Vetting a contractor before signing: check license status, confirm liability insurance + WSIB or workers’ comp coverage, call 3 recent references, and require a written scope with milestones.
Hiring the wrong contractor is one of the most expensive mistakes a homeowner can make. After hearing too many horror stories on this forum and in my own neighborhood, I put together a checklist that I use every single time before signing a contract.
Before You Even Call Them:
- Check their license status on your state or province’s licensing board website
- Look them up on the Better Business Bureau — not just the rating, but the actual complaints
- Search their company name + “reviews” and read past the first page of Google results
- Ask neighbors, friends, or local Facebook groups for honest recommendations
During the First Conversation:
- Ask for proof of liability insurance AND workers’ compensation coverage
- Ask for at least 3 references from jobs completed in the last 12 months — and actually call them
- Ask about their timeline honestly. If they say they can start “next week” and they’re good, that might be a red flag — good contractors are usually booked out
- Get everything in writing: scope of work, materials, payment schedule, start date, and estimated completion
Red Flags to Walk Away From:
- They want more than 10-15% deposit upfront
- They refuse to put the agreement in writing
- They pressure you to “decide today” because of a “limited time deal”
- They can’t or won’t provide a physical business address
- Their online reviews look suspiciously perfect or were all posted within a short period
Payment Best Practices:
- Never pay in full upfront. A typical payment schedule might be 10% deposit, 30% at rough-in, 30% at substantial completion, and 30% on final walkthrough
- Pay by check or credit card — never cash with no receipt
- Hold back a reasonable amount until every punch list item is done
Companion reads: Once you have a contractor shortlisted, the 5 most expensive bathroom renovation mistakes thread is worth reviewing before the scope gets locked, and the Ontario Home Renovation Savings Program rebate guide covers which 2026 rebates you can bake into the job so the contractor quotes against the right spec.
Feel free to save this or share it with anyone you know who’s about to hire a contractor. And if you’ve got your own tips to add, drop them below — the more knowledge we share, the fewer people get burned.
Good checklist. A few Ontario-specific additions I’d layer on top, since I see a lot of homeowners miss these:
Verify with the right Ontario bodies, not just “a licensing board”:
- For anything involving new builds, additions, or major reno on a home under 7 years old, check the contractor on the HCRA (Home Construction Regulatory Authority) registry. If they’re not there and the work needs a builder license, walk away.
- WSIB Clearance Certificate — ask for a current one. Takes the contractor 10 seconds to pull online. If they hedge, that’s your answer. This protects you from being on the hook if someone gets hurt on your property.
- Confirm their trade certification with Skilled Trades Ontario if it’s a compulsory trade (electrical, plumbing, HVAC, sheet metal, etc.).
Ask about the permit before the price:
If the scope touches structure, plumbing/HVAC, a new bathroom or bedroom, a deck, or fire separations, it needs a permit. A good contractor will tell you who pulls it and budget it in. A contractor who says “we don’t need one” on a permit-required job is telling you they plan to do unpermitted work — which becomes your problem at resale.
One more red flag for 2026: anyone who hands you a quote with no mention of the 2024 Ontario Building Code updates (new envelope/insulation requirements, radon rough-in on new houses) hasn’t been keeping up. Doesn’t mean they’re bad, but it’s worth a second conversation.
And one positive signal I look for: a contractor who brings up contingency themselves — 15-20% on newer homes, 20-25% on anything pre-1960 Toronto — is someone who has actually opened up old walls before and knows what’s in there.
Quick Ontario-specific addendum for anyone hiring in the GTA this spring, since a few code and permit things changed this year and they affect how you vet a contractor:
Ask about 2026 code awareness, not just “licensed”
A contractor can be licensed and still be sloppy on the updated Ontario Building Code. The big ones that came into effect for 2026 work:
- Expanded AFCI (arc-fault) protection requirements — if you’re doing any electrical, ask them specifically how they plan to handle the new AFCI coverage zones.
- EV-ready rough-in expectations on new panel work. Even if you don’t have an EV today, it’s cheaper to run the conduit now.
- Tighter air-sealing and vapor barrier requirements on exterior envelope work — this is where corner-cutting shows up two winters later as mold or rot.
- Updated GFCI protection zones in bathrooms and outdoor areas.
If a contractor shrugs when you mention these, that’s a real signal.
Toronto permits actually move fast right now
The City’s FASTRACK program is approving zoning-compliant residential permits under 100 m² in 5–10 business days. Contractors who tell you permits “always take 6–8 weeks, so let’s just start without one” are either out of date or hoping you’ll skip the inspection. Neither is good.
Canadian-specific holdback
In Ontario under the Construction Act, there’s a statutory 10% holdback you’re required to retain until 60 days past substantial performance. Good contractors know this and price for it. If yours is pushing for “final payment on completion day,” they either don’t know the law or they’re planning to be gone before lien deadlines run.
Anyone else running into contractors who still quote pre-2026 code standards? Curious what others are seeing out there.
Great base checklist — let me add the Ontario-specific layer, because a lot of the generic US-focused vetting advice misses the stuff that actually bites you up here:
Licensing / registration to verify in Ontario
- HCRA (Home Construction Regulatory Authority) — if they’re building or selling new homes, vacant-land condos, or doing major additions that qualify as new construction, they must be licensed. Look them up on the public HCRA register. No license, no conversation.
- ESA (Electrical Safety Authority) — any electrical contractor pulling permits must be a Licensed Electrical Contractor (LEC). Ask for their LEC number and verify on the ESA site. If they’re subbing it out, ask who the LEC is.
- TSSA — any gas work (furnace, water heater, gas line relocation for a kitchen reno) needs a TSSA-registered contractor. Ask. Verify.
- WSIB clearance certificate — request a current one (free, takes 10 seconds to pull). If it’s expired or they “don’t carry WSIB because they’re a sole prop,” that’s your risk, not theirs, if anyone on the jobsite gets hurt.
- Municipal trade-specific licenses (Toronto plumbing, drain work) — city-issued, separate from provincial.
Warranty / consumer protection angle
- If it’s a new-home build or a qualifying major addition, Tarion coverage is mandatory. Confirm the builder is enrolled. No enrolment, no sign.
- On reno work that doesn’t fall under Tarion, make sure the contract spells out the workmanship warranty period clearly. One year is standard; two is better; “we stand behind our work” with no document is not a warranty.
Lien rights — the one most homeowners don’t know about
- Under Ontario’s Construction Act, contractors and subs have lien rights on your property for unpaid work. A title search on your house mid-project is not paranoid — it’s smart. A lien from a sub your GC forgot to pay becomes your problem fast.
- Hold back 10% statutory holdback for at least 60 days past substantial performance. Most reputable GCs already know this and will structure the contract around it. If yours doesn’t, that’s a red flag on its own.
On the “booked out” point
Seconding this hard. In the GTA, any half-decent contractor starting a $50K+ job within two weeks of the first call is either lying about their schedule or has a subcontractor situation you don’t want to inherit. Summer reno slots for 2026 were already filling up by February for most of the shops I know.
Pinning this one in my head — it’s the checklist I wish every homeowner walked in with.