By Francine Maglione

Imagine a contractor working on your basement. You hired him and gave him the down payment that he requested. The work takes weeks and you feel like nothing is really getting done. He keeps asking for more money and you keep shelling it out hoping it will motivate him to finish. Months later he stops showing up and your basement is either not finished or was hastily completed with shoddy workmanship and cut corners, leaving you helpless and broke. You’ve been had. How could you have prevented this in the first place?

One of the most difficult parts of any building or remodeling job might be hiring a contractor. With such a harsh stigma attached to them, finding a trustworthy basement contractor can be a frightening task. Follow these tips and maybe your search will get a little easier.

Get it in Writing
Any expert in building, construction, law or any business will tell you that a safe way to handle any agreement is to get everything in writing. Ask the Builder columnist Tim Carter stresses the importance of this and even recommends using email as an easy way to get a written record. Try using email to communicate important points with your basement contractor, and then save the emails to your hard drive and to a disk and print them out.

Carter also suggests taking notes during a meeting with your basement contractor. Ask the contractor if he is able to complete the job in a certain amount of time. If he says no, ask what can be done to get the work finished sooner. Once you get the answer you want, pause and write down the notes. Carter says that the contractor will see you writing and make a mental note telling him that you will not forget what was said. A paper trail will also be helpful to you if you ever need to take legal action. Keep a collection of letters, photos, emails and other paperwork, and invest in a copy of the current building codes so you can spot any building code violations while the work is being done.

Pay Later
Tim Carter strongly suggests working out a fair, timely payment plan with your contractor. He also cautions against contractors that may be using your money to pay bills from jobs they finished months ago. Don’t end up a victim! Do your research and ask questions before hiring a contractor to ensure that he is knowledgeable and trustworthy. Don’t be afraid to give him an interview beforehand, as he is trying to get a job after all. Making sure that the company is licensed and insured and even members of trustworthy organizations, such as the Better Business Bureau, are ways to help ensure that you’re going to get what you pay for.

What They Can Do for You
A trustworthy, professional, financially stable basement contractor can be a huge help to you if you decide to remodel your basement. He will provide important and beneficial advice that can only come from an expert. Doityourself.com recommends using a basement contractor to get advice on amenities you would like to add to your basement such as a bathroom or kitchenette. Just keep in mind that the more features you decide to add to the room, the more expensive the project will become. Make sure you have enough money to cover everything you want to do. Many well-established contractors – the ones you want to do business with – offer financing plans to help with the payments.

A contractor can also help you with moisture control in your basement, or even if you have a wet basement to begin with. Before starting any basement remodeling project, it’s imperative that moisture is eliminated, and a contractor can ensure that your basement is properly insulated and vented. If you want the best for your basement, go with a Total Basement Finishing contractor. These contractors will provide you with a top-quality floor, ceiling and walls to make your basement dry, clean and safe. And with dealers all over the country, we’re bound to have just what you need right where you need it. Get your free quote today and let us help you make your basement beautiful!

Among all the necessary steps to take when hiring a basement contractor, asking for and checking a contractor’s references is most commonly overlooked by the homeowners.

Some are not comfortable with the idea of bothering a complete stranger, or calling someone on the phone to ask about the work performance of another. Others just don’t know how to do it, or what to ask.

In our experience, when our customers are really happy with the service, not only will they not feel bothered for having their contact information used as reference but they will be delighted to provide the information requested.

This is why our policy is to offer references right away before you ask for them, and even before your ever get to meet our representative in person. As for exactly what to ask a contractor’s reference, the NAHB (National Association of Home Builders) website has excellent tips:

Ask the homeowners:

• Would you hire this company again?

• Did the remodeler maintain a neat jobsite, provide regular broom clean-up, and haul away debris including personal trash?

• Did the remodeler keep labor and materials delays to a minimum so that your job could be started and completed on time and within budget?

• Did you find the remodeler easy to work with? Did the remodeler keep you informed as the job progressed?

• Did the remodeler supply you with paperwork in a timely fashion?

• How well did the remodeler deal with the problems that arose?

Although those questions were directed to remodeling contractors, we believe they apply to every contractor in the home improvement industry and we strongly encourage you to use them every time you plan on hiring a contractor.

Beautiful Game Room designed by Mr. Basement

The popularity of basement game rooms and “man caves“, which soared during the past decade,  will remain as a huge trend through 2015, According to the National Association of Home Builders’ “Home of the Future” study.

A combination of rising fuel prices, shaky housing market,  and the increase in number of available home entertainment technologies and systems, had homeowners looking at ways to maximize the use of available space in their homes building rooms to be more enjoyable and provide for all their entertainment needs.

Ron Greenbaum, also  known as Mr. Basement, is an expert in basement environment, from waterproofing to finishing.

Mr. Basement built many basement game rooms and “man caves“,  including the one in the picture that illustrates this post, which was featured in this Triangle article.

And he offers some important advice regarding game rooms:

“Before the design phase can begin, homeowners have to make sure the space is well-prepared,” Greenbaum says. “That means doing due diligence and controlling humidity in a basement or insulating the space in a loft above the garage. Otherwise, you’re throwing your money away.”

Mr. Basement is a Total Basement Finishing  dealer in Baltimore, Maryland area all the way from Frederick County to the Eastern Shore, Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia.

Total Basement Finishing offers the best finishing  solutions for your Basement Game Room or Man Cave.  Contact us to locate a dealer in your area.