There are five questions you need to ask before you move forward with a prospective contractor on any major home repair or remodeling project.  One of our HomeESP members did not use our Contractor Locator service and found out the hard way what happens when you don’t pre-screen your Contractor and ask all the questions.  She wants us to share her experience with you so you will avoid her mistakes.

Maria from Illinois asked this question of Bruce, our Ask the Contractor expert:  “How can I find out if a contractor has purchased windows? The contractor would not give me the place he ordered windows from, when I asked for a refund.” 

(It turned out that Maria’s question was related to a bigger issue with her contractor. Maria gave us additional background enabling us to get to the root of her problem.) 

HGTV showcases a lot of designers and one of the public’s favorites is Vern Yip, a 12-year design veteran and the host for four years now of “Deserving Design,” one of a variety of home makeover shows.  Most of us would be better off getting a design from a talented and experienced pro like Yip, but for those of us who can’t, Yip offers up a few straight-forward tips before you start your DIY interior design projects:

Taste is a matter of, well, taste.  Your home should express who you are, your character and personality.  Yes, you want others to be comfortable in your home but they are not living there.  You are.  Pick items that speak to you.  Do not purchase items because you think others will think them appropriate, pick items that you enjoy.  Yip believes you should walk through your door and smile because the environment makes you feel joy. 

Test your budget.  Don’t buy beyond your means but choose quality products that will last whether we are talking about paint, bedspreads or furniture.  Unfortunately, it too often that people second guess themselves and end up admitting disappointedly that they “got what they paid for.”  You want your newly designed room to stand up to normal wear and tear and washings.

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Get a good sense of the scale of your room and what you are trying to acccomplish.  Spend time walking around and observing different sized rooms to experience how the size of the furniture fits given

Home improvement is one of those areas where the consumer is at a disadvantage: the contractor knows the value of each element of the project and where the agreement favors him over you; but you, the homeowner don’t.  You have to take it on faith that the bid is a fair value, includes everything (there won’t be any surprises) and provides you with reasonable protection.  Even if you get two or three bids, it can still be daunting to pick a contractor.  You can check references, pick the middle price, go with your gut instinct – and still not be sure the contractor you select has made you a good offer.

HomeESP Premier Members can have up to three bids reviewed by our own Bruce Woolf, expert kitchen and bath designer, builder and general contractor, and blogger on our Ask the Contractor page of HomeESP.  He’ll check your bid for completeness, price, terms and conditions and more.  After reviewing your bid, he’ll provide you with specific advice as to how to negotiate with your contractor, questions to ask, what to watch out for and more.  It’s like having a friend in the business!

Not a HomeESP Premier Member?  Just visit this link and sign up.  Contractor Bid Review is a core benefit of our membership organization for homeowners, and we’d be pleased to help!

One of the most amazing things that occurred during our kitchen renovation was how quickly we were able to sell our old cabinets, countertops and appliances.  We put an ad on Craig’s List and within a week all was sold, and at good prices totaling more than $2,000.  But for home or apartment remodelers on a budget, there’s a more reliable resource (at least if you live in Connecticut, New Jersey or Pennsylvania): Green Demolitions.

In three warehouse style showrooms, they offer professionally removed kitchens, new and used appliances, furniture and more.  Savings on complete kitchens can be more than 75 percent off the price when new.  Cabinets are selected for condition and style, so you’re sure to find a wide range of possibilities.  And since new stock comes in every day, if what you want isn’t there today, it’s worth checking back a few times a month – especially if you want to save money on your renovation. 

Everything’s going great on your new project.  The contractor is just about finished with his work.  Your new kitchen renovation, addition or windows look wonderful.  All is good with the world.  Then, you get the final bill and you think, “hey this project isn’t really done, the XXX (you fill in the blank here) is still not YYY (fill in the blank again).

It’s an all-to-common mistake in contracting for improvements to your home.  You neglect to include a clause that the contractor must, “return job site conditions, inside and outside, to that which existed prior to the start of the project.” 

While it seems common sense that a contractor would clean up after a job, unless you’ve stated explicitly that the project includes such work, the likelihood is that you will have extra costs charged to return your home’s interior and/or yard to what existed previously.