While it is not necessarily the most inexpensive of the flooring options available on the market today, hardwood floors are certainly one of the simplest and most lovely options available. Wood matches just about everything, and you don’ have to worry about vacuuming or those nasty smells that just won’t seem to leave carpet. It is an effective option for floor covering and if you take care of your hardwood floors, they will last you a very long time.

However, having hardwood flooring in your home is about more than wishing it was there and deciding to have it. Here are the three things that you should know about installing hardwood flooring in your home.

DIY Is Not Always Cheaper

Hardwood floors are certainly something that those handy people out there in the world are able to take care of. Buying wood and laying it down as flooring in your home sounds a great deal easier than it is. There are many different kinds of wood that can be used for flooring in your home and depending on your needs; there are great deals of different styles to choose from. You want your flooring to resist nicks and scrapes, but you want it to be able to get some character as well.

There are all of these things and more to think about, and if you install your wood flooring all on your own, chances are that you will not be able to get the solid advice that you might wish you had later. You want your floor to last as long as possible and although you might be very willing and able to put in your new hardwood floor all by yourself, the costs down the line might make this not-so worth it. Do you want to end up having to have your floors redone because of an error on your, the amateur’s, part?

Not All Wood is the Same

The more money that you spend the better quality of wood flooring you will be able to get as far as outward appearance goes; although a floor may not look as uniform and sleek as another type of wood floor it will probably last just as long. The quality and type of wood that you select for your floor has a lot to do with how you want your flooring to look when it’s down. Do you want a smooth look or do you like the way that natural knotholes look in the wood? Do you prefer the way that wide planks look on the floor or do you prefer the look of thinner, smaller pieces of wood for your flooring?

Depending on what you are willing to spend, there are a great deal of different ways that you can go with the wood for your flooring. You can buy First, Second, or Third wood, which is a description of the type or quality of wood on the market ranked in order of quality. Clear is the finest wood that you will be able to get a hold of. It has little to no grain marks or knot holes in it, so if you want the best quality that is the way to go.

You Are In It for the Long Haul

While hardwood floors are a great option for the floor covering in your home, be sure that that is what you want to do, and that it is an acceptable long term solution for you and your home. While the hardwood floor will not have to be vacuumed, it has to be specially cleaned and probably swept constantly (unless you are a fan of dirty feet). Also, keep in mind that depending on the quality of wood that you purchase you may have to deal with some small repairs due to warping or splitting, or simply due to damage that is unsightly for your home. Either way, hardwood floors are much easier to maintain than they are to replace and although you will probably be thrilled to keep your floors for years to come, it will be rather difficult to do otherwise.

This article is sponsored by My Dream Home Registry, the gift registry for everything home. Visit them on the web at www.mydreamhomeregistry.com

Commercial and residential mortgage plans in Florida are grouped in a particular form of finance policies and options, normally called Florida mortgage loan. These apply everywhere in the State of Florida. A effective number of mortgage lenders operating in Florida offer up mortgage loan calculators, frequently observed on their company internet sites. A lot of numeric and data-related information is easily handy and should help you better understand a Florida mortgage loan.

Virtually all mortgage lenders in Florida operate through brokers to assure quality and good services to their clients. The mortgage companies have respective services specifically costumed for each specific customer. For instance, customers who desire to get their loan reduced are proposed refinance loans. The mortgage companies in addition offer a variety of loans which take on commercial mortgage loan for business people, construction loans, and loans for farmers, special loans, and consolidation loans among numerous different loans.

Mortgage loans are available in different places in the State of Florida, and there are equally several companies that offer these services. The only prerequisite a possible client or customer needs really is to make a sound decision on the type of mortgage that best accommodates their needs. As brought up earlier in this article, a refinance mortgage is readily obtainable because these mortgage loans that are offered by various companies.

Such a loan becomes required when a client, having borrowed money from a financial institution, encounters difficulties in the repayment of the same type of loan. In addition, a customer who notices the mortgage rates that are oftentimes adjusted and difficult to handle can easily have such a loan converted to a fixed rate mortgage. The conversion is concluded as the period of the mortgage continues to extend.

