Strip-out contractor checklist: what to check before you hire

How should you use this checklist?

Send the same questions to every contractor you are considering and ask for written answers. The aim is not to catch anyone out; it is to make offers comparable and to see who has thought about your property. The best contractors will answer most of these points in their quote without being asked.

The checklist below is written for interior work in apartments, villas and commercial premises in the provincia de Málaga. It applies to our own interior demolition service as much as to anyone else's.

Checklist part 1: before the quote

• Did they ask questions? Floor level, lift, access, what stays, what the community allows, the address or municipio. A quote without questions is a guess.
• Did they ask for photos or a visit? Photos of every room, a video or a site visit, especially where floors may be doubled or bathrooms tiled on thick mortar.
• Did they ask about your plans? What the next trade needs determines how deep the strip-out goes.
• Can you communicate easily? If you prefer English, check that the contractor can deal with you in English throughout, not just in the first message.

Checklist part 2: the written quote

• Scope as a finished state. Room by room and layer by layer: what is removed, down to which level, and what stays.
• Access and rubble route. Lift, stairs, chute, container on the street, and who requests any permit for occupying the public road.
• Protection. Floors, lift, stairwell, doors and elements that stay.
• Waste. Sorting into fractions, delivery to an authorised facility and delivery receipts for you.
• Exclusions. Técnico's fees, municipal fees, other trades, and anything not included.
• Unexpected finds. What happens with hidden services, structural surprises or suspect asbestos.
• VAT. The rate applied should be stated; demolition is generally taxed at 21 % IVA, and certain renovation works on private homes may qualify for 10 % if the Ley del IVA conditions are met.

If you want to see what usually sits inside and outside a demolition quote, presupuestodemolicion.eu explains what is included in a demolition quote and what is not.

Checklist part 3: structure and paperwork

• Roles are clear. The contractor carries out the work; a técnico competente appointed by you drafts and signs any technical documentation the job needs. Be wary of a contractor who claims to handle the design of structural openings themselves.
• Structural walls only with documentation. Our wall removal page explains why load-bearing walls are only touched on the basis of the técnico's design, propping plan and beam specification.
• The procedure is checked. It is confirmed with the ayuntamiento whether a declaración responsable or a licence applies. Each ayuntamiento sets the documents in its ordinance.
• Health and safety. Under Real Decreto 1627/1997 each construction or demolition job has an estudio de seguridad y salud or an estudio básico, and the contractor prepares its plan de seguridad y salud from it. Ask how this is handled for your job.

The guide on whether you need a permit to remove an internal wall explains the procedural side in more detail.

Checklist part 4: asbestos and hazardous materials

• They know where to look. Flues, water tanks, cisterns, pipes, panels and some old floor or ceiling materials in older properties.
• They stop when in doubt. Suspect material is not broken with the rest of the rubble.
• RERA is handled honestly. Only companies registered in the RERA may remove asbestos-containing materials, under a work plan approved by the labour authority. A contractor who is not registered should say so and explain who does the removal. In our case it is a RERA-registered company working as our subcontractor, and we coordinate the rest of the demolition.
• The waste is kept separate. Asbestos waste is hazardous, may not be mixed with other waste and goes to an authorised manager.

Retiradauralitamalaga.eu lists the red flags of asbestos contractors without RERA registration.

Checklist part 5: community, neighbours and working hours

• They ask about the community. Lift use, protection of common areas, working hours and container position, agreed with the administrator before the start.
• They know the legal frame. Under Ley 49/1960 the community must be informed before walls, structure or façade elements are demolished, and works affecting common elements need the owners' meeting agreement.
• They plan for noise and dust. Sealed doorways, controlled hand work where it matters, and respect for the hours set by the community and the municipal ordinance. Our hand demolition page explains why hand work is the norm in occupied buildings.

Checklist part 6: during and after the job

• Updates are agreed. Photos at the key stages, with short notes, especially if you are abroad.
• Changes are written down. Any addition or change of scope is confirmed in writing before it is done.
• Decisions are yours. When something unexpected appears, you receive photos and options and time to decide.
• The hand-over is clean. Debris removed, rooms swept, protection taken up, common areas checked.
• You receive the paperwork. Waste delivery receipts and a short note for the next trade on capped pipes, slab condition and anything to watch.

Who is this checklist for, and who is it not for?

This checklist is for owners, buyers, landlords and tenants who want an interior strip-out done properly and documented, whether they are in Spain or managing from abroad. It is particularly useful for apartment owners, where the community and the neighbours make every shortcut visible. For commercial premises, the same points apply with extra attention to the lease and the landlord's requirements; see commercial strip-out.

It is not meant for very small jobs, such as removing a single unit or a few fittings, where a full written quote would be excessive. For everything in between, use the checklist alongside our post on cheap versus expensive strip-out quotes, and if you would like our answers to every point, send your photos and plans through the contact page.