5 Simple Statements About home renovation Explained
No matter how handy you may be with the power tools, there will come a time when you will need to hire the services of a general contractor. It is during these very occasions that you will need a general contractor.
For every qualified building general contractor out there, many more are liable to botch up the job! It is an arduous and long road to becoming a general contractor, and relatively few are qualified. There are general contractors out there that can help you realize your construction plans.
Good references
The first thing you will want to look for in a general contractor is a set of good references. They can be valuable sources of references for good contractors if you know anyone who has had construction work done recently. This will also give you a chance to find out firsthand from the actual client how well a particular contractor performed the job.
You will have to ask around elsewhere if you can't get any good references from people in your immediate circle. Ask the staff at architectural, design, or even construction supply firms for any recommendations they may be able to give you. Keep in mind however that leads you dig up from third parties will be a lot harder to verify, so you have your work cut out for you in terms of making sure the recommended contractors can meet your expectations.
Track record of successfully completed jobs
If the contractor you are considering can not provide a list of satisfied clients, this probably means one of two things: inexperience in the construction field or a less than stellar track record in the industry. You would probably be better off looking for another general contractor company.
Qualifications
Your search for a commercial general contractor should not end with samples of his previous work. In order to reduce the risk of any potential problems, you should also look into his credentials and qualifications. Your first step in this regard is to check with your city's building code inspector, local business bureau, or builder's licensing board. This will allow you to find out if any complaints have been lodged against the contractor you are considering.
You should also ask any potential contractor about their license, as well as insurance and bonding compliance. Make sure that the contractor you are consulting with has the appropriate licenses as required by your city's building codes. Now would also be the ideal time to ask your contractor what kind of liability insurance he carries, and the extent of its coverage.
Professional work attitude
You will want to make sure that the contractor you hire is easy to work with. Remember that the success of the entire construction project hinges a great deal on the skills and capabilities of your chosen contractor, so you will want to hire one who will work closely with you towards the realization of the project's goals.
One of the biggest hurtles when thinking about building a new custom home or doing a large remodel project where a general contractor is required, is choosing your contractor. There are 2 basic ways on how to go about this process.
Choosing a contractor is the most important decision you can make, most times determining the success or failure, and improper or proper completion of your new home or remodel project.
The most popular way is competitive or pre-bidding bidding which says that you should get at least 3-5 bids for your project. Most home owners in an attempt to be honest with their potential contractor will let them know up front that they intend to get 3-5 estimates. Few people have any idea how much work goes into a new construction or remodeling estimate. Generally 30-40hrs, fuel for trips to the site and time spent on site, meetings with subs etc.
With competitive bidding basically this tells the contractors that you are shopping price and you would like to know, given this fixed set of plans how cheaply can the work be done? Imagine going to a plastic surgeon with this attitude!
Contractors make their living by providing you with your new custom home or turning your existing home dreams into reality and for the most part they desire to deliver high quality work, however, they need to make a living and need your project.
Another is for the general contractor to reduce his charge for overhead and contractors fee, which limits his ability to make your project completion his priority, causing the homeowner to think he is not doing his job and adds to people's negative opinions of general contractors. You want and need a General contractor who is using a proven and reliable set of sub contractors and is charging you enough to stay in business so you can call him eleven months from now and he'll still be there.
You've asked the contractors for the lowest price and in turn he has shopped the cheapest materials and subs and what you will end up with generally is a poorly done project.
So ... What should you do?
There is a big difference between hiring a plumbing company to clear you drain or a company to clean your gutters and hiring a general contractor to build your new home or do a major renovation. The attitude of finding a single trade contractor can in no way be the same as finding a general contractor.
You are hiring a person that you will need to have a relationship with, potentially having to work with for up to 6 months or more, not just a few inconvenient hours of one day. In a remodel they will be tearing up your house and basically living with you day after day. You need to have a contractor you can actually communicate well with, and work comfortably with for an extended period of time.
The Recommended and 2nd way to choose a general contractor is the post-bid, choosing your contractor and then having him bid your project. Ask all of your friends, fellow church folks, business associates if they could recommend a general contractor they have used and had a good experience with. Some good questions to ask of them is, what was the quality of their work, if they kept the project clean during construction, if they were easy to work with, as in how did they react to changes mid stride, if they followed their schedule, were they on site every day, did they stay on budget or have legitimate reasons or written change orders for additional work, were they and their subs
Your search for a commercial general contractor should not end with samples of his previous work. One of the biggest hurtles when thinking about building a new custom home or doing a large remodel project where a general kitchen design ideas contractor is required, is choosing your contractor. Another is for the general contractor to reduce his charge for overhead and contractors fee, which limits his ability to make your project completion his priority, causing the homeowner to think he is not doing his job and adds to people's negative opinions of general contractors. You want and need a General contractor who is using a proven and reliable set of sub contractors and is charging you enough to stay in business so you can call him eleven months from now and he'll still be there.
The 2nd and recommended way to choose a general contractor is the post-bid, choosing your contractor and then having him bid your project.