How To Find Contractors For A Flip

Easy Steps To Find Contractors For A Flip

When you are preparing to flip your home, you may be wondering how to find contractors for a flip. In order to find the best contractors for a flip, it’s essential to have knowledge about what to look for in a contractor. In addition, it’s helpful to understand how to get the best deal with them and negotiate on prices. Particularly if you plan on working with them long term.

In this post we will go over some easy and actionable steps you can take to find contractors for a flip or any real estate investment for that matter. If you are ready to find a contractor for your house flip, then grab your computer and your wallet, and let’s get started!

finding contractors for REI

5 Simple Steps For Finding The Best Contractors For Your REI

STEP 1: Understand The Job

In order to find the best contractors for any type of job, you must first understand what needs to be done. In doing so, you are arming yourself with knowledge that will leverage your swaying power during the negotiation process.

For flooring installation, as an example, you will want to understand how a flooring contractor might install your new flooring. In addition, you’ll want to know about types of flooring, which is cheapest, and how to choose the right flooring for your house flip.

We suggest that you follow a few simple steps before beginning the interview process:

• Join Bigger Pockets or Facebook Groups so you have support through the process and can get answers to questions
• Begin talking to people and get their feedback on what needs to be done
• Start researching the task at hand until you have a full understanding of the project
• Don’t be afraid to interview multiple contractors. It often takes several to find the best one.

STEP 2: Google Contractors Before Contacting Them

When you begin your hunt for contractors to help you with your house flip, it is important that you take the time to google them first. If you don’t google your contractors before you begin contacting them, you run the risk of hiring a contractor that will not provide you with excellent work. 

Some good search queries to use when searching your contractors online are:

• Company name + location of the company
• Company name + scam
• Company name + sue
• Company name + court
• Company name + evil

This way, you can make sure that you will catch any possible issues that could arise with your contractor. Take the time to do the research, read the reviews, and, if possible, speak with people that have worked with the contractors before. 

STEP 3: Seek Out Contractors Who Have Done Flips

Step 3 is an important one. You will want to connect with contractors who have done house flips previously as they can advise you on the job. When it comes to flooring and flipping your home, getting the right flooring and installing it will be an important task. The type of flooring that you use for your house flip will, of course, depend entirely on your own preferences when it comes to flooring. However, a house flip is meant to be a profit, not an expense. 

Therefore, when you are flipping a house, you should go with a flooring type that will work well and not cost you a large amount. Finding the right contractors who work with REI is a great way to ensure you’ll find out all this information and be advised properly.

As you may know, one of the best flooring types to go with when you are flipping your home is laminate flooring. It tends to be cheap, easy to install, and lasts longer than some other forms of flooring. 

Not only that, but laminated flooring is quickly becoming a more common and popular form of flooring alongside vinyl plank flooring which is a versatile choice for any flip. You will have a better chance of selling your flipped home and saving money if you find contractors who understand these simple principles and are invested in your project too!

STEP 4: Test Out Your Contractors First

When you are attempting to find a contractor to flip your home, you should test them out before you hire them for the entire job. This way, you ensure that you are only getting the best possible work for the task at hand. You may find that it works best to test out several contractors and then choose the one that will work best for you. 

Before you even test your contractors, though, make sure that you perform a thorough interview of them before you make your decision of which ones to test out with a small job. This way, you will weed out those who will not be a good fit for you and the work that you need to have done on your home. 

The easiest way to do this to hire each contractor to complete one small task for your house flip. After the work has been completed, you can review the work done, the contractor themselves, and how much each contractor charged you for the job that they did. By basing your decision on these factors, you should be able to find yourself an excellent contractor for your house flip.

PRO TIP: If you are located in Augusta, Georgia, companies like Flooring Pros offer free estimates on all of their services. in addition to this, the are well versed on helping with any real estate investment job and are awesome at what they do!

how to find contractors for a flip

STEP 5: Make Sure That They Are Licensed

Another big thing to be taking into account when you are looking for a good contractor is whether they are licensed and certified. There is a large assortment of contractors out there that could possibly do the work well for you, but if they are not certified and licensed as such, then you will be taking a risk hiring them. 

Checking to see if the contractor is certified will take a fair amount of work and time on your end, but it will be well worth it. Once you have decided on some contractors that you might like to work with, it is time to check their certifications. To do this, you will need to check with your state’s contractor licensing board. 

Conclusion:

Finding the perfect contractor to flip your home can take a lot of time and work on your end, but it is well worth it when you finally find the perfect one. Take your time when picking your contractor. It is better to put off the house flip for a little longer than hire a contractor you won’t be pleased with. Now that you know how to find contractors for a flip go find your perfect one!

