Improving the exterior of your home is an exciting opportunity for many homeowners, but choosing the right company to do the inspection, repair, or replacements can be an intimidating process.
From price points to insurances, warranties to customer service, multiple factors should be considered before choosing your company.
We’ve put together 8 questions to ask potential exteriors companies before you sign on the dotted line and the work gets started.
Are They Insured?
Protection for your home against damages is extremely important, so be sure to ask your exteriors company for proof of public liability insurance and worker’s compensation insurance.
Services like roofing repairs and installations are especially dangerous jobs and liability insurance protects against damages during installation. Worker’s compensation protects you against being liable if a contractor gets injured while working on your property.
Are They Experienced?
Nothing beats experience when it comes to choosing a home exteriors company. While newer companies are still valid and have the skills, a company backed by years or decades of experience has proven that they offer the right products and services required to do the job right the first time.
Do They Have References & Reviews?
Never hesitate to ask a company for specific references including names and numbers or an address to see the results for yourself. Both of these options go a long way towards peace of mind knowing the company you’re hiring will do a good job.
Word of mouth is also king in the home improvement industry, especially in this fast-moving, social media-driven world. Reviews can provide a wealth of information needed to make an informed decision on an exteriors company including positive Google ratings. Do they have only a few reviews or hundreds? What do people say about their strengths and weaknesses? Have customers taken the time to leave a comment or review on their social media accounts? How recent are these?
What Is Their Warranty?
Companies generally provide two types of warranties; a manufacturer’s warranty protecting against defects on the products and a workmanship warranty that protects against problems with the installation.
The warranty is a measure of the company’s confidence in its products and workmanship. If a company cannot back itself up with a strong warranty, then you may want to think twice about hiring them.
How Is Their Customer Service?
An often-overlooked factor to consider is how a company deals with customer complaints & inquiries as well as if they address these in a timely, professional manner. Depending on the nature of the work, you may want to be more or less involved in the process, which the company should be open to.
Good communication, availability, and professionalism can make a huge difference in your overall satisfaction.
Are Their Workers Employees Or Subcontractors?
Most well-established exterior companies have their own employees and a team of experienced/verified workers. Make sure that the company you hire isn’t sub-contracting to other workers in order to save themselves a bit of time and money.
What Services Are They Experienced In?
Sometimes a company will promise any service a customer asks for, but it’s important to double-check to prove that they are experienced in each specific service they are offering to provide. For example, an exteriors company may be experienced with vinyl siding, but not experienced at all with stone. Or they may be competent with installing asphalt shingles, but not metal roofing.
Make sure to ask about the specific materials & products that they use and verify they have the tools & experience to do the job well.
What Are Their Costs?
The price point of your job is obviously an important consideration, so it’s best to get a few quotes to compare both products & cost. If you see huge price differences between quotes, this is a good opportunity to do some further digging.
Consider asking why their prices are what they are as well as why they may be so much cheaper or so much more expensive than their competitors.
Generally, price-points that are too low prove the age-old “you get what you pay for”, but you also want to make sure the company you choose doesn’t price gauge because they know that you need to get this work done.
If the company can’t give you a good answer as to why they’re priced lower or higher than the competition, that’s a red flag.