
Copyright: Advanced Renovations Inc
Finding a trustworthy, reliable, quality contractor to finish you basement can be difficult. After all finishing a basement is a big job and you want a contractor that has a lot of experience dealing with basement remodeling. There are a few things to consider when hiring your basement contractor.
Here are some basic questions to ask the basement contractor:
How long have you been in business?
Do you have liability insurance and workers compensation coverage on your employees?
Will you provide the proper building permits?
Will you assist with basement designs and create custom drawings for the job?
Does your pricing include all labor and materials for the project?
What is the standard warranty period?
How long will it take to complete the project?
Will I be provided a project manager or who will be the available for communication of any issues?
Do you have any references and jobs we can go visit? ( This one is very important )
Everyone always says “You need to check references”. I find that most people don’t. I’m not sure if they if they just don’t want to bother people on the reference list or if they are nervous to talk to strangers. Who knows. The one thing I do know is that if you don’t talk to people that have had work done by the contractor you are considering using then you are not getting the full story on what to expect. Take the time to call those references and pick the most recent ones if possible. Ask the contractors previous clients:
Did they do a good job?
Did they keep within the budgeted estimate?
Was it a high quality finished product?
Did you get everything you expected?
Did they finish the project on time?
Did they keep the jobsite as clean as possible? ( They should be treating your home like their own )
Were their workers and subcontractors friendly and polite? ( They should treat your family with kindness and respect )
Would you use them again?
and last
Can I come to see the finished basement job?
Some people will not want a stranger coming into their home to see their basement. My experience is if the homeowners are happy with the quality and they like the contractor they used they will be more than happy to have you over to see the finished project.
These tips should help you narrow you search down to a few good contractors. Good luck.
For more information on basement remodeling visit BasementSource.com