Does anyone have any tips for me on finding a general contractor. I know that sounds like a strange question to ask but I am honestly having trouble. We are in a rural area. Word of mouth seems to be key but I am having trouble tracking down who people recommend, who just built a house I like, etc. I have looked on my states licensing website and found a good bit in surrounding towns but I'm not sure how to check into their work. It seems many around here do not keep websites or facebook updated. Is the best route to email and ask for examples?? We would like to have a few people to bid our project.

Question 2--- does anyone have an opinion on a contractor charging standard fee or percentage versus hourly rate... I had never heard of the second until recently. The two contractors we have heard mentioned quite a bit charge an hourly fee. This is a concern to me but I'm not sure if its a warranted one. Anyone have an opinion?