Renovations are fun. New kitchen, new bathroom, whole house remodel… you get the idea.
The hard part?
Coordinating all the actual workers who make those plans happen. Budget blowouts, missed deadlines, dangerous job sites… Before you know it you've completely lost control of what's happening on your property.
The good news?
It doesn't have to be this way. With preparation and a few simple rules, any homeowner can manage tradespeople on their renovation project, avoid liability issues and get the results they actually want.
Let's dig in.
What you'll learn:
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Why Taking Care Of Your Renovation Crew Is Important
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Most Homeowners Don't Follow These Three Steps
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Protect Yourself From Workers Injury Claims
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5 Tips To Effectively Manage Your Renovation Crew
Why Taking Care Of Your Renovation Crew Is Important
Interior design blogs and Pinterest will have you spending all your time picking out tiles and paint colours. That's the fun stuff. Here's the not-so-fun stuff… communication.
Namely, making sure everyone who touches your property while it's under renovation is happy, healthy, and staying on budget.
Why should you worry about your renovation crew? Great question.
Let's start with liability.
If a worker is hurt on your property and you didn't warn the contractor about an unsafe condition, you could be held responsible. This is true even if the contractor doesn't carry workers comp insurance and a job injury occurs. The injured worker may need to hire a workers comp attorney in Fresno to assist with filing a claim for expenses related to the injury.
Need another reason?
Imagine how much more difficult your renovation becomes if something goes wrong and you need to find new people to complete the work. Unhappy workers = unfinished job.
Let's not forget about your budget either. Hiring people who don't do quality work means you'll spend more money fixing problems down the road. Budget blowouts are never fun.
Think of taking care of your renovation crew as just another piece of your project management. Sure, it's not as exciting as picking colours. But it'll save you a ton of time and money.
Most Homeowners Don't Follow These Three Steps
So you know managing your renovation crew is important. How do you actually do it without going crazy?
Avoid these three homeowner traps. They're pretty common (even though they're completely avoidable) and derail renovations all the time.
Micro-Managing The Work
Hey, it's your house. And your money. You should know what's happening at all times, right?
Wrong.
The more involved a homeowner is with how the work is completed, the more liability they assume if a workplace injury occurs. Directing workers to use certain tools or methods, for example, could shift responsibility from the contractor to the homeowner.
Best practice? Agree on the scope, timeline and budget. Let them do their jobs.
Failure To Check References, Insurance And Licences
Homeowners should always verify the following before allowing a worker on their property:
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Valid Trade Licence
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Public Liability Insurance
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Worker's Compensation Coverage
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Any Other Required Certifications
Yes, it's extra work. Yes, most homeowners skip this step. Don't be "most homeowners".
Failing to make sure your contractor is licensed and insured is how people end up paying for worker's injuries out of pocket. It's that serious.
Ignoring Your Budget
According to recent industry data, 80% of homeowners went over budget by at least $500 on their renovation projects. That's a big number.
Here's how to fix it. Set a realistic budget that includes at least a 10-15% contingency. Get 3 quotes. And put your budget, plus selected contractor's quote, in writing before work begins.
Easy.
Protect Yourself From Workers Injury Claims
Did you know that renovation job sites are one of the most dangerous places workers can be?
Consider this statistic from Direct Line research…
95% of tradespeople have suffered a workplace injury at some point in their career.
That's almost every single tradesperson out there. When injuries happen on someone's property, the homeowner can face job injury compensation claims. And just like that, we're back to #1 on this list.
Here's how to avoid injury compensation claims:
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Verify contractor is licensed and insured
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Warn contractors of any hazards on the property ahead of time
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Don't dictate how work is performed
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Document everything. Including hazards.
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Review your homeowner's insurance policy. Make sure you have adequate coverage.
5 Tips To Effectively Manage Your Renovation Crew
Enough of the scary stuff. Let's focus on keeping your project running smoothly.
Follow these tips to worry less about the people working on your house and more on the final result.
Set Expectations Before Work Begins
Sit down with your contractor and outline the following BEFORE any work begins.
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What work is being done?
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When will it be completed?
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How much will it cost?
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How will we communicate?
Discussing and agreeing on details up front will prevent 90% of problems down the road. Don't leave the house without a written agreement.
Have a Single Point Of Contact
Typical renovation crews have lots of moving parts. Carpenters, electricians, plumbers, painters… if your kitchen is getting remodeled there's a good chance 10+ people could be coming into your home.
Having too many people giving you directions will cause problems. Solve this by designating your general contractor as the point person for day-to-day decisions.
Do NOT communicate separately with each trade. It's unrealistic. And inviting disaster.
Meet Weekly To Review Progress
Hold a weekly project update meeting with your contractor. No need to get fancy. A simple walkthrough of the property to review completed work and talk about next steps takes 15-minutes and goes a long way.
Keeping regular check-ins with your contractor not only ensures your renovation is on track, but it builds trust. And trust goes a long way when something unforeseen happens.
Document. Everything.
Look, keeping open lines of communication is obviously important. But if you ever need to reference who said what and when, you'll want to have a record.
Having a shared folder on your phone or computer where you keep every quote, email correspondence, invoice and change order will pay dividends if there's ever a disagreement. Or it can be used to simply remind your contractor of what was agreed to. Either way… document.
Let Them Do Their Job
This tip is going to be hard for a lot of people. But arguably the most important step in managing your renovation crew is allowing them to do their jobs.
Once you've verified references, secured the proper licences and insurance, set the budget… let them work.
Having owners onsite 24/7 slows your renovation down. Creates confusion. And now you're liable for anything that goes wrong on your property. Remember above?
Again, let them do their job.
Wrapping It Up
Dealing with tradespeople during a renovation doesn't have to feel like a losing battle. Take a few precautions before work begins and follow a few simple best practices.
Your renovation crew will thank you. Your bank account will thank you. And best of all… you'll thank yourself when that dream kitchen actually makes it to completion on time and budget.
To quickly recap:
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Check references, insurance and licenses before work begins. Period.
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Set clear expectations. And get everything in writing.
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Avoid injury compensation claims by documenting hazards and not micromanaging how work gets done.
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Have a single point of contact for your crew. Usually the general contractor.
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Document everything.
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Don't forget to let them work.
The successful renovating homeowners aren't the ones trying to control every detail. They're the ones who hire quality people, set clear expectations and step back to let them do their job.
Now get renovating.
