There is not a 100% fool proof system to choosing a contractor.  I’ll be completely honest here…I’ve made many mistakes on jobs before and it will happen again.  Construction is a very rough business to be in.  Things happen that a lot of time we don’t have control over: material delays, weather delays, delivery problems, change orders or workers just don’t show up.  Believe me,  it has happened to me before.  The real question is:  is the contractor you hired going to do everything possible to correct these problems.  This is where you have all heard the horror stories of a contractor that lost control of a project and the end result was not what the customer had in mind.  I’m sure you have also heard of a general contractor or builder walking off a job completely and leaving the home owner with an unfinished home remodeling project.  (not to mention taking off with a large portion of their money)  I was called in to finish a job over by North Star Mall in San Antonio because a contractor disappeared.  Unfortunately, it happens in this business.

How can I protect myself from a contractor?

To protect against this happening, a builder or contractor can purchase an insurance bond  that protects the customer in the  event the contractor goes belly up or simply can’t complete the project in a timely manner.  Or you could demand that a bond be purchased by your builder or general contractor  and put into the contract.  They are not very expensive, but they are well worth having.  A performance bond basically guarantees that the job will be completed for the contract price.  A payment bond guarantees that the contractor will pay all employees, suppliers and subcontractors.  This is important because if the contractor doesn’t pay the subcontractor or material supplier, they can file a mechanics lien (0r materialman’s lien) on your house.  This basically means that the subcontractor or material supplier will need to be paid before the house is sold.  This is really the only way that subcontractors or material suppliers can protect themselves from a contractor or builder that doesn’t pay them in full.