Kitchen remodeling is already quite a summit, but what makes these things even more worse and not fun to do at all are the gimmicks that contractors tend to pull out. Here are some scams that contractors use frequently and how to avoid them for a smooth kitchen remodeling process.
Spotting Kitchen Remodeling Scammers
They Show Up Uninvited
You hear your bell ring and as soon as you open the door, it’s the contractor with whom you’ve had one meeting so far. You ask why he’s here. He says he was “in the neighborhood”. That’s the oldest excuse in the book.
Good and experienced contractors never just show up at your house without an appointment. That’s quite unprofessional because you haven’t set a meeting date yet, so what’s with the rush?
This is an immediate red flag and a blaring sign that the said contractor is a scam and is out of work, and rightfully so. What you can do in this situation is give them an excuse that you’re not available right now if you’re afraid of confronting them. If you’re not, then you can straight up ask them to not come unless a contract is signed and you’re still looking for different options.
Don’t ever be afraid to stand your ground because initial discomfort is better than a who-knows-how-long period of pain you’ll have to endure if you do hire the scammer at your doorstep.
They Try To Sell You Things
A contractor never has “materials lying around”, and even if they do, it’s better to stay away from such offers because you can’t take the contractor’s word for the quality of the materials that they’re trying to stick to you. Always buy your materials and if someone even shows up and tries to sell you materials you can easily decline the offer because you already have everything you need.
A lot of the time, contractors can successfully pull off this scam on unprepared clients and sell the scraps for cheap and gain extra cash on the side. You don’t want to fall victim to this tactic. Only take the contractors help in determining how much of the materials you’ll need.
They Request For Money
The main gist of dealing with an experienced contractor is that they first get the work done and then they request the pay-up which you have both agreed upon before the job. If a contractor is asking for money upfront without even touching the anything, then that’s a huge red flag and you need to show this scammer the front door before they do any more damage.
This is a scam that a lot of fake companies do because it’s an easy way to bag the cash and get out of the job without actually having to do any work.
The way out of this problem, you ask? Just decline and demand them to drat a remodeling contract, in which it’s written that payment will be done after the remodeling work. See? It’s simple.
They Don’t Have A License
This is probably the most obvious red flag of contractors that are not serious about their work or company, that is if they have one in the first place. A legit contracting company that specializes in kitchen, bathroom, and overall house remodeling will have a license to work from the local authorities. They’re unable to get a work permit until or unless they show their license and that’s a given. So, what do you do, when a contractor doesn’t have a license? You simply don’t hire them.
They Run Into Problems
This is quite common for contractors to face, but this is where the wicked-minded ones can pull off scams too. They will get the work done, somehow, but they will mention the fact that they “had some problems” that they had no time to show you and that they fixed it.
Well, your rule should be that if you didn’t see it for yourself, it didn’t happen. This is a serious issue and you can easily get them into legal trouble by suing them. If a contractor comes up with a serious unknown problem, then they will first show you the evidence and then ask you for input.
They don’t just go ahead and fix things on their own, because that will be going against the contract. This is why having a contract before getting on with the work is so important.
There’s No Contract
Speaking of contracts, don’t ever let a contractor begin a remodeling job without a contract. Sign one on the first day of work because even if the contractor turns out to be a scam, you can sue them and that’s enough of a scare for them.
They Pressure You Into Hiring
You are allowed to have options, but there might be a couple of shady contractors that you come across who will pressure you into hiring them. That’s a bizarre claim to make. The scammer will claim that he’s the best at his job and that you better hire him before he gets booked somewhere else. Contractors don’t make claims like that ever, especially if they’re super experienced and always busy.
The easiest way to deal with them? Tell them sternly that you’re still looking at options and you’ll let them know if you need them.
They Impose Their Opinion
Have you ever heard of contractors telling you what color wallpaper will look best? Or what type of countertop material should you choose? While contractors can make suggestions, they’re never as imposing as a scammer. Besides, it’s your kitchen and all of the decisions should be yours, and not someone’s who is not even good at their job.
If a contractor starts to get on your nerves, you can simply tell them that their choices are not your style and you should make your own decisions.
They’re Not Punctual
Nothing can irritate you more than a contractor who’s not coming to work on time. If you want to prevent things from escalating in the future, then it’s better if you don’t hire them at all, or if you’re stuck in a rut, then you can have a contract drafted that states that if the contractor fails to show up on time, two to three times in a row, then it’s game over for them.
Sometimes, there is a genuine reason why a contractor is late, but if it keeps happening, then they’re just messing with you.
They Have No References
If you can’t find any references for the contractor you’re thinking of hiring, then it should be a good enough reason for you to find someone else. This is why you must do your research on the contractors that you’ve had meetings with because almost all of them will have references. If a particular one doesn’t, among other red flags, then you need to stay away from that contractor because you will be inviting trouble if you hire them.
Conclusion
Whether it’s your first time getting your kitchen remodeled or not, it’s extremely important to look out for these contractor red flags, because you don’t want to waste your money on con artists. Be vigilant during the hiring process to find trustworthy kitchen remodelers Rockville.