It is of paramount importance that a client is mindful of all the types of mortgages that a company has to offer, in order to attain a wise option. For Example, mortgage loans whose rates are adjustable ordinarily extend with them the concept of shared risk between the lender and the borrower. The risk associated with adjustable mortgage loans therefore is a high possibleness of the interest increasing with time. In the mortgage business, your debts are unquestionably considered which include credit cards, home equity and auto mobile loans when applying for these individual loans. In Florida, there are companies that help clients in the clearance of some debts.

In mortgage business, interest rates are categorized into two categories. All The Same, the fixed rate is the most commonly used, with the interest remaining constant throughout the repayment period. Just In Case you are interested in receiving a mortgage loan, it is constantly advisable to consult a mortgage loan processor. In the past, it was quite difficult for a foreign citizen to obtain a loan from a financial institution in another country. This was due to the high value assets that the bank would call for before approval. This has however changed, and it is now easy to obtain a mortgage loan regardless of your nationality.

You are given notice to refer to a real estate agent, as they would possess the correct information needed before applying for a mortgage loan. When in doubt a real estate agent of financial advisor that deals with Florida mortgage loans will be able to provide the needed information that will allow you to make an informed decision and potentially place you into a mortgage that best suites your requirements.

If you would like more information on this topic and Bad Credit Mortgage Loan Repair or if you are in need of a Credit Check Collection Agency, Beatlands Credit Repair has many credit repair topics and tips that can be very useful.

The hot Forex news that is developing at this moment refers to the fact that the yen has met an increased power over the dollar thus showing a presumed economic growth that has not been known for long. It is true that Japan has known a development at the economic level in December 2006 with 80 percent as compared to the 54.5 percent that was stated in November, but these latter months, the numbers in economic growth show a much higher development. The hot Forex news refer to the fact the Japanese economy has recovered a lot in the past months, which shows great hope for the yen as a powerful foreign currency.

The Standard Bank in London has stated that the fund Forex investments in commodities will lower, but there is good news in pension and mutual funds where Forex increase is presumed. The hot Forex news regarding the Forex interest rates in the United States of America refers to the fact that the fall in the unemployment here is determining this increase in the interest rates.

The HSBC is seeking for new Forex businesses in the United Kingdom, the prize reaching almost $5,000. This contest is named the Start-up stars and it is aiming at finding and rewarding Forex business that is at the beginning of their road in this field. Although this a contest that is destined exclusively to the businesses constructed in the UK, there are chances that this idea will be applied to other countries too.

The winner is supposed to combine creativity and a lot of skill in practicing Forex trading, which will definitely ensure a prosperous life for the company or business he/she is a part of. The participants have to be on the market for at least three years, but the rules of the competition do not require that the participants bank with HSBC. In 2006, Club Asia won the big prize, a radio station from London that, within a few years, became the commercial radio station in the UK that knew the higher success.

The hot Forex news of the moment has as the main character the dollar that has become much stronger that its rivals. This has happened due to the manufacturing report that was much stronger that it has been foresaw, which created a strong relief among those who were worried about the US economy and the Federal interest rate.

The recovery of the dollar is caused especially by the thin Forex trading during and shortly after the Labor Day. But this does not mean that the market will not focus anymore as carefully as before on the employment development. On the contrary, their focus will remain as doubtful as always.

The appraisal is just as important to your construction loan qualification as your income, assets and credit. The appraisal for a home to be built is even more important than an appraisal for a home that already exists. For a construction loan, the appraiser will do what is called a “plans and specs appraisal,” meaning they will examine the plans and specifications for the home to be built and compare it to existing homes in the immediate area that are similar.

An appraisal is an assessment by a licensed appraiser (an opinion, really) of the value of a particular home at a given time. The appraiser, who is licensed by the state, must follow certain rules regarding how an appraisal is conducted.

