Checking references the right way
Every contractor hands you their three happiest clients. The signal is in which projects you ask about — and which questions you ask.
References are the least-used tool in hiring a contractor: most homeowners collect the names and never call. Call. Ten minutes with a past client tells you things no review site can — but only if you steer past the curated list.
Which projects to ask about
Ask for two kinds of references: a project finished in the last six months, and one from two or three years ago. The recent one tells you how the crew operates today; the older one tells you how the work held up — problems with roofs, concrete, and grading tend to surface after the first winter, long after the final payment. (Whether the contractor came back to fix them is what a real warranty is for.)
Better still, ask for a project like yours in scope and budget. A GC who was great on a bathroom remodel may be out of their depth running a full custom build — and the reverse wastes money.
What to actually ask
Skip “were you happy?” — everyone on the list was. Ask instead: Did the project finish at the bid price, and if not, what drove the difference? How were change orders handled — written and priced, or verbal? How often were they on site, and who actually ran the job day to day? When something went wrong, how did they respond? And the closer: knowing everything you know now, would you hire them again for a bigger project?
If you can, visit a current job site. Ten minutes tells you about cleanliness, safety, and how the crew treats a client’s property — the things that will be happening at your house.
Before you sign
- One recent reference and one 2–3 years old — and actually call both.
- Ask about bid-vs-final price and how change orders were handled.
- “Would you hire them again for a bigger project?”
- Visit a current job site if you can.