How to find and screen contractors

Question

Is there a place on this website that is appropriate to warn others about bad contractors?

I've used craigslist with poor success, friends of friend referrals with poor success again, and lastly good success with the contractor websites where they are accountable and have reviews.

There certainly are a lot of crazy's out there that are quick to take your money. What's been your best strategy to ensure you get a quality contractor on your job -- eg references, proof of license, pictures of past work etc? One guy showed us all these great pictures and talked a big game but turned out he was a 2 man team and was very sporadic and unprofessional. Didn't take us long to find out he was a joke, but unfortunately after I paid him for unfinished work.

Account Closed · Answer

Leland,Report bad contractors to the state contractors board.Here is an article I wrote on what I do to hire contractors. Hope it helps.First and foremost you are going to want to hire a GC with a good reputation. The easiest way to get a comfort level is to choose a GC that has been recommended by a friend. If you don’t know anyone who has hired a contractor you could google local contractors, building contractors, remodeling contractors, you get the idea or you could get a list from the local builders exchange.Once you have contacted 3 contractors, you will want to sit down and have an interview with each of them. You do not have to do this separately, your time is valuable so set a time and hold a job walk. This is where you meet with all three at the same time; go through your prints for a general idea of your needs. Depending on the remodel at this time you can discuss a general budget for lighting, sinks if applicable, toilets if applicable ext. The reason for this exercise is to give the GC a general idea for budget. For example a lighting fixture could be $40.00 dollars from Home Depot or could be $500.00 dollars from Restoration Hardware, this is why most bids will come with a budget for fixtures. If you go over that budget you will need to pay for the extra.A side note on this topic: Some contractors will put an extremely low budget number to make their bid appear much lower, this is why it is important to do a little homework and know what you want going in to your project.During this first meeting you will also want them to supply you with a list of referrals, if the contractor is prepared they should have this list readily available, if they do not that could be your first red flag.A benefit of meeting all three at the same time it will let them know you are serious about a competitive bid, they will sharpen their pencils.Before you adjourn this meeting take the time to discuss time frames, what are their availabilities to start the job. Set a date when you want the bids to be in by. Do not be afraid to put tight timelines on this process, you are anxious to get going and there is nothing worse than waiting for a straggling bid delaying your decision. Now that you have done this first step and the contractors are off creating a bid for you, take this time to do your research and qualify the contractor.This is the time to call the referrals, contact the local state ccb.One mistake people make after receiving the referrals is they don’t call. It doesn’t do any good to get the referrals unless you call them. When talking with the referral ask these questions. Was their work satisfactory?Did they clean up at the end of each day?Did they return your phone calls?Were they on time?Did they explain the contract thoroughly?Did they finish on time?If there were change orders were they discussed and put on a change order form and signed?Did you get an itemized budget for owner chosen items?Did they provide a valid state construction contractors board number?Before choosing I recommend getting 3 quotes, this allows you to see a range in the pricing. If the contractors are reputable there quotes should be fairly close to one another. If one is super high and the other two are close, toss the high one out. If one is super low and the other two are close toss it out.The benefits of getting multiple bids, it allows you to get an average cost and gives you choice. As you go through this process you should develop a warm and fuzzy feeling for one of the builders.In addition to calling all the referrals on each bid you will want to get a hold of your states CCB, (construction contractors board). You can google to find the states website, once there you can go to the contact us page for the phone number or you can find the link that says check a contractor or something similar. When you hit this link you will be able to follow the prompts and find out a wealth of information on any contractor.Items to look for: Are they current with their license?Have they had any claims?Have they had any complaints?I think you get the picture here, you really want to vet all contractors you are considering.You can also ask the contractor for a list of projects they have done that wouldn’t mind if you stop by and look at the work. Here is one thing I know for sure. If the project turned out well the contractor will be proud to show it to you and if the clients were happy and like the work the contractor has done they will be exited to show off their new place. I mean who wouldn’t? My wife and I just finished a 2300 sq foot remodel and are very excited to show friends what we have done.Now that you have received all bids back it is time to go to work a pick a contractor, by this time you should be having a comfort level with a least one. If this person has the highest bid you will have to soul search to justify the additional cost. Do not hesitate if the contractor you want has the highest bid, to negotiate. There are always places where the price can be shaved. A few examples could be in their contingencies, this is a random number to cover anything they may have missed in there bid. There also could be some additional money in the schedule, meaning if the project goes quicker than scheduled their general conditions for management should go down. Most of the time the spread in quotes isn’t enough to sway your decision.

Leland S. · Answer

Account Closed Thank you for your thoughtful response! For some reason I didn't catch this earlier, wish I did, but I was already in it with a bad contractor. Next flip for sure I will do the right process. I wasn't involved enough and took shortcuts with this stuff and it cost me double in the end and I won't make any money on something I should've had 70k in the bag.

Steven Glaze · Answer

Thumbtack is another online option. I have had good success finding quality contractors on Thumbtack.

Chad Clanton · Answer

Home Advisor is good for well-branded contractors, but not so much the less-branded ones. I've had mixed results from Home Advisor as well, but anytime you can get reviews, feedback, licensing, etc the better.

Joshua Howaniec · Answer

Dude use Home Advisor. You can get quotes from multiple contractors for your project, see thier reviews, and pictures. So I'll say it again; Dude, use Home Advisor!

Chad Clanton · Answer

Here's a blog post I wrote on the topic a while back. It's by no means fully comprehensive, but hopefully will provide some useful information to you. Contractors are definitely one of the hardest parts of rehab investments.