Choosing whether or not to hire a general contractor for your construction project can be a confusing proposition. For one thing, you may not be entirely clear on what a general contractor actually does, so you may not see the benefit in having one involved with your project.
Simply stated, a general contractor is a company you hire to supervise your project from start to finish. They’re responsible for hiring, managing and scheduling all the project’s subcontractors—which can be quite a large number depending on the job.
Take a kitchen remodel for example: for this kind of job you’ll probably need an electrical contractor, a plumbing contractor, a countertop contractor, a cabinet contractor, a flooring contractor, a painting contractor, and someone to install the appliances. When you have a general contractor on the job, you can relax, because you know that the general contractor is selecting and hiring subcontractors with the proper experience and expertise to get your job done right and on budget.
In addition to working with subcontractors, general contractors also take care of vital project details such as getting required permits and making sure that code enforcement approves the project. Thanks to their relationships in the industry, general contractors can also usually get you better prices on materials and labor. And, should any problems arise, reputable general contractors can be relied on to warranty their work for a reasonable period of time.
Not all projects require a general contractor, but if any of the following conditions apply to your job, you should definitely consider hiring one:
- If the job is going to take more than a week
- If the job requires several different subcontractors to complete
- If the job requires pulling permits
Generations West is proud to be one of the Desert’s premier general contractors. We’ve been satisfying clients in Palm Desert, Palm Springs and the entire Coachella Valley for years. Give us a call at (760) 345-9898 when you’re planning your next project.
It was nice that you mentioned that hiring a general contractor can help you to save more money from buying materials and labor because they usually get better prices. This is something that I will make sure to remember because my husband and I are planning to own a commercial building in the future. We want to make sure that our building is going to be constructed in the most affordable way without compromising its quality since we’re on a tight budget. Thanks for sharing this.
I found it helpful when you said that you should consider hiring a general contractor if your project will take more than a week to be completed. My husband and I are planning to renovate both our kitchen and bathroom. We want to make sure that the contractor that we will hire is skilled in completing projects that may take a long time to be completed, so we’ll be sure to hire a general contractor. Thanks!
I like that you said that hiring a general contractor can allow you to relax because they know how to hire subcontractors with the proper experience and expertise for your project. My husband and I are looking to have our kitchen remodeled soon. We want to have peace of mind that our remodeling project is going to be completed without going beyond our budget and timeline, so I will make sure to consider hiring a general contractor.