Castle Rock remodeling job site: floor protection and a zippered dust wall around a kitchen remodel

Verified Build

Our Contractor Code of Ethics

Every builder who bids or works through DougCO Builds signs this code, along with the Douglas County Local Business Alliance code of conduct. Break it and you're out.

Seven commitments
Checked every year
Removal for botched jobs

Draft

This code is a draft under review and is not yet in effect.

The code

What every builder signs

Bid honestly

Bid on the scope DougCO Builds wrote. If you think the scope is wrong or missing something, say so in your bid instead of pricing low and recovering it in change orders.
List what your bid includes and what it leaves out.
Do not coordinate prices with other members or agree among yourselves who will win.
Do not contact the homeowner directly before a job is awarded.

Keep the job inside DougCO Builds

Work that comes through DougCO Builds stays under DougCO Builds, including additions to the same project. No side deals to avoid the service fee.
Report the final contract price and every change order to DougCO Builds. The service fee is figured on those amounts.
Put every change order in writing, get the homeowner's signature before doing the work and copy DougCO Builds.

Licensing, insurance and permits

Hold every license your trade and town require. Colorado licenses electricians and plumbers, and local building departments license or register contractors who pull permits.
Carry general liability insurance at or above the DougCO Builds minimum, and workers' compensation or a valid Colorado exemption.
Pull every permit the job requires. Never offer to skip a permit to lower a price.
Keep your Colorado business registration in good standing.

Money and liens

Take deposits and progress payments only on the schedule in the signed contract, and state in writing what the deposit covers.
Pay subcontractors and suppliers on time so no lien is ever filed against a homeowner's property.
Provide lien waivers with each payment when the homeowner or DougCO Builds asks.

On the job

Show up when you said you would. If a date will slip, tell the homeowner and DougCO Builds right away.
Use the specified materials, or get written approval before substituting.
Protect the home, follow job-site safety rules and leave the site clean and secure at the end of each day.
Allow DougCO Builds to do milestone and final walkthroughs.

Warranty and complaints

Give a written workmanship warranty that states its length, and honor it.
Answer homeowner concerns promptly and in good faith. If a dispute can't be settled directly, cooperate with DougCO Builds' review.
Never retaliate against a homeowner for an honest review or complaint.

Honesty about yourself

Describe your business, experience and qualifications accurately. Claim no certification or award you don't hold.
Never post or arrange a fake review.
Tell DougCO Builds within 30 days about any license action, lapse in insurance, judgment or formal complaint that bears on your work.

For homeowners

What the Verified Build badge means

The builder's license and insurance were checked by DougCO Builds, the builder signed this code, and we walk the job with you at key points.

Start a project

Verification and enforcement

Break the code, lose the work.

What DougCO Builds verifies

Before your first bid and every year after: license where required, certificate of insurance naming DougCO Builds as certificate holder, workers' comp or exemption and Colorado business registration
Before every job starts: insurance, again

How we enforce it

A member who botches a job or won't settle a homeowner's problem is removed from DougCO Builds. For lesser issues we may warn a member or pause bid invitations. Skipped permits, side deals to avoid the fee, fake reviews and misuse of a homeowner's money mean immediate removal.

Castle Rock cabinets and countertops: leveling a new quartzite counter on shaker cabinets

For Douglas County builders

Ready to sign on?

Apply once. We verify your license and insurance, you sign the code and bid invitations start coming.

Apply to join For homeowners