They must locate similar homes within a close proximity to your location (usually 1-3 miles) that are on similar size land. This is called finding “comparables,” or “comps.” A “comp” is not a “comp” if the home has not sold on the open market within the last six months. This can be stretched up to a year, but most lenders prefer six month old comps or less.

This means if you are building a 2000 square foot colonial style home on 1 acre, the appraiser must find at least three other roughly 2000 foot (usually within 15% of the size) homes on roughly 1 acre of land. If they cannot do this, there are often problems with establishing value. This could lead to a loan denial or to the lender making adjustments to the value (usually lower).

The best advice is to know the area you are building and not try to build a home that is way out of the ordinary for the area. We often see borrowers who want to build a home that is significantly larger and more expensive than the other homes in the area (called “overbuilding for the area”). They may be perfectly qualified as a borrower, but if the appraiser has problems establishing a legal appraised value, the loan could be denied.

Another issue often arises with large lots. If you find a 15 acre lot in an area of half-acre lots, you may run into problems with the appraisal. Lenders do not want to be stuck owning a property (if you were to default on the loan for some reason) that is out of the ordinary from the rest of the area. They need to be able to sell it quickly and may have trouble doing so if it is not typical for the area.

Here are some other common issues to consider: lot size, type of construction, and location of your intended home.

Most lenders will limit the size of the land on which you can build to 40 acres or less. As mentioned above, there must be comparable lots in the immediate area to justify the larger size. For example, your lender may be able to approve a loan for a home to be built on a 32 acre lot, but there must be other somewhat similar sized lots with somewhat similar sized homes available as comps. If the appraiser cannot find “comps” for this project, the chances are you will be denied the loan no matter how well qualified you are as a borrower.

The type of construction is also an important consideration. This is a common issue with log homes, but it can be problematic with any type of construction that is different than a regular “stick built” home. The appraiser must be able to locate “comps” for the type of construction you are building. This means, if you are building a log home, there must be other log home sales in the immediate area within the last 6 or so months that are similar size and on similar land. See the potential for problems?

Here’s an example from an actual client who wanted to build a log home on land he already owned free and clear. His income, savings and credit were excellent. In all, he was a well qualified borrower. However, he wanted to build a log home, a very nice log home. He said there were several log homes in the immediate area, thinking there would be no trouble with the appraisal.

However, the appraiser reported there were no comps for over 60 miles! How could this be? The appraiser explained that none of the log homes in the immediate area had ever sold, as they were all built by the owners who still lived in them.

What’s the lesson? A comp has to be a SALE of a similar type home, not just another nearby similar house. The second lesson is that many log homes are built as either retirement or vacation homes. The owners build them and never let go of them.

Ironically, this particular client said he could stand on his would-be front porch and see four log homes. But, none of them had sold, meaning they could not be considered comps for the appraisal. Fortunately, in the end, due to his impeccable qualifications and an endless amount of negotiating with the head of the construction lending department, he was able to build his log home without a log home comp. But, don’t count on this happening again.

The other area of concern for appraisals is the location of the property. Your lot will be considered to be either in an urban, suburban or rural setting. This will determine how far away the comps can be. Typically, in an urban setting, comps must be a half mile or less from the subject. This may be stretched to a mile in some cases. For suburban properties, one to three miles is the maximum distance allowed in most cases. For rural properties, the comps should ideally be no more than five to ten miles away.

There are exceptions to these rules, but you should not count on an exception being made. It is best to understand how an appraisal interacts with your loan application and do as much research as you can before you make any financial commitments. Often, if you find a lot and house plan you like, you can hire a local appraiser on your own to just “run comps” for your proposed home. Expect to pay for this service, as appraisers are professionals and should be properly compensated for their time and expertise.

But, this could be the best money you ever spend if there are any questions as to whether a good appraisal can be obtained for your proposed home. It is better to know early instead of spending time and money on plans, deposits, the full appraisal and any other expenses you may incur.

