Published July 18, 2025
Hiring a Contractor
Hiring a Contractor
The second we closed on Cavendish Cottage we immediately had contractors come to the house to give us quotes on the work. We had already guesstimated the cost to renovate the home but did not have unlimited access to the home while we were under contract so we really had to wait until we owned the home to begin getting real numbers about renovations.
I learned a lot during this process. Madeline and I both had a contractor that we liked and work with regularly so that part was easy. It was just a matter of getting numbers from both of them and deciding who was a better fit for this project.
We received the first quote and it was a high number and didn’t include ANY materials. This was a moment where I learned a lesson about what I will do moving forward whenever I request a quote from contractors. For us, being handed a quote that did not include things like drywall, nails, paint etc was like handing us a huge problem to solve. I don’t know how much drywall costs, how much we need etc. Nor was I familiar with all of the other materials we would need in order to complete the project. The next contractor gave us a quote that was lower AND included on non-aesthetic materials. It made it so much easier to evaluate and move forward with this contractor.
In the future when I am requesting quotes I will break down what I want quotes for. For example: Demo, Bathroom 1, Kitchen, Flooring, Painting. That way when you go to compare quotes you can compare apples to apples vs. having 2 very different quotes that are difficult to compare. I’ve already created a template for this so I can easily compare things in the future.
In addition to cost, we discussed the timeline and submitted or initial deposit. For any first time flippers out there the deposit to begin work will come out of your pocket because you can’t get any draw money until the work has actually been done. So you front the money and are essentially paid back by the lender as phases of construction are completed.
Next we got moving on ordering the things the contractor doesn’t handle and we knew would take a long time. We ordered appliances during the Thanksgiving holiday sales and ordered our windows which were one of the last things to arrive and to be installed.
Next up, I’ll discuss the next phase of the process which was picking all of the materials for the bathrooms in a rush!
I learned a lot during this process. Madeline and I both had a contractor that we liked and work with regularly so that part was easy. It was just a matter of getting numbers from both of them and deciding who was a better fit for this project.
We received the first quote and it was a high number and didn’t include ANY materials. This was a moment where I learned a lesson about what I will do moving forward whenever I request a quote from contractors. For us, being handed a quote that did not include things like drywall, nails, paint etc was like handing us a huge problem to solve. I don’t know how much drywall costs, how much we need etc. Nor was I familiar with all of the other materials we would need in order to complete the project. The next contractor gave us a quote that was lower AND included on non-aesthetic materials. It made it so much easier to evaluate and move forward with this contractor.
In the future when I am requesting quotes I will break down what I want quotes for. For example: Demo, Bathroom 1, Kitchen, Flooring, Painting. That way when you go to compare quotes you can compare apples to apples vs. having 2 very different quotes that are difficult to compare. I’ve already created a template for this so I can easily compare things in the future.
In addition to cost, we discussed the timeline and submitted or initial deposit. For any first time flippers out there the deposit to begin work will come out of your pocket because you can’t get any draw money until the work has actually been done. So you front the money and are essentially paid back by the lender as phases of construction are completed.
Next we got moving on ordering the things the contractor doesn’t handle and we knew would take a long time. We ordered appliances during the Thanksgiving holiday sales and ordered our windows which were one of the last things to arrive and to be installed.
Next up, I’ll discuss the next phase of the process which was picking all of the materials for the bathrooms in a rush!
