Repairing Damaged Property After Floods
|  Video
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| Amanda Tetlak |
| 4/1/2009 |
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| With all the snow still on the ground, we`re not completely free of flood concerns. But those who already suffered flood damage and are ready to make repairs should exercise caution in finding a contractor. With the amount of work that needs to be done, there are bound to be contractors coming in from out of state offering to help. And you need to make sure you`re no one takes advantage of you. Before residents with flood damaged homes can safely move back in, they first need to have repairs done, and contractors say one of the first things a homeowner should know when having their home assessed, is whether that contractor is licensed, and homeowners also need to make sure they keep themselves in the loop. "What steps do you plan to do to take care of my problem? Of course one of the things that should be in there such as demolition and proper abatement," says Todd Freitag, of Sparling Construction. Also, make sure your contractor spends a lot of time looking through your home for all possible damage, and that they are working with a cleaning crew to ensure there will be no future problems with things like mold. "They really haven`t gotten down in the crawl space to check things out or if they don`t mention about cleaning and restoration and all they`re talking about is pull out some sheet rock and put it back in," says Freitag. "They really need to deal with a professional restoration company." And of course there will be contractors coming from out of state willing to help you out, but there are some dangers with that. "They will often use high-pressure tactics," says ND Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem. "They will ask for all or a substantial amount of the money upfront and when those kinds of things happen, you need to worry that they will take that money and they will be gone." Stenehjem says it`s generally best to work with someone either in your city and at least the state, that way you know where to find them if there are any future problems. Sparling Construction says homeowners should be aware that any electrical systems that got wet need to be replaced because they can spark fires in the future. |
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