Three Simple Steps to Find the Best Contractor

Owning a home in Ottawa comes with rewards and challenges. The biggest challenge is repair and maintenance. When your basement leaks, shingles fly off your roof, the air conditioner stops working, or you notice cracks in your foundation you need to find someone to help. But who?

At Renco, we help our customers navigate the maze of home repair contractor options by recommending companies we trust. For over 20 years, we have built a trusted network of partners, friends, and companies that support Ottawa homeowners.

If you encounter a home repair issue, here are the steps we suggest to find the right person for the job:

  1. Ask Your Neighbours

Top of the list is to ask your neighbours, with similar homes who they used to repair issues. Questions to ask include:

  • Did the service come with a warranty?
  • What was the cost or budget for the job?
  • Did the company stick to a timeline?
  • Did they follow Covid-19 protocols?
  • Would you recommend them?

Getting firsthand feedback and references from neighbours is a great starting pointing to finding the right company. The next step is giving them a call to request a budget, timeline, and if possible an in-person quote for the work.

2. Use “BestinOttawa.com” –  a consumer review service.

To find more potential companies for your job, search www.bestinottawa.com to get a quick snapshot of the top companies based on real consumer feedback. The local Ottawa website individually reviews companies based on consumer feedback, prices, insurance, length of time in business and quality workmanship. The output is a list of the top five companies in dozens of Ottawa home repair and renovation categories. The individual listings include original customer reviews and a simple Pro and Cons list.

2. Search Google, Look at “Organic” and “Map” results

Showing up at the very top of Google Ads does not mean a company offers the best service. Anyone with a large enough budget can show up at the top, for a short period of time. Instead, focus your search on the results below the ads, this includes the map and organic results.

Here you will find the top companies Google thinks are the right fit based on geo-proximity, customer reviews and length of time in business.

For best search results, follow these steps:

  • Use “Ottawa” +” service you need” (i.e. Ottawa Foundation Crack Repair)
  • Do multiple searches use different service variations (i.e. Ottawa Basement Repair, Ottawa Foundation Repair etc.)
  • Choose a list of your top 5-8 companies based on review quality and search presence
  • Visit each of the companies websites, look for warranty, insurance, service offering, time in business
  • Type each of the companies names in Google + reviews (i.e. Renco Reviews). Do you see any negative views? If so read them.
  • Narrow your list down 3-5 companies, call them. Ask about budget, timeline, insurance, time in business, will they come out for in-person quote)

After you complete all three steps above you should have a shortlist of contractors you want to “interview” for your job. Depending on the time of year, and the speciality of the skill involved this list may be small! Speak to each company individual, ideally the owner if possible. If everything feels good hire them and go-on enjoying life in your beautiful Ottawa home.