You take your car into the local auto repair shop for an oil change. You return to pick up your car and the mechanic presents you with a bill for several hundred dollars more than you expected. Huh?

Homeowners should rely on referrals, compare written estimates, hire local when possible and confirm insurance coverage before selecting a contractor.

If you take your car to the shop for regular maintenance or even a small repair, odds are the mechanic will come back to you with a laundry list of things they want to convince you to do before you ...

You have often recommended that people get three bids from licensed contractors. We only got two, but both were experienced, longtime electrical contractors in our area. The first contractor supplied ...

A description and location of the work. Required completion date, if any. The name and phone number of your department's contact person. Except for very complex projects or where the scope of work is ...

Another wave of heavy rain smacks western Washington this week, coupled with strong winds adding concern for potential power outages. by Kevin Brasler, Executive Editor, Checkbook.org SEATTLE — Our ...