Rehab and Contractor Tips

[Cale Delaney]

I see a lot of stories about how rehab typically takes a lot longer and is more costly than people anticipated. I work for a very large contractor (commercial restoration and strengthening) and wanted to share some things that I think people need to do when hiring a contractor to help prevent some of this:

1. Read the contract. You’d be surprised how many people don’t even take this step. Remember that during contract negotiation is when you have the most leverage if they want the job so here is your chance to put in terms you want.

2. Have an agreed upon schedule beforehand, not just a duration. Make them give you an actual schedule and include it as part of the contract.

3. Include liquidated damages in the contract. This should be enough to cover your daily holding costs for any delays. Should the schedule extend as a result of the contractor falling behind you can charge them a daily fee. That way you don’t lose money on holding it for delays.

4. Make them give you an itemized schedule of values prior to starting. This is a line by line list of each major work item with a value. This way you can confirm what they are billing for is complete.

5. Don’t pay upfront!!!

6. Make sure they are required to get your approval on any finishes or fixtures prior to installation.

7. If you are local or have a local person that can inspect the work, make payment contingent upon approval of your inspection.

8. Require weekly project updates and how their progress compares to the original schedule.

9. If there are change orders, request backup and a breakdown of how they arrived at the costs. Remember, you can always negotiate.

10. Always, always include at least a 20% contingency on your budget. Things do come up in rehab.

I hope this helps some people!