Builder standards

How builders earn a place in the matching network

A match from this site should mean something. Before a builder receives a single verified homeowner request, they are checked against the criteria below — the same checks a careful homeowner would run, done in advance and in writing. Vetting is a floor, not a guarantee: you should still read your contract, confirm your permit, and trust your judgment at the site visit.

Business and legal standing

• Registered business in Missouri or Illinois, with a verifiable business address and history — not a truck and a post-office box that appeared last spring.
• Licensing where applicable: the builder holds, or works under, the trade licenses and registrations their jurisdictions require for the work they sell, including electrical and plumbing performed by appropriately licensed trades.
• Insurance on file: current general liability insurance, and workers' compensation coverage for their crews. Certificates are requested, not taken on faith.

Track record

• Recent local references: the builder provides references from completed residential projects in the St. Louis metro that we can contact.
• Completed-project evidence: photos and addresses (shared with permission) of finished work, so we can see the standard of finish a homeowner is actually buying.
• Review profile sanity check: public reviews are read for patterns — communication, schedule honesty, cleanup, and how problems were handled — not just star averages.

Contract and money practices

• Written, itemized quotes: pool, decking, fencing, electrical, and site work separated — not one lump number with allowances doing the heavy lifting.
• Milestone-based payments: the payment schedule is tied to completed stages of work, not calendar dates, and never requires the project to be paid in full before it is finished.
• Change orders in writing: any change to scope or price is documented and agreed before the changed work is done.
• Permit responsibility stated: the contract says who applies for permits and who schedules inspections.

Warranty and follow-through

• Warranty terms in writing: what covers the shell or structure, the surface or liner, equipment, plumbing, and workmanship — and for how long.
• Start-up and orientation included: the builder commissions the pool, balances the water, and shows the homeowner how to run the equipment before calling the job done.
• A reachable human after the sale: a named contact and a realistic response-time expectation for warranty questions.

What gets a builder removed

Standards only matter if they can be lost. Builders are removed from matching for: unresolved homeowner complaints about abandoned work, misrepresenting licensing or insurance, pressuring homeowners to skip permits, or repeatedly failing to follow up on verified requests. If you were matched through this site and something went wrong, we want to hear about it — that feedback is part of how the network stays honest.