23 Feb 6 Contractor Nightmares You Can Avoid with the Right Home Design Team

Unfortunately, when you build a new home or have work done on your existing home you are truly at the mercy of your contractor. While many contractors are as good as their word and stay on time and on budget there are the scary few who you find out you simply can’t rely on, usually when its too late. There are more than a few stories of contractor nightmares out there.

Here we list the most common contractor nightmares and tell you how you can avoid them with one easy step. 

6 Common Contractor Nightmares

You entrust your contractor with a lot. Your home, your family and your money are at the mercy of home contractors and unfortunately there are those among them who are unprofessional and, even worse, unscrupulous. Before you go any further in your new build or home remodeling project here are six of the most common contractor nightmares to look for.

1. Poor Communication Leads to Costly Mistakes

This is probably the biggest contractor nightmare out there. Unfortunately there is an imbalance of knowledge when it comes to home building and renovation. The contractor knows quite a bit while the homeowner knows far less. This disparity leads to a breakdown in communication that carries the potential for a contractor nightmare. That’s why it’s very important that you get all of the necessary instructions on paper and make sure they are clearly understood by the contractor and you. If not the project may end up costing much more than you anticipated in time, money and your nerves.

2. Failure to Vet Thoroughly Leads to Contractor Nightmares

In order for all to go well you need to do you research before you hire a contractor. Ask for references, go see projects as they unfold, talk to previous clients and ask plenty of questions. A contractor who is proud of their work has no problem giving references or inviting you to see a current project. Don’t be intimidated. You’re about to hand over control to this individual and you need to trust them with your dreams.

Failure to thoroughly vet your contractor could lead to shoddy work, inexperienced workmen, unsafe construction and all manner of poor quality that eventually needs to be redone.

3. No-Shows

This may surprise you but there are contractors out there who simply fail to show up to even begin the project, let alone complete it. Your contractor really is only as good as their word and you need to trust from the beginning that they will do what they say. Some contractors tell you what you want to hear in terms of the timeline. You find out differently when materials arrival and installation doesn’t take place on anything resembling the timeline that they promised. 

4. Hidden Costs Cause Contractor Nightmares

Just as some contractors display total disregard for your timeline, some will present you with a budget that seems plausible only to slap you with hidden fees down the road. Home renovations are costly and new builds, especially your custom built dream home, may use up the majority of your savings. Transparency is essential. Don’t let your dreams be crushed by contractors nightmares that break your budget. 

5. Unethical Behavior

This is a big nightmare. You’re opening up your home, your wallet and your dreams to someone you really don’t know. Worse, what about the crew your contractor works with? Many different people may walk through your home during a renovation. Any one of them may be unscrupulous and even criminal in behavior. Make sure you take the appropriate steps to ensure against contractor nightmares of a criminal variety.

6. Denying Mistakes

Sometimes a contractor or a builder makes a mistake. That’s only human, right? But some mistakes are pretty costly and if it wasn’t something you requested, or worse, a blatant deviation from your plans, the contractor may deny culpability. They may even go so far as to insist the mistake was something you requested. Even the best communication can’t prevent mistakes from happening but a reputable contractor will own up to and remedy their mistakes. 

Sleep Nightmare-Free With Seiffert Home Design

You can avoid a lot of the common contractor nightmares when you work with the right home design team. Seiffert Home Design has over a century of experience in working with our Quad Cities neighbors. Our network of quality builders and contractors means you’ll sleep peacefully knowing you can trust Seiffert Home Designs is in charge.

You’ll avoid costly mistakes and know exactly what to expect when you work with us. We also offer a virtual reality tool that lets you see exactly what your plans look like, even before you break ground on your project. We can also make sure materials are delivered on time to stay within your project timeline and budget. We can’t guarantee you won’t run into problems but we can definitely help you limit them.