How to Find a Good Tradesman

Despite a plethora of websites and management options, every time we ask our landlords what their number one gripe is, it's finding reliable tradesmen.

So we've asked Upad Landlords what they do to create the ultimate black book of trustworthy and value for money tradesmen.

We picked the £10 Amazon voucher winners where we thought their experiences could be of the most practical benefit.

The comments are very much the landlord's personal opinions, not those of Upad...

Internet and interview! (Joanna Woods)

That's my advice, based on my so-far successful practical experience. The usual commonsense advice to ask friends and neighbours doesn't tend to apply if the property in question is a distance from home. Plus not everyone knows if the work is good and at a fair price.

Yes, I did ask the friendly owner-occupier next door - as his home looked well-maintained. He was scratching his head as his preferred tradesmen had moved away. So I turned to what is now my recommendation - the internet. Of course this is 'buyer beware'. I looked for tradesmen in the postcode area and nearby areas, and landed on MyBuilder.com. The site carries reviews, which may not all be genuine, so I picked those with more than one review and narrowed the field by reading them all. I chose three, phoned them and asked for a visit before booking. Willingness to visit (obviously we're not talking emergencies) indicates professionalism and gives an opportunity to look at their van as well as asking questions about payment -cash only is an obvious no-no as it's payment for labour in advance.

Discussion of the work also reveals how knowledgeable they are. This is the opportunity to talk about how they protect furnishings during work, dispose of rubbish etc. The response can be revealing. In the case of emergency I worked through the MyBuilder reviews, contacted a couple who sounded ok, quick 'interview' on the phone and yes, I was lucky but I wouldn't normally rely on reviews alone. I found two excellent tradesmen for different jobs using MyBuilder and my interviews, and gladly took the opportunity to post a review on MyBuilder, which both my chosen tradesmen viewed rightly as important to their business. Builders pay for registration but customers register free. Another useful internet starting point is Netmums (not Mumsnet). They have discussions, support etc but also carry lists of local tradesmen and reviews by members. You don't have to be a member or a mum to google eg ' Netmums Hillingdon Plumbers'. Unfortunately they don't have branches everywhere but I found good tradesmen in my home area.

In the case of emergency I worked through the MyBuilder reviews, contacted a couple who sounded ok, quick 'interview' on the phone and yes, I was lucky but I wouldn't normally rely on reviews alone. I found two excellent tradesmen for different jobs using MyBuilder and my interviews, and gladly took the opportunity to post a review on MyBuilder, which both my chosen tradesmen viewed rightly as important to their business. Builders pay for registration but customers register free. Another useful internet starting point is Netmums (not Mumsnet). They have discussions, support etc but also carry lists of local tradesmen and reviews by members. You don't have to be a member or a mum to Google eg ' Netmums Hillingdon Plumbers'. Unfortunately they don't have branches everywhere but I found good tradesmen in my home area.

Postscript - once you have tradesmen you like and trust, you can ask them for recommendations for other trades. Obviously to be added to the list of possible candidates you have already gathered from your internet search and subsequent interviews.

Recommendation only (Ed Syrett)

I find good tradesmen on recommendation only. For example, my decorator and electrician do a lot of work in the retirement flats that my mum used to live in. And once I have found a decent tradesman, he will normally know other decent tradesmen for other jobs. I'm quite happy to go with their recommendation, because they know that if they recommend a bad tradesman to me, it will most certainly reflect on them, and I would use either of them again. Finally, when I try out a new tradesman, I make him aware that if he does a good job, there will be more work for him in future because I have four properties for him to work on...


The BNI meeting group (Dipak)

Join or attend a BNI breakfast meeting group where your properties are based. You will find good quality trades people whom are competitively priced. They operate under ethical code of good practice and have a interest in providing a good service to fellow members.

Checkatrade.com (Isobel Darby)

I used Checkatrade and emailed a shortlist of plumbers who had done similar work (replacing a tap) with good reviews in the recent past. They were also gas safe registered so I felt they should be OK. I also Googled them to ensure there was nothing bad on the internet about them. The guys I found were great, my tenant was happy with his new kitchen tap and I have since used the same people for my boiler service and gas safety check.

I have two tips... (Yael Biran)

1) If this is for a big job, definitely ask to see a previous job. This shouldn't be a problem, if it is a problem, that in itself should raise a red flag. We have asked a builder who came to give us a quote and he gladly took us to see the last job he did. We were very happy we asked as we saw from that job that he wasn't really good when it came to the 'finishing touches' and ended up not taking him

2) Find a relevant Facebook group in your area ('we love SE4', 'mums of YO2'... ) just do a search for your postcode and they will come up. Ask there. You either get good recommendations, and you know they are good when many members of the group recommend the same person. Or you get the actual tradesperson contacting you and then you can check our their profile and the feedback they get.

Always have a back-up (Kareem)

That moment of needing someone in an emergency only to find out they are otherwise engaged/away/relocated once left me in a difficult position, since then I have ways ensured I have at least 2 guys for everything. Recommendations go a huge way of course, and I have always found that once you have a good builder in your contacts, he will know of quality electricians, plumbers and decorators to work alongside - bursting open your contacts. Don't be intimidated by the yellow pages, the best value and highest quality carpet layer I know came through the yellow pages and reading reviews on checkatrade etc. Of course you will be reading this and thinking, why can't I just have this landlord's contacts - and what a good idea that is! Get to know some other landlords and share your wealth of knowledge, discounts are not uncommon when you are passing on a new client, but ultimately you would like me rather pay a slight premium for the right job done.

Proceed step by step (Terry)

1) First ask around friends and businesses and get recommendations for the trades that you are interested in.

2) Ask your contacts for their option on the overall level of service and prices they received.

3) Contact the trades’ person yourself and ask them questions that you feel necessary.

4) If necessary have a face to face meeting with them at your convenience.

5) Ask view and even go and see samples of some of their finished work.

6) Ask for references from their most recent work. A person qualified in 1995 may not be totally up too speed with today’s requirements, even if they say they have 25 experiences? So what!

7) Never take their word for it when they say they are experts... When your money is at risk CHECK THEM OUT.

8) Do not agree to them doing the work on the first visit. Get another 2 quotes at least and compare the general prices that are being offered. As always it’s about the price but time, attendance. Quality of workmanship and parts are essential otherwise your will be looking for another tradesman to come and sort out the mess if it all goes wrong.

9) If you want to go on line and use “ Check a trade” this is not a bad place to start but these days the yellow pages is a waste of time.

10) Not for everyone but I attend local “business meetings” twice a month and I meet loads of my tradesman and I really do get to find out who's good at doing what I want! They even pay for my breakfast sometimes.

Word of mouth (Catherine Sullivan)

Go to a smallish or family run outlet for the service you require such as electrical shop (not a big retailer). Chat to the person behind the counter (usually a very knowledgeable person and may be the partner/owner) and ask who they use/know...they usually have their business cards and will often say who they use. Other than that word of mouth is best.

Join the local association (Tony Athill)

Join a local landlords association, go along to their meetings and ask fellow landlords. Portsmouth and District Private Landlords Association have a list of tried and tested tradesman on their website.