Wednesday’s presentation at the Willow Glen Branch Library by Dan Mackey, past president of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, was very informative. He gave us a list of steps to take before signing a remodeling contract.
Your choice of contractor can make a big difference. You don’t want someone who is never there to supervise the work; just hands it off to his day laborers.
For instance, when adding a room to your home, after the foundation’s been dug, you might find it aggravating to have hired someone who has no care about construction except getting paid.
Yes, the job will probably take longer than expected, and you might have to supervise everything closely. The contractor could hand the job over to a lesser, who will hand it down to a lesser, etc. At one point you might find the trash pickup guy down in your basement by himself with a power saw, having been assigned to cut a water line which is still filled with water. It will make a mess.
Plan to evacuate one evening when they break the valve to the main gas line. Later, watch in horror as they remove and plug a gas line in your basement without turning off the gas first.
There are things that get installed upside down, and things that get ignored.
The building process need not be stressful, however, if you don’t short shrift the selection process.
Make sure to especially contact their LATEST, FINISHED job. An unprovided reference is NOT a good reference.
Good luck with your construction.
Lincoln Ct. 
We just added a second bathroom and walk-in closet. That required moving the master bedroom farther into the backyard.
The contractor said he went out of his way for us.
We ARE enjoying our remodel, however.
Great great blog! Thanks a bunch for sharing the information.. I know that finding the right contractor is a daunting task, but it is the most important
I agree. It’s been so easy for anyone to become a builder that finding the right contractor has become an important factor many homeowners. Thank you for sharing such a great info!