How to choose the right window contractor

The most common advice I hear people give about choosing a window contractor (or purchasing anything for that matter) is “Just don’t pick the lowest bid or the highest bid”. The truth is, if you follow that advice strictly you might just miss out on the best value. I’ve given proposals to clients where I’ve been the cheapest, and others where I’ve been the most expensive. The funny thing about that is my prices weren’t any different between those bids. It just so happens that the competition I was against were on completely different ends of the spectrum when it comes to window contractors. Here is my honest advice on how to choose a window contractor: First, make sure that you are comparing apples to apples on the product. This can be easier said then done because on one hand there is definitely a wide range in quality and price of the products available, but on the other hand, there is also a wide range in price that companies charge for a window that is the same or comparable. (See my previous post “Straight talk on windows” to help decipher this.) After you’ve narrowed your choices down to contractors who have presented a quality product that fits your needs, next comes the really important part: Picking a contractor who will install that window correctly and stand behind it with a good labor warranty. Things to look for are certifications, membership in trade organizations such as NARI and BBB, and ask for names and contact info of previous customers. This information can be like gold. You can physically go to a completed jobsite and see a finished product as well as find out what type of experience other customers have had. Another thing to do is just plain ask how they install their windows. The person presenting to you should be able to go through a detailed description of how they install a window and why they do what they do… If you have done all of these things and are still left with more than one choice, it is now time to take a hard look at the price differences and balance that with smaller things that may push you one way or the other. These could be issues such as a local family company versus a nationwide corporation, how easily you’ve been able to get your questions answered, or just having a better feeling about one company than the others.
I feel confident that if you follow these steps, you will make a choice that you will be happy with for years to come.