The day a roofers handshake cost me $4,000 in Okotoks

I used to just take a contractor's word and a handshake on timelines for renovation jobs I was selling. Then I had a roofer in Okotoks bail on my client's tear-off three days before closing, and the whole deal fell through. How do you guys verify a contractor's schedule and reliability before you bring them into a real estate deal?

2 comments

2 Comments

willow24418d ago

Had a friend who hired a local roofer based on a buddy's recommendation. The guy showed up two days late, then left for a week to do another job. Ended up costing my friend an extra $1,500 in hotel bills while they waited. Now I always ask for three recent references and actually call them before I sign anything.

rayy8318d ago

Hold on, @willow244, your friend's guy just LEFT for a WEEK while the roof was torn off? That's insane. I would have been calling someone else the second he didn't show up on day one. Stuff like that is why I always check if they're actually licensed and bonded in my state, it's the only way to get any real leverage. A buddy's recommendation is fine for a pizza place, but not for a job that can ruin your whole house. Your friend got completely played, and that hotel bill story makes my blood boil just thinking about it. Glad you learned from their mistake, because that's an expensive way to find out someone's a flake.