How to prepare for a contractor's site visit

To get ready for a contractor's site visit, know what problem you want fixed, pull together a few pictures of things you like, have a rough budget and timeline in your head, and clear a path to everything involved. Jot down the age of the house, past repairs, and anything you know is wrong, like a leak or a soft spot in the floor. That gives the contractor enough to write an accurate scope and price. It also gives you an hour to decide whether you want this person working in your house. Around Saratoga County, a little prep before that first walkthrough saves a lot of back-and-forth by email afterward.

Why we come out before we price anything

A remodeling price is a guess until somebody has seen the house. From a phone call we can't know what shape the subfloor is in, how old the wiring is, how far the floor slopes, or how far the drain has to run to reach the stack. The visit is where we stop guessing. We measure, open the vanity doors, go down to the basement and look up at the joists under the bathroom.

It's also your chance to size us up. Watch whether the contractor listens, what questions get asked, and whether the answers make sense to you.

What to have ready

Start with a few sentences about what you want to change and why. "The shower leaks and the vanity is falling apart" is a fine start. So is "We want this bathroom to be easier to use as we get older," or "Two people can't cook in this kitchen at the same time." The reason behind a project shapes the design more than a list of features does.

Then split the list into what has to happen and what you'd like if the money's there. A walk-in shower might be a must. Heated floors might be a maybe. Knowing which is which lets the contractor suggest doing the job in phases or swapping one thing for another.

Pictures beat descriptions. Pull them from magazines, websites, a friend's house, whatever you've got, and say what you like in each one. Maybe it's the tile, maybe it's the layout or the light. Pictures of things you hate help too.

And write down what you know about the house:

• Roughly how old it is
• Past renovations, and about when
• Known problems: leaks, soft floors, drafts, ice dams, cracks
• Whether it's in a historic district
• Any plans, surveys or old permits you've got

On an older Capital Region house, knowing when the bathroom was last torn open, or whether a ceiling's been patched before, tells us where to look hard.

Money and timing

You don't have to name an exact number. It does help to have a range and to say whether it's firm or has some give. Mention any date that matters, like a family event, a baby on the way, or a sale you're planning. Outdoor work runs on the building season here, so if it's a deck or anything on the exterior, start talking months ahead.

On the day

Clear out under the sinks and the inside of the vanity. Make sure we can get into the basement or crawlspace under the project, since that's where you can actually see the framing, pipes and wires. Know where the electrical panel and the main water shutoff are. If two people are going to make the decisions, have both of you there, so nobody has to explain it twice. And leave enough time. A careful walkthrough of a kitchen or a bathroom often takes an hour or more.

What the contractor should be doing

A contractor who's paying attention will ask how you use the room, not just what you want in it. They'll measure, write down what's there now, and look under and around the room as well as at it. They should point out things you hadn't noticed, like a water stain on the subfloor or a sag in the ceiling below. Before leaving, they should tell you what happens next and roughly when you'll get a written estimate.

What shows up after the visit should be a written scope of work, not a number on a napkin. Our post on what a remodeling estimate should include explains what to look for when it arrives.

Questions to ask

These are the ones we'd want answered if we were on your side of the table:

• How would you go about this job, and in what order?
• What could change the price once work starts?
• How do you handle changes during the job?
• How is the payment schedule set up?
• Who's my point of contact while the work is going on?
• Does it need a permit, and who pulls it?
• Can you send me certificates of insurance?

If the job needs both design and construction, it helps to understand design-build versus hiring an architect and a contractor separately before the visit.

If you've got a list

Lots of people have more than one project in mind: a bathroom, the kitchen, a deck out back. Bring up all of it, even if you're only doing one this year. It lets the contractor suggest a sensible order, so you don't pay to have new work torn out for the next job. Our post on whether to remodel the kitchen or bathroom first gets into the order.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a contractor site visit take?

For one room, like a bathroom, figure about an hour. Bigger jobs, or houses where the contractor needs to get into the basement and the attic, take longer. A rushed visit gets you a less accurate estimate.

Should I tell the contractor my budget?

Give a range. That lets the contractor suggest a scope and materials that fit, so nobody spends time designing something you won't build. You can still compare estimates from different contractors on the same scope.

What if I'm not sure what I want yet?

That's common, and the visit is a good place to start. Bring your goals and the problems you want gone, and the contractor can lay out some options. If a bathroom's on your list, our Saratoga Springs bathroom remodel guide is the next thing to read.

We see the house before we put a number on anything. After the walkthrough you get the scope in writing, split into phases, each with its price and its payment. Some of the finished rooms are on our bathrooms page.