ways to go about this. First are friends and family, the most loyal of the bunch. Second is a search online for the type of service you’re seeking in your specific geographic area and then seeing if you can find positive comments. Lastly, social media, the typical players will do and if you can find in general more than 10 positive comments on a home improvement contactor on Facebook for example, odds are you have found a reputable one.

Some red flags to look out for are a lack of basic information (website, any review no matter how basic or a poor or non-existent social media presence). After you’ve found someone with a decent presence, a handful or more reviews, and good things said/commented by friends and family, it is time to start comparing portfolios. If your thing is a kitchen remodel, narrow your list to three contractors and look at their kitchen work. Ask each contractor for a list of their recent kitchen projects over the last year, and the pictures should come with before and after pictures to give you an idea of the extent of the makeover. A good contractor will also have blueprints and sketches so you can get an idea again of how they approach and carry out a project.

The typical red flags to watch out for on the portfolio end is no portfolio, no before pictures, basic or few blueprints, or a general reticence to share this information with you. Third, request licensing and certification information. This will vary by state, and some unfortunately are more transparent than others. Make sure whatever license they present to you does not expire within the time frame that you have the job slated for. Also, ask the contractor if the workers they employ are covered by an insurance policy and then ask to see said policy.

The red flags here are no insurance or again, refusal to show you. At this stage of the game however if you’ve gotten this far and the reviews have been positive, plus some good comments online and a website, odds are said contractor has a license and his/her insurance in place. Good luck, it’s a fun process if it turns out right. But a nightmare if you don’t take the proper steps.