Things to Know Before You Start a Construction Project
The steps to take a complete a successful construction project. First, hire the right contractor.
Prepare a great plan and design, use quality materials, an organized schedule, knowledgeable supervision and skilled reliable craftsmen.
The contractor should have sufficient experience for the job you are proposing at least 10 years in the same field. You are not running a trade school where he can learn on your job.
The contractor should have sufficient referrals from previous satisfied customers that they have performed similar or bigger jobs in the past.
Carefully examine all aspects of project with contractor time to start the job, materials to be used and who pays for what. Cost of architect if required.
Building, plumbing, and electric permits, if contractor cannot or will not obtain permits or asks you to put permits in your name this is a red flag and you should find another contractor.
If a contractor tries to get you to make a hasty decision and tries to get you to sign a contract the same day as the price is only good for that day ask him to leave, no reputable contractor does this. In New Jersey, the law states the homeowner has 3 working days to void any contract and get all deposits returned.
It is best to get 3 estimates from 3 different contractors; the lowest one is not always the best way to go. Sometimes one is useless less expensive materials or less qualified labor or you may feel more comfortable working with one over the other. It is important to get all estimates in writing with all materials to be used and start date and completion date, the payment schedule and who is responsible for all costs from start to finish.
The payment schedule is very important part of the contract. Everybody has seen jobs stopped and 90% of the time it is either someone has run out of money or someone has run off with the money. If you have a realistic payment schedule this won’t happen to you. Normally it is 1/3 down at contract, 1/3 when 50% complete, 1/3 when 100% complete. Some jobs have different payment schedule for example if expensive material is main part of job and has to be prepaid before construction starts. Large jobs may have up to 5 or 6 payment schedules.
It is important to have realistic expectations if you get 3 estimates and one of the three is half the costs of the other two, then you need to check this very carefully or get other estimates. Usually this contractor is either inexperienced with the job or the estimating. It is best not to start a job with such a contractor before half way through the job he may not be able to finish and then you have a mess on your hands.
Another common problem is when homeowners try to do jobs themselves without enough experience. Eighty percent of homeowner jobs have to be redone by calling professionals in to redo it. The final cost ends up far more than what it would have cost to do it right the first time. Even though it may look very simple on HGTV where it looks like they can build ½ a house in a half hour show or a big box store saying “you can do it – we can help”. Most help ends when you pay at the register. It usually is not so easy. It takes years to become proficient at a single trade. Most projects have many trades involved.
