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How to Vet a Contractor: The Complete Homeowner's Checklist
Print it, screenshot it, or just check items off as you go — eight steps between you and hiring with confidence.
Home / How to Vet a Contractor
Print it, screenshot it, or just check items off as you go — eight steps between you and hiring with confidence.
Most homeowners vet a contractor by gut feeling — a friendly voice on the phone, a professional-looking truck, a bid that lands somewhere in the middle. None of that tells you whether they're licensed, insured, or likely to finish the job. The checklist below takes five minutes and tells you what actually matters.
Confirm it's active, matches the business name, and is the right category for your project.
General liability and, if they have employees, workers' compensation — ask for a certificate.
Look past the star rating to how disputes were actually resolved.
Three bids for anything beyond a small repair gives you a real basis for comparison.
A real office or shop, not just a cell number and a magnetic truck sign.
Scope, price, materials, timeline, and payment schedule — before any work starts.
Never pay 100% upfront. Tie payments to completed milestones, not calendar dates.
Ask who's pulling the permit — it should be the licensed contractor, not you.
Grouped so you can ask them in the right order — paperwork first, then payment, then process.
It's not about finding the lowest price — it's that comparing three real, written bids forces you to notice when one contractor's scope of work is vague, or their price seems too good to be true. A lowball bid is one of the clearest red flags to watch for.
Every contractor in the CCA network is already vetted for license and insurance.
Find a Vetted Contractor Near YouStart with the paperwork: license number, proof of insurance, and a written contract with a detailed scope of work. Then cover payment (deposit amount, milestone schedule, never 100% upfront) and process (who's doing the work, realistic timeline, warranty length). See the question groups above for exact wording to use.
It depends on your state and the type of work — many states set statutory warranty periods for structural work (often several years), while a contractor's own workmanship warranty is a separate, shorter commitment they make in writing. Ask for their warranty terms in the contract itself rather than relying on a verbal promise, and check your state's statute of repose for construction defects if a serious issue surfaces later.
A general contractor typically holds a state license, can pull permits, and manages larger or structural projects (additions, major remodels, roofing). A handyman handles smaller, non-structural repairs and often isn't licensed the same way. If your project needs a permit, involves structural changes, or exceeds your state's licensing-threshold dollar amount, you need a licensed general contractor, not a handyman.