# Our standard

> **Quick answer:** We read about 1,600 public complaints about kitchen, cabinet, countertop and handyman jobs. These ten commitments answer the failures that came up most, and our partner contractor agrees to them in writing before we share a single phone number.

Source: https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/our-standard/
Updated: 2026-11-06
Published by: Coachella Valley Remodeling, a free referral service for homeowners; not a contractor.

A referral service is only worth something if it changes how the job goes. So instead of a badge, here's what our partner contractor has agreed to, how we check it, and what happens when someone falls short.

## The ten commitments

1. **Licensed, bonded and insured, checked by us**: Before any introduction we look up our partner contractor's license at cslb.ca.gov: active, the right classification for your job, bond current, workers' comp on file or a valid exemption, plus a certificate of liability insurance. We check again before every new introduction.
2. **Your information goes only to our partner contractor, with your OK**: One licensed local partner contractor, named before it contacts you, and only if you approve. Never a call center or a list, and "stop" means stop.
3. **A small deposit, then pay as work gets done**: California caps the down payment at 10% of the price or $1,000, whichever is less, and payments can't run ahead of the work. Our partner agreement requires it too: no pay-in-full, no cash-only.
4. **A written, itemized scope**: Our partner agreement requires every task, the materials by name, what's excluded, who pulls permits, allowances for anything not chosen yet, and start and finish dates, before money changes hands.
5. **No surprise charges**: Every change is written, priced and signed by you before the work happens. Our partner agreement says the contractor won't charge for a change you didn't sign.
6. **Measure, draw, approve, then cut**: Cabinet layouts and countertop templates, seams and cutouts approved by you before anything is ordered or cut.
7. **Show up, or call ahead**: Our partner agreement requires appointments confirmed the day before, 24 hours' notice of changes and calls returned within one business day. We track no-shows.
8. **One local person who answers, plus photo updates**: A named contact at the contractor and one at our office. Owners who are away get photos at the end of every work day.
9. **Your home protected and left clean**: Our partner agreement requires floor and counter protection, dust control, stone cut outside or with dust extraction, debris hauled away, broom-clean every day.
10. **Walkthrough first, written warranty after**: Final payment only after a walkthrough and a finished punch list, and our partner agreement requires at least a one-year written workmanship warranty. If there's a dispute, we step in to mediate.

## Why these ten

Each one answers a failure that shows up again and again in public complaints about remodels and small jobs: deposits taken and the job abandoned, "that wasn't included," a $4,500 quote that turned into an $8,200 invoice, an island cut four inches short, estimators who never showed, and absentee owners who flew in to find nothing done. We kept only promises a referral service can actually enforce: by checking before the introduction, by writing them into the partner agreement, or by acting when you tell us one was broken.

## Extra protections for seniors and their families

- No same-day signing. Estimates stay valid for at least seven days.
- If you're 65 or older and sign a home improvement contract at home, California gives you five business days to cancel (three for everyone else). Partners provide the cancellation form and honor it without fees.
- A family member or trusted adult can be copied on every message, estimate and change order.
- Nobody we introduce will knock on your door unannounced, ask for cash, or call a repair "urgent" to close a sale.

## How we enforce it

- **Screened before you meet them.** Before we work with a contractor, we check its CSLB license and complaint history, court records for a pattern of lawsuits, judgments or liens from homeowners, and its public reviews. A pattern of disputes rules a contractor out. You can still [look up any license yourself](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/) in a minute, and we encourage it.
- **License and insurance, again and again.** We re-verify license, bond, workers' compensation and insurance at [cslb.ca.gov](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/) before every introduction and at least monthly. An insurance certificate within 30 days of expiring puts the partner on hold.
- **We check in with you** at the estimate, the start, the midpoint, completion and 30 days. Any "no" opens a case.
- **Our partner contractor has a scorecard**: response time, no-shows, change-order disputes, punch-list close time, warranty response and complaints. A contractor who disputes your feedback can't have it deleted; disputes go to mediation.
- **Strikes.** Missed appointments without notice, late responses and skipped photo updates earn written warnings. Three in 12 months pause new introductions.
- **Immediate removal** for a deposit over the legal limit, charging for unsigned changes, a lapsed license or insurance policy, abandoning a job, or misconduct with a senior.

## If something goes wrong

Tell us. We collect both sides' photos, the contract and the change orders, and propose a resolution within 10 business days. The outcome goes on the partner's record. If mediation doesn't settle it, you can file a complaint with the [Contractors State License Board](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/) or go to small claims court, and we'll tell you plainly which fits.

## What the standard can't do

We don't do the work and we don't hold your money, so we can't guarantee another company's workmanship. What we can do is check our partner before every introduction, require written terms first, stay in the loop while the job runs, and stop referring if the standard is broken.

## What goes wrong most, by project

### Kitchens and countertops

- **One person who answers**: “Nobody calls back, and everyone blames someone else.” Our standard: One local contractor is responsible for the whole job, and one person at our office answers if they don't.
- **Walkthrough before final payment**: “It looks worse than what we tore out.” Our standard: You don't make the final payment until you've walked the job with the contractor and the punch list is done.
- **Kitchen stays usable until materials arrive**: “Five months washing dishes in the bathtub.” Our standard: Your old kitchen stays in place until the new cabinets and stone are on site and checked, unless you choose otherwise.
- **Warranty in writing**: “The lifetime warranty disappeared when the company did.” Our standard: Our partner agreement requires at least a one-year workmanship warranty in writing, and we keep a copy.
- **You get exactly what you approved**: “They sold me solid wood and delivered particleboard.” Our standard: Your contract names the exact cabinet construction, finish and stone, so you get what you approved.
- **Approve drawings before anything is cut**: “The island came out four inches too narrow.” Our standard: Nothing is ordered or cut until you've approved the drawings and the seam layout.
- **Small deposit, pay as you go**: “We paid in full, and then they disappeared.” Our standard: Our partner contractor never asks for more than 10% or $1,000 down, as California law requires. You pay as work is completed.
- **They show up, or they call**: “They cancelled the install the morning of, again.” Our standard: Our partner agreement requires every appointment to be confirmed the day before, and we track every missed one.

