Tips for Hiring Licensed Contractors in South Florida

Tips for Hiring Licensed Contractors in South Florida

If you’re planning on renovating your south Florida home, flipping a house, or even performing maintenance on your deck, you’ll need to hire a licensed contractor. But there are plenty of horror stories about unfortunate folks who hired the wrong contractor and ended up wasting thousands of dollars and months of time. Let’s go over the best tips for hiring contractors in South Florida.

Check the License

You can always check whether a contractor is actually licensed to work at www.myfloridalicense.com. This official and government-regulated website have records of any licensed contractors in the entire state, so finding South Florida contractors here should be a snap. If they aren’t licensed, they aren’t worth your time and money.

Ask for Proof of Insurance

Any contractor worth their salt should have a disability and/or worker’s insurance. Without these key insurance coverages, you will be liable for any accidents that occur on your south Florida property. It’s a better idea not to risk this kind of financial issue, as injuries or equipment issues on a contractor job can run into the thousands of dollars. Don’t listen to contractors that claim that their guys are so skilled that they don’t need insurance, even if it helps them drive their costs down.

Ask for Written Estimates

Finally, whenever you get an estimate from a contractor, you should always ask for it in written form. Not only can this help you hash out the specifics with a contractor question, but it also provides a written record in case you ever run into legal trouble with the contractor in the future. They won’t be able to claim that they quoted you a lower rate when you have the proof on a piece of paper.

Compare Estimates

Whatever you need, you should always compare estimates from at least three contractors in the same business or specialty. This allows you to compare prices and make sure that no one contracting company is trying to trick you into paying more than the job is worth. Furthermore, avoid any contractors that require you to pay for bids. Contractors that want your business will be trying to impress you, not the other way around.

Verify All Details

In this day and age, it’s easy to fabricate information on the Internet. Whenever you are preparing to hire a contractor, be sure to double-check the name, address, telephone number, and other credentials before finalizing things. There are plenty of scammers out there, even smooth-talking ones. Don’t always go with your gut and double-check any details they provide so you aren’t surprised when they don’t show up for work.

Conclusion

Running into shady contractors as part of the difficulty of renovating or remodeling, but it can be largely avoided with the right foresight. Follow the tips above and you’ll be able to hire reliable contractors regularly. Check out greatfloridahomes.com for even more tips about real estate success in south Florida.