Want to finish your project on time and on budget? then a good relationship with your contractors is crucial, says Mike Hardwick

JOHN DOMINICK

The Harmstons were so impressed with the work of one agency builder working on their project that they invited him to live on site for two years to deliver their new home – and they’re now firm friends

The prospect of trying to find and hire a contractor can fill even the hardiest self builder with trepidation. Will they be any good? What if it all goes wrong? And what happens if they just take the money and run?

The good guys are out there – it just takes a bit of time and effort to find them. The trick lies in doing your homework, taking references and following them up. If the builder you are considering is worth their salt, they’ll be able to prove it through their previous work, and will take great delight in showing it off.

One of my maxims is that a good builder is a busy builder. So a sensible way to ensure you set off on the right foot, and avoid the cowboys, is to not accept the first tradesperson who comes along saying they can start on Monday and who promises the earth for the lowest price. But what else can you do to make certain you’re hiring the right person for the job, and how do you get the best out of them once you’ve signed them up?

Be clear about what you’re doing

The first thing to do is provide all the information a builder will need to accurately price a job. Quite often, clients send planning drawings and expect a fixed price quotation in return. But these documents have very little useful information on them – they’re effectively just an image of what the finished house will look like, with the only detail being the internal floor area. The drawings say nothing about what the house will be made from, what’s inside it and the quantity and quality of fittings you expect. Of course, some contractors can and do give an estimated price based on plans – but this is not a measured quote, and it won’t be anything like what you’ll eventually pay.