Real estate investors are the Jack of all trades. From finding the next flip, choosing the right repairs, and knowing the right type of investments for their market, to be successful, investors require an ever-expanding list of skills. One of these skills is how to find a contractor for their investments.
Finding the right contractor is essential for any real estate investor. The right contractor not only can skillfully repair and rehab your property but can also minimize costs and add value to your investment. The wrong contractor can break your profit margins with faulty repairs, lengthy timeframes, and slow and never-ending work. That is why finding the right contractor is key to any real estate investor’s success.
We cover the top ways to find and locate the next contractor for your investment with this checklist. Let this checklist help guide you to the next contractor for your investment!
Contractor Checklist for Real Estate Investors:
Have A Plan
Before searching for contractors it’s important to have a scope of work for your next investment. That way you can hit the ground running once you have the investment and contractor lined up for the project.
Having a completed rehab plan will help you save time and money by collecting bids and estimated timelines for your next investment. The more completed your scope of work, or rehab plan the easier you can find the right contractor for your projects.
Flipper Force listed a comprehensive list of repairs and timelines for a rehab project. Here are some must-have repairs for making a scope of work:
Repairs To Include In Your Scope Of Work
- Roof Replacement
- Siding Replacement
- Window Replacement
- Electrical
- HVAC
- Drywall
- Painting
- Cabinetry
- Bathroom Remodel
- Countertops
- Flooring
- Appliances
Once you have a completed scope of work you can know what repairs are needed for your next investment. If you don’t have a property yet you can easily know what major repairs or common rehab projects are and seek qualified contractors to help you with those investments.
Recommendations And Reviews
So How To Find A Contractor Quickly? Ask for recommendations! One of the easiest and quickest ways to find the right contractor for your investments? Ask for recommendations.
As a real estate investor, your network can provide recommendations for nearly any investor service, from realtors to contractors. A recommendation is a great way to find a shortlist of potential contractors that know how to work with an investor.
Reviews can help you identify good or bad contractors for your investments as well. Google, Yelp, Facebook, or other review sites can make it easier to see how they have serviced clients in the past, and spot potential problems. When reading reviews, take the most recent reviews into account, and read the good and the bad. Additionally, you can also check into the National Association of the Remodeling Industry for a list of contractors in your area.
No matter the recommendations, or glowing reviews, it’s always important to research and interview potential contractors for your investments.
Interview and Research Contractors
After reviewing the recommended and well-reviewed contractors, it’s time to do research. If you want to find a contractor, interviewing and researching their contractors is a must.
Interviewing your contractor is important to ensure that you and the contractor will be a good fit. You also can get a firm grasp of the capabilities of a contractor and whether they and their team will be a good fit for your next investment. Not sure how to interview a contractor? Here are some easy questions to help you learn more about them, and make sure they are suited for your investment.
Questions To Ask Your Contractor:
- Have you Worked With An Investor before?
- Do you like bigger remodeling jobs or small repairs more?
- How many employees do you have?
- If I were to hire you, when could you start knocking out tasks?
- What payment schedule do you prefer? When will you want the final payment?
- What would your past clients say? Can I see your portfolio and contact past clients?
Aside from calling references and confirming their work quality, you should always verify licenses of the work they are able to provide. Depending on the work, they should verify they have an electrical, plumbing, general contractor, and HVAC license.
You should always ensure they have proper insurance and bond. Simply ask the name of their insurance agent and verify it with that agent. Quality contractors will provide you with proof.
Bids and Prices
As a real estate investor, finding the best contractor and price for your rehab can lead to larger profits. After you have received multiple bids from contractors, it’s time to compare the best bids from your qualified contractors.
This Old House shares the following tips for comparing bids, asking everyone to break down the cost of materials, labor, profit margins, and other expenses. Through this, you can see exactly where your cash is going and can get a project in writing.
Payment schedules can also help you qualify your contractors. For large projects, a schedule usually starts with 10 percent at contract signing, three payments of 25 percent evenly spaced over the duration of the project, and a check for the final 15 percent when you feel every item on the punch list has been completed. With the following, you can easily find the right contractor for your project and know the price range for your next investment.
How To Find A Contractor Checklist
Need to Know How to Find A Contractor for your next investment? Thankfully it doesn’t have to be complicated. With a few calls, the right questions, and a bit of research you can easily find the contractor for your next investment.
How to Find a Contractor (Checklist For Real Estate Investors)
Create A Scope of Work: If You Have A Property: Create a comprehensive list of repairs that you will need a contractor for. Your Scope Should include Any and all repairs needed, timelines for each project, estimated completed date. If You don’t have A property: Create a list of average repairs your investments needs, along with your estimated turnaround dates so you can Identify a contractor before you purchase your next investment.- Recommendations And Reviews: Ask For Recommendations From Your Network: this is a great way to find high-quality contractors whom you can trust to do a great job! Review sites make it easy to spot great contractors. read the good, bad, and ugly to get a full picture of a contractor. Reach out to highly rated contractors with a great reputation.
- Interview and Research Contractors: interview contractors; you can learn a lot about a contractor by interviewing them to see if they will be a good fit. ask them about the type of clients they worked with timelines, preferred projects, availability, and references to past clients. Research: Call and confirm the following with your contractors: References, electrical, plumbing, general contractor, insurance, and HVAC license.
- Bids and Prices: Compare bids, and make sure the price, timeline, and quality add up.
How do you find the contractors for your real estate projects?
Our Hard money loans make it easy to make fast offers and get same-day approvals for your next investment. Whether it’s a rental, flip, or rehab, we have a hard money loan option to fit your needs. Apply now to get approved for your hard money loan today! P.S. Apply today and get our Free Home Rehab Valuator to help you calculate your next flip!