With all of the recent changes in the mortgage industry, it can be tough to keep up with the different requirements for the different loan programs available. Owner builder construction loans are probably as complex as residential mortgages can get. But, there are some simple rules about your credit scores that can make understanding the owner builder guidelines a little easier.

The first rule of thumb for an owner builder construction loan is that you will want to have a credit score of at least 620. Obviously, the higher your credit score is, the better it will be for your loan. However, if you want to be an owner builder to build your own home, then you will need to have a middle FICO credit score of at least 620.

Technically, for most owner builder loan programs, there is no strict minimum credit score requirement. In most cases, your loan application will be run through an automated approval system, which will analyze your overall risk factor. However, even without a strict minimum, you most likely are not going to get the approval through the computer system without at least a 620 score.

Along those same lines, an owner builder may not get approved for their financing even with a credit score above 620. In addition to analyzing your credit score, the approval system will also examine your current credit health. In other words, if you don’t have any current, healthy accounts that are at least one to two years old, then having a credit score above 620 probably won’t be enough to get your approval.

Likewise, owner builder construction loans are going to provide better rates in terms for borrowers with higher credit scores. Specifically, having a credit score above 700 will help you get the best rates and terms available.

It is important to remember, though, that a strong credit score will not assure an owner builder of getting approved. In other words, an owner builder with a strong credit score is not going to get through underwriting if he has too low of a documented income or too much debt. Furthermore, a strong credit score won’t be enough to get the loan approved if the project has a poor appraisal or an unrealistic budget. Therefore, a good credit score is just one piece of the puzzle for a strong owner builder file.

In fact, here are some of the specific advantages of having a higher credit score when applying for an owner builder construction loan:

1. An owner builder who has a high credit score can often get approved with less than the normal amount of savings in reserves.

2. If you have a credit score above 700, you will have a much smaller down payment requirement for an owner builder construction loan.

3. Also, an owner builder with high credit scores will get better interest rates as compared to someone with just average credit scores.

So, even though a having a credit score won’t get an owner builder approved if there are other glaring issues with the file, it will certainly provide the three advantages listed above.

Therefore, if you are considering being an owner builder, make sure you have a middle FICO score that is at least above 620. If your score is just barely over the 620 mark, then expect to have stricter down payment and interest rate requirements for your owner builder construction loan. So, if you have a limited amount of savings in the bank, you may want to work to get your credit scores above 700 before applying for an owner builder loan.

Owner builder construction is growing in popularity at a tremendous pace around the country as more and more people look to save money by building their own home. If you are considering being an owner builder to build your next house, then you need to know these 8 benefits of modular construction before you begin.

1. Highly engineered.

Whether you want to be an owner builder or hire a licensed general contractor, modular construction will be a good option to ensure the home is well engineered. In the past, there was a stigma about modular construction, because the earliest versions of the homes were poorly built.

But, the modular industry has come a long way. An owner builder can rest assured that a modular home will be engineered properly. Nowadays, unlike twenty years ago, there is a big difference between modular homes and manufactured homes.

2. Generally lower cost per square foot.

If you want to be an owner builder, you will save money in most cases by building a modular home versus hiring a general contractor to build the house for you. In fact, modular construction is somewhat comparable in cost to owner builder construction on site. In general, you will pay a little more, though, for the convenience of having the modular home built for you in the factory. However, if you compare owner builder modular construction to hiring a GC to build your home on site, then you should almost always see savings by going the modular route.

3. Built in a factory environment, eliminating timber warp and resulting in improved fit.

Because a modular home is not built on site, the lumber is not left outdoors to endure the weather. Therefore, the materials are not subject to timber warp, and your framing will fit together more precisely. Once the modular home is erected on the foundation on site, it will be weather tight, and the owner builder can then take his time to do the few remaining items required to complete the home.

4. Efficient building process and material usage saves on costs and material waste.

Any owner builder who goes through the typical on site construction process will tell you that there is always a lot of waste. It can’t be avoided, as you have to estimate the amount of lumber and other materials needed to build your home. This waste translates directly to money out of your pocket. A modular home, however, is built in the factory to pre-known specs, so there is much less waste.

