Sheet 20 / Before you hire
How to hire an honest contractor
Houston gets hurricane season and its share of severe summer weather most years, and every time a community has a bad week, a handful of people show up to profit from it. A contractor who takes a deposit and disappears, or who was never licensed to begin with, is a second disaster stacked on the first one, and it is entirely preventable. This is the same checklist we would hand a neighbor, whoever ends up doing the work.
Sheet 21 / Before you sign anything
The contractor and the money
Hire a specialist
Hire a contractor who specializes in the work you actually need done. A general handyman taking on a job outside what they normally do is a common way for a straightforward repair to go sideways.
Price and payment
Be wary of anyone who pressures you to sign the same day, or who tells you the price goes up if you wait. A deposit of 20 to 30 percent before work starts is normal in this trade. Being asked to pay the full cost upfront, before anything is built, is not. And payment should go to the company itself, by check, money order or credit card, never handed to a salesperson as cash.
Sheet 22 / Check them out
References, the contract, and getting to the finish
References
Confirm the company has a real, verifiable mailing address, not just a phone number and a truck. Check the Better Business Bureau at www.bbb.org for unresolved complaints. Ask for references you can actually reach by phone, and read the review sites, taking the good with the bad. No contractor who has done real volume of work has a spotless record, and that is fine. What matters is how the bad ones read.
Contract and completion
Be cautious of anyone who tells you a written contract will not be necessary. Insist on a complete contract, signed by both parties, before work begins. Final payment should not be due until the job is finished and you are satisfied with it. Find out whether the work needs city or county permitting and inspection, and get that paperwork in hand before you make the final payment, not after.
Sheet 23 / A resource, not a pitch
None of the above is really about us. It is the same list we would hand a neighbor, whoever they end up hiring. If you want a second opinion on a bid you already have, or you just want to check a contractor's story, the Greater Houston Builders Association is a real, public resource: 281-970-8970. And if you run this checklist against Envision, we are glad to be checked.
Sheet 24 / Start
Ready to talk through the project?
Bring us the house you have, or the lot you just bought. There is no charge for the first conversation, and nothing is expected from it.