Getting the most from builders
Want to finish your project on time and on budget? en a good relationship with your contractors is crucial, says Mike Hardwick
Mike Hardwick delves into why having a good relationship with your contractor is key to a successful scheme
The prospect of trying to find and hire a contractor can fill even the hardiest self builder with trepidation. Will they be any good? What if it all goes wrong? And what happens if they just take the money and run?
The good guys are out there – it just takes a bit of time and effort to find them. The trick lies in doing your homework, taking references and following them up. If the builder you are considering is worth their salt, they’ll be able to prove it through their previous work, and will take great delight in showing it off.
One of my maxims is that a good builder is a busy builder. So a sensible way to ensure you set off on the right foot, and avoid the cowboys, is to not accept the first tradesperson who comes along saying they can start on Monday and who promises the earth for the lowest price. But what else can you do to make certain you’re hiring the right person for the job, and how do you get the best out of them once you’ve signed them up?
Be clear about what you’re doing
The first thing to do is provide all the information a builder will need to accurately price a job. Quite often, clients send planning drawings and expect a fixed price quotation in return. But these documents have very little useful information on them – they’re effectively just an image of what the finished house will look like, with the only detail being the internal floor area. The drawings say nothing about what the house will be made from, what’s inside it and the quantity and quality of fittings you expect. Of course, some contractors can and do give an estimated price based on plans – but this is not a measured quote, and it won’t be anything like what you’ll eventually pay.
What you need to furnish the contractor with is the drawings submitted for Building Regulations approval. These will confirm the structural system you’re using and how everything should fit together. Combine this with a Scope of Works that details your exact requirements for electrics, plumbing and finishes, and you will have a fighting chance of getting a genuine fixed price quotation back from them.
Understand PC & provisional sums
At the point you ask for quotations from your builder, you’ll be pretty much in the dark about exactly how much money will be left in the kitty for things like kitchens and bathrooms. So you’ll have no idea whether you’ll be going to Smallbones or Ikea!
One way the contractor can help you out is to provide prime contract (PC) sums for these items. These are basically placeholder figures put in by the contractor, based on their experience of what kitchens and bathrooms might cost on a house of the size and quality you’re building. This isn’t exactly what you’ll ultimately be charged – the figure could go up or down – but it will help you budget.
Provisional sums can be added for things you’re thinking about including but have yet to decide on. For instance, you might be in two minds about fitting rainwater harvesting. If you choose to fit it, you’ll pay the provisional sum that was quoted – but if you decide against it, it will disappear off the invoice.
Let them get on with the job
It’s understandable, particularly at the early stages, that you’ll want to watch over progress on your new home like a hawk. However, I’d caution against hovering over your trades because this can feel intrusive and intimidating.
Imagine you were in the office at your desk, and the boss was peering over your shoulder pointing out every typo and spelling mistake you make as you write your monthly report. It’s the same feeling for your builder – and the same suppressed urge to very politely tell someone to go away.
If you’ve hired the right people, it will soon become apparent that they’re competent and you can observe from a distance, making closer inspection once everyone has gone home for the evening. If you suspect there’s an issue, then have a word with the site manager first – rather than jumping on the tradesperson’s back – so they can either explain what’s going on or initiate remedial action.
Don’t expect to be trained
It’s not uncommon for self builders to want to take on a specific part of the construction work, so they can feel more heavily involved and point it out to future visitors as the bit they did.
Opportunities like this are rare, so it’s totally understandable you’d want to learn, but don’t expect your builder or trades to spend time teaching you their skills just so you can have a go. They’ve priced the project so they only have to do it once, and training you runs the risk of slowing them down or, even worse, having to rework the bit that you had a go at – meaning extra cost to them in time and materials.
So recognise your limitations and give the builders the chance to do the job they’re trained to do as effectively as they can. More appropriate ways to get involved might be to help with some of the labour or assist in cleaning the site in the evenings.
Pay the bills on time
Most small builders I know struggle with cash flow. It’s important you pay your invoices on time so that they, in turn, can settle their accounts with suppliers and sub-contractors.
That said, there are very few situations where upfront payment is required – and you should never hand over all the money before the project starts. Instead, agree stage payments in arrears for work done, ideally linking this to building control and/or warranty inspection points so you know you’re only handing over funds when that element of the scheme has been satisfactorily completed.
On the flip side, every builder will be able to tell stories about cowboy customers – usually revolving around clients who commission a scheme without having the means to pay.
So if you want to maintain a healthy relationship with your trades and contractors, make sure you have the funds in place before work starts.
Don’t keep changing your mind
The words “we’ve been thinking...” are like fingernails down a blackboard to a builder. They inevitably signal that something is going to change; and it will probably be expected to happen within the agreed price.
Changes cost money. So while your builder might indulge a few minor alterations to your plans, if you make a habit of it you can expect an extra to the bill that reflects the inconvenience as well as the additional work.
Utter the phrase “while you’re at it, could you just…” and you can expect a similar result. You might get away with it once or twice, but don’t do it regularly or you could fall out.
If there are any changes to the specification of the job, make sure these are pointed out and agreed in writing by both parties. That way you’ll both know what’s expected.
Make your site a nice place to be
In many ways, this is the secret to encouraging your builder to go the extra mile for you. No one comes to work to be shouted at, so keep things pleasant and be a good boss. A cheery hello at the beginning of the day and a heartfelt thank you for a productive day’s work will cost you nothing but will help foster a harmonious atmosphere. Provide tea, coffee and biscuits in the site office – plus a slice of cake now and then. A beer or two for the topping out ceremony (usually when the last structural beam goes in, or the roof is completed) won’t go amiss, either.
This kind of attention to detail means smaller projects can offer a far nicer environment for most trades compared to the relentless pressure they experience at big commercial sites. Fostering that sort of feeling is how you will get your contractors doing the best they can for you.
Listen to advice
A good, experienced builder will have lots of ideas based on previous jobs they have done. They might be able to offer useful suggestions as to how things might be done better, more cost-effectively or quicker on your project. It’s easy to assume that in most cases they are just trying to make life easier for themselves, but it’s worth listening to what they say and making an informed decision because they may well be right.
Use a small works contract
I would always recommend putting a suitably robust agreement in place. Plain English versions are available for all sorts of projects from the Joint Contracts Tribunal (JCT) website at a very reasonable cost. The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) also offers one that’s free if you use an Fmbregistered trade. Similar services are available from the likes of insurance and warranty provider Self-build Zone’s Contract Store.
These work well because they force both you and the builder to think about and discuss what’s required in detail – so there are no surprises regarding who’s doing what. It also compels the contractor to do what you’ve agreed and requires you to pay for work as it’s completed.
That way, everyone’s happy.