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| A WORD ABOUT CONTRACTORS, TIPS AND LINKS TO HELP... |
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| Verify A Contractor's License and Registration |
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***Paradise Plumbing recently did some work for an 85 year old client who was a referral from someone we had contracted for the plumbing on two custom homes. The woman who is taking care of her husband who has Altzheimer's and is on a fixed income and received a bid and intimidating language from a local plumbing contractor that she "needed" almost $500.00 in repairs to fix a faucet...we fixed it for $46.28...Instead of replacing the whole system...we just fixed the leak.
Call or Link to Washington State Labor and Industries
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| Government Information Regarding Hiring A Contractor |
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THE BEST WAY TO THINK ABOUT HIRING A CONTRACTOR IS THIS...
1. TRUST YOUR GUT INSTINCT...IF THEY SOUND TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE THEY PROBABLY ARE...WOULD YOU LET THEM WORK ON YOUR ELDERLY GRANDMA'S HOUSE, OR EVEN LET THEM IN YOUR GRANDMA'S HOME? (SENIORS ESPECIALLY GET TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF.) IF NOT DON'T LET THEM WORK ON YOURS.
2. UNDERSTAND BE AWARE OF MECHANIC AND MATERIALMAN LIENS. NO ONE WANTS TO PAY TWICE FOR WORK DONE ONCE. MAKE IT PART OF YOUR CONTRACT TO GET ALL SUBCONTRACTOR INFORMATION. PAY AS YOU GO WHEN WORK IS INSPECTED AND COMPLETED. MAKE PAYMENTS TO CONTRACTORS SPECIFIC TO WORK DONE WITH THE SUBCONTRACTOR LISTED TOO. THIS ENSURES THE SUBCONTRACTOR GETS PAID FOR THE WORK DONE MINIMIZING RISKS OF MECHANIC LIENS FOR UNPAID WORKERS.
3. NO CONTRACTOR SHOULD TALK DOWN TO YOU, BE SEXIST, RACIST, OR INTIMIDATING IN ANY WAY. AVOID THOSE PEOPLE WHO APPEAR TO BE KNOW IT ALLS OR DEROGATORY ABOUT ANYONE... IT'S YOUR MONEY...YOUR'E THE BOSS.
4. DON'T BE AFRAID TO TALK ABOUT MONEY AND A BUDGET. CONTRACTORS LIKE CLIENTS WHO ARE ORGANIZED AND EFFICIENT. THIS IS A KEY TO A SUCCESSFUL PROJECT. BE STRAIGHT ABOUT BUDGET CONSTRAINTS. SOMETIMES LESS IS ACTUALLY MORE AND A GOOD CONTRACTOR CAN GET CREATIVE.
5. WHEN IN DOUBT GET A SECOND OPINION...SOMETIMES YOU MAY HAVE TO WAIT, GOOD CONTRACTORS ARE USUALLY BUSY...WE HAVE TO BE...IT COSTS ALOT TO BE IN BUSINESS AND DO THINGS THE RIGHT WAY...
6. NEVER WORK WITH AN UNREGISTERED CONTRACTOR. IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG YOU HAVE NO PROTECTION, BAD WORK CAN ALSO AFFECT YOUR INSURANCE RATES, THE VALUE OF YOUR HOME, AND A FUTURE SALE...ALWAYS, ALWAYS ALWAYS...CHECK FOR INSURANCE, LICENSNING AND REGISTRATION, YOU CAN DO THIS RIGHT ON LINE...SEE THE LINK.
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| Safety First |
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| TIPS FOR HIRING CONTRACTORS |
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A FEW WORDS FROM CLIENT SERVICES MANAGER: LAURA J. EARLES
People always ask us "why we wanted to run a plumbing company" or why we enjoy construction and home repairs. Our first thoughts are, is that construction is one of the few jobs you can do where you see what you have done at the end of the day, But.. a deeper answer is...we watched our mom, who was a single parent get taken advantage of by numerous contractors...once she even paid twice for plumbing work that was put in the wrong place, not done to code...and double the agreed upon price because she was too intimidated to say "no". At Paradise, we are committed to giving good service at a fair price and ALWAYS working with integrity. The contractors we work with are like us; they are licensed bonded and insured, and follow all codes and safety measures stringently. We wanted to provide information about picking a contractor and things to consider for homeowners, doityourselfers, and especially for women who may be seeking contracting services. Unfortunately many people feel that plumbers are like the proverbial "used car salesman," due to being taken advantage of and basically being ripped off. Not a good place to be for anyone." We hope to dispel that perception and make your experience working with us positive and painless!
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