The Texas Association of Builders remains committed to helping with natural disaster recovery. Below TAB has collected valuable resources below to help you navigate through the repair process after a storm has hit.
The following are some resources available through National Association of Home Builders and Federal partners. Additional resources can be found on TAB's Consumer Information page, here.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
DriveTexas.org - statewide road conditions
Texas Health Department - carbon monoxide dangers
Public Utility Commission of Texas - electric outage map
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality - public water system guidance
Texas Department of Insurance - tips following winter storms
Did your home or business sustain damage? Submit a damage survey and request volunteer assistance.
Click here to search the Texas Association of Builders membership data base for a builder/remodeler/supplier in your area.
If you're a tradesperson or suppliers that would like to work with a Texas Association of Builders member, click here, to be added to our Builders2Trades data base.
Here are a few important guidelines to help you select a competent contractor:
1. Rule of thumb, get a minimum of 3 estimates
ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS OF YOUR CONTRACTOR
1. How long have you been in the building business?
2. What type of insurance do you carry?
3. What’s the best was to communicate with you?
Question to Ask Yourself:
1. Do I see myself working and communicating with this contractor?
2. What is my gut telling me?
CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU
Your local Better Business Bureau will know about
1. Ask about complains filed against the contractor
2. Check BBB rating with standing within the community
ASK FOR REFERENCES (and then follow-up!)
1. Get a minimum of 3 references from past customers
2. Call each reference
3. Contact or visit your town code inspector. Some Texas cities require that builders are registered and bonded. Check with your city’s building permits department in this regard. These officials will also know how many projects they’ve inspected. They will also know how many projects they’ve inspected for the contractor and, possibly, the subs they’ve used for projects.
HAVE A CONTRACT
The contract should include these 4 things:
1. A description of how change orders are processed
2. Warranty
3. Payment Schedule
DO NOT pay for the entire job up front or pay in cash. In fact, state law prohibits contractors in disaster areas from taking up front money unless they have held a physical business address in the county or adjacent county for at least one year. This law, found in Chapter 58 of the Texas Business and Commerce Code, provides other valuable protections for those rebuilding in disaster areas.
4. Completion date
The contract should include these 3 things:
2. Have a Contract
3. Do Not Pay upfront
TAB also produced the following public serivce announcements for your use:
How You Can Help
Feedingtexas.org - donations
Redcross.org - other supplies
The Salvation Army - donations
TAB’s consumer information page has additional state, national and federal resources.