Home Improvement: Contracting a Contractor

 

The one thing I hear all the time is that a contract is for your protection after the renovation goes south. If we’re talking about financial compensation for a badly finished renovation, suing at the end of a project may not give you the results you want, even with an ironclad contract. The truth is, the paper your contract is written on is only worth what you are willing and able to spend to defend that contract in court possibly thousands of dollars. In the end, your contract could be a valuable tool in winning your legal case. Now the hard part: try collecting your judgment settlement after your contractor has closed down his company and opened again the next day under a new company name without any assets. I have a word for that and it’s not protection.

 

I really like this article for its practicality. I found myself saying, "well duh" at the end, but this is why the article is so useful. It covers very basic, but incredibly important areas of hiring a contractor, advice that could end up saving you thousands of dollars and a lot of sleepless nights.

 

I'd like to tell you that we never run into these problems, but as Realtors® who primarily work with clients selling their homes, the unfortunate truth is that both me and Nicole have heard way too many horror stories about contracting gone wrong.

 

Take a few minutes to read it, and the next time you think about hiring a contractor for a home improvement project, use this article to help guide your conversations before agreeing to anything.