The Need for National Guidelines and Testing in the Home Improvement Industry

It is time for Washington to step up and put legislation in place that will force states to better regulate the home improvement industry. Up to now Washington has left the regulation of the home improvement industry up to state regulators, and for whatever reason(s) many states have fallen considerably short.

There are still some states that do not even have contractor licensing in place for home improvements. For some of the states that do have licensing, the license requirements do not include that the applicant demonstrate the ability to do any type of home improvement work. (That is like saying I will issue you a license to cut hair but you don’t have to demonstrate that you know how to cut hair……… ouch!) Then why do states bother issuing licenses if there are no requirements to demonstrate competence? Revenue? Or could it be that they need more consumer complaints for Consumer Affairs and BBB to handle? The unfortunate consequences of this problem are that homeowners are the ones who are paying the price by receiving poor workmanship and a cascade of home improvement problems.

Let’s be honest, the home improvement industry does not seem to attract the most reliable, honest and competent individuals. The lure of a quick buck and the relative ease to “qualify” to do home improvement work, brings many a “character” to your door. When I was a contractor I needed to hire people for a variety of field positions. Most of the people, who I interviewed and sometimes hired, seemed to have the same type of problems with past employers. These problems consisted of substance abuse issues, honesty issues, and reliability issues. The labor pool never seemed to have an over abundance of talent and employability to pick from.

I remember always reading article after article that dealt with the significant manpower shortage in the home improvement industry. The bottom line of each article would always be the same, “If you can find an honest, reliable and competent person to work for you, pull out all the stops to keep them!!!! Do whatever you need to do to keep that person happy because you’ll never know if you will be lucky enough to find someone to take their place.” As an owner, it was a very constant and stressful problem to deal with. You were almost afraid to try and increase project production because you knew you would have to try and find someone to do the additional work. Finding employees was always an adventure, an adventure that I never looked forward to.

For the last 10-15 years the number one problem in the home improvement industry is the lack of manpower. Many contractors are training and hiring minorities to try and solve this major problem.

If you were to talk to your state authorities about what is being done to improve regulations and screening in the home improvement industry, they will probably tell you something is in the works or there is no money for more regulations (testing). I have been hearing this for 30 years. The county in which I live (Suffolk County, New York) still does not require any demonstration of home improvement ability to obtain a home improvement license. The fee has consistently gone up but the requirements have pretty much stayed the same. We are one of the highest taxed counties in the country, so I refuse to believe there is no money to develop and implement a better policing and screening process in the home improvement industry.

The National Association of The Remodeling Industry (NARI) http://www.nari.org is the only national organization that offers certification of home improvement individuals. They have a number of different certifications that one could obtain. To obtain these certifications the applicant needs to demonstrate a variety of knowledge, ranging from good business practices to project knowledge. NARI’s main certification is called – Certified Remodeler (CR). This certification requires the applicant to prepare an extensive matrix or resume of their experience and knowledge as well as obtaining a certain score on an 8-hour exam. There are only approximately 1000 CR’s, out of the hundreds of thousands of home improvement contractors in this country. I earned this certification in 1994 and still proudly hold this certification today. I will admit that obtaining this certification is a time consuming process and does take considerable effort, but it was well worth it. What I also like about this certification is that it has to be renewed every year by demonstrating continued involvement and knowledge in the home improvement industry.

Why then couldn’t Washington mandate some type of screening, nationwide, that all people interested in doing home improvements must be able to “pass” to obtain a license? This license could be used nationwide. Use a screening process that emulates what NARI does for its certifications. You could make the screening as simple as a comprehensive test with multiple choice questions. A test that could be machine scored.

I think an ideal situation for licensing would be to divide up home improvement licensing into sub-licenses. For example, if you were a bathroom contractor you would obtain a license for bathroom home improvements only. This would refine what licensees are qualified to do, rather then issuing one license that could wrongly give the impression that the licensee is capable of doing any type of project.

The reason I think Washington needs to get involved with this problem is because the American public doesn’t have the time to wait for each of the 50 states to come up with a similar solution, individually.

However, if Washington were to step up and mandate a national screening and testing situation, you would still have to address the screening of the people who show up to work on your house. (if they were not the person(s) who was screened and licensed) These people would hopefully be employees of the person who was screened. Is the homeowner then back to square one with not knowing the qualifications of the people working on their house? I tend to think not, because the person who went through the screening and obtained the license would want to keep the license. It is in the best interest of the licensed individual to make sure the project is done correctly. Problems develop when a contractor has too much work and attempts to get it all done by using inexperienced and unqualified help. The lure of completing more work and making more money sometimes leads to his or her business getting “out of control”. This subsequently leads to quality and project completion problems. Employees of licensed and screened contractors need to “qualify” on some level similar to NARI’s lead carpenter certification.

Will any of these desperately needed changes occur any time soon? To be honest, I wouldn’t hold your breath waiting for Washington to step up to the plate and I don’t think your state or local governments will dramatically improve hom

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Remodel Your Home – Take A Home Improvement Loan

Home, a place where you live together with your close and loved ones, may mean the whole world to you. You always wanted to make your home a better place to live, giving all comforts to your family. You can do this just by making improvements in your home, but where to get the funds for it. Home Improvement Loan is the solution to your problem.

Home Improvement Loan is a loan that is granted to borrowers to make changes or improvements in their home. A home improvement loan is good if you don’t want to use your savings or don’t have sufficient savings for the home improvement project.

A Home Improvement Loans can be used to purchase fitted bedroom furniture or to develop unused spaces in your home. You can use Home Improvement Loan for improving your garden such as landscaping. Home Improvement Loan is also available for double-glazing, new conservatory, heating system, new kitchen, rewiring and plumbing or any home remodeling that you can think of. Making improvements in your home helps in improving your lifestyle as well as may add value to your home.

Home Improvement Loan can be classified as secured and unsecured Home Improvement Loan. A Secured Home Improvement Loan is a loan secured by borrower’s collateral such as house, car or bonds. You can borrow any amount between £5,000 to £75,000 A Secured Home Improvement Loan can be repaid at any term between 5 to 25 years depending on income available with you and the amount of equity in the property kept as a security with the lender. You can get Home Improvement Loan up to 125% of property value. A secured loan offers flexible repayment options with low rate of interest.

Unsecured Home Improvement Loan is a loan that requires no collateral to be kept as a security with the lender. The rate of interest on loan is higher as compared to that in secured loan, as there is no security attached to this loan.

You can get a Home Improvement Loan from banks and financial institutions. Now, you can also get a Home Improvement Loan online. You can collect loan quotes from various lenders which is available free of cost. Make a comparison among the various quotes and shortlist the few you find suitable. Try to find out more details about the short listed loan options and choose the one that you find the best. But don’t haste, relax and shop around make some efforts. Your efforts will definitely repay you in future by saving your money.

You can also tie your home improvement loan into the existing mortgage package, which will benefit you with lower rate of interest and help in releasing the money you needed for the home improvement project.

You can get a secured Home Improvement Loan even if you have bad credit rating, poor credit history, CCJs, defaults or arrears. Your bad credit history can’t stop you from making desired improvements in your home. You can avail a bad credit home improvement loan that is designed specially for you.

Home Improvement Loan is the loan granted for making changes or improvements in the home such as new kitchen or decoration. It helps in making your home a better place to live for your whole family. Home Improvement loan may help in add value to your home by the significant improvements you intend to make. When searching for a home improvement loan, Shop around and compare the quotes of various lenders, your these efforts will help you find the best deal.

After having herself gone through the ordeal of loan borrowin

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