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Financial
Services > Mortgages
> Self-Build
> How To Find A Good Builder
Take your
time when looking for a builder
or subcontractor to carry out work on your new home. Recommendation
is always best. Once you have contacted a builder, ask him for
the names of several recent clients in your area. Go and look
at his work and ask what he was like. Give detailed plans and
specifications to several builders and ask them to provide you
with an estimate. A good builder will always be happy to do this
and will explain why work needs to be done and how long it will
take. Employ a builder who offers an insurance-backed guarantee,
but remember you will still need to take out your own structural
warranty.
There are also associations like the Federation
of Master Builders (020 7242 7583) who look to maintain
a high standard of quality from their members. They do not, however,
inspect the work of their members and would not be able to take
action against a particular member, unless they have received
numerous serious complaints about them.
Your Local Authority may have a list of contractors, but remember
they cannot give recommendations or much information on individual
builders due to the Data Protection Act 1998. Each Local Authority
will have it's own policy on the matter
Once you have selected your builder, ask if they are a member
of a trade
association and always get a written contract, signed
by your builder. This should set out all the work to be done,
agreed price, method of payment, start and completion dates, insurance
and guarantees and how you will resolve any disagreements should
they occur. If you don't feel happy about drawing up your own
contract, the Joints
Contracts Tribunal (JCT) has produced one, published by
Construction Industry Publications (0121 722 8200).
Your builder will notify your Local Authority when he is due to
start work on your site. The local Building Inspector will visit
the site regularly to inspect the work, similarly, if your builder
is NHBC
registered (National House Building Council) and has registered
the property, one of their inspectors will also make regular site
visits.
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