If you've already been burned by a contractor — a deposit paid, then a phone that stopped ringing — you don't need convincing that this industry has a problem. What's useful is knowing how the burn was predictable, so it can't happen twice. These are the mistakes we see behind almost every stalled-job story on this coast.
1. Accepting a verbal start date
"We can probably get you in next month" is not a start date; it's a mood. If the date isn't in writing, it will move, and you'll have no standing to object. Insist on a written scope and a written start date before any money changes hands. If a contractor won't put the date on paper, believe what that tells you.
2. Not asking how many jobs run at once
The stalled-job pattern has a simple mechanism: a contractor starts several jobs to lock in several deposits, then rotates thinly between them. Ask directly: "How many jobs will you be running while mine is open?" Then ask how they handle it when the answer changes.
3. Paying too much before work starts
A large up-front deposit reverses the incentives — once the money is in hand, your job competes with every newer deposit. Payment should track progress you can see.
4. Skipping the communication question
Ask what updates look like: how often, in what form, and who answers when something comes up. "Call me anytime" is not a system. Photos and a daily rhythm are.
5. Not asking what they don't do
A contractor who claims everything is telling you something. Honest outfits have edges — ours are plain: no roofing, no windows, no exterior doors, no structural work. Ask the question and listen for whether the answer has any edges at all.
6. Ignoring the environment question
On this coast, ask any bidder: "What do you do differently because we're near salt water?" If the answer is a blank look, the fence posts will be set like it's Georgia clay. Our answers are all over this site.
Here's how we work, the full FAQ, and the free estimate — with everything in writing, because that's the point.