5. Speed of construction cuts down the time frame tremendously, yielding interest savings on your construction loan.

As an owner builder goes through construction, interest accrues against the money that he has borrowed. Every month that goes by means more money that the owner builder owes in interest. Modular construction will drastically reduce the time needed to build the home, and you will therefore have less interest payment costs.

6. Less to manage.

This seems simple and obvious, but it’s vitally important, especially with owner builder construction. If you have never built your own home before, you will quickly realize that managing the myriad of sub-contractors can become a real burden. But, if you build a modular home, you will have much less work to oversee. Depending on the specific modular package that you purchase, you may have only one or two things to do to finish the home.

7. Built to meet or exceed local standards.

Modular homes nowadays are going to be engineered specifically to meet your local building code requirements. It takes a lot of the design and management off the shoulders of the owner builder. This means no more sweating over county code inspections.

8. Makes owner builder construction possible for some people who otherwise would need to hire a GC.

Because the process is simple for the customer, modular construction lends it self perfectly to owner builder construction. You can very easily build your own home without having to hire a general contractor. This will mean large savings in time and money for the construction of your home. There are many examples where the owner builder would not have been able to manage the project without a GC unless they went with a modular home.

Because there is such a wide range of information to be learned on this topic of koi pond and waterfall construction and so much technical information out there, you may decide to seek professional assistance to complete part or all of the water features. Before you proceed, here are 18 extremely important facts you should know…

1. Remember: asking friends or neighbors for recommendations for building a koi pond is always an option, but they are unlikely to have had occasion to conduct business with a water feature professional. It is a very narrow specialty field.

2. Many liner pond people are not only inexperienced, they are working from job to job on a shoe string budget, which results in the illegal practice of mingling funds, using the deposit from one job to finish up the last etc. What is worse, many liner installers are unlicensed. This business attracts these types because it takes very little investment to get started (shovel, rake, garden hose and wheelbarrow) while making tons of money from unsuspecting people. Plus, In many cases a building permit is not required to build an 18 inch deep liner pond. If not installed by a licensed professional, a liner pond can end up being your biggest nightmare.

3. Contact the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) or the Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) for referrals to professionals in your area.

4. Always interview more than one professional to have a better idea of expected costs and finished product.

5. However, you should never make your choice based on cost alone; rather, consider what you can afford coupled with good references and experience.

6. It is advisable to seek the help of a specialist and ask for references.

7. It is particularly helpful to find a professional who can supply the names of the last four or five customers who have been serviced satisfactorily. Providing a few good references is not usually difficult, especially if the contractor decides to pick and choose the best handful from the past 20 or so jobs. It is quite another matter to divulge the last four or five customers consecutively and to note whether they are satisfied with the work ethic of the contractor.

8. Don’t be shy about speaking to these previous customers.

9. Find out whether the work was done on time and came in on budget.

10. Build a rapport with them and ask to visit the project in order to inspect the work first hand!

11. Do the inspection preferably without the contractor so you can ask sensitive questions.

A) Did they finish when they said they would?

B) Did they correct problems without a hassle?

C) Did they respect your property and privacy during the course of the job?

D) Did they honor their bid or ask for more money?

12. Do research on your own. NOTE: ASK FOR COPIES

A) Contact the State Contractor’s Board to insure that they have a contractor’s license.

B) Is their Contractors License up to date?

C) Do they have surety bond? (In case the contractor splits with your money, you can collect.)

D) Do they have adequate liability insurance? (damage to yours or your neighbor’s property -a min. of $1 million.

E) Do they have workmen’s compensation insurance? (medical care/loss of wage, injured on you property)

13. Check the local Business Bureau for reports from a possible disgruntled client.

14. Check with the local police department. They may have a record of drug abuse and at times split with the funds, only to show up later back in business.

