Reliable contractors are worth their weight in gold. You will need a team for your refurbishments and then one that can handle your on going maintenance. While you’ll probably be able to use many of the same people, the important thing is that you hire the right people for the job in the first place.
Here are our recommendations for the best building upkeep teams…
Refurbishment:
- Builder (ideally who can project manage), preferably a member of the Federation of Master Builders
- Plasterer
- Painter, Decorator
- Glazer, FENSA regulated
- Locksmith, preferably from the Master Locksmiths Association
- Carpet fitter
- Plumber, Gas Safe registered
- Electrician, Part P registered (check on the register: competentperson.co.uk)
- Cleaner
You may be tempted to project manage yourself, but Nick Fox recommends you employ someone else to do it. Refurbishment contractors need to work together; if they all have their own agendas, you may find projects can stall or delay. A PM (often the builder) will have a regular team he knows to work efficiently and make sure everything stays on track. It also means you have a single person to liaise with, better for a fluid build.
Maintenance:
- General handyman
- Plumber, Gas Safe registered
- Electrician, Part P registered (for safety checks) Portable Appliance Tester
- Gardener (but the handyman may do gardens for you)
- Emergency Locksmith, ideally from the Master Locksmiths Association Cleaner
For maintenance, you’ll often need to call on these people at short notice so do everything you can to make sure they respond quickly. A very good way of ensuring they do this is to pay them quickly at invoice. Most – if not all – are self employed and really can’t afford to wait several weeks for payment. Anyone will appreciate you settling bills straight away.
As with much business, you get the best results when you do your own homework. Network locally and ask others to recommend good contractors locally that they’ve used. You can also look on websites like ratedpeople.com and mybuilder.com, where tradespeople have been rated on their work.
Two important things to check are:
- that any contractor you use has their own insurance and,
- that they have formal accreditation.
If you need to check out tradespersons reviews, a good place to start is Trustmark. trustmark.org.uk has a database of people that operate to government endorsed standards and if the person you’re considering isn’t on there, we advise you check their credentials thoroughly.
Good look with all renovations. We hope you find the contractors you need.
Nick Fox started his property investment career 10 years ago and his portfolio has grown to one of the largest in the UK. Nick now mainly focuses on HMOs (houses in multiple occupation) and works to help others achieve property success too. Visit here to find out how he can help you.
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