There are many reasons people hire a building contractor but generally speaking, it is to undertake all of the tasks and duties relating to whatever the project is. For people who need to hire a General Contractor it can be a minefield. How do you know exactly what you need them
When you’ve found the perfect piece of property for your home or real estate investment, the next step is to find the right construction company. It’s essential to select the right company in order to ensure your initial investment is protected and to give you the best possible future outcome
There are many reasons people hire a building contractor but generally speaking, it is to undertake all of the tasks and duties relating to whatever the project is. For people who need to hire a General Contractor it can be a minefield. How do you know exactly what you need them to do and are you sure they’re up for the job? In this article, we take a closer look at the duties and responsibilities of a general contractor to help you make the right hire for your building project. There are five principle responsibilities of a general contractor as follows: Project Planning When you first hire a contractor, you will obviously have a good idea in your mind of what you want. However, you’ll need the experience of the contractor to make sure all the elements of your project are pulled-off professionally and within budget. Project planning is an important duty for a contractor and generally follows the same lines as the outline provided in their initial estimates. The contractor has full responsibility for the supervision of everyone working on the project site and so they need to manage them effectively. Plans for each project are generally very detailed and include all the intricate elements of the project while factoring in contingencies and other unexpected expenses. The general contractor should also have a good knowledge of all the legal and regulatory issues relating to the project so they can include those processes in their plans. Furnishing Project Needs Before a project is launched, the contractor should have enough resources to complete the first phases of construction. Using all the information supplied in the project estimates, the contractor should ensure that all the necessary materials and labor are in place and paid for out of the budget. Even the most basic building projects require someone who knows how to break down the costs and ensure all the materials and manpower are in place to carry out the job. Any specialist tasks such as electrical or plumbing works need to be carried out by appropriately qualified workers who can be vetted by your general contractor. Project Monitoring and Management When work has started on your project, it will need to be supervised and managed by your general contractor to make sure everything goes smoothly. Every phase or step of the build will need to be managed in terms of deploying materials and manpower according to a schedule your contractor will draw up. Projects rarely run exactly to schedule and so your contractor needs to have contingency plans or at least the flexibility to deal with all types of scenarios. This is where their experience is really important as they should have the best idea of the kind of problems they could face. The best contractors will have fully assessed the project ahead of work commencing so that subject to no unprecedented changes or alterations to plans, everything should be completed on time and within budget. Legal and Regulatory Responsibilities The majority of building, remodeling or reform projects require some degree of statutory obligations. Your general contractor will be fully versed in the laws of your state regarding any necessary permits of planning applications your project may require. General contractors also have the responsibility for ensuring all legal and regulatory responsibilities are met. In addition, general contractors are liable for taxes according to mandatory state and federal law. You don’t want to be faced with hefty fines or penalties because of a lapse in regulatory compliance and this is a significant benefit to hiring a contractor. Health, Safety and Protection All construction projects should be vigilant with health and safety on site. When you are ultimately responsible for the work being done on your property, you want to be certain that everybody working on the site is safe. There are numerous hazards on building sites and oftentimes, they can be avoided if your contractor has factored health and safety into their project plans.
When you’ve found the perfect piece of property for your home or real estate investment, the next step is to find the right construction company. It’s essential to select the right company in order to ensure your initial investment is protected and to give you the best possible future outcome for the project. There are lots of different construction companies out there, but they definitely are not all equal. Look For a Construction Company With Relevant Experience First, you should choose a construction company that specializes in the kind of work you need to be done. Construction styles vary greatly between commercial and residential. They also vary greatly between materials used. If you’re looking for a construction company for a commercial steel beam building, you wouldn’t hire a company that’s only done wood residential projects. Similarly, if you have a pole building to construct, you’ll want to hire a construction company with that exact kind of construction experience. Read more here. You can easily narrow down your choices by reviewing the project portfolios of construction companies in your area. Once you find some that do similar work, move on to the following list of seven key features you need to look for when choosing the right construction company for your building project. 1. Longevity In Business In the construction world, companies come and go. The good ones survive and the other ones go out of business due to poor quality. When choosing a construction company for your building project, look for one that has been in business for as many years as you see fit. It bears repeating that the longer a construction company has been around, the more likely it is that they know what they’re doing and they do good work. Chapman’s Construction has a proven track record of excellence, ensuring top-quality results for all your building needs. 2. Financial Stability Another key feature to look for in a construction company is financial stability. Construction companies have quite a few expenses to take care of in order to complete a job. They have to payroll, tax payments, equipment lease payments, travel expenses, and all sorts of miscellaneous costs. This all comes out of the company account – or it should. Some nefarious construction companies that aren’t financially stable may rely on the latest client payment to fund older projects. Companies like these don’t manage their finances well and end up using your money to finish off another customer’s job. Meanwhile, when it comes time to start on your project they come up short until they can find yet another customer. 3. Sound Management The construction company should have a sound management system in place that includes a general contractor, site security personnel, assistant managers, crew supervisors at a bare minimum. Construction companies that try to operate with a skeleton management system often end up disappointing customers because there isn’t sufficient supervision on the job site. 4. Sustainable And Eco-Friendly Work Practices If eco-construction is important to you, then you should seek out a construction company that is LEED-certified or at least tries to use sustainable materials and eco-friendly construction practices. If you’re going for a building that you ultimately want to be LEED-certified, you will be forced to choose a construction team that is also LEED-accredited. If eco-friendly construction isn’t important to you, it’s safe to not worry about this feature. If you don’t, however, you should realize that there may end up being a lot of material and hazardous waste from the project. Disposal of these materials will most likely come out of your pocket. 5. Insured Your building permit from the town may be contingent upon you hiring a construction company with a certain minimum insurance coverage. Liability insurance is an important consideration when hiring anyone to work on your property. Typically, a two million dollar liability policy is standard. Be sure to ask for and retain a copy of the certificate, which should name you or your building project company as the covered party. 6. References Most construction companies will have a website and an online portfolio of completed projects for you to review. However, you should also ask for some references along with contact emails or phone numbers. Contact a handful of past clients to find out how the construction company was to work with. Specific questions to ask include, was the project completed on time, was the budget adhered to, and if there were any issues, did the company satisfactorily take care of them. If the company rep can’t supply at least three references for you to contact, this is a sign that you might want to continue looking elsewhere for a construction company. 7. Good Rapport Most importantly, you should be able to have a good rapport with any construction company you plan to hire for your project. Communication is the foundation of a successful construction project. Without it, there can be misunderstandings, intimidation, and mistakes that cannot be rectified. Be very certain that there is trust and respect between you and the construction company representative. It’s important that you feel that your opinions are being listened to and that you have input as to how you’d like the final project to come out. Finally, pay attention to how the subordinates at the company respond to the company rep. Do they appear confident in their job? Or do they seem intimidated or frightened of the boss? Frightened workers can be afraid to speak up if they see something wrong on the job site, which is not conducive to a safe work environment. Once you’ve found the perfect property, the best construction company for the job will be one that meets all or most of the above features. Don’t be afraid to take your time choosing which one. Before going ahead with any home renovation work, we always recommend getting multiple quotes so you can compare the service and price. You’ll be working with whomever you choose for the duration of the project, which could take many months. You’ll be glad you chose a
