Will I find the right Builder?

Search for the right Builder starts with You. 

1. Are you clear with what do you want to get done? 

2. Have you checked for any requirement of planning permission? 

3. Do you have the Construction drawings ready? 

4. Are your finances ready? 

The Builder! 

Assuming you have all the Yes's in place for the above, now comes the stage where you invite the builders to quote. It is worthwhile to remember that you would like to have a win-win relationship with your prospective builder. 

Most of the single unit residential construction builders in the UK are 2-5 people crew. The builder juggles many hats – marketing, purchase, logistics, human resource, finance, CEO and so on. The first thing they will appreciate it if you do not waste their time. Keep a folder ready which has all the details that will be required for a builder to quote. Throw in some photos of the site in that too. Remember to ask them to give a detailed quote with scope of works for each room.

Take a deadline from them to quote or accept that they are not interested. Go through your prepared questionnaire seeking the required information from them. It is important to know that there is a severe shortage of construction manpower in the UK. Don't keep too much gap between receiving the quote and making the decision to award the contract. Remember to inform the unfortunate ones also. It always helps to earn a bit of goodwill. 

I love your work, but I will not let you earn! 

Select the professional builders in London on both quantitative and qualitative scale. You need to be entirely sure that you are happy to welcome them in your home. Seek professional help, but remember the old saying ‘One man's meat is another man's poison’. Remain sceptical of all endorsements, and you must check them out yourself. You should go beyond judging only the finished work but also how the builder managed the whole process, from logistics, attendance, budget, on-site facilities and regards for neighbours for noise, mess and dust etc. Although you will be tempted to select the cheaper one, pause here and think, as to why is the quote cheaper? Lazy explanation will be, I work for little profit. Back to the win-win relationship ethos, you would want your builder to earn a fair margin as it is critical for the success of the project. 

As a famous management guru, Peter Drucker said: 

" Profit for a company is like oxygen for a person, If you don't have enough of it, you're out of the game."