Hi Kat
There are a lot of mags that publish articles on this subject. Watch out for the ones who claim they're a general contractor (GC) & they don't own a pickup or a wheel barrow but drive a Caddy. Project Managers(PM's) and Construction Managers (CM's) are great & well needed on large sites but not for small residential construction they're not need, the GC should do. Do you have an architect? They plan/design & oversee the general contractor but for a small residence again they're usually way to costly. A GC that can is worth gold if they're able to build/design but if you have a plan the GC should be able to follow it easily. They should all have insurances (& require it of their subs) & be able to handle all the licenses & permits & all town, state & federal codes issues, getting inspectors (building, electrical, plumbing, fire, historical & any others that may be required) make sure on the contract it's clear who pays. They should be able to handle the setting up & removal of dumpsters (no on site burials), on time scheduled deliveries, material & equipment storage (see contract) coordinate all trades, keep all trades on a time line, be able to see through any unforeseen costs & any change orders (this is where careful planning in the beginning counts-know what you want first). The GC should be able to handle some of the major trades themselves, like foundation, cement & masonry &/or framing, outside & inside walls &/or floor & roof sheathing & any decking. Backfilling if there's no landscaper involved. Some insulating & ventilation, windows & doors. Some but not many may carry people to do countertops, floors, roofs, chimneys, tile & any odd glass work, sheet metal & duct work & maybe some flashings. Generally your main sub contractors for the special trades will cover plumbing, electrical & electronics, HVAC (heating, venting & air conditioning) & if needed alt energy source & entrainment (take into consideration a trade like roofing you may want a sub for who specializes in the trade but that it may add on 10% to the cost & the GC maybe able to do just as good a job, ASK!). The CG should also take care of all utilities hookups, make sure who pays on the contract & make sure if the contractor or their subs are responsible for these & which of these are private & public. Make sure the GC makes sure that no damage will come to any part of the dwelling because it was exposed to the elements (wind, weather & any unnatural acts of God). If there's damage backcharge the GC who'll, if appropriate, will then backcharge the responsible subs. A clause for this should be cover in the contract. When starting out look for a Schedule of Values it covers & explains how payments are made. If you don't know what this is, here's a brief explanation. There are different subs to be paid by the GC. They'll give him a breakdown of cost. Take the roofer. Stripping the roof is one certain cost, getting rid of the waste in another. The cost to put on a drip edge is another as well as installing ice & water shield & tar paper & again the shingles and again the nails. The costs of the labor & materials are also separated. That way the GC at payday can say the roofer removed 75% of the existing roof (that's one schedual of value) but only installed 60% of the drip edge & only 50% of the ice & water & only 45% of the tar paper & just 30% of the shingles & none of the ridge & soffit vents & all this took up 50 % of the cost of the nails. This keeps the money pretty close to what's being completed (VERY IMPORTANT). So look over the Schedule of Values carefully before the start (the GC also should be giving you his schedule, usually with a 10% markup of the subs when asking for a payment) & make sure nothing to inflated or deflated. Like seeing that a cheap item that's easily install, say drip edge isn't 25% of the value of the roofing instead of it being maybe 3.5% of the real total value. A good eye can keep these worries to a minimum so don't let me scare you. Make sure that the lines of communication between you & the GC are open & never confront a sub of any of the workers ALWAYS go to the GC or their foreman with a concern, the trades people already will already have to many bosses & they are professionals. An explanation here & there is ok but don't be bug them. Little things like covering the coffee during a morning break once in a while or setting up a cheap Friday lunch of hamburgers & hot dogs or a buffet well go along way, really. They'll be less likely to take short cuts & cheat, if it takes just a bit longer to get it done they're more likely to stay & stick it out. You could end up living in an environment that's just a little cleaner & a bit more livable. Let them play the radio & if they need to use one of their extension cords & run it from the outside into a kitchen outlet to get the CD player going that's ok too. But don't let them start hooking up table saws & planners & jointers & cement mixers to your outlets, those connections should be agreed to during contract time with the GC as well as whose paying for those connections. Was the electrical supply cost already in the bid package prior to awarding the contract? Pick your GC with care & don't always go for the low bidder, see that all the bidders are fairly close to each other in price, if the low is way low from the others it should sent up a red flag, check closer, it can make for a beautiful relationship or a nightmare. Best of luck & feel free to ask of me, anything, even if you think it's stupid.
Barry