Brentwood Napa Style FarmhouseFarmhouse Exterior, Los Angeles

Can You Afford to Hire a General Contractor?If you’re thinking about building or remodeling, you may be debating whether you need to hire a general contractor or can manage the project yourself. Though a contractor’s services do cost money, the payoff is a smoother-running project. For one thing, these professionals understand the sequencing required to time the various tradespeople needed for a job. “I don’t think a lot of people realize how many things go on behind the scenes until they actually manage a project on their own,” says Mike LaPine, owner of Alliance Contracting in Phoenix. Good general contractors also have established relationships with quality tradespeople and can tell whether the work on your home is quality or subpar — a distinction that may not be as clear to the untrained eye. “They know what to look for. They know where the skeletons are hidden,” says James Mansfield, owner of West Village GC in New York. In today’s environment, given that even professionals are having a hard time finding qualified workers, it may be difficult for homeowners to find skilled tradespeople to hire.If paying a general contractor to manage your project isn’t realistic given your budget, you may want to hire one for pre-construction services, or as a consultant by the hour, to start your project off on the right foot in terms of budget and scope. More on HouzzWhy Homeowners Renovate and What They Care About MostHow to Find Your Renovation TeamFind a proShop for products

Walk through vista! Love the 3 brick chimneys, just a good looking house.