In today’s market it is more important to choose a landscape contractor that can do the job over a landscape contractor that can do the job cheap. I go out and meet with people every day to talk about their landscaping needs, some are little some are big. Each job poses different challenges and requires different way to get it done.
One of the first things to look at when picking a contractor is how qualified they are. You should ask simple questions, how long have you been doing this type of work, and do you have projects we can look at. Are they insured and licensed. Do they have any references to offer, or look online at sites like consumer check book, Angies list, or similar web sites. Do all the employees work for the company or are the sub contractors.
You need to make sure the estimate and design are complete and easy to follow. If you feel the contractor is leaving a grey area in your mind have them spell it out. Grey areas on an estimate or design sometimes mean they forgot something and could come back later asking for more money, making their estimate cost more than someone else’s.
One more than one occasion I have been told that my company was more expensive than others and they choose to work with the lower bid. Later I was called back to the job to fix the problems caused by a cheaper contractor. This made the job even more expensive than at first. This could have been avoided by making sure there were no grey areas in the estimate or design.
The third thing to look at is how they are going to do the job. Are they going to tear up the whole yard to get to the work area, and are they going to repair the disturbed area. How long are the materials going to be stored and where on the property. How long will the project take from beginning to end? Most importantly will the work area be safe when the contractor is not there.
Landscaping is an investment in your property do it right you will get your money back do it wrong and it will lose you money. Please take your time ask questions and do your research. The cheaper contractor does not always save you money, or headaches.