### Cabinets

- **No sign-tonight pricing**: “Thirty percent off, but only if we sign tonight.” Our standard: Nobody we refer will pressure you to sign the same day. Estimates stay valid for at least seven days.
- **Honest reface, paint or replace advice**: “We paid replacement prices for refacing.” Our standard: We'll tell you honestly whether painting, refacing or replacing fits your cabinets and budget.
- **Construction spelled out**: “Sold as solid wood, delivered as particleboard.” Our standard: Your contract names the box material, door construction and finish.
- **Drawings you approve**: “The microwave didn't fit the cabinet built for it.” Our standard: Cabinets aren't ordered until you've approved drawings based on on-site measurements and your appliance specs.
- **Realistic lead times**: “Cabinets quoted at five weeks took five months.” Our standard: You'll get a realistic lead time in writing, and demo waits until the cabinets are here.
- **Warranty you can use**: “The door peeled and the company was already closed.” Our standard: You get the manufacturer's warranty and a written workmanship warranty, and we keep copies.
- **Inspected before installed**: “Every replacement door arrived damaged too.” Our standard: Every box is inspected on delivery, so damage is caught before installation, not after.
- **One point person**: “I was passed between five reps for one drawer.” Our standard: One person handles your cabinet project from measure to final walkthrough.

### Handyman and small jobs

- **Price approved before work starts**: “A $300 quote turned into a $1,495 bill.” Our standard: You approve the price before work starts. Anything extra is approved by you first.
- **A real person answers**: “I called five times and nobody called back.” Our standard: A real local person answers, and we chase the contractor so you don't have to.
- **On time, or a call ahead**: “Took a day off work and nobody came.” Our standard: Your appointment is confirmed the day before, and if anything changes, you'll hear from a person.
- **Right trade for the task**: “He fixed it Tuesday, and it was leaking again Friday.” Our standard: We check the job fits our partner contractor's license, and the job isn't done until you've seen it working.
- **Pay when it's done**: “I paid the deposit and never saw him again.” Our standard: For small jobs, you pay when the work is done.
- **Done means you say it's done**: “He marked it complete after two hours, half finished.” Our standard: A job is complete when you say it is.
- **Real insurance, not app fine print**: “He broke it, and the guarantee covered almost nothing.” Our standard: Our partner contractor carries its own liability insurance, and we've seen the certificate.
- **Fixes to their own work are free**: “He came back to fix his mistake and billed me again.” Our standard: If our partner contractor's work fails, it fixes it at no charge.

### Second homes and rentals

- **Daily photo updates**: “I flew in three times and nothing was done.” Our standard: See your project every day it's being worked on, without flying in.
- **Problems reported the same day**: “Nobody told me about the leak for weeks.” Our standard: If our partner contractor finds a problem at your home, you hear about it the same day, with photos.
- **Proof before payment**: “I was billed for work that was never done.” Our standard: Every invoice comes with before and after photos of the work.
- **Keys and access handled safely**: “A stranger had my lockbox code and things went missing.” Our standard: You'll know exactly who enters your home, and when.
- **Scheduled around your rental calendar**: “A no-show cost me three nights of bookings.” Our standard: Work is scheduled around your blocked rental dates, and turnover deadlines go in the scope.
- **Built for a closed-up summer house**: “The cabinet finish cracked while we were away.” Our standard: We'll steer you to materials that hold up in a hot, closed-up desert home.
- **One local point of contact**: “My manager farmed repairs out to random apps.” Our standard: One local contractor and one person at our office, not an answering service.
- **Pay as work is verified**: “I paid nearly the full price on a job that wasn't finished.” Our standard: Payments follow completed, photographed milestones, never ahead of the work.

**Free referral:** [Get a free quote](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/get-a-quote/project/)

## Common questions

### Do you guarantee the contractor's work?

We don't do the work, so we can't guarantee it. We check our partner contractor before every introduction, require a written scope and at least a one-year written workmanship warranty, mediate disputes, and stop referring if the standard is broken.

### What happens if a contractor breaks the standard?

It depends on what was broken. A no-show without notice earns a written warning, and three warnings in 12 months pause new introductions. A deposit over the legal limit, charging for unsigned changes, a lapsed license or insurance policy, or abandoning a job means immediate removal.

### How much can a contractor ask for up front?

In California, a contractor can collect no more than $1,000 or 10% of the contract price, whichever is less, as a down payment. Progress payments can't run ahead of the work done and materials delivered.

### Can my son or daughter be copied on everything?

Yes. Tell us who, and every message, estimate and change order goes to them as well. It's part of the standard for every homeowner, not only seniors.

## Related pages

- [How it works](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/how-it-works/)
- [What our partner contractor signs](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/partner-requirements/)
- [Kitchen remodeling in the Coachella Valley](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/kitchen-remodel/)
- [New kitchen cabinets in the Coachella Valley](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/kitchen-cabinets/)
- [Handyman help in the Coachella Valley](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/handyman/)
- [/contractor-partners/](https://coachellavalleyremodeling.com/contractor-partners/)