About Us

Top 10 Questions

These are the 10 Most Important Questions to Ask Any Contractor Before You Hire One For Kitchen Renovation or Bathroom Renovation

Specialty Kitchens believes that the success of any project starts with asking the right questions and setting all expectations before anyone is hired. Specialty Kitchens is the area's most respected and trusted home remodel contractors. The information below will help you ask the right questions to ensure you hire the right company to do your kitchen or bath remodel.

1. Does your company pull all necessary permits?

Specialty Kitchens pulls all necessary permits to ensure that all aspects of your job meet or exceed all local building codes.
Not pulling proper permits could have serious insurance consequences if something goes wrong.

2. Do you manage all aspects of the remodel?

Specialty Kitchens manages every part of the remodel. A Lead Carpenter directs the job, ensures stellar communications, and keep you informed daily on progress. He also coordinates, schedules, and communicates with everyone on every aspect of the renovation while in progress, in order to maintain top-quality workmanship. You have complete contact with him to ensure all of your questions are answered, your job goes smoothly, and you have an enjoyable kitchen or bathroom remodel experience.

3. Do I pay you or the subcontractor directly?

All payments are made to Specialty Kitchens to ensure you have one contact responsible for any questions or warranty work, thereby eliminating any guesswork with regard to the quality of the work being performed. By paying the subcontractors directly, you lose the ability to have the remodel contractor accountable for making sure all work is priced fairly and performed with the same quality and goals of the project.

4. Are all the people working on my job insured?

Specialty Kitchens requires anyone working on our jobs to be fully insured and to provide us with a current insurance certificate prior to performing any work. Under no circumstances should anyone be working on your job uninsured.

5. Do you have any references?

Specialty Kitchens has a long-history of kitchen remodeling and bathroom renovations. We provide about 30 kitchen and bath remodels on the first visit to the showroom; most are recent jobs, some are over 20 years old. Most companies provide references upon request and supply only a few. This is not acceptable in today's market. You need to check more than a few current references and make they are for the same type of work being quoted.

6. How long have you been doing kitchens and baths?

Specialty Kitchens has been delighting customers for nearly 30 years. We have long-term relationships with cabinet and countertop manufacturers and subcontractors. Due to the current economy, some companies are attempting any kind of work they can get, even if it not their specialty (i.e., handyman, carpenter, deck or window contractor, etc.). They lack the necessary experience and do not have policies and procedures in place to properly run a kitchen or bath remodel (i.e., relationships with subcontractors and suppliers or the ability to schedule properly). They might provide a low up-front prices because they don't understand all the aspects of the job well enough to properly quote it. Most of these companies offer No Value or quality and have many change orders and disappointments.

7. Are your prices guaranteed?

A Specialty Kitchen Project Managers performs a NO COST extensive in-home evaluation. This assessment allows us to provide you a complete and very detailed renovation contract, specifying every aspect of work we are quoting and, even more important, itemizing what work we are not doing. Most companies don't do detailed quotes, therefore the initial prices looks low, but when the work begins, changes orders are likely. At that time you are at the mercy of the contractor and have to pay whatever amount the contractor wants to charge, and are likely to incur delays as well. If it is not specified otherwise in your contract, then YOU will be responsible for the extra cost.

8. How "Livable" will my home be during construction?

Specialty Kitchens is second to none when it comes to keeping your home clean and livable. We cover any openings to other rooms in the home with plastic and rubber-backed cloths and will protect any floors being walked on with half-inch rubber pads. We thoroughly clean up and put all tools away at the end of the day so you can still perform your daily tasks. We install a temporary sink and provide rolling storage shelves to minimize the inconvenience to your everyday life.

9. When will you start and finish the job?

Specialty Kitchens schedules all renovation start dates based on material deliveries. We will not start any remodel until all materials are in our warehouse. Prior to the start of the job, we schedule an on-site meeting with you, the Project Manager, the Lead Carpenter, and any necessary subcontractors. At this meeting we provide you with a construction schedule detailing all the work to be performed each day and the start and finish date of the job. Anyone you hire should provide you a detailed schedule prior to starting your job.

10. How are the payments made?

Specialty Kitchens schedules payments according to the work being done. Other than the deposit, all payments are based on the work being performed according to the pre-approved payment agreement. Beware of any contractor asking for 100% up front or payments to be made ahead of work performed. If the company needs payments to buy materials during the job, then they could be unstable, and you should be very careful to make sure the job will get finished and any issues resolved.