In order to vet a contractor or vendor, consider these five things during the process:


1. Ask About What Is Important to You

  • Knowing what you want from a contractor is very important and can help you to find the right one. Are you looking for someone who has a certain level of experience? Being able to clearly ask questions about what is important to you will help you to find a better fit. 

2. Ask About Their Previous Experience

  • When it comes to working with a contractor, it helps to know what they are bringing to the table. Talking to a contractor about their previous experience and what they have worked on. Generally, they will provide you with exciting projects and try to demonstrate what makes them a good fit for the job and always check their web page is possible.

3. Talk With Them About the Project

  • A simple conversation can really help you to determine if someone is a good fit for your project. When you talk about your project, see what they come up with and what they have to offer. Does it seem like they understand your needs? Are they offering helpful suggestions?
  • It’s always best practice to have a Request for Proposal made for you project, this way you will get an apple-to-apple comparison.

4. Look at their queue of work, can they handle the workload? 

  • It’s smart to make sure potential subcontractors and vendors can complete the work you need in the time frame needed, so you’ll want to examine their log of previous, current, and future work. If the subcontractor seems too busy for their size, your job might overextend them. Its always best practice to get on the schedule early in the season.

5. Get Multiple Bids from Multiple Contractor/vendors

  • There are various reasons why you need to get multiple bids from multiple contractors or vendors before hiring someone to do work. The more bids you get, the more options you'll have Comparing costs and can help you find the most economically comfortable for your budget.

Conclusion:

To effectively vet a contractor, you must know what you want at the end of the project. Every contractor will bring something different to the table, so take the time to explore your own needs and find out how they can help. Sometimes even a short conversation will tell you all that you need to know about working with someone.