How to Choose a Whole-House Remodeling Contractor in Vancouver, WA

A whole-house remodel puts one company in charge of your home for months: the design, the permits, the trades, the schedule and the money. Choosing that company well matters more than any finish you will pick later. This page is the checklist we would use if we were hiring for our own house, in the order the checks usually happen.

The vetting checklist at a glance

1. Look up the Washington registration

Every contractor in Washington must register with the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I). Its Verify tool lets you confirm that a business has an active registration, an active workers' comp account, any safety citations or infractions, any lawsuits against its bond and the names of its owners. Search by the registration number on the contractor's ads or estimate, and make sure the name matches the company on your contract.

Washington law also requires a contractor's registration number on its advertising (RCW 18.27.100). If a company's website, truck or estimate has no number, ask why. Ours is JDICOCN932KZ, and you can look it up the same way.

2. For Portland-side homes, check the Oregon CCB license

Oregon is a separate system. Under ORS 701.021, anyone who bids on or does residential work in Oregon needs a current Construction Contractors Board license with a residential endorsement. A Washington registration does not count. Oregon also requires the CCB number on advertising, including websites. JDI holds Oregon CCB #176101. If your house is in Portland, Lake Oswego or another Oregon city, look up any contractor's number on the CCB license search before you meet.

3. See finished whole-house projects, not only kitchens

Many good companies remodel kitchens and bathrooms. Fewer run projects that touch the whole house at once, with walls moving, systems replaced and several trades on site in sequence. Ask to see completed whole-house work of a similar size and age of home, with the city it was in. Ours are on our whole-home projects page.

Then call references yourself. Useful questions for a past client:

• Did the final scope and price match the signed estimate, and how were changes handled?
• Who was your day-to-day contact, and how quickly did they answer?
• Were the permits and inspections handled without you chasing them?
• What would you do differently if you hired them again?

4. Ask how design, permits and trades are handled

On a whole-house remodel, the hand-offs between designer, contractor and trades are where schedules slip and budgets move. Ask each company:

• Who designs it? In-house designers, an outside architect, or you bring plans. Our page on design-build or architect plus contractor compares the routes.
• Who pulls the permits? Get it in writing. Which office issues them depends on the address: the City of Vancouver inside its city limits, Clark County in unincorporated areas, and each other city for its own homes.
• Who does the plumbing and electrical? In Washington, plumbers and electricians must be certified, and L&I's Verify tool shows that too. JDI uses separate licensed plumbing contractors for all plumbing work, and all electrical work is done by licensed electrical contractors.
• Who is your contact during construction? One named project manager is easier than a rotating crew lead.

5. Get the contract, change orders and warranty in writing

L&I recommends a written contract that states, at a minimum, the price including sales tax, payment terms, permit fees, the specific work, the materials, major suppliers and subcontractors, and the warranties and process for change orders. It also advises paying for completed phases of the work rather than large sums in advance, and getting any change in writing. Our contracts, deposits and change orders page goes through each item, and Washington lien law explains why you should ask for lien releases as you pay.

For the warranty, ask how long it lasts, what it covers and how you make a claim. JDI gives a 5-year written workmanship warranty, described on our warranty page.

Red flags

• No registration number, or a name that does not match the Verify record.
• Cash only, or a large share of the price before any work starts.
• A one-line estimate with no scope, allowances or sales tax shown.
• A special price only if you sign today, or a request that you pull the building permit yourself. L&I lists both as warning signs; pulling permits is usually the contractor's job.
• Advertising that the company is "bonded and insured" as a selling point. Washington law (RCW 18.27.100) does not allow a contractor to advertise that on the strength of the bond and insurance every registered contractor must carry.

When a whole-house remodeler is the wrong hire

If you are only redoing one room, a firm built for whole-house projects may be more than you need; our kitchen and bathroom guides cover single-room projects. If your plans are already drawn by an architect and you want several builders to bid the same set, you are hiring a builder, not a design team. And if the work is mostly outside the house, look for a company that focuses on that work.

Next step

Once you have two or three companies that pass these checks, compare what each one would actually build for the price: see how to compare whole-house remodel estimates line by line. If you are still choosing between a design-build firm and an architect, read design-build or architect plus contractor first.