Hi Rhian - great question!

You're definitely on the right path when it comes down to builders. You really want to get at least 3 quotes. There are a number of things you could ask your builder such as, but not limited to;

- Does he have a registered company? If so check out the details

- Insurance - definitely check

- Testimonials/portfolio/contact details of previous clients - if you'd like to speak to them (some builders even offer to show potential clients around previous client work)

- How he and his team work? How many people are in his team?

- Contract - will he provide a written contract where both you and he sign the agreement?

- How long the work will take and ensure he is also including the budget for materials and VAT in the quote

When you meet the builder you will be able to get a feel for how they are as a person and how they work. It goes without saying its pretty important to get along with your builder especially when things go wrong which the often do.

I've written a guide on planning your renovation project if you'd like to know more: https://www.rukminipatel.com/how-to-plan-your-renovation-project/ 

Really hope the questions above help you, good luck with your project :)

Rukmini

Thanks so much

You're welcome :)

I’ll disagree on some of the above points. Sorry.

You don’t need a handful of quotes. A couple or 3 at the very most should suffice.

It doesn’t matter whether it’s a sole trader, partnership or a limited company.

What does it matter how many people they have? They will bring in sub contractors if they’re short on contractors or don’t specialise in a specific field.

A written quote will (or should) include a detailed description of what they intend to do and include all materials and then state whether VAT is included or not and what rate it will be charged at.

I would not expect to sign a Contract! In fact I don’t know of any contractor who does this and I’ve worked in the trade with my own business and partners since 1976. If you’re employing a huge building contractor then perhaps they’ll offer this.

Look at their website, FB, Yell and any other online social media to see their finished job.

Insurance is a must. In my experience sole traders don’t always have this, so be aware.

When you meet the contractor you will get a feel for him, whether you trust him or not.

You’ll also need to know their payment terms such as deposit, interim payment and when the outstanding balance is due and their method of payment.

It’s better to have a recommended person than just plucking one at random out of thin air.

Good luck.

Hi Rhian,

A key question to ask for from your builder:

- can you have some contacts , including 2-3 construction professionals who they've worked with, who you can call to ask about them and their experience working with the contractor

Then call and speak to about 5 people that the builder gives you contact details for and ask:

1. can you see the work that they did (they may or may not be happy to show you around their home, but if they say yes then this is great and really helpful for you to see the quality of the finish, although doesn't show you critical covered up construction)

2. Ask the kinds of questions necessary to find out how they were as builders - did they turn up when they said they would, did they meet the deadline, did they leave the site clean and tidy at the end of each day, did they communicate well, did they minimise disruption for the neighbours... If its a construction professional ask them about the quality of the build, they will see the technical things that a normal homeowner is unlikely to know is good or not.

3. The most important question that I ask is "where there any changes on site during construction and if so who suggested the changes and did it cost more?" This is really important because I avoid like the plague any builders who try to persuade my clients to make changes on site especially if it ends up costing more. Because everything has been thoroughly considered before tender and any changes on site will very likely not be given the same amount of consideration and if I'm not involved during the construction stage I don't want my clients to have to deal with knock on effects of bad decisions made in a rush on site, that haven't had the same level of care and consideration as other decisions made during the design process. It's true that some builders have good ideas, but I don't know any builders who have vastly better design ideas than architects! Builders may request changes if it is for the purposes of making things easier to build - I'm OK with this in some instances if it won't have any negative knock on effects (which might be difficult to know if you don't have experience in the construction industry), but in this case then I would expect there to be either no increase in cost for my client, or for it to be a cost saving.

Always seek quotes from at least 3 contractors. You are likely to find that 1 or more doesn't want to quote at that time, because builders are busy and good ones are hard to come by, so they don't need to tender for every opportunity. You need to get at least 3 prices so you can see if there is a general ballpark that they all fall within or if there is an outlier who is either suspiciously low or overly high. It can be helpful to get a cost estimator to put together a priced document based on your tender documents for you to use as a baseline to compare to .

Don't just go for the cheapest quote. Make sure you have checked them out as thoroughly as possible first. Go to see a project that they have on site, so you can see them in action. Check their company returns and see how profitable they are, if they look a bit wobbly financially you might want to avoid them because you don't want a contractor to go bust on you (and always make sure you are not paying up front so that if they do then you're not out of pocket with work paid for but not done). Make sure you check their references and call at least 5 people and at least 1 of those to be a construction professional. Choose one who is good at communicating and that you like on a human level, and that comes out of all the other queries well.

Finally ALWAYS have a construction contract in place for any significant works. For someone who's just coming round to paint your front door, or something very small and simple like that then in an ideal world you would still have some kind of written contract but a text exchange would count as that in a court if it came to it. For anything that involves more significant sums of money or potentially negatively impactful works, like a bathroom or kitchen fit-out, and any remodelling or extension works, you are leaving yourself very vulnerable to not have a construction contract. Any contract is better than none. But for better protection you should look at either the JCT contracts or the RIBA contracts. There are lots of contracts for different scales and types of work, check them out and choose one that seems best suited to you and your project. Be careful to read any contract put to you by a builder, they can often be much more in the builders favour and less good at protecting you and your home.

Yes I agree also for insurance, and the other things that One Plan and Rukmini Patel suggest above.

@Daisy England - My recommendation was 3 quotes at a minimum, not a handful. I too work with builders and contractors and so do my clients. I understand the process as a professional and as customer. That's fine if you don't agree with the points, but that doesn't make them wrong, they are just from my professional point of view.

The whole point in making sure a builder is registered is to ensure he is a professional who you can contact and has a legitimate business. I've heard too many stories of builders running off with customer's belongings/money. I certainly would not recommend a trade if they did not have a business registered.

Regarding contracts, if you are undertaking any construction work there should always be a contract in place as I-architect also confirms. The builders I have worked with provided have this along with a schedule of work, costs etc. Even if they were not signed an agreement was consented.

I would always sign contract between our company and client,especially if its large construction job.usually its JCT contract.

We are frequently asked by our clients following:

-do we have insurance?(YES,WE HAVE)

-can we provide references?(YES,AS MANY AS YOU WISH)

-do we charge deposit up front?(DEPEND ON THE JOB,USUALLY SYMBOLIC 1-5%)

First and foremost, you'll want to ensure the builder is licensed and insured. Knowing that they have the necessary qualifications and protection in case anything goes wrong during the construction process can give you peace of mind.

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