Renovating a home is exciting: As you prepare to upgrade your kitchen, beautify your bathroom or enhance your bedroom, you likely have a million ideas.
Implementing those ideas can be tricky, and that is why it is essential to hire a contractor who listens to what you want and helps make your dreams a reality. To ensure you create a space you love, here are five things to consider when choosing a contractor:
Quality
While hiring a friend of a friend might be cheap, the same could be said for the end result — it’ll be cheap. Rather, put your job in professional hands for the best outcome.
“Talk with almost anyone who’s ever tried to do a construction project without pro help, and you’ll likely hear one statement over and over again: ‘I wished I had hired a designer,’” architect Jeffrey Veffer writes. “Even in smaller projects, like a one-room remodel, once you open up those walls, situations arise for which only an experienced professional can apply his or her creative problem solving to save time and money.”
Look at a contractor’s website for pictures of previous projects to see the quality level and get inspiration for your project.
Reputation
There are several ways to investigate a company's reputation.
First, check out the Better Business Bureau, which uses Standards of Trust to set best practices for how businesses should treat the public fairly and honestly. You can look up a company's complaint history, business practices and advertising issues, among other details. Additionally, a business that is BBB accredited has committed to “make a good faith effort to resolve any consumer complaints,” according to bbb.org.
Second, take a look at Angie’s list, which has public reviews of local businesses. Finally, read comments and ratings on a company’s social media pages, which are often linked through its website.
Reliability
The No. 1 complaint people have about contractors is they fail to show up, according to Consumer Reports. In the same vein, you don’t want someone who arrives unscheduled when you’re still in bed in the morning.
“Miscommunication and mismatched expectations are the cause of most of those problems,” consumerreports.org says. “So don't underestimate the importance of a good rapport. Establish guidelines for hours of work, cleanliness of the job site and whom to contact when a quick answer is needed.”
Avoid problems by addressing possible concerns before starting the project. A reliable contractor will happily answer your questions and give you peace of mind.
Cost
While you obviously don’t want to overpay, you also don’t want to underpay because, as with so many things, you get what you pay for. A contractor who bids too low may be using cheap materials or taking on too many projects to make up the difference, which means your project won’t be a priority.
When you ask a contractor for a bid, request a breakdown of costs, so you understand how much you're spending on materials, labor and so on. Get an idea of what to expect with a free project calculator, like True Cost Guide, which shares local and national data on home project costs.
Make daily connections
As you can tell, communication is key to a good experience with a contractor. In addition to chatting with your contractor to get on the same page, draw up a contract detailing all aspects of the work, including a job description, start and completion dates and payment terms. Additionally, ask your contractor about any warranties offered.
“Once the work begins, keep in touch every day,” Consumer Reports recommends. “Email maintains a paper trail and averts those after-hours calls. But don't take the entire relationship online. … And if there's a problem, speak up. The longer you wait, the more expensive it can be to fix.”
Kansas City's premiere contractor
When searching for contractors, consider family-owned Wineteer Construction. It specializes in commercial and residential renovation and restoration, with an emphasis on beautiful design, high-quality products and skilled craftsmanship. For more details and to discuss your project, visit wineteerconstruction.com.
