how do i not get cheated by a home contractor?

Question

how do i not get cheated by a home contractor?

Answer 1

I used to be a Tin Man...I know how to answer this. Getting a number of estimates is a good idea, as the person above suggests.



However...knowing your own budget and the value of the service you desire in advance of getting estimates is the most powerful way to control the circumstances.



Try these steps:



1. Make sure your contractor has a few jobs under his belt. Its not that I want to dissuede a talented company from getting a start, but you need to know that they can complete a job. Obviously the longer they have been around the better.



2. Naturally check their reputation out with the Better Business Bureau (if you live in the U.S.)



3. Here is the strongest point:



Know the value of the labor and materials you want to put into the project. Here's how:



- In today's world you can take your sketches to any Home Depot, Lowes and most high end consumer home improvement stores and get them to estimate the materials needed to go into your job.



Lets say you are working on a new single car garage. Altogether Home Depot estimates your cost for a 24 x 24 single car garage to be around $6500.00. That doesnt include getting the slab dug and poured or the labor to build it.



If you have three contractors come in with prices ranging from $12,000 - $25,000 and you know the materials would only cost $6500, FIRST - you need to know what each one is giving you...and then start looking at why the high price is so high. If its high because they are giving you more, then have them re-bid it WITHOUT the extras. If its high for no other reason then they are trying to make too much money off of YOU...



- Basically, if you know the materials and someone can help you figure out what the labor would cost, then YOU tell the contractor what YOU can afford and DO NOT SWAY FROM IT.



So here's how I do it know. I know I've got a project to build that costs $5,000 in materials. I figure out that the labor is usually 2/3 of the estimate, so I do my own estimate (more of a guestimate sure) which comes out at $15,000. THEN I insure that I can afford that cost.



THEN I get the estimates. Whoever has the best experience, best reputation and comes closest to my budgeted number is the contractor I would choose.



4. DO NOT close on your deal on the same day the salesman calls on you. There are some HARDCORE closers out there who MIGHT actually represent good companies, but are only out to line their own pockets with your money with a quick sale.



The background language they use for a person who buys on the same day is a "mooch" - which means you are an easy mark to jack up the price and get a financed sale the same night. Mooches DO NOT know what things cost. They don't know materials, they don't know labor and they will sign without reading the contract all the way through.



Take a day to read all the proposals - MAKE SURE there is language in the contract that protects YOU the consumer.



If you do sign, DON'T FORGET - you have a THREE DAY RIGHT OF RECISION - in most or all states of the US. Meaning that the contract isn't even VALID until 72 hours AFTER you signed it.



Some of the old school tin men I worked for used to "spike" the job. That means that EVEN THOUGH the recision time wasn't up, they would pull a building permit and put it in the customers window to distract the customer from considering a contract cancellation.



Watch for strange behaviors like that.



One more thing I remember from my experience.



If a salesman calls back to the main office having a "discussion" with the home office, it MIGHT be real...OR...he is having a fake conversation (even if its a pretend one with his boss) where they talk about "saving you money" with some materials they have "left over". This is UTTER BULLSH*T. The price has already been jacked up and they are allowing you to feel a sense of false victory in "talking them down" or in their being "a bunch of great guys" because they found a way to save you some money....they probably DIDN'T...they are just trying to create the impression that they are good people.



NOW - I have explained this from the experiences of my youth, in the remodeling business, twenty years ago. This doesnt mean all contractors are bad or the whole business is one big con job....but it does mean buyer beware.



I got fired for selling too many garage jobs too competitively, but I utlimately couldn't stand the feeling that I was selling things at inflated prices to good people. I hated that.



Its a crazy business. Keep your eyes open. Your question here on Yahoo Answers is a good start. Keep doing your homework

Answer 2

Get the specifications of the job written in detail in the contract. Hire an building engineer to look over the specs to make sure they are reasonable or to write them in the first place. Have time constraints written into the contract possibly with rewards for early completion and penalties for late completion. If the contractor won't work under those circumstances, find another. The cheapest contractor often will not be the cheapest contractor in the long run.

Answer 3

GET estimates, ask for references and do call them, ask for the number of a client whose job he is currently working on or just finished and call them, check with Better Business Bureau to see if there have been any complaints, make sure you have a contract that defines the work being done, the materials to be used, and a firm completion date, and the most important thing - NEVER pay for the job in advance, you will probably have to pay 50% upfront, but DO NOT pay more than that. One final tip - cheapest is usually not the best way to go, if a contractor is offering a really great deal, you are probably going to get ripped off.

Answer 4

You know, where we live, there's a county service that sends out a book that rates the contractors in that county from ordinary folks who have actually done business with them and sent in reviews of their work.



Get at least 3 customer references from them and call their past customers to find out if they did a good job at a fair price. If the contractor won't give you references, then I would look to a different contractor that takes pride in the quality of their work.

Answer 5

In my journey, those complications are brought about by technique of the house proprietor attempting to get some thing for no longer some thing or hiring by technique of the bottom value in spite of capacity or recognition. there are a range of experienced, respected contractors accessible. they are basically no longer the most inexpensive and they frequently won't be able to easily drop each and every thing and are available over rapidly to do your pastime. do not ignore that you'll pay extra for an experienced contractor that does forte paintings inclusive of handcrafting some thing unusual or particular ornamental outcomes. Get references from friends and friends, and examine to work out if the contractor is listed with the BBB. he or she must be approved and insured on your protection. Get a freelance or an contract, signed by technique of you and the contractor. This contract might want to state each and each and every of the paintings that is to be done, who can provide the supplies, tactics, etc., and the timeframe in which the paintings will be done. except for a down price to purchase supplies, you may want to no longer pay for the pastime till that's done for your delight. in case you keep on with those steps you may want to not have any project looking contractors which have solid reputations because they do solid paintings at lifelike expenditures.

Answer 6

Get everything in writing. Just because you assume it is going to happen, doesn't mean it will, but if it is in writing you have proof of what you were suppose to get. Working in construction, I know 80% of all problems arise because a customer doesn't make sure that everything they discussed was written on the contract. Not saying that a sales guy is trying to weasel out of doing work, but they don't remember everything they tell people.

Answer 7

ask for references and then contact them. if they are honest they won't have a problem with you checking out other jobs they have done. also, get estimates from other contractors. and get everything in writing, what they will do and what responsibilities you may have. that way there won't be any mis-understanding later.

Answer 8

make sure you write down every single penny you give them and also make sure they tell you when is the job gonna be done, if for some reason is not, fire them as soon as possible and get someone else.

Answer 9

get many estimates from others