So, you have hired a contractor already and he is about to work for you. Here is a list of useful tips to get the most of your money when you are hiring contractors.
- If you have agreed a price for the job, never bring the topic back or try to get the price down once the work just started. Not only it’s unprofessional and unethical but it is also dangerous for you. If the contractor noticed you want to get the price down, he may start doing things faster or in an easier way for him because, after all, he isn’t going to get paid what was promised. Don’t carry out risks and, once you have agreed a price, stick to it.
- If you agreed a per-hour rate you have to watch him like a hawk. Spend as much time as you can watching his work and, if you leave the working area, come back in some time to see what he is doing and, if possible, without being seen. You want the contractor to think he is being watched at all times so, he will work faster. Don’t hesitate to ask him questions like “Why is this taking so long?” or “Is there any problem with that?” when you think he isn’t working as fast as he can.
- Never try to befriend a contractor. The relationship you want to establish is a strictly professional one. You are the client and he is the contractor, period. Trying to befriend him is a strategy that many clients do, expecting to get a better job done or a better price because this contractor is “befriended”. Forget about that, no matter how many contractors you have worked with in your life, if he has a wide working experience he has had more clients than you had contractors. This means he knows how to handle these “friendships” and, in the end, you may be paying more or he will work more lazily because of that. Never do it, stick to a professional relationship always.
- Let him work. If you hired a contractor it is for a good reason and, if you see him handling a situation in a way that you would handle differently, let him do. There is nothing more annoying for a contractor than having a client telling him all the time what he should do. Actually, he may even do what you wanted and later, when the job is botched, blame you and tell you “I was going to do X but you asked me to do Y.”
- Don’t offer yourself to help him. If ne needs help, let him hire somebody else. If you help him you get the risk of doing things wrong yourself and, since you are the client, you can’t blame at yourself and ask yourself for a refund. Let him do the work and then evaluate it. The less you mess around the working place and the less you help, the better.