Finding reliable Contractors and Tradespeople (we’ll lump both terms under the general heading "contractor(s)" if it’s O.K. with you) has never been particularly easy - now days it’s as frustrating an exercise as you’re likely to bump into. It doesn’t seem to matter any more who tells you about someone good, and you can follow all the conventional "rules" to screen folks and still come up with a stinker who does a shoddy job, takes your money, and won’t return your phone calls to boot. You’ve heard your share of horror stories about contractors and tradesmen / women and most of what you’ve heard is probably true. But it doesn’t have to be that way!!! While it’s not easy to find a competent, ethical, do-right somebody to work on your home or business, it can be done and that’s what this is all about.

"Real world" information on the subject is hard to find in newspapers or magazine articles. They mean well, but most conventional wisdom on finding and dealing with contractors and tradespeople is authored by boys and girls who write for a living and don’t have the advantage of hands-on experience in construction .... so their information’s second hand at best. What we’re goin’ to deal with here are cold truths that’ve been arrived at the hard way and, with any luck, we’ll fool around and come up with a process that will give you a realistic shot at getting what you’re paying for.

FIRST, it ain’t easy to find a good contractor. There are lots of folks who call themselves contractors, but many of those that do aren’t going to make you happy so brace yourself for an ordeal. Don’t for one second think that someone who arrives well dressed in a nice truck has a clue. They may simply have an MBA, know how the money works, and have enough sense to look like what passes as a contractor. They won’t be running the job, their subs will. In the vast majority of cases that won’t be good for you. You got all the "tried & true" avenues for finding a contractor including:

• Yellow Pages are real hit and miss, and flyers in your mailbox, or posters on a telephone pole, are usually invitations to disaster.
• Recommendations from friends and neighbors are a good start, but those referrals need to be qualified, checked out, and dealt with as carefully as you would anyone else. Watch out for the Peter Principle. I.E. if you want a room addition, be sure he has done a room addition.
• Material suppliers and hardware stores in your area are a possible resource .... check the underlined in item two.
• Engineers, architects, and consultants can provide names of folks they’ve dealt with successfully .... check the underlined in item two.
• Professional management people who work with contractors on a routine basis .... check the underlined in item two.
• Contractors you might know will probably tell you subs they’ve had good luck with .... check the underlined in item two.

So much for "tried & true". Folks, the absolute best way to find a good contractor is by trusting your instincts, using common sense, and educating yourself about what needs to be done. You don’t have to be an expert in plumbing, or carpentry, or heating and air conditioning, or whatever else by any means. But some time spent on research will put you in a position to evaluate what you’re being told by the contractors you’re interviewing for your job. Think about it. We spend two weeks researching consumer magazines before buying a $30.00 toaster, then turn around and spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars, on a project without exercising due diligence in checking out the person we’re giving the job... and we’re likely to give that person a third or more of the money up front because they ask for it!!! Not very smart business.

SECOND, be prepared with specifications and a budget if your job’s fairly extensive. Contractor’s can give you the price of what you want done, or they can tell you what they can do for what you have to spend. But ideally, you’re going to specify both EXACTLY what you want done along with a close approximation of how much you can afford to spend.

Professional contractors and tradespeople will appreciate you taking care of these basics, will be more responsive as a result, will quickly determine if you can afford what you want, will help determine how much of what you want is possible with your budget and you’ll have the assurance that everyone you’re interviewing to do the work is pricing the same job.

THIRD, keep in mind you’re lookin’ to find a contractor with an established business.

• Check at least a half dozen references by phone, and go to the trouble of looking at some jobs the contractor’s done in the past if you have a project more extensive than a minor repair. It’s always a good idea to actually talk with the people who had the work done.
• Ask the contractor about who he or she uses for materials and supplies. Talk with the contractor’s primary salesperson if possible, as well as someone in the supplier’s management or book keeping department, to see how they take care of money matters.
• Call the contractor’s bank to determine if their account has been handled responsibly.
• What professional association(s) does the contractor belong to? It’s good to do business with folks who take pride in their professional credentials. We think NARI members are good bets. (The National Association of the Remodeling Industry)
• Make absolutely certain the contractor is insured for both Worker’s Compensation and General Liability. Don’t take the contractor’s word or accept a copy of an insurance binder from the contractor. The only proper way is to get the name of the contractor’s insurance carrier, look the number up in the phone book yourself, then call and ask for a Certificate of Insurance. The carrier will be happy to send you one in the mail. It’s no trouble. It’s their job. IT WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE TO OVERSTATE HOW IMPORTANT IT IS THAT YOU ACCOMPLISH THIS PROCEDURE TO THE LETTER.

