8 Tips For Hiring The Right Contractor

One of the biggest projects you can complete is a home renovation. It doesn’t matter whether or not you are tackling just one room, or you’re ripping out and renovating the entire house, it’s still a big job. It’s big enough that you can’t always complete this job by yourself, which means you need to be able to have a contractor on your team that you can trust. If you’re only doing a couple of fixtures in your home you might be able to do this yourself, but if the project involves remodelling, plumbing, electrical wiring, laying floors and updating walls? Then you’re probably going to need a team.

You would need an electrician who is aware of AS/NZS 3000:2018 and you would need to ensure that your contractor has necessary permits to get the job done. Your home renovation needs to go off without a hitch because it can become very expensive to constantly fix mistakes. When your home project involves a massive overhaul, you need to ensure there is the right level of inspection, labour, equipment, materials, knowledge – all to ensure your home comes out looking the way you want it to look.

Below, we’ve put together tips on how you can hire the right contractor.

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1. Know what you want. Before you can hire a contractor you need to know what you want. What are your projects going to be, and what do you need your project to be complete? You can hire a design consultant too, to help you to design a new renovation so that you can know the extent of the work required. 
2. Always speak to more than one contractor. You need at least three estimates for the work required before you make a final decision. It’s also advisable to meet all of your contractors in person, because this will help you to decide whether or not you are comfortable with them in your home. Comfort matters, so does chemistry and you need to make sure that you have the right people working around your house so that you feel comfortable. You also need to feel like they are going to get the job done. 
3. Never miss a background check. If you want to make sure that the team that you choose is compliant with the law and with the building codes, then you need to make sure that you complete your background check in full for each of your suppliers. The right team will be happy to provide proof that they are licensed, with the right permits, and educated to the right standard necessary to complete your renovation. You also want to make sure you avoid any rogue traders, which is why it’s so important to ask for license information.
4. Get some references. There are some specialists out there that don’t supply references on their websites, and that should be a red flag for you. You want to know that the contractor that you hire knows exactly what they are doing and has given a good experience to previous customers. Ask for references from previous work done, and they should give you a little bit of a taste of whether they are confident in the work or whether they want to put you off of getting those references.
5. Insert some boundaries. When you hire your contractor, you need to make sure that you put some boundaries down, which can include ground rules about parking in your driveway and on your street, bathroom use, if you have issues with any workers are smoking on your premises – you are within your right to ask about these kinds of things especially if there is a big job happening. Professional companies will likely approach you for your comfort levels, but it’s always a good conversation to have before work begins. 
6. Check what you’ll be paying for. You may have got a free estimate but what does that cover for you when the work begins? Check the list of things you’ll be paying for and double check it with a contractor to know that everything is going to go smoothly with no hidden costs.
7. Speak up if you’re not happy. While work is happening at your home, you will know if you have the right contractor because they will come to you with any mistakes or issues that happen along the way. You need to be able to communicate if you’re not happy with something, and the right contractor will be more than happy to listen to your concerns and action any changes.
8. Always read the fine print. It doesn’t really matter which contractor you choose, you need to read the contract and go through it with a fine toothed comb. A contract should include start and completion dates and as well as any information on building permits and fees required for those. Check your contract has this.