Renovation Contractor in Kent

A renovation contractor (general contractor or main builder) manages your whole project: pricing the job, scheduling and supervising trades like electricians and plumbers, ordering materials, arranging permits where needed, and being the single party responsible for quality and timeline. You pay one contract price instead of coordinating five separate trades yourself.

Ask every contractor to break the quote into the same line items: demolition, structural, plumbing, electrical, walls and finishes, fixtures, and a stated allowance for materials you choose. Then compare line by line. A single lump-sum number cannot be compared and cannot be enforced when scope questions come up mid-project.

Payments should follow completed milestones, not calendar dates: for example deposit, completion of demolition and first-fix (rough-in), completion of second-fix and finishes, then a final payment of 5-10% held until the snag list (punch list) is closed. That final retention is your only real leverage for defect fixes.

Check the licence or registration your country requires (see the hiring checklist for your country), ask for proof of liability insurance, and ask for two or three recent customers in or near Kent you can actually contact. A legitimate contractor expects these questions; evasiveness on any of the three is a reliable early warning.

Usually yes for single-room projects if water and power stay connected to the rest of the home; usually no for whole-home work involving dust-heavy demolition or when the only kitchen or bathroom is out of service for weeks. Ask the contractor to phase the works so one bathroom stays functional, and budget for short-term accommodation on gut renovations.

One combined project is almost always cheaper per unit of work: a single mobilization, one round of demolition and dust protection, and better contractor pricing on a larger contract. Stage the work only if cash flow requires it, and sequence it so you never redo finished work — for example, complete all plumbing and electrical changes before any room gets its final finishes.

Hourly rates typically run $50-$85, but most GCs price renovations as a project with a 10-20% management markup on the trades and materials. Angi's 2025 data puts a full renovation of a 1,250-1,600 sq ft home at around $52,000 on average, with mid-range whole-home work commonly $60-$200 per square foot.

It depends on your state: California, Florida, and most western states require a state licence for jobs above a low threshold, while some states leave licensing to cities or counties. Even where licensing is loose, unlicensed contractors usually can't pull permits — which you'll need for structural, electrical, and plumbing changes.