where to find a good, reliable builder these days?

longwalks1

Have some ideas I want to run past a good builder, and have read horror stories of the top rated companies on the checkatrade and compareabuilder type websites only being there by paying to get the ratings (unsure of how true this is). how do i go about finding a good, honest, and reliable builder (asking an awful lot I know) to talk through an extension?

muckybutt

Word of mouth and references !

trailingspouse

Word of mouth is fine if you know people who have had similar work done, and were happy with it, and you trust their judgement, and it wasn't so long ago that the bloke's now retired.

Google 'builders in Mytown', and pick 3 to start with. Call each one, explain what you want to do and ask if that's something they would be able to do for you. Arrange a time/date for them to come and see you.

Think of it as a job interview - you want to know that the guy is technically capable of doing the work, you want to see how he'll fit in (ie how do you feel about having him in your house, possibly unsupervised, for extended periods of time), you want to know how much he'll cost (including extras - will he need paying for materials upfront, does he charge VAT, what if the job takes longer than expected), and you want to know when he can start. You also need to know how he'll want to be paid - cheque, online transfer, cash (wink wink), etc. And you need to tell him how much of the job you're expecting him to do - will he be demolishing, working at height, will you expect him to sub-contract etc lecky, plumber, will you be doing some of the work yourself.

Some things to take note of - did he arrive on time as arranged, did he take off his boots before coming into your house, did he sound like he knew what he was talking about, do you feel you can trust him. Is he giving you a 'ballpark' figure off the top of his head - or has he said he'll cost it out and send a written quotation. Ask for references. Ask how soon he can start.

Hopefully once you've seen all 3 (assuming they all turn up), you'll have a feel for which one is the one for you. If they don't all turn up, then go back to Google and find another lot.

Give yourself plenty of time for this stage - you need to get it right, and good builders will be busy so even if everything else is perfect they might not be able to start for a few months.

Even then, there's no guarantee that there won't be problems - but hopefully it will help you avoid the cowboys.

I did this for all the trades I've used, and now I've found some really good blokes so I don't feel I need to get three quotes every time - I just call my go-to plumber or lecky and I know they'll do a good job at a sensible price. But it's taken a while to get to this stage.

EssexExile

Also, if you don't live in the big city using "checkatrade and compareabuilder" type sites won't get you anywhere. I've tried to find plumbers & electricians on those sites with no luck. The ones where you put in details & wait for them to call you just don't call. With the ones that list good chaps in your area, the good chaps promise to come round but don't.
As Trailingspouse says, it's gonna take a while

BobQ

A recommendation from a satisfied customer is probably the best way, ideally from several.

If you have had any work done by someone in the trade who you thought did a good job (eg a decorator), they may be willing to recommend a different trade (eg a chippie).