If you live in either Dutchess, Putnam, Westchester, Orange, Ulster, Fairfield, and Litchfield counties and are looking to hire a contractor, it’s best to be prepared. Having the proper questions and concerns gathered during your initial meeting could save you some heartache and money down the road.
Not all contractors are created equally, whether you’re looking to a hire a painter, or any other. The ones you shouldn’t be hiring will usually weed themselves out from your consideration if you’re asking the right questions. Here are 5 quick tips to help you along the way:
- Before even meeting a contractor, ask a friend. Typically people have good and bad experiences with hired help, and they’re more than willing to share that information with you. Remember, your friend or family member has nothing at stake when giving you an opinion on their experience. After asking a friend or family, ask the contractor! If you don’t know anyone who has used their service, ask the contractor! What do their Google Reviews look like? Can they provide references? Reputable contractors should have plenty of previous customers for you to call. Inquiring about their experiences should shed a lot of light on who you are dealing with. Lastly, on-line reviews are a valuable resource to check the caliber of contractor you are dealing with. George Apap Painting has helped thousands of happy customers in Dutchess, Putnam, Westchester, Orange, Ulster, Fairfield, and Litchfield counties over the years with painting, soft wash, garage floor coating, and so much more. We are more than happy to provide references for interested prospective customers.
- “Are they licensed and insured?” When dealing with the contractor, it’s always important to find out if they are licensed and insured. You should insist that your subcontractors provide a certificate of liability as proof of insurance. Good contractors, like George Apap Painting’s soft wash, paint, and garage coating teams are familiar with these expectations and shouldn’t hesitate to provide the proof you need.
- “Do you have enough employees to handle my project?” This is a great question to ask, as well as “how long do you think my project will take?” A lot of contractors are anxious to get the deposit and the project started. It’s what happens after this that can make or break your job. If a contractor can’t promise you that your project will be manned from day one to completion, that’s a bad sign. They may have too many projects going on to get your job done in a timely fashion. George Apap Painting prides itself in completing painting, soft wash, and garage floor projects in a timely fashion. We are always open to answering this question.
- “Who will be my point of contact?’’ Hiring a company that has a project manager is a huge value added. This is someone to call with questions or for updates on progress in your absence. They ensure team members have the supplies and resources they need to complete your job on time. A project coordinator also helps you with job scheduling and payment structures. At George Apap Painting, we pride ourselves on our diligent Project Managers who are happy to communicate with you on how your painting, soft wash, or garage floor coating project is going.
- “Will you put the details of our project in a written contract?” This might be the most important question to ask. Many contractors today will just text you a price or give a very generic quote and nothing more. As the consumer, you may assume it includes all the details of the project you have discussed, but often times that’s not the case. Usually this lack of detail leads to additional fees that you hadn’t expected. It’s hard to fire a contractor when the project is half done and your house is a construction zone, so what do we do? We pay the additional charges. Ask for a detailed scope of work, and ask to go over it again with the contractor before making your decisions. George Apap Painting is more than happy to provide you with a written contract so your expectations will be totally aligned with the careful, hard work we deliver.
If you live in either Dutchess, Putnam, Westchester, Orange, Ulster, Fairfield, and Litchfield counties and are looking to hire a contractor for painting, soft wash, garage floor coating, or any other project, make sure you keep these tips in mind to ensure the process goes as smoothly as possible.