Stress Less

DreamMaker answers Seven questions you can't afford not to ask before a renovation begins.

Story by Alice Bumgarner

You've spent months mulling over ideas and nailing down a budget for remodeling your kitchen. You're finally ready to take the plunge.

Naturally, you've told your contractor exactly what you envision, and he's raring to get started. But before you let him rip out those avocado-green countertops, pause long enough to ask a few more questions. A little Q and A may help you avoid the pitfalls that can delay a remodeling project, blow a budget, and stress out an entire family.

"There are a lot of things to ask your contractor before starting a project," says Lee Willwerth, production manager of DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen of Ann Arbor, Michigan. "Unfortunately, most homeowners are fairly naive about what they need to ask."

Luckily, you're only seven answers away from enlightenment. DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen experts lay out the seven key questions no homeowner can afford not to ask a contractor:

1. "How much insurance do you carry?"

Say a worker falls off a ladder, or the neighbor's prize-winning rose garden is crushed. If a contractor is uninsured, the homeowner who hired him may be held liable. "The fact is, you just never know what might happen on a job," says Bob Ender, general manager of DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen of Ann Arbor, Michigan. So it pays to find out if your contractor's policy covers workers' compensation and liability.

In one case Ender heard of, a subcontractor cut through the basement wall of a home without using a wet saw, which is typically employed to keep dust from spreading. "There was so much dust, you couldn't see 10 feet ahead. And it covered the house—including priceless artifacts in every room." The remodeler's $250,000 insurance policy barely covered the cost of cleaning.

Best advice? "Ask to see a certificate of insurance," says Curt Trampe, owner of DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen in Springfield, Illinois. "The certificate should be sent by the insurance company, so you can verify its authenticity."

2. "Who's going to be working at my home every day?"

You wouldn't ordinarily invite complete strangers to spend several weeks in your home, yet that's what happens during a remodeling project. "A lot of people don't realize how intimate the relationship is going to be," says Trampe. "You've got people in your personal space for a long time." Ask to meet the lead carpenter, if possible, before the renovation begins.

If your contractor is outsourcing the job to subcontractors, rather than using his own carpenters, that's good information to know ahead of time. There's a chance, with so many schedules to coordinate, that a remodel may stretch out longer than planned.

Efficiency is one reason Willwerth uses only his own employees or key trade partners, such as electricians. He believes it pays off for homeowners, in big and little ways. "We make sure we know and trust who's in the home," he says. "And we make sure things are done the way we like, such as having workers wear shoe protectors on the job."

3. "When will our new cabinets(or sink, etc.) arrive?"

Imagine this: You're redoing your kitchen. The contractor has demolished the old cabinets and is ready to install new ones, which have just arrived. But when he opens the boxes, he discovers all the cabinets are the wrong color. Even if he rushes the reorder, it will be another six weeks before they arrive—and meanwhile, you don't have anywhere to put your coffee mugs.

Products do sometimes arrive broken or flat-out wrong, says Willwerth, so his policy is to receive and inspect orders before kicking off a job. "We may have your cabinets in our warehouse for three weeks before we actually install them," he says, "but at least we know they're in good shape, and we can do the job more efficiently."

4. "How will you protect the rest of my house?"

What you don't want to hear is, "Well, we'll just put down some tarps. And, hey, if it'll make you feel better, I can cover the piano."

There's no single correct answer to this question. Every company has a different way of protecting floors, walls, and furnishings from debris. "What you're looking for, though, is whether there's a process," says Ender. A good contractor will make protection a priority.

5 . "Where will you park?"

It may sound nitpicky, but this is just the sort of probing you'll want to do before three trucks full of tool-clad workers pull up to your house. In the end, contractors say, it's the little things that tend to upset customers the most.

Also ask, among other things, "What path will workers use to enter the house? Which bathroom will they use? Where will you store materials?" Again, these may seem like small things, but the right contractor will address these type of issues upfront.

6. "How do you handle glitches?"

Ask a contractor for references, and he'll fork over a list of happy customers. If you want to know how a contractor handles problems, ask for more than trouble-free success stories. The right remodeler will be able to tailor his references to address your biggest concern.

Ender says, "If I'm dealing with someone who doesn't like the payment structure, I might say, ‘You know, Mr. Smith had the same concern. I encourage you to call him.' Or to someone who's worried about carpenter mistakes, ‘We had an electrician accidentally drill a hole through a client's floor. Talk to her about how we handled it.'"

7. "What does that mean?"

Contractors sometimes forget that not everyone speaks their lingo. If you hear a phrase you don't understand, swallow your pride and ask your remodeler for a translation. You may save yourself frustration down the road.

Trampe tells of a case where the job required temporarily "roughing-in" a couple's upstairs bathroom. The husband asked his wife if that would be okay. She agreed, thinking a roughed-in bathroom might be lacking, oh, wallpaper. She wasn't pleased to find that her newly roughed-in bathroom didn't even have drywall to hide the plumbing.

"Please ask us what we mean," Trampe says. "Questions are wonderful things to help clarify where we're going." And with a few answers under your belt, you'll be on your way to a stress-free (well, almost) remodeling project.

Seven surprises that could pop up during remodeling

If you're the sort who feels best when prepared for the worst, hunker down with this list:

1. Termites, ants, or other insects. Most contractors, if they discover a behind-the-wall infestation, will advise you to seek professional services before continuing work.
2. Mold or rot. Occasionally, mold or rotting can occur behind the walls of a shower where grout has failed. Most mold is harmless, but since your contractor probably isn't a mold expert, he'll stop work so you can determine whether you need mold abatement.
3. Unforeseen pipes. Not even super contractors can see behind walls. When doing a room expansion, a contractor may discover plumbing pipes or waste lines where he didn't expect them. Your options? Pay to move them or rethink your design.
4. Unsafe construction. A routine job becomes complicated if your contractor discovers existing construction that's not safe enough to meet code.
5. Damaged goods. One contractor estimates that 15 percent of the products he receives come out of the box with defects. He either repairs or replaces them.
6. Extra cost. Going over budget is always a risk. Usually, you can control cost by rigorously scrutinizing your plans upfront; most extra charges occur when a client changes his mind about something midway through. Ask for change orders in writing.
7. Stress. You may think you can sail stress-free through a renovation, but you may be surprised. Eating microwaved meals off paper plates for four weeks might eventually get to you. One contractor's advice? Try to hang on to your sense of humor.