The post How To Find Contractors For A Flip appeared first on Flooring Pros.

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How To Install Laminate Flooring

How to Install Laminate Flooring

Want to learn how to install laminate flooring? If so, you’ve come to the right place!

Installing laminate flooring is not something that only professionals can do. With some proper understanding and the right tools, it is a project that anyone can do, especially for those who love a good DIY-project. Not only does it require relatively few tools, but it is something you can do in almost any room of your home.

PRO TIP: Read our article on laminate vs. hardwood flooring. We know you’ll enjoy it.

Preparation Is Key

You are putting down new flooring, which means everything needs to be properly prepped and ready. The first step is obviously removing the old flooring, which includes the molding and baseboards. You want a clean slate to start with. Once you’re down to the subfloor, ensure it is in proper condition as well, leaving only a clean, flat surface. Of course, what you find below might not be perfect and flat.

Use an underlayment for uneven floors. Using foam works great if it is only slightly uneven. Otherwise, consider sanding the floors and using something to patch them. You also want to ensure that no moisture will be able to get into the flooring, though some underlayment comes with that feature already. Check to make sure.

Finally, remember to allow the flooring to sit in the same room it will be installed in for around 48 hours. It needs to acclimate for at least that long.

Door jambs come next. While you can cut the flooring to match existing door jambs, cutting the trim instead is a better option. If you do this, the flooring can be slipped under it, leaving a better look and being far simpler than the alternative.

PRO TIP: Read these beginner mistakes for installing flooring. We know the post will be super helpful.

Consider the First and Last Rows

The first step is to plan the first and last rows out. From there, everything else will fall into place. Take note of the longest wall, then consider what the focal point is. You want to install flooring parallel to that. Now do some measurements. Keep these things in mind:

• Get the width of the room from the longest wall. From there, divide the distance by the width of the planks themselves. Now you have the ideal width of the final row.

• There should be a gap to allow for expansion along both walls. Approximately 3/8th of an inch works just fine.

• Calculate the width for the first and last rows with a little more math. Start by adding the width of a full plank to the width needed for the last row. After that, divide by two and cut each plank for the first and last row to that width, allowing for the 3/8th-inch gap.

All that is left is to cut the first and last row. Using clamps to keep things secure is recommended. Otherwise, you do not need a special saw and can use whatever you are comfortable with, from a circular saw to a hand saw.

PRO TIP: Read our article on flooring and how to choose before you start!

Underlayment

Now, it’s time to install the underlayment. As mentioned before, an underlayment helps even floors, but it serves other purposes as well. That being said, some flooring comes with an underlayment layer attached. If that is the case, you might not need to do this step, but that might not be true either.

The underlayment needs to be installed one way or another due to its many functions, which are:

• Insulate
• Dampen Noise
• Protect Against Moisture

While it does protect against moisture, in particularly humid rooms, you should install a separate layer called a vapor barrier. This will further protect the flooring you are installing. After determining these things, cut the underlayment for the room, ensuring any separate rows meet but do not overlap. Things need to remain flat.

Install the Flooring

Finally, it is time to install the flooring, which should be the easy part after thorough preparation.

• Start with the first row, remembering the 3/8th-inch gap here.
• Make sure to place the tongue side of the flooring towards the wall.
• Follow this by placing the next piece of flooring and snapping it into place.
• Keep snapping pieces together until you reach the other wall, cutting the last board as needed to ensure it fits, remembering another 3/8-inch gap for future expansion.

Proceed to follow the same process with the rest of the rows, starting where you did with the first row and so on to ensure the most natural look. Try to stagger seams and avoid gaps. Once you do this throughout the room, complete the look with matching:

• Threshold
• Baseboard
• Molding

Conclusion

This is a project that you are more than capable of doing. In fact, if you follow this article, you will find most of your questions answered. Of course, each room and flooring is different, but the process is quite similar regardless. It really can be as simple as preparing the area, measuring the room, and snapping things together.

In addition to installing flooring on your own, you can hire a company to do it for you. If you are located in Augusta Georgia or any of its surrounding areas, Flooring Pros is highly recommended. Flooring Pros is a flooring store that sells products and offers installation services. Give them a call or contact them here for a free quote or to find out more about how they can help.

We truly hope that you have learned a lot from our blog post. Hopefully, you now have more confidence and understanding when it comes to how to install laminate flooring.

The post How To Install Laminate Flooring appeared first on Flooring Pros.

source https://flooringprosaugusta.com/how-to-install-laminate-flooring/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-to-install-laminate-flooring