Questions for Vetting a Contractor

It’s about the relationship.

This dynamic can be critical to the flow of the process and can either make the experience fun and engaging, or stressful and difficult. You’ll be working closely with your contractor for an extended period of time. With the help of our very own Senior Project Manager and resident contractor, Alush, we’ve put together a list of questions to ease your process on as you are looking to build out your team for your project, and bring on board a contractor.

On a side note, it’s never too early to find a contractor for your project. You can bring someone on board early on, and use their knowledge and resources to help craft your project. You can also go through a bidding process once you have all the technical drawings and use that to help make the decision. Just remember, price doesn’t always mean quality and sometimes you get what you pay for ;-)

Happy interviewing!

Credentials:

  • How long have you been in business?

  • Have you done this type of work before?

  • What licenses do you have? Do you have insurance?

References and Clientele:

  • Can you show me a few references?

  • How many clients are you working with currently?

  • Can you show me a few of your past projects?

Communication:

  • What’s the best way to communicate with you?

  • How should I contact you in the event of an emergency?

  • I don’t live in the area, do you anticipate any issues with me being out of the county/state while you are working on my project?

Personnel:

  • How will my project be supervised?

  • What work do you self perform and what subcontractors will you hire for this project?

  • How many subcontractors, will you hire for this project?

Fees and Billing:

  • What are project costs of similar projects you’ve done recently?

  • What are your typical payment expectations?

  • Will you itemize your bid, so I know exactly what I’m paying for?

  • Do you anticipate additional fees beyond the project bid?

  • What are some ways this project’s cost would most likely increase?

Timeline and Schedule:

  • How often will the project manager be on site to supervise the job?

  • What will the typical workday look like?

  • What time of day will you be working?

  • How many days per week will you be working?

  • How often do projects like this take longer than expected?

  • What could make this project take longer than expected?

  • Do you anticipate any delays as you complete this project?

Security and Liability:

  • How will you protect my property throughout the project?

  • Can you tell me how much liability insurance you have?

  • Have you had legal disputes regarding your work in the past?

  • How do you typically resolve disagreements with clients?

  • What is the warranty on your work?