Find a Reliable Remodeling Contractor | Seth's Home Pros
Every honest remodeling contractor will tell you nobody knows the real number until the wall is open. The good ones admit it before you sign.
We match you with three contractors.
- 100% free for homeowners
- Same-day response before 5pm
- 10-step contractor vetting
A remodel quote with no allowance for unknown conditions isn't a lower price. It's the same risk, handed to you, and it usually shows up as a change order the week the wall comes down.
Older houses hide things: balloon framing, plaster over lath, a header somebody improvised forty years ago, additions stacked on additions. Kitchens, baths, basements and whole-home work all run into it, so the contractors worth hiring say so before you sign.
We introduce you to three contractors from our own network, all quoting the same scope, and the introduction costs you nothing. Nobody issues a remodeling contractor license to verify, so a ten-step check on insurance, references, work history and reputation stands in for one.
How do you hire a remodeling contractor safely?
- Get three quotes, and compare allowance schedules, not totals. Two kitchen quotes can differ by $40,000 purely on cabinet and counter allowances. Ask for the schedule and read it.
- Read the exclusions. Permits, dumpsters, painting, flooring, and appliance installation move between included and excluded from quote to quote.
- Treat a contingency as a good sign on any pre-1950 building.
- Ask how change orders get priced, before you sign. Written, with a number, approved before the work happens.
- Ask about lead-safe certification on a pre-1978 house.
- Get it in writing. State law requires a written contract above $3,000 in labor and materials. The Attorney General's office publishes a free model contract.
- Watch the deposit. That same law caps the initial down payment at one-third of the contract price.
How much does remodeling cost?
These ranges come from recent quotes across our network:
| Project | Range | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Bathroom remodel (per bathroom) | $12,000 – $35,000 | 3 – 6 weeks |
| Kitchen remodel | $14,000 – $75,000+ | 5 – 10 weeks |
| Basement finish | $30,000 – $90,000 | 4 – 9 weeks |
| Multi-room or whole-home renovation | $120,000 – $300,000+ | 12 – 24 weeks |
Read every band above as a qualifying range, not a quote. They are averages across a lot of projects, and yours lands somewhere inside them depending on scope, selections, and the condition behind the plaster.
A GC's fee typically runs from 10% to 20% of project cost.
Kitchen costs swing hardest because of selections, not labor. Within the same footprint, cabinetry and counters can shift the price by $60,000.
Appliances add to that spread. This is why the allowance schedule matters more than the bottom line.
Other work our contractors do
Where do our remodeling contractors work?
Our remodeling contractors work across all 30 towns we cover. The housing stock varies enormously from one town to the next, and so does the meaning of "remodeling."
A renovation in a dense neighborhood of century-old houses calls for a different discipline than a remodel in a 1990s subdivision.
- Portland, ME
- South Portland, ME
- Scarborough, ME
- Freeport, ME
- Biddeford, ME
- Sanford, ME
- Saco, ME
- Westbrook, ME
- Kennebunk, ME
- Windham, ME
- Gorham, ME
- York, ME
- Falmouth, ME
- Wells, ME
- Standish, ME
- Kittery, ME
- Cape Elizabeth, ME
- Old Orchard Beach, ME
- Augusta, ME
- Belgrade, ME
- Bangor, ME
- Lewiston, ME
- Auburn, ME
- Sidney, ME
- Waterville, ME
- Skowhegan, ME
- Conway, NH
- Rochester, NH
- Dover, NH
- Portsmouth, NH
What makes a firm price stop being firm?
Here's the trap in remodeling quotes. Almost everyone walks into it.
You get three quotes. Two include an allowance for unknown conditions and explain it.
The third gives you a lower, confident number with no contingency.
That third quote looks best. We don't trust it.
The risk hasn't disappeared; it has moved onto you. It'll surface as a change order in week three, when the wall comes down and the header over the old opening turns out to be a 2x6 installed during the Carter administration.
Older housing stock is the reason: balloon framing, knob-and-tube hidden in a forgotten circuit, plaster over lath, plus additions layered on by four owners who followed different codes. Open a wall in a pre-1950 house and you may find a genuinely unknown condition.
That's no reason to avoid remodeling an older house. Hire someone who investigates before committing.
And read the contingency as honesty, not padding.
People whose house is in the right place and the wrong shape.
The kitchen was laid out in 1962 for a family that cooked differently. One bathroom serves four people.
The basement is dry and tall enough, yet completely wasted. Small rooms chop up the floor plan because they were once fashionable.
Moving usually costs more than fixing. It also means giving up a location you already chose.
Kitchens. The most common project and the one with the widest cost range, because selections drive it more than labor does.
Bathrooms. Small footprint, high complexity. Plumbing, waterproofing, ventilation, and tile all in a room the size of a closet.
Basements. Cheap square footage when the basement is dry and tall enough, expensive when it isn't. Moisture and egress are the two questions that decide which one you have.
Whole-home renovation. Multiple rooms, usually structural, usually with a systems upgrade underneath it.
Work crossing several trades needs a general contractor to sequence it. That's the same skill described on the general contractor page.
Winter is the answer almost nobody expects. Interior remodeling runs beautifully from November through March. The building is closed in, weather is irrelevant, and those are the easiest calendar slots to book because everyone else is asking about summer.
A January kitchen often gets better crews and more attention. Pricing may be better too.
Exterior openings are the exception. Additions need a real weather window.
So do new openings and window work.
Age and moisture.
Age means the housing stock, the source of every surprise. Moisture comes from the climate.
Freeze-thaw cycles and ice dams punish poor detailing, as does heating-season condensation. Improving insulation without fixing air sealing and ventilation can push moisture into a wall cavity, where it may go unnoticed for years.
And the licensing fact: no state license exists for general contractors or builders. Only plumbers and electricians hold licenses here. There is no remodeling contractor license to verify. Insurance, references, financials, and reputation are verifiable, and that's what our 10-step process covers.
One credential that IS real: on housing built before 1978, work disturbing painted surfaces requires lead-safe certified work practices. That is a federal requirement, it is verifiable, and on an older home you should ask about it directly.
The 10-step vetting process
company, crew size, service area, project types, capacity, pricing posture.
years in business, structure, ability to carry materials and labor, supplier payment history.
general liability and workers' comp certificates pulled and stored.
past homeowners, subs, and suppliers. Minimum three, not only the ones they pick.
Google, Facebook, BBB, local word of mouth, complaint and dispute search.
completed work, in person or in detailed photo and video.
speed of reply, clarity of writing, handling of a difficult question.
Contractor agreement signed
first projects watched closely, homeowner feedback gathered actively.
underperformers come out of the network.
Step 7 matters more during remodeling than new construction because you're living in the building while the work happens.
What should you ask a remodeling contractor?
How long does a kitchen remodel take?
Typically 5 to 10 weeks, depending on scope and whether cabinetry is stock or custom. Custom lead times often exceed the construction schedule.
Can I live in the house during a remodel?
Usually for a single room. A whole-home renovation is harder, and it's worth pricing both ways because working in an empty house is faster and cheaper.
Why is one remodeling quote so much lower?
Check allowances, exclusions, and whether it carries a contingency. A lower number often means less scope, not better value.
Do remodeling contractors need a license?
No. The state licenses plumbers and electricians only. Lead-safe certification is separate, federal, and worth verifying on a pre-1978 home.
Does Seth's Home Pros do the remodeling?
No. We're not a contractor. We make the introduction and the contract is between you and the builder.
Ready for three remodeling contractor quotes?
Tell us the room and the town. That's enough to start.