By: engineer Ron Arad, Arad Bedek Bayit
Earlier articles covered planning the renovation, finding the right professionals, and drawing up the contract and technical specification. This one covers choosing the contractor.
Choosing a contractor is a delicate process that mixes negotiation with plain intuition. Before you approach anyone, get references, from friends, neighbors, professionals you know, or colleagues.
Before you approach a contractor, check their past work through that reference. If you have a friend in construction, ask them to come look at it. Interview the reference closely about how the contractor behaved and the quality of the work: are there leaks, loose elements or waterproofing problems now that the job is done?
Ask whether they had a home inspection done after the renovation. Ask whether the contractor charged extra for minor items that should have been part of the job, and whether the work was tidy and organized, without damage to the apartment or disturbance to the neighbors.
Get at least three quotes, all based on the same technical specification, so you know the real market price. If you're unsure, get more quotes and compare them. Listen to what each contractor suggests for improving or lowering the cost, and pay attention to how professionally they approach the quote.
Decide up front what payment schedule you're willing to accept, and remember: never pay ahead of the work, only as it progresses.
If you don't have any references of your own, ask the contractors themselves for some, then make the effort to go see the work and question that reference the same way. Once you've chosen a contractor and finished negotiating, have them sign the contract along with the technical specification that's part of it. Never let work start before that agreement is signed. For more on the agreement itself, see the previous article.
Summary
Choose a contractor calmly and deliberately: pressure leads to mistakes. Beyond the process above, trust your own intuition. Everyone has experience choosing service providers, some good and some bad; this is the moment to draw on it. If you lack the experience or the confidence to choose well, it's worth consulting professionals who specialize in it, such as home inspection companies that have seen firsthand what goes wrong when the wrong contractor gets picked.
The engineers of Arad Bedek Bayit, led by building engineer Ron Arad, whom courts appoint as their own expert on construction defects. The company has been inspecting apartments and buildings since 2001. Engineer Ron Arad · More about the company