15. Never give them more money than can be accounted for in material and or labor expended on the project.

16. With every check you pay them, ask for a lien release for that amount. Especially, get a final lien release upon completion of the job. If they did not pay a vendor for materials used on your home, without a lien release that vendor can attach your house until you pay it (again!).

17. You should always insist on a written contract with detailed descriptions of the work to be performed.

18. Finally, do not forget to demand a reasonable time schedule and payment plan. This procedure protects both parties against misunderstandings that can arise later.

Look before you leap, research before you weep. Happy koi, peace and joy.

Referrals are one of the best ways to find a good service provider. My business depends tremendously on our past clients and others who think highly of us and therefore refer us to people who need a good design/build contractor. Likewise our company also finds the trade contractors and suppliers we need by asking other people for referrals. But what if you do not know anybody to ask for referrals? Suppose you are new to an area and you just don’t know anybody who has hired a contractor. Or you can not find someone who hired a contractor that would they recommend. What options are open to you? Well, there are always the Internet, newspaper and yellow page ads. There are certainly lots of names out there. But how do you distinguish between the good and bad companies? Isn’t it risky to hire a company out of the phone book to come and work in your home? You have heard so many horror stories and you don’t want to have one one of your own! Isn’t there some organization that contractors who are ethical and always striving to learn more belong to? Some resource that would be able to make referrals to you of members who provide the kind of service you are looking for and who work in the area that you live? A local organization that was part of a national organization, working to hard to give consumers like you a quality contracting experience wherever you live in the United States.

I am truly pleased to tell you that such organizations exists. If you are remodeling you can find referrals of reputable contractors at www.nari.org and www.nkba.com.

The National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) is the premier organization representing remodeling contractors across America. NARI is more well-known in the East and Midwest. In those parts of the country hiring a NARI member is the norm because of the work the local chapters have done over the years. Members include general contractors, trade contractors, architects/designers, suppliers and others involved in providing services to homeowners. All NARI members are required to maintain the highest ethical standards in all aspects of their business. Continuing education takes place at the monthly meetings, which are open to members, non-members and the general public. The National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA) provides referrals of contractors and designers that can help you determine the scope of your project, design it and build it. There are more than 40,000 NKBA members across the United States and Canada in 71 chapters/sub chapters across North America. Both NARI and NKBA provides remodeling contractor members the opportunity to be engaged in a formal education program, resulting in the individual member achieving several certifications and designations. The education programs are a rigorous procedure, involving much reading and a series of regular meetings and testing. One of the best aspects of these programs are that candidates get the opportunity to share experiences and learn from one another. The Internet has opened up a host of lists and blogs where homeowners can post reviews, stories and comments about service providers. I tend to think that the best of these is Angie’s List (www.angieslist.org). Companies on Angie’s List are there because their customer’s went to the trouble of adding them to the list and reviewing their service. A company can not pay or add itself to the list. Angie’s List is not available in all areas of the country but it is spreading fast. Also check into local services like the BBB or Diamond Certified to obtain information about a remodeling contractor. Diamond Certified conduct customer surveys prior to listing and also posts information about the contractor’s general liability and workers compensation insurance. The information is out there, look and learn before committing to a relationship with a remodeling contractor.

A major enjoyable and satisfactory landmark in anybody’s life is the construction of a house. Always the decision for a new house is taken only after the thought process for many days. You will be assessing your requirements, your desires about home, you family’s concern about home and even your kids joyous requirements. Once if you finalize the requirements, you will go for search of the property to construction the home. Once all preliminary works are over, the time has reached to arrange the funds for house building. It is true that none of us will have enough funds in our personal savings to spend on the construction. So we have necessarily to go for new home construction loans.

Present global scenario offers us many facilities to avail a new home construction loan. There are many lending agencies online and offline offering the home construction loans. Another loan facility is that stated income construction loans. Both of these are the financial support for new home construction, but they differ in the way of loan characteristics and approval procedures.

