When you are considering having your home or business painted, you may wonder what you need to do before hiring painting contractors in San Ramon or the surrounding area. The following tips will help you ensure you have the information you need before choosing a painting contractor.

• Decide what work you would like to have completed. It is important to know what you want – interior or exterior painting – how many rooms, additional work such as crown molding installation and to have the colors already chosen.
• Find out what licenses are required of painting contractors for your area and then ask each one you interview if they hold a current license. You may even want to ask them to show you the license to verify it is current. Most companies will display their license number on the sides of their trucks, business letterhead, business cards or websites.
• Contact a minimum of three painting contractors in San Ramon and the surrounding area. Allow each of them to come to your location, walk through the property, explain what you want and give you an estimate. One benefit of walking through the property with the contractor is they will be able to let you know if any repairs should be completed before they begin painting. If they want to offer an estimate before walking through the property, you want to cross them off your list of possible painting contractors.
• Once you have verified that the contractor is licensed, it is equally important that they hold a valid bond and have the required insurances. The importance of a bond and insurance is that if they cause damage to your property that you are not responsible to pay for the repairs.
• Ask for local references. Some painters will offer their services in a large area. It is important to get the names and telephone numbers of local customers. Ask for references for a recent job as well as one that they completed within the last year. You want to see an example of current work to see how well they did and then work that has been completed for a while to see how well it stood up to the elements and time.
• Verify the products they use. If you want them to use non-VOC paints, it is important that they understand that and are willing to use those materials.
• Ask them if they have their own employees or if they will use subcontractors to do the work. If they do not have their own employees, they may not be able to guarantee the quality of their work or that they will honor what the painting contractor says.
• After you have received a written estimate from each painting contractor you spoke with, take some time to review and compare them. The estimates should contain:
  • Material and labor costs
  • How long the job will take from start to finish
  • What is being painted
  • Details on preparation and cleanup
  • What paint colors will be used
  • What type of guarantee they offer
  • How they will protect your property while painting
  • When and how the contractor will be paid

  This should be included in each estimate and if it is not, you may not want to work with that contractor.

Now you know what to do before hiring painting contractors in San Ramon. With this knowledge, you can feel assured that you will hire the right contractor and the work will be to your satisfaction.