South Carolina Builders

Building Your Future With A Good South Carolina Builder Or Contractor

Some of the busiest people in South Carolina in the last decade have been builders and general contractors, especially those that deal with residential or non-commercial structures. The exploding growth in South Carolina new home starts over the last 15 years keeps these companies in demand. Regardless of whether the building growth occurs on the Grand Strand, in the Lowcounty near Charleston and Mount Pleasant or in the Upstate near Greenville, Spartanburg and Rock Hill, builders and contractors are overseeing the process of providing new houses for the significant number of people moving to the Palmetto State. Here is the lowdown on builders, contractors, the differences between the two and how you can choose what is best for your new South Carolina home.

South Carolina builder and contractor regulations

The South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation oversees the two boards that issue licenses to both contractors and builders in South Carolina. Each contractor or builder candidate must pass a state exam to receive a state license. The South Carolina Contractors Licensing Board provides licensing requirements for general, mechanical, fire protection sprinkler system contractors and fire alarm system businesses. The Contractors Board also is responsible for issuing disciplinary actions and regulation of contractors.

The South Carolina Residential Builders Commission is responsible for authorizing individuals to practice residential home building through a state licensing process for both builders and home inspectors. The Residential Builders Commission is also responsible for processing complaints against residential builders, home inspectors and specialty contractors licensed and authorized to do home building in South Carolina.

Builders are generally skilled companies that traditionally construct homes and small businesses on the owner’s property. Most builders generally offer specific set house or business structure floor plans but a building project can be customized to the point where modifications are made in an existing plan. There are two kinds of builders: residential and light commercial. Residential builders handle only private home building. Light commercial builders handle only structures intended for light or small businesses. In both cases, most builders construct what are known as kit or modular structures. These are different full components of a home or business that is actually built at a separate location then transported to the property and joined on site.

Builders handle the essentials needed to construct single-family housing by using licensed South Carolina construction skill specialties to create different sections of the structure in question. Most builders learn the business by starting on construction framing crews and later moving up to framing crew leader. Eventually the builder starts his own building company or rises to the top in an existing company.

South Carolina contractors

Broadly speaking, a contractor can be anyone who agrees to fulfill the terms of a legally binding agreement. Most commonly, the term 'contractor' is used to describe an expert in the construction industry who hires skilled and unskilled workers to actually construct a financed project (home, business or industry). A contractor must be licensed by an examining board before he or she can bid on the project.

Although a contractor's main concern is hiring qualified subcontractors (specialized craftsmen paid by the contractor for carpentry, electrical, plumbing or heating work), the contractor may also perform some of the construction work. Most contractors develop good working relationships with other construction specialists, so they often hire the same specialized companies and workers for each contracted project. The contractor is ultimately responsible for the quality of the work performed by subcontractors.

There are two different kinds of contractors: residential and commercial. Residential contractors are responsible for private home construction (this includes single- or multi-family dwellings) and any structures serving as accessories to the main residential home. Commercial contractors are any individual or business entity that directs or performs construction for business or industry.

A general contractor is an individual or company that performs or supervises the construction or development of a property in accordance with the terms of a primary contract with the property owner. Independent contractors are merely those contractors, either residential or commercial, that perform a construction job without a formal employment agreement with the entity for whom the structure will be built.

Builder and contractor insurance

Licensed South Carolina contractors (residential, commercial, public works, electrical, heating and plumbing) must be insured. Builders in South Carolina should also carry builder’s risk insurance. When contractors start a construction, remodeling or renovation project they are required to have contractors insurance. Some South Carolina contractors even get an umbrella insurance policy for additional coverage. There is also commercial liability insurance available for commercial contractors that provide coverage for the actual structure that is under construction plus construction materials on site and those in transit.

Contractors are also required to be bonded. Being bondable simply means that the contractor does not have a criminal record. A bond is a criminal check in the business world that shows such a background review has been completed.

Custom versus non-custom home

The different types of residential homes that are built in South Carolina fall under two classifications: custom and non-custom houses. A custom house is a structure that is designed by an architect hired by the owner. A non-custom house is one whose design is not specific, or customized, to the project. In this case, which usually covers almost all home builders, the house is built out of a stock designed architecture.

A South Carolina home builder usually offers non-custom modular homes that are built on a specific architectural plan (known as a blueprint). These plans are pre-designed by an architect working with the builder. A customer then chooses the stock floor plan which appeals to them and the process of assembling the modular home on the property of the customer’s choosing can begin. Sometimes the stock plan is not modular in design but instead is more like the older kit homes.

A South Carolina contractor will build a custom home that has been designed specifically based on the customer’s desires and needs. The architect and contractor work closely together to ensure the home is built to meet the specifications outlined in the custom home plan.

Hiring a commercial contractor or builder

Hiring a licensed, professional commercial contractor or builder is not as hard as it may first appear. The first thing to do is find some sources of potential builders and contractors from which to begin your search. These sources include professional contractor or builder association databases, referrals from architects or friends and family—or from fellow small business owners if the project is a commercial one—and even realtors.

