House is something for which everyone cares about, a lot. When it comes to home improvements, everyone requires the best and the most comfortable setup. Unless you are a registered contractor or a designer by profession yourself, you would have to hire a registered contractor to remodel or build your house. Everyone has their own idea of their perfect home and tries their best to achieve the very idea practically.  Home improvements and remodeling is a very exciting experience but could turn into a nightmare for some people. That really is a big disappointment both emotionally and financially because you put in your energy and resources to get the best possible out come. If you are thinking to remodel your house or thinking to build one by your own customization and want to avoid this financial and emotional trauma in your case then the best way is to choose a professional and registered contractor and let him/her handle the remodeling job for you. The question is who to choose? There are so many contractors and designers in the market and all claim to work out the best thing for you but are all worth considering? This is something you would have to find out by creating a checklist when hiring a contractor. There is a basic criterion of what every registered contractor must do and have in order to be a reliable contractor. Few of the points are mentioned below:

• Qualification: Prefer to hire a contractor who is at least educated in his/her field of work. Contractors have to take a test after professional training which makes them Certified Graduate Remodelers (CGRs) or Certified Remodelers (CRs).
  
  
• Registration: Check with the local listings if the contractor is a registered contractor or not.
  
  
• Criminal Record: Check with the State and Local Attorney General and the Consumer Affairs Office to find out if the contractor has any criminal record of any sort or any other disputes. Three or four disputes would not be an issue as it is a part of construction business but if it’s more than that then maybe you need to take another look around.
  
  
• Insurance: A registered contractor must have Workman’s Compensation Insurance, General Liability Insurance and Automobile insurance to avoid any mishaps or damages to your property or the labor working in your property.
  
  
• Experience: Registered contractor with experience of more than 5 years is considered to be well-learned.
  
  
• Customer Satisfaction: A registered contractor must be polite to the customers and should deal efficiently by listening to what the customer wants. He/she should listen to all the customers’ ideas and then give his/her own input of how things should be done.
  
  
• Portfolio: A good registered contractor always gives references of his/her previous works and if possible then a portfolio showing the last contracts.
  
  
• Easy to Contact: A registered contractor must have a working phone number (landline or cell) on which he/she could be reached for any questions regarding the project anytime.
  
  
• All in Black and White: A registered contractor must lay down all the points into an agreement and should stick to these points to avoid any disputes in the future.