FOURTH, remember that the key to a good job is a good contract with detailed specifications. This means you get things in writing every single time you have work done stating exactly what you expect, precisely what you understand you’re agreeing to pay, and when you’re going to pay it. Forget doing business on a hand shake!!! No kiddin’. Forget doing business on a hand shake!!! No kiddin’. Forget doing business on .....

• The contract’s got to be specific. If you and the contractor don’t take the time to specify exactly what you want, be assured you aren’t going to get it. You may get what the contractor wants, or what your neighbor would be satisfied with, or what your Momma thinks best. But you emphatically aren’t going to get what YOU want. So don’t forget, the most important thing in the contract is that it specify exactly what you want. And what you don’t want. Like loud radios, or trash all over the place including your neighbor’s yard – (your job should be kept broom clean at the end of each work day), or strangers using your bathroom, or people doing anything else you don’t care for. To list what you want and don’t want in a contract, you’ve got to take the time to figure out what it is. Once again, it’s not good business to start a job without knowing exactly what you want done, and having some notion as to how you and the contractor are gon’na get there. It should take at least as long to specify a job as it takes to do the work!!! IF A CONTRACTOR BALKS AT DOING AN EXHAUSTIVE JOB OF DETERMINING WHAT YOU WANT AND PUTTING IT IN WRITING, FIND ANOTHER CONTRACTOR.
• The contract shouldn’t be adversarial or punitive. Well meaning people often include unnecessarily harsh provisions in contracts that are ultimately counterproductive to the final goal, i.e., getting the job brought to a happy completion. If you’ve done your homework, there should be no need for devices like liquidated damages. Contractors willing to sign contracts loaded against them are either desperate, untutored, or not worried about your being able to find them.

The point is, by job’s end you and your contractor are probably going to be less than real good buddies anyway. He’s violated your universe with his presence and / or that of his crew for much longer than you wanted anyone to hang around in the first place, and he’s charged you lots of money for doing you that inconvenience. It don’t make good sense!!! So if you’ve started off half enemies from the jump by virtue of a contract couched in threats and possible injury, there’s no way things are goin’ to go well as you and your contractor proceed down the slippery slope of going about the business of remodeling or new construction.

• Believe me, CHANGES ARE EXPENSIVE ONCE THE JOB’S UNDERWAY!!! Again, it should take longer to plan an extensive job, like a room addition or kitchen upgrade, than it takes to do it. Your contractor ought to be aware of this, encourage you to do a lot of thinking and planning, and should guide you through the process. That’s not to say he or she should do it … it’s better done by you … but your contractor should tell you where your leg work will be best directed. At the same time, a leaky faucet or stubborn window aren’t going to demand any planning at all .... just someone who knows what they’re doing. Like you, maybe?

The contractor you really want to do business with isn’t going to work for you, or anyone else, without a contract that conforms to the conditions outlined here. He or she is going to insist on going about things in a professional manner. Having a good contract is basic to being a professional.

FIFTH, your job’s got to be administered closely. Again, there’s not much to keep up with if all that’s being done is soldering a leaky pipe, or correcting a balky door, so a little common sense is in order. However, for more extensive work, the following applies.

• Somebody’s got to look at what’s going on frequently and carefully. No one’s going to be more interested in your job than you!!! Take time to talk with those actually doing the work. Don’t get in the way, but let workers know you’re interested in the work being done. An added benefit is that you’ll prob’ly learn something. As a point of interest, workers with good attitudes indicate your contractor’s up on his game.
• Whoever’s looking at the job needs to be real familiar with what your carefully spec’d out contract calls for so that he or she can compare what’s being done with what’s supposed to be done. This is real important, folks. I can’t say it enough so here goes, it’s a lot harder and a whole lot more expensive to get it right the second time than it is to do things according to the directions the first time out of the blocks. And once again, changes in midstream cost big bucks and make everyone unhappy.
• Periodic progress photos are a real nice way to resolve questions and disputes.

SIXTH, believe me when I say your job’s going to be a son-of-a-gun to get finished.

• The last 10% of the job’ll cost as much as the other 90% and is going to take twice as long to get done if you aren’t real careful. You don’t believe it. It’s true!
• Make a punch list and stick to it no matter what. If something turns up you didn’t see or think to list, it’s going to be small enough to ignore or fix yourself. When you provide a realistic punch list, your contractor will appreciate you and do a better job at the frustratingly elusive end of your project.
• Never forget, the last contractor who did perfect work lived about two thousand years ago. Your contractor isn’t Him. Neither are you.

