What Senior Living Facilities Should Look For in a General Contractor in Manhattan, NY Area
During construction in your senior living facility, you don’t want to be caught in a situation with an untrustworthy contractor. A company built on professionalism will have a long list of admirable qualities, mostly focusing on excellent communication. There are several red flags to avoid as well. Here’s what senior living facilities should look for in a general contractor in Manhattan, NY.
The Highest Level of Communication
From the inception of the project to well afterward, a general contractor should be in constant communication about any consequential issue. Any questions and concerns should be promptly attended to in clear and concise language. You’ll know when you feel attended to and when you’ve been ghosted. A contractor that’s great in customer service will be easy to reach. If any of your concerns aren’t addressed quickly during the planning process, you might consider working with a more suitable bidder.
Great Word of Mouth
Positive testimonials are the keystone of any general contractor. Those with excellent experiences will be happy to talk about their business relationship and any trustworthy business will have these testimonials ready to go for any prospective client. These should be proudly displayed on the website. Sometimes a negative review can even be a positive depending on the general contractor’s response and offers to fix the problem. If you have any doubts about the veracity of those testimonials, ask for some references from the company themselves. In short, they should be proud of their previous work and ready to show it off.
Licenses, Certifications, and Insurance
Your general contractor should also be proud of their current licenses and certifications. These are difficult and expensive to achieve, so they will be a point of pride for the company and a signal that they are dedicated to their craft. If they’re unwilling to produce these documents, there’s a reason why. Before you sign a contract, go over the terms of their insurance including all worst-case scenarios you can imagine. Unlicensed, uncertified, and uninsured contractors may perform a perfect project, but the risk factor will be far too high.
Impeccable Detail-Oriented Organization
The planning phase of your project should be completely and thoroughly scheduled and documented from start to finish: this is a sign of experience that can be extremely valuable in executing a complex project. The complexity of a senior living project requires incredible attention to detail and an experienced contractor will be well equipped to elicit every single step in the process. If you get the opportunity, visit one of the projects that your contractor has completed and take note of the fine details in the work. A client’s satisfaction will be a direct result of these organizational skills.
The most telling indicator of a contractor’s organizational skills will come forward in the bid. A well-organized contractor will have professional outlines of deadlines, cost, communication expectations, and clear terms and conditions. The vague language here is a red flag. The longer and more detailed the bid, the better.
A Warranty
A contractor that has a philosophy of “cut and runs” won’t provide you with a warranty. Any respectable contractor will follow up on the finished work and see if it was successful: with safe execution, customer satisfaction, touch-up work, etc; and will guarantee the work. A contractor that doesn’t have a satisfactory warranty will be less likely to make corrections after the project is completed.