# How it works > **Quick answer:** Four steps from your first message to a finished project, what we do at each one, and what we never do. The referral is free for homeowners, and nobody gets your number until you say yes. Source: https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/how-it-works/ Updated: 2026-11-06 Published by: Coachella Valley Remodeling, a free referral service for homeowners; not a contractor. Most homeowners come to us after the usual routine has failed: one online request, a dozen sales calls, two estimates that never happened, and a contractor who wanted half up front. Here's how we do it differently, step by step. ## 1. Tell us about the project Fill in a short form, call us, or text us. Say what you want done, roughly when, and anything that changes the plan: - an HOA or a gated community with contractor rules - a rental calendar, a closing date, or guests arriving for the season - whether you'll be in town while the work happens - a family member who should be copied on every message Photos help a contractor arrive with the right questions, but they're optional. If you'd rather not get calls, choose email only. **Text us** at (760) 766-2218. Msg & data rates may apply. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. [SMS Terms](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/sms-terms/). ## 2. A local coordinator calls you A coordinator here in the valley follows up by the end of the next business day (Monday to Friday). The call is about your project, not a sales pitch: scope, timing, budget range, access, permits and HOA approval. Coordinators don't quote prices and don't negotiate. Only a contractor who has seen the job can price it, and only in writing. If the call is recorded, the coordinator tells you at the start. ## 3. We introduce our partner contractor, if you approve We refer to one licensed partner contractor (we list it, with its license number, on [our partner page](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/contractor-partners/) before we share anyone's details with it). We check that your project fits its license classification, service area, job size and calendar, then tell you who it is, with its CSLB license number, before it contacts you. Say no and it never gets your details. If the job is outside what our partner can take on, we tell you so instead of passing it on. Before any referral, our partner must: - hold an active California license in the right classification, which we look up ourselves at [cslb.ca.gov](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/) before every introduction - have a current bond, liability insurance, and workers' compensation or a valid exemption - serve the Coachella Valley, so nobody adds a trip charge for driving in from the coast - sign [our standard](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/our-standard/) in writing Our partner agreement requires first contact within one business day and a visit for an estimate within seven days, or a straight answer that it can't, so we can let you know. ## 4. You get a written quote and decide The estimate should be itemized: every task, materials by name, what's excluded, who pulls permits, allowances for anything not chosen yet, and start and finish dates. That's what lets you judge a real price instead of a guess, and check it against the ranges in our cost guides. There's no obligation. If you go ahead, you sign with, and pay, the contractor directly. California caps the down payment at **10% of the price or $1,000, whichever is less**. If you're 65 or older and sign at home, you have five business days to cancel (three for everyone else). ## While the work happens - **Changes are written first.** If something turns up behind a wall, your contractor writes a change order with the price and schedule impact, and you sign it before the work. Our partner agreement says it won't charge for a change you didn't sign. - **One person at each end.** You get a named contact at the contractor and one at our office. - **Photo updates for absentee owners.** If you're away, dated photos arrive at the end of every work day. - **A protected, clean house.** Floor protection, dust control, debris hauled away, broom-clean every day. - **We check in.** At the estimate, the start, the midpoint, completion and 30 days later. Any "no" opens a case. If something goes wrong, we collect both sides' photos, the contract and the change orders, and propose a resolution within 10 business days. **Free referral:** [Get a free quote](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/get-a-quote/project/) ## How we're paid The referral is free for homeowners. Our partner contractor pays us a referral fee for the projects we introduce. It's also why our partner has to meet a written standard to keep receiving referrals, and why we stop referring if it doesn't. ## Who does what We connect you with a licensed contractor; the contractor does the work. We don't give bids, sign contracts or hold your money, and we can't guarantee another company's workmanship. What we can do is check our partner's license before every introduction, insist on written terms, stay in the loop while the job runs, and stop referring if the standard is broken. You can check any contractor yourself at [cslb.ca.gov](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/) or 800-321-CSLB (2752), whether we introduced them or not. **Free referral:** [Get a free quote](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/get-a-quote/project/) ## Common questions ### Does it cost anything to use your service? No. The referral is free for homeowners. Our partner contractor pays us a referral fee for the projects we introduce, and we say so on every page. You never pay us for an estimate, and no partner charges a deposit just to come out and quote. ### How many contractors will contact me? One. We work with a single licensed partner contractor, and we tell you who it is, with its CSLB license number, before it contacts you. Say no and it never gets your details. Your request isn't auctioned or sent to a list. ### Are you the contractor? No. We're a referral service. We don't do construction work, give bids, sign contracts or take payment for work. If you go ahead, you sign with, and pay, our licensed partner contractor directly. ### What if a contractor doesn't call or doesn't show up? Tell us, or we'll find out at our 48-hour check-in. Our partner commits to first contact within one business day and an estimate visit within seven days, or to tell us right away that it can't take the job, and then we tell you. We don't promise a contractor we don't have. ### How much will the contractor ask for up front? California caps the down payment on a home improvement contract at 10% of the price or $1,000, whichever is less, and later payments can't run ahead of the work done and materials delivered. Our partner agreement requires it in writing. ### I don't live here full time. Can I still use you? Yes. Many valley owners are away for the summer. Tell us who holds the keys, the HOA and gate rules, and how often you want updates. Our partner sends dated photos at the end of every work day to owners who are out of the area. ## Related pages - [Our standard](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/our-standard/) - [About us](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/about/) - [Kitchen remodeling in the Coachella Valley](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/kitchen-remodel/) - [Handyman help in the Coachella Valley](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/handyman/) - [Second-home and rental services in the Coachella Valley](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/second-home-services/) - [/contractor-partners/](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/contractor-partners/)