Are you looking to hire a contractor in calgary for your home building project? If so, then pay attention, because what I’m about to share with you could save you from countless hours of stress and aggravation, and thousands of dollars of wasted money. In this video, I’m going to share with you a true story about a couple who got mixed up with a bad contractor in calgary, and with countless hours of litigation and attorney fees still ahead of them, their end is no where in sight. But then, I’ll show you the 5 steps that may have prevented this whole thing from ever happening. So stay tuned. Imagine the thrill of moving into your newly remodel, or newly built home. That feeling of living out of boxes or in a small space during construction is finally over. Your excitement keeps building as you get each space just as you want it. And you’re looking forward to getting completely settled in so you can get back to your “normal” life style. But those thoughts are quickly halted by the smell of sewer in your bathroom, tripping electrical circuits, a driveway that’s sinking, and a basement that appears to act better as a swimming pool than a basement.
Remember that excitement you were feeling, it’s no more. And then imagine the sound of endless ringing in your ear as you keep trying to call your contractor in calgary who at this point has no plan on returning your calls. So you start thinking, how am I going to fix this? And more importantly, how much is this going to cost me? It was due to this kind of moment, that I got a phone call asking for help. With the collaboration of myself and a few other experts, we uncovered an extensive list of repairs needed to bring this home up to standards safe for living. To give you some perspective, the original house cost around three hundred and thirty thousand dollars to build, and our estimated cost of repairs were just over two hundred thousand dollars.
So what should YOU do to make sure this scenario doesn’t happen to you? With over fifteen thousand hours of contracting under my belt, I’ve put together five steps that I recommend when hiring a contractor in calgary, here they are. Step one, get multiple estimates despite a best friends referral… What this means… is no matter how great the experience was for your friend… it doesn’t always translate into a great experience for you. But getting multiple estimates helps with a few things. First it helps you to better understand the market… specially with pricing. Next, It shows who is over charging, who is under charging just to get their foot in the door, and who is somewhere in the middle. So for example, A close friend of mine just told me today about 3 very different estimates to build a new home. Now one price came in at four hundred and fifty thousands dollars, another one came in at six hundred and twenty five thousand dollars, and one more came in at eight hundred thousand dollars.
All of these to build the same house. So Imagine if these estimates and all of these differences where to estimates you where receiving for your new home? How would you even begin to know which one was right? So My rule of thumb is to get a minimum of 3 estimates for projects under a hundred thousand and five estimates for projects over a hundred thousand. So As you can see from this example, having one or two other prices could have really help you to better understand a three hundred and fifty thousand dollar difference. Step two, ask the right questions. Now this has two parts. Part 1 is the right questions to ask the contractor. First, how many projects have you done similar to mine? How is your business ran, do you have subcontractors or employees? Third, What do you like most about your subcontractors or employees? Now this may seem like a strange question to you, but it helps you to better understand how the contractor sees value in their working relationships.
How he/or she values their working relationships is exactly how they will value and give you value in YOURS. Next, What type of insurance do you have? Now here this is important, you need to know and understand how their insurance will protect them and almost more importantly, YOU from any possible legal actions. Next, What are the possible pitt falls with the plans or ideas I have presented to you? This is a really good question… because it gives your contractor the freedom to speak freely, and it will allow you to see his/her creativity and problem solving skills. And finally, What is the best way to communicate with you? This simple but powerful question and it is nessary to explore with your contractor. Because the success of your project is determined by how well the communication is between all parties. I would highly recommend spending time here building up the skills with your chosen contractor… Part two, the right questions to ask yourself.
After your meeting is over, site back and ask yourself, do I see myself able to communicate and work well with this particular contractor? Am I more confident or more confused after this meeting? What is my gut telling me? Step three, ask for references and then, please, follow-up. So no matter what the size of your project is, you need a Minimum of five references from past customers. Call each one, and visit AT LEAST one of them in person, you NEED to see the contractors work. I would go as far as telling you that if you can’t see any of the contractors work, then don’t even consider hiring them. Also, take someone with you (preferably someone who works in the trades). You might not know exactly what you’re looking at but someone in the trades sure will. But as a reminder. be professional and considerate when looking through someone else’s home, your not their to judge THEIR home, but to privately judge if the work the contractor did is acceptable to you.
And lastly, what most people never consider, is for you to contact and visit your town code inspector. These are the people that are out there looking at, and inspecting the contractors work ALL day long. And remember, your town is there to help you out in anyway they know how. You can ask the town code inspector questions like… How many projects have you inspected for this contractor? Are you familiar with the subs this contractor uses? How would you rate this Calgary contractor on a scale of 1 to 10? These three are really good questions, and of course you can ask a lot of different questions, but use this resource the town is there for you, they’re there to help you out.
Step four, check the contract and understand it. The contract and supporting documents should include (at the minimum) these 6 things. A description of how change orders are processed, an itemized cost worksheet which includes a contingency price. An allowance sheet that shows you what the contractor is allowing you (cost wise) for each item in the house. Of course, a warranty for the contractor and subcontractor work, payment schedule… when and how the contractor expects payments, and last but definitely not lease, a completion date.
Step five, choosing the Calgary contractor. So again, ask yourself this powerful question. Which contractor do I see myself able to communicate with the BEST? Which one of these contractors seems to be the most excited AND qualified for my project? And who seems to be the most passionate about their job? And never, make a decision based solely on money, and never make a decision in a hurry just to meet a deadline. Well I hope this training has given you the steps to get yourself feeling more confident with choosing a contractor. Now listen, if you follow these simple steps, this will greatly reduce your risk of getting involved with a contractor that is not a good fit for your project, or your check book.
