Do Your Research Before Hiring a Contractor for Home Improvement Projects

Friday, May 6th, 2022 -- 10:00 AM

(Raymond Neupert, WRN) Before you start your next major home improvement project, make sure you're finding a trusted contractor to do that work.

State consumer protection director Michael Domke says you should also be shopping around for the best deals. "If you're gonna get that written estimate, get more than one, we encourage you to get at least two or three. So you can get some comparison as to what's being priced out."

Domke says doing some research on unknown companies is a very good idea. "You can give us a call to a Bureau of Consumer Protection to find out if any complaints have been filed against that particular company. You could also ask that contractors to come up for some names of recent customers to see how those things went."

Domke says a contractor might offer you a very low bid for a job. "But when you look closer, you're going to realize, well, they're using either inferior materials, they're not providing exactly what you would ask or in all those details are really, really important when you finally select one and move it out into a contract."

Domke says you should also work out a lien waiver ahead of time to ensure that a contractor isn't going to try and get more money out of you once you make a final payment.

He says it's important to get a full written estimate before a job starts, to shop around to see if you're really getting the best deal, and to stick with trusted, local builders.

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