SEVENTH, the total effort’s got to be cooperative which means communication’s the standard.

• Everybody’s got to know what everyone else wants and expects, and when they expect it. This is particularly true of the money.
• Everybody’s got to be on the same page in the song book.
• Everybody’s got to be pulling in the same direction.
• Everybody’s got to want everyone else to do well and be willing to help them get there.
• You get the idea. COMMUNICATION is the key to a successful job.

EIGHTH, you control the job with the money.

• Don’t give down payments for materials, mobilization costs, labor, or anything else unless you REALLY KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING. Whoever has the money, wins. Make sure you’re the winner.
• Don’t pay for work not done to your satisfaction because whoever has the money, wins.
• Set up any progress payments based on when certain phases of the work start, not when they’re completed. There’s no question about when the painting starts, there may be an argument about when the painting is finished. The rule is, whoever has the money, wins.
• Be sure to get interim lien waivers when you make progress payments and a final lien waiver in proper form before you give up all the money because it’s absolutely the case that whoever has the money, wins.
• And then again, you mustn’t ever lose sight of the fact that whoever has the money, wins.

FINALLY, don’t let yourself be intimidated. The last resort of an unprincipled contractor or tradesperson is to first appeal to your sympathy and, if that doesn’t get your money, to then become a threatening bully. Don’t go for it!!! He or she will easily be bested once you show some spunk. You might hear stories about a dying mother, or a child in need of medical attention, or a truck that needs repair, or an empty refrigerator, or materials that must be paid for before work can proceed, or a worker that needs an advance on wages ... the list of pitiful stories is endless. When this tact fails to lighten your wallet, there will then be talk of a lien on your property, or the implication that something bad is going to happen to you or your home. Stand firm. Make a police report if you like. Don’t be swayed. The bad guys will simply strike their tents and go on to the next victim who they hope will be easier to con than you proved to be.

BE ON YOUR GUARD, if you run up on any of the following.

• The contractor / tradesman wants to repair something other than what you called about, i.e., you want a sticking window fixed and they want to replace your gutters also.
• The contractor / tradesman is evasive about describing exactly what they’re going to do or how much they’re going to charge you. Remember, you need a contract with everything in writing as to exactly what’s going to be done and exactly what the cost will be. For example, the contract shouldn’t simply state an entertainment room is going to be sound proofed, rather, it should describe in detail how the sound proofing is going to be accomplished. You should also conduct a "test" before you make final payment.
• The contractor / tradesman is evasive about insurance coverage or offers a copy of his insurance instead of giving you the name of his insurance carrier so you can call and get a Certificate of Insurance mailed directly to you.
• The contractor / tradesman is vague about referrals or offers only two or three.
• The contractor’s / tradesman’s attitude implies that their time is "too valuable to waste" answering your questions completely. Be wary of technical jargon or hurried explanations that are hard to understand.
• The contractor / tradesman doesn’t belong to any professional or business organizations.
• The contractor / tradesman talks in a loud, aggressive, condescending manner or exhibits threatening body language.
• The contractor / tradesman is more interested in talking about, or getting, your money than they are in taking care of your problem.

• You control the job with the money.
• Investigate the contractor / tradesman thoroughly and check at least a half dozen references.
• You control the job with the money.
• If you don’t take the time to figure out what you want, and specify it exactly, you aren’t going to get it. A good job results from a good contract. Your essential contributions to developing a good contract are exact specifications and a realistic budget.
• You control the job with the money.
• Communicate openly and honestly. Don’t protect anyone’s feelings.
• You control the job with the money.
• Do your homework and get an idea of how things should be done and what to look for in a quality job. Your job’s no more important to anyone else than it is to you. Pay attention!!!
• You control the job with the money.
• If you don’t remember anything else, remember this: GET A CERTIFICATE OF INSURANCE MAILED DIRECTLY TO YOU FROM THE CONTRACTOR’S / TRADESMAN’S INSURANCE CARRIER, AND DON’T PAY BEFORE THE JOB’S BEEN DONE TO YOUR SATISFACTION.
• YOU CONTROL THE JOB WITH THE MONEY!!!
  • YOU CONTROL THE JOB WITH THE MONEY!!!
  • YOU CONTROL THE JOB WITH THE MONEY!!!

If you have any questions, or we can help you in some way, please feel free to call one of us or, better yet, call during our radio program, Saturday, WQXI Sports Talk 790 AM The Zone from 7 AM ‘til 10 AM. The WQXI call-in number is, 404-233-7979!!!