Questions To Ask Your GC

When hiring a General Contractor, it is important to qualify the company you are hiring, not just the proposals you receive. Rusk prides ourselves on the company we’ve built over the past three decades and enjoy the opportunity to bid against qualified contractors operating at the same tier. Asking the following questions will help you understand and vet your potential contractors.

Company History

• How long has your company been in business?
• Has your company been involved in any legal proceedings?

Client Relationship

• How will you ensure that you understand my needs?

Design Team Relationship

• Have you worked with my Architect and Designer before?
• How will you ensure that you understand the team’s design intent?
• Do you use any project management software?

Building Relationship (if in a multi-family building)

• Do you have a relationship with the building’s reviewing architect or management?
• How do you protect the project site and building common areas?

Quality

• Where would I find ratings and reviews of your company?
• What are your standards for quality and how do you ensure they are met on every project?
• Does your company belong to any associations or institutions for the betterment of your industry, and what is your personal involvement?

Warranty and Service

• What are the terms of your warranty?
• Do you have a dedicated warranty and service department? If so, how is it staffed?

Schedule

• Will you guarantee that the project will finish within the duration specified in the contract?
• Do you agree to pay liquidated damages if you exceed the contract duration?

Risk Management

• What type of insurance and limits do you carry?
• What are the exclusions on your liability insurance policy?
• Is your insurance company licensed to do work in your city?

Employees

• What qualifies the Superintendent and Project Manager to work on my project?
• How many PMs and Supers are on your staff and what is their typical workload?
• How long has each PM and Super been with your company, and how many years have they been in the high-end residential sector?

Subcontractors

• Are the license holders for your plumbing and electrical sub-contractors’ active partners in their businesses and will they regularly visit my jobsite?
• Do you review your subcontractors’ insurance policies before signing contracts with them?
• For how many years has your firm been working with the subcontractors?
• How do you ensure that your subcontractors will perform on my project both in terms of quality and timeline?

© Rusk Renovations, LLC

To see Rusk’s work and philosophy, please visit our website at www.ruskinc.com

For New York City project inquiries, contact John Rusk at +1 (212) 544.0986 or info@ruskinc.com