3 Ways to Keep Your Contractor Accountable

Keeping a construction project on track requires more than simply hiring a contractor and waiting for the work to be finished. Here are three ways to keep your contractor accountable throughout the process:

1. Get a detailed timeline. Before work begins, ask your contractor to provide a timeline that breaks the project into individual phases. Instead of settling for an estimated completion date, find out when major steps like demolition, painting and flooring installation are expected to occur. Understanding the sequence of the project will give you a clearer way to track progress and recognize when something is falling behind.

2. Discuss potential delays upfront. Even a well-planned construction project can encounter unexpected conditions. Before work begins, ask your contractor what types of surprises could affect the schedule and how they would handle those situations. Knowing about potential delays ahead of time can help you maintain realistic expectations, and a quality contractor should be willing to explain where uncertainty exists rather than promising that everything will go perfectly.

3. Keep asking questions. Communication shouldn’t stop once you sign the contract. Stay involved throughout the project and ask questions whenever you’re unsure about the schedule, the work being performed or what comes next. Your contractor should be comfortable explaining the process and updating you when circumstances change. In fact, you can evaluate this quality before hiring a company by asking plenty of questions during your initial conversations. If a contractor gets irritated by reasonable questions or can’t clearly explain their experience, that may indicate how communication will go during the project.