One of the most enjoyable home improvement jobs is remodeling a bathroom. The results are immediate and personal: a gleaming new shower or bathtub, a new color scheme, a bathroom vanity with a gorgeous surface, and more storage than ever before.

A high-quality bathroom makeover may potentially pay for itself by increasing the market value of your home. Hiring a bathroom contractor with expertise who can see your project through to completion is one approach to assure the greatest bathroom renovation. Hiring a designer, in addition to a skilled licensed contractor, may help save time and money in the long run.

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Interview Three or More Bathroom Contractors

When you chat with only one or two bathroom contractors, you will only get a limited set of opinions. If you go ahead and obtain proposals from these contractors, be prepared for higher-than-expected bids. By interviewing many contractors, you will be able to discover the contractor that is the best fit for your task. You’ll also have a wider selection of offers to pick from.

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Check the Contractor’s Previous Work

Bathroom remodelers generally arrive for the interview with a photo gallery of prior bathroom remodels, either in a picture book or on a screen. The contractor’s portfolio can also be viewed on their website or on contractor-matching services to which they join. Look past the eye-catching photographs to determine if this bathroom contractor provides the sort of work you require.

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Get Written Estimates

Verbal estimates are useless, whether for the homeowner or the bathroom contractor. Even when everyone has excellent intentions, numbers are forgotten, misconstrued, or misheard. Well-written estimates are not only understood by everybody, but they are also useful if legal action is required. It is completely acceptable to request a verbal ballpark quote from a bathroom contractor. Just keep in mind that no one is holding you to that amount and that you should follow up with a documented cost estimate.

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Create a Schedule

Before signing the contract, make sure to discuss with the bathroom contractor the start date and total duration of the job. Scheduling is important to both you and the contractor. You can proceed with the deal after both of you are in agreement.

“Time is of the essence” is a common contract phrase that outlines the length of time the contractor has to work on the project, as well as the homeowner’s payment schedule.

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Clarify the Contractor’s Role

Speak with the bathroom contractor on what will be completed throughout the project even before the contract is made up. Bathroom remodeling contractors must complete a certain set of tasks and provide the necessary materials.

The contractor will never just claim that the bathroom will be redone. Instead, this larger bathroom remodeling job is divided into a number of distinct, smaller sub-projects.

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Discuss bringing your own or reusing items.

When renovating your bathroom with a contractor, you have the option of recycling useful components from your old bathroom in addition to employing new building materials. Discuss the materials you want to repurpose with the contractor ahead of time. Also, accept the contractor’s advice on the practicality of these materials.

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Discuss the Peripherals

A skilled contractor will be proactive in bringing up minor concerns that affect your life throughout the bathroom makeover. What will you do if the bathroom under construction is your sole bathroom at this time? When will the subcontractors come and when will they leave? Will they work on weekends? All of these factors, and more, have an impact on your life during the bathroom renovation process.

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Check for Licenses and Credentials

Bathroom contractors are licensed and registered, and with that comes a slew of requirements such as insurance, bonding, criminal record checks, testing, continuing education, and more. As a requirement of participation, most online contractor-matching services need current licenses and registrations.

Even if the contractor’s website shows licenses and bonds, don’t assume that everything is legal or up to date. Check with the municipal agency about the licenses.