When preparing to hire a contractor for your fence and deck needs, it is crucial to know what questions to ask.
Protect Yourself.
Make sure that your contractor is licensed, bonded, and insured. This is important to protect you against fraud or unqualified contractors. As well as liability from injuries that may happen on your property during the project.
What is included?
You will also want to ensure that you understand what is included in the contract. For example, does it include labor, materials, demolition, and removal of existing structures? If you want any particular details in your project, verify that they are outlined in your project contract.
Estimates Vs. Bids
Make sure that you understand whether the contractors provide you with an estimate or a firm price for the project. This is important to make sure that you don’t have surprise charges after your project.
Warranty Information.
Finally, make sure that you understand what warranties are included and how they apply to your project. For example, most contractors will have a standard workmanship warranty that covers any workmanship errors in the project.
Typical warranties can be as short as one year from the end of the project or go as long as you own the home. Also, you may have material warranties. Make sure you understand whether you need to contact the material manufacturer to get the warranty applied or if it’s automatically applied when the project is installed.
Go over these questions with your contractor before you make a decision to make sure that you understand what you’re paying for and what you’re going to get.