The first step in getting construction loans is to identify a lender. If you are able to identify a perfect lender, who is cooperative and accommodative, half of your problems in getting the loan are over. As already mentioned, there are online and offline lenders who offer the great deals. But the online companies are better, as you can save much amount. You can spend lot of time from moving around from one company to another enquiring about the details of the new home construction loans. It is always better to have information on various lenders who offering the loans for the new construction. You can compare the features of the various companies and select one which seems to be the best.

12 months time is usually considered as the construction period and hence the interest on the loan amount needs to be paid in these 12 months. Once you complete the construction and the lender gets a perfect completion and evaluation certificate you can convert it to a mortgage loan. In general the construction loans charge little more than the interest on mortgage loans. The construction loans are paid to the borrower in different installments, accordingly after the completion of each step in the construction. The draws of the amounts are directly paid to the suppliers and sub contractors.

There are two types of construction loans. One loan is generally applicable to individual customers who look for a residential unit for their own family purpose. For this type, the home owner has the privilege to convert it to a mortgagee loan, in fact it is automatic. Second type of the loan carries another option to close the loan just after the completion by repaying back the whole new home construction loan amount availed. This type is suitable fro realtors who construct and sale home properties.

If you are a potential individual looking for new home construction loans, do not waste you time. Go log in to online lender’s website now itself.

Residential and commercial contractors all need construction contractor insurance. This is not a negotiable requirement. It will often spell the difference between getting and losing a contract.

Any party who contracts services to others needs contractor insurance. This is required when contracting services to the government on the federal, state or city level. It is also most often required by private entities from contractors.

In effect, contractor insurance protects all parties involved in a contract. Those who hired the contractor are assured that any damage or injury on persons or property caused by the contractor’s work will be paid for by the insurance. The contractor is assured that he will not have to pay for claims on such damage or injury from his own pocket. It also protects him in case he is wrongfully sued.

Contractor insurance generally covers the contractor, the party who contracts the services and any member of the public directly affected by the work of the contractor. It should offer full protection against accidental damage caused to equipment and property, as well as full liability protection to cover all medical, legal and compensation costs. If a contractor has more business than is covered by the policy, extra coverage can be applied for in the areas of public liability and professional indemnity.

Contractor insurance does not, however, cover deliberate errors and negligent acts on the part of the contractor. If the contractor shows a consistent pattern of negligent behavior, the insurance company will not extend coverage.

Normally, contractor insurance covers only the period during which the contracted work is being done. Some work, however, may give rise to issues many years afterwards and the contractor still runs the risk of being sued even then. He could already be retired by that time. Contractors should, therefore, apply for additional insurance to cover such eventualities. This could be in the form of a run-off insurance policy or an extension of the liability clause of the existing contractor insurance.

Construction contractor insurance specifically covers all the risks involved in the construction of a commercial or residential building. This covers compensation for builder’s risk, demolition liability insurance, professional indemnity insurance, public liability, employer’s liability and accidental death of a worker due to construction default or structural fault such as the collapse of walls in the construction site.

Builder’s risk covers claims and legal fees against damage to the building while construction is going on. Demolition liability insurance covers claims against damage caused by the demolition done in the course of construction.

Professional indemnity insurance covers claims and legal fees against professional negligence. This is different from deliberate errors and negligent acts. Professional negligence refers to not having produced the quality of work that the contractor has represented himself to be qualified for.

Public liability, as mentioned earlier, covers claims and legal fees for injury or damage caused by the contractor’s work to a third party or members of the public.

Employer’s liability covers claims and legal fees against injuries or illness incurred by the contractor’s employees in the course of their work. This extends to cases of accidental death of employees in the construction site.

The typical cost of contractor insurance ranges between 0.5% and 1% of the total coverage. Among the factors involved are the industry of the contractor, the specific company’s business turnover, the amount of coverage required, the probability of the company facing any legal action, and, of course, the insuring company.

Construction contractor insurance is a necessary investment for all residential and commercial contractors. It will protect them, their employees, their clients and the public at large. It will also show proof of their professionalism.