Working with Your Builder | Posted 24.10.09

If you are planning home improvements, in addition to a builder to do the actual physical work, you may, depending on the scope of your plans, also need the services of a surveyor, an architect or even a dedicated project manager to work on your behalf.

You should do your research to make sure the work involved will be carried out properly, safely and within budget.

As well as using the local telephone directory and the internet to search for builders in your area, you can also ask family and friends for recommendations. Look around for building work being carried on in your neighbourhood and don't be afraid to call to the house when the builders are gone and ask as many questions as necessary.

Price should not be the only consideration when choosing a builder. You also need to be confident that your property project is as important to your builder as it is to you. If you are not impressed with the level of commitment shown by the builder, find another one.

Get written estimates from at least four builders and ask them to explain any variations in cost from your own calculations. Ask to visit previous work carried out by the builder that you intend to employ and if possible, speak to the previous customer to find out their opinion of the builder and learn about problems they encountered and how they were resolved. Learning from the experience of previous customers is immensely valuable in reducing budget over-runs and getting your project finished on time.

You should also insure that the builder has the appropriate level of insurance cover. Depending on your project, the builders may be around your house for weeks and even months and you need a good relationship with them.

Put everything important and relevant in writing. No matter how well recommended the builder is, and how well you get on with them, a written contract is absolutely essential in resolving the inevitable problems. The contract should include details of how payment will be made, either in stages or as a once off payment on successful completion of the project. Do all you can to avoid having to make changes mid way through a project, as this can dramatically slow the work and increase the cost.

Spend some time writing a list of the building work you want done on your house. Although often time consuming, the more detail you include on this list the better. You can use the list to focus on exactly what you want to achieve and it will also be the basis for any discussions with prospective builders. Even if you have little artistic ability, simple drawings can go a long way to help explain your ideas to the builder and allow you to check if they are feasible or not. Where possible, draw to scale using actual measurements and check the sizes of the intended kitchen units, bathroom suites etc to ensure they will fit into the available space.

In an ideal world, the contract should cover every aspect of the project and there should be no need to amend or even discuss further the details of the project. In reality however, it is inevitable that problems will arise and you should be prepared to deal with this effectively.

Keep a written account of the progress of the project. This will help in checking that the stages of the work are completed on time.

Make sure you make the most of the builder's time. Take your belongings out of the part of your property that is being worked on before the builders arrive and don't hinder their work by staying at the project site longer than you need to. Let them get on with it, but return daily, when they are gone for the night and take a careful note of the progress they have made.

If you do have to raise an issue, contact the most senior person overseeing the project, either your project manager or the site foreman and discuss the issues in a calm, straightforward manner. Write down or draw out your understanding of what was agreed and use this as a basis for discussion. If it is a small problem, it can probably be sorted out immediately, but larger issues may need some preparatory work before you meet the builder. Be as patient as possible if the builder disagrees with you, since they have probably have more experience of what is possible and what is not.



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