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[S53]Sample Home Improvement Contract

by Raynor James, Ray

Home Improvement Contract Tips

Hiring a contractor to do work on your home is not always as easy as it sounds. Many people call themselves contractors, but really are not. The first step to avoiding problems is to make sure you hire someone with who is actually licensed as a contractor. If you subsequently have problems, you can contact the licensing board to raise a dispute.

Most contractors are ethical, honest people and businesses. There are, however, others who are not. These individuals assume you do not really know what is involved in the construction process. This provides them with an opening to make substantially more profit. While you might think this means they will overbid the project, it does not. Most contractors believe you will pick the lowest price, so they rarely run up their estimate. There are, however, two other ways to boost profit.

The first thing unethical contractors will do is use low quality supplies. As with anything you buy, there is a high quality and lower quality version. While you may want the high quality version, you may have a hard time determining if you received it. The difference between high and low quality is often how long something lasts, not how it appears. The way to beat this problem is to specify the exact brand, size and part number [if possible] in your contract. Doing so accomplishes two things. First, it puts the contractor on notice that you know how the process works. Second, you can always resort to legal action if you later find the correct materials were not used. Since you have everything in writing, the contractor has little defense.

A second unethical tactic is the bait and switch. In this process, the contractor gives you a bid price that can't possibly cover the project. You think you are getting a deal, but the contractor starts coming to you after the project has started requesting more money. The contractor refuses to continue work if you do not pony up. In this situation, the best defense is again to have everything in writing in the project contract. Make sure to include an attorney's fee clause in it. If the contractor tries this tactic, you should contact an attorney. The attorney will set the contractor straight. If the contract refuses to finish the job, you will probably be told by the attorney to hire a new contractor while he sues the unethical one. Since an attorney's fee clause is included in the agreement, you should end up paying no legal fees. This is not the best situation, but it beats getting scammed.

In general, the best way to find a contractor is to ask for referrals from trusted friends. Next, get everything in writing. With these two steps, you should avoid any major problems.

With the recentdown turn in the economy home improvement has come to mean ?how can I do thisjob without it costing me an arm and a leg?? Here are a few tips on how to improve your home by tackling some of the areasthat people usually stay away from.

Plumbing

Until recently(the early 1980's to the present), if you didn't know how to ?sweat? a coppersolder you were in way over your head with anything to do with interiorplumbing. But with the price of copperrising astronomically, the introduction of PVP plumbing quickly supplanted theold copper piping used. Unfortunatelythe old fear of dealing with plumbing issues still remains for most of us. PVP piping is a god send! It is extremely easy to use and cheap tobuy.

All that isneeded is the right connecting piece, a hacksaw, some pipe prep and glue andyou are ready to tackle just about any plumbing job in the house. Recently my electric water heater gave out soI had to quickly find another to replace it. It was an eye opening experience to say the least. The water heater I wanted cost about $300 andthe price to have it installed ranged anywhere between $250 and $400! I couldn't believe it. I decided to go to my local hardwarewarehouse store and ask a few questions.

The first thingthey said was that if I had a gas heater then they couldn't help me becausethat had to be installed by a qualified installer, but since I had an electricwater heater then all I needed was about $5 worth of PVP pipe and fittings plusa hacksaw and some pipe preparation and PVP glue. I was total amazed and I must admit a littleskeptical about my ability to make this repair without flooding my house.

But since I wasgoing to save a great deal of money I decided to up the gallon capacity of mywater heater so that I could later put in a hot tub. After about an hour of work (most of whichwas spent removing the old water heater and putting the new one in place) thenew, larger heater was in place without some much as a drop of water spilled!

Electrical

Who hasn't hadthoughts of someone coming in and find your charred body lying on the floorclutching the end of a wire that you decided to put in yourself? It is this fear that keeps most people faraway from any electrical improvements and the electricians well paid.

Don't get mewrong, I'm by no means advocating rewiring your entire house by yourself ormessing around with the circuit box. Those things are best left to the experts.

But if it isputting in a new bathroom light fixture or replacing the heating element inyour water heater for $15 (instead of $300 for a new one), then it is foolishnot to make these improvements yourself. Make sure that you follow all of the instructions that come with yournew fixture and pay close attention to how the old appliance was installed.

Yes it can be scary at first doing minorplumbing and electrical home improvement s or repairs but if you just ask atyour local hardware store they can tell you if what it is you wish to do isdoable or should be left to a professional.

Article Source : Pg. 9

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Both Raynor James & Rajiv are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Raynor James has sinced written about articles on various topics from Real Estate, Business and Finance and Debts Loans. Raynor James is with the site - FSBO America - homes for sale by owner.. Raynor James's top article generates over 90500 views. to your Favourites.

Rajiv has sinced written about articles on various topics from Mortgage Insurance, Finances and Start Online Business. Snowman Frozen Foods Ltd. is the first company in India to set up frozen and chilled food distribution system on pan India basis. to your Favourites.