Hiring a Trader: Brief to Handover

Leah, whose payment schedule you saw in Leverage: Who Needs the Deal More, is having her hall, stairs and landing decorated. This lesson follows the job from the first brief to the final payment.

Her brief fits on one page: walls, ceilings and woodwork in the hall, stairs and landing; the colours and finishes she’s chosen; what’s excluded (the bedrooms); access (she works from home on Tuesdays); and when she needs it finished. She puts the most important thing first, as Leading with the Useful Point recommends. She describes what she can see, such as a crack above the front door, rather than prescribing a fix, and asks each decorator to list what they’re assuming.

Her house was built in the 1930s, so some of the woodwork may carry old lead paint under newer coats. She says so in the brief and asks each decorator how they’d prepare it. Dust from sanding lead paint is a real hazard; Lead, Asbestos and Old Paint explains what safe preparation involves.

Finally, check you can commission the work at all. If you rent, or the stairs are shared, the landlord or freeholder may need to agree first. Being able to pay isn’t the same as having permission.