How to Choose a Seattle House Painting Contractor
Painting your home is a big job and when it needs done, you want to choose the right Seattle house painting contractor to do it right. When you’re going through your decision-making process in hiring the right contractor, it’s a good idea to search for the best professionals in your area and then get a few quotes. An experienced contractor will not only save you aggravation and time, but is usually well worth the cost.
A good contractor is one that has successful word of mouth advertising. Lead paint is always a concern on homes built before 1978. So a good way to figure out who the best in the business is, start asking around to family and friends. This can help you discover from past clients how long they take, how well they do their job, and you can even see the end result. In addition to that, former clients are not afraid to tell you who to avoid and who they would use again.
Asking a paint store about contractors is another good idea and a prime source of information. Check out the local paint stores, but avoid the big home improvement ones, because most professionals stick with local suppliers. Talk to the employee who deals with contractors the most and tell them what you’re looking for in a contractor. Ask if they can recommend anyone in particular that can handle the job you need done. Because they deal with contractors on most likely a daily basis, they should have great insight on the local contractors.
If you don’t happen to know anyone who has hired a painter lately, turn to the internet. This is an excellent way of not only finding a good painter, but you’ll be able to read personal accounts of the experience customers have had. You can search for painters close to where you live, or look at the free classified online ads – where many contractors advertise.
Big budget contractors that run a successful business can advertise on the TV, radio, and in newspapers, so don’t ignore those businesses. However, some very successful painters don’t have the budget to advertise so they use bulletin boards. So make sure you check out the ones at your post office, the church, and the grocer too.
After compiling a list of some good contractors with good reviews, start making some calls. It’s best to write down exactly what you want done and be as specific as possible, so each professional will have the same details. This will help you to compare the estimates each gives you.
Make sure that as you speak with each professional that you ask for references. It doesn’t matter how big or small a company is – they should have a list of references. If one’s estimate is smaller than another’s is, ask them why. It may have less to do with quality work and more to do with where they get their supplies or how many will be doing the job.
When it comes to allocating money on such a big and important project, you want to have the best person possible doing the job. It isn’t hard to find a house painter, but it may be hard trying to find out which one is good. That is why you need to do your homework before choosing a Seattle house painting contractor.