In a commercial project it’s important to have a competitive bidding process. This can help you find a contractor or builder that can build in your specific industry, regardless of whether that business is a restaurant, industrial factory or technology-based business. The good news is that most contractors tend to have specific business niches, making it easier to identify contractors and some builders that specialize in constructing your type of business structure.

Business owners seeking to secure a good building contractor should concentrate on three factors:

The contractor's reputation in the community.
The financial condition of the contractor.
The status of currently uncompleted jobs by the contractor.

Business owners should first look for potential red flags when considering these three factors. These can be everything from whether the contractor is known for subcontracting out a large percentage of the total work on a project to a pattern of battles with those same subcontractors or what percentage of projects the contractor completes on time. Finding out how long the contractor has done business in your area and what kind of backlog of projects the contractor or builder is currently working on is also important. These and other hard questions need to be asked of any contractor or builder candidate. In either case, the key is to make sure that you ask them.

Many South Carolina construction experts say that one important was to get some of the answers you need is to require contractors bidding for the job to submit a surety bond. This bond is essentially a three-party contract between the project owner, the contractor or commercial builder and the underwriting surety company. Surety companies will make an extensive background review of the construction company before issuing such a bond. In addition, if the contractor signs the bond, he is basically guaranteeing his ability to complete the project on which he is bidding.

Hiring a residential contractor for home remodeling

You already know the importance of getting a good South Carolina builder or contractor to build a new house. However, are you also aware that you’ll need a good contractor if you are planning a major home improvement project. If you have already hired a licensed South Carolina architect, you can work into the architect’s contract that he or she will be responsible for hiring the general contractor for the project. If not, you’ll need to know a few important techniques to get the right contractor for the remodeling or renovation job and getting the job done at a fair price.

When possible, choose a contractor through personal recommendations. You can also find qualified licensed South Carolina contractors at www.contractors.sc. Here you can link to hundreds of residential contractors in South Carolina. You can also get referrals from friends, neighbors or family who have had similar work done. Above all, keep in mind that chemistry with your residential contractor is critical. Even if everything else is good, a poor chemistry or communication with your contractor can kill the entire relationship. Choose only one contractor with whom you are comfortable.

Use your referrals to cull through until you create a short list of potential residential contractor candidates. After that, call and interview each contractor after you first confirm that each contractor is licensed in South Carolina and insured for worker's compensation, property damage, and personal liability. Although many people are hesitant to do this since they realize a contractor will not give them references from unsatisfied customers, talking to people who have had their South Carolina homes remodeled by the contractor can still reveal pertinent information. From each contractor, request names and phone numbers of a few satisfied customers. See if the work the contractor has done meets with your expectations for work quality and the same or similar designs you want in your remodeling job.

Once you pare your list down to the last three good contractor candidates, request a formal bid based on exactly the same plans and specifications for your remodeling project. Don't automatically choose the lowest bid. Generally speaking, if a bid looks too good to be true, it probably is. Once you accept the bid, then it will be time to sign the contract with the residential contractor of your choice.

How to hire a residential builder

Hiring a South Carolina residential builder is slightly different from hiring a South Carolina residential building contractor. The first step should be to log onto www.builders.sc to find residential builders and building companies in your area. Beyond that, gather as many recommendations for builders as possible. Asking real estate agents, architects, friends and family or any customer of the builder is a good way to gather input by which you can select candidates to interview later. For most builders, you’ll be purchasing one of their set house designs and floor plans that will be set up as a modular home.

Once you’ve reviewed the house plans with several potential builders, make sure the builders have an opportunity to see the property on which the house will be constructed. This is important because you will then move into the project bidding process. Prices in each bid must take into consideration all the costs that will go into constructing your home on the particular site in question, including any excavation or site-specific costs.

Here is where the process of hiring a builder is slightly different than hiring a contractor. Once you have the bids in hand, look at examples of the builder’s work on an independent basis. The builder should provide to you a listing of previous customers in your area. Once you choose a residential builder based on this information, only then should you retain an attorney with experience in construction cases to draft or review the contract.

Contracts with contractors or builders

At this point, you and your contractor or builder should agree upon a written contract and both of you should sign it. The contract should include:

Details of the work to be performed—Don’t forget to specify who will be responsible for demolition, cleanup, and trash collection. Be sure your plans are thought through completely. It's fair for a contractor or builder to charge you for changes, modifications or other site-specific fees that are not in the plans.
Materials will need to be specified in a contractor’s contract while they are usually spelled out in a builder’s contract since the materials are included with the modular home you are purchasing. When specifying materials, make it clear that substitutions can't be made without your approval. Make sure you have done your homework on alternative material costs beforehand.

Be sure to include a completion date and details on when and how payments will be made. Never pay more money than enough to cover work completed and materials delivered to the job with final payment to be made once the job passes inspection by your local building and independent building inspector. If the contractor requests a deposit before starting work, do not pay more than 10 percent or $1000, whichever is lower. You can protect yourself by adding a release-of-lien clause to your contract or asking for proof of payment by your contractor.