As part of any home sale or investment property upkeep, repairs will almost certainly be necessary. Those repairs can range from small jobs that you can handle yourself to larger jobs such as roof or foundation repairs that most likely only a contractor can fix for you. In that eventuality, there is a lot of time and energy required to pick the right contractor for the job.
There are many contractors out there and picking the right one can be the difference between a great experience and one that puts you off of investment properties or off of real estate transactions all together. These are some tips to keep in mind when you are researching a contractor to give you the best possible experience.
Be Clear And Be Explicit
Like most things in life, good communication can be the key to a good experience in the contracting field. By making sure that you accurately convey what you want, you can avoid some headaches later when things you believe should be taken care of in fact are not. By getting a quote in writing with a complete description of the required job, you can also be sure of what you are paying for.
Of course, to do all of that, you will have to know just what you want. It is hard to blame a contractor for work done that isn't to your satisfaction if you are vague when you describe your needs. Get a full description ready before ever contacting a contractor so that you will know just what you want done and just how to say it.
Do Some Research
This may seem like an obvious first step, but many people will simply pick the contractor that shows up first in the phone book or has the flashiest ad. Needless to say, that is no way to pick a contractor and some references or a check with the better business bureau can be great ways to get solid information on a contractor.
One piece of information necessary here is whether or not a particular contractor is licensed. While there are some small jobs that may not necessarily require a licensed contractor, hiring one simply gives you an extra layer of protection. In order to keep that license, many licensed contractors will go out of their way to please you in order to keep it.
On large jobs, this can mean a stricter adherence to solid work. A license does not automatically mean a particular contractor is smarter or better, but it does mean that they have gone that extra mile to get a license in order to project the image of doing quality work. They also have something to lose.
Set Up Cash Flow To Your Benefit
Never pay in full for a job up front. Never. There are certainly times and types of jobs for which a deposit is a possibility. However, even in those cases, the full pay off should come after the satisfactory completion of a job. You may have to reevaluate the type of contractor you've hired if that contractor asks for full payment up front. That is usually a red flag.
Especially on larger jobs, monetary penalties for work overruns can be a strong incentive for a contractor to complete work in a timely fashion. These of course need to be negotiated well ahead of time and penalties should come only after a reasonable amount of time has passed on your real estate job. A per day cost for every day a project runs over time is often acceptable for large jobs that require a strict adherence to a time schedule.
By going through a few of these commonly-used steps you can not only project the image of a person that knows the business but you will also end up with a better contractor for your real estate needs as well.
This is another original article by Joe Lane, co-owner of The Lane Real Estate Team at http://www.joelane.com/. Are you looking for an experienced Tri City WA Real Estate agency? With 20 years of service based, business experience, Joe and Colleen Lane work hard to serve home buyers and sellers for the Tri Cities of Washington's Kennewick, Richland, Pasco, and surrounding areas.
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