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5 Simple Questions You’d Better Ask Your Contractor

5 Simple Questions You’d Better Ask Your Contractor

Surprises are great when it comes to parties, gifts, or checks in the mail. That is not the case when it comes to construction projects. When you’re building the home of your dreams, an experienced and competent contractor is everything if you want your dreams to come true. Here are five essential questions you need to ask to ensure your contractor will deliver the job.
1. Are you licensed, bonded & insured?
In California, contractors are required to be fully licensed, bonded and insured when the total cost of a project is $500 or more. Licensing requires contractors to undergo a criminal background check and a basic skill exam pertaining to their trade. It means they know the building codes, permits and other legal requirements for your project. Bonding covers the job itself. Without it, you could be on the hook for any unpaid vendors or workers the contractor fails to pay for the job, or if they fail to complete the job as promised. Insurance will cover the unplanned incidentals: accidents, damages or other unwelcome surprises that may occur over the duration of the job. Liability insurance covers any damages or injuries that stem from the contractors work. Worker’s compensation is a no-fault coverage for injuries, lost wages and medical expensive incurred over the course of a project. In California, your contractor is required to have both. If your project costs $500 or more, insist that your contractor provide proof of license, bonding and insurance before you sign anything! Capps Construction is fully licensed, bonded and insured. You can view proof of all three here.
2. Can I see referrals and references?
The internet has made it super easy to do a perfunctory search on a business’ reputation. While that’s great for choosing a restaurant or a hotel, when it comes to building your home, you’ll need to dig a little deeper. Most contractors will readily provide references upon request, and you should absolutely follow up on those. However, you should take it one step further. Check on the suppliers and other third party vendors that your project will require to ensure your contractor has a good working relationship with them. It doesn’t hurt to also check on those vendors as well, to ensure they are reliable. This is also a good opportunity to double check the pricing on your project’s quote. That little extra legwork will go a long way to inform your expectations for the job. At Capps Construction, we’re happy to pass on references of satisfied customers. You can find many of our vendors throughout our website, like our cabinet and colored concrete providers.
3. Can I see samples of similar projects?
Any contractor you deal with will have examples of their work. However, not just any examples will do. You should insist on seeing examples of projects they’ve completed that are similar to yours. If you’re building a three-bed, two-bath home, you don’t want to see examples of condominiums they’ve built; make sure they show you similar homes they’ve built to get an apples-to-apples comparison. You want to see that they’ve “been there, done that” with your type of project. This means they’ve pulled the permits for such a job before. They will already have relationships with the necessary vendors and subcontractors. And this will help ensure your project gets done on-time and on-budget. Any contractor worth their nails will have such examples, so definitely make sure to ask. View the Capps Photo Gallery
4. Can I get that in writing?
They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. In the world of contracting, the road to customer satisfaction is spelled out in writing. Even the best contractors will promise you the moon to land a job, and that’s great, as long as those promises are clearly defined in your contract. Make sure any and all warranties for materials and labor are included in the contract as promised. You should also make sure that any overruns in cost or time frames are addressed in the contract as well. In addition to your contract, you should keep all correspondence between you and your contractor. Make sure they provide a written follow up to any conversations about the work. Even if everything goes according to plan, you will have thorough documentation to refer to so that your expectations become a reality.
5. Do we have the permits?
We touched on the issue of permits already, talking about whether your contractor is licensed, but it’s crucial enough to revisit. Your contractor might be licensed, but it’s not always a guarantee they will pull the necessary permits for your project. Permitting a project is part of your contractor’s job, and it’s your job to ensure that they do. You definitely don’t want any surprises if your local government official stops by your job site. Even if that doesn’t happen, when it’s time to sell your home way down the line, those permits need to be there to get through escrow.