The questions are cheap while they are still standing in the room.

A complete answer gives you a number you can type into the state's own lookup and a business name that matches the one on the van, the card and the bid. Check it yourself afterwards rather than taking the number on trust.

A complete answer names the classification the work falls under and does not mind you checking the status yourself on CSLB's site while they are standing there.

A complete answer covers general liability and workers' compensation as two separate things, sent by the insurance agency rather than forwarded as an attachment. Workers' compensation is not general liability insurance, so ask for both by name.

A complete answer describes comparable jobs, not general experience — the same trade, the same kind of house, the same kind of problem.

A complete answer is contact details for recent, comparable work, offered without hesitation. What you are asking those clients about is the journey, not just the result: whether the crew turned up when they said, kept the house liveable, and made it right when something went wrong.

A complete answer separates what was observed from what is being inferred, and says which parts still need to be opened up or tested before anyone can be sure.

A complete answer is a sequence with stages you could recognise while they are happening, not a single sentence ending in a price.

A complete answer names the likely surprises for a house of this age and construction, and says how each one would be priced and approved before the work changed.

A complete answer gives you names and model numbers you can look up, and a reason for that choice over the alternative rather than a general statement about quality.

A complete answer describes the trade-off in plain terms — what breaks sooner, what is harder to service, what has to be redone later — rather than refusing the question or agreeing to anything.

A complete answer names the trade partners rather than saying "our crew", and confirms that each of them carries their own licence and insurance.

A complete answer is a clear yes or no about who applies, who pays the fee and whose name goes on the permit. If you are being asked to take that on yourself, ask why, and check what it means on CSLB's own pages before you agree.

A complete answer covers floor and finish protection, dust containment, where the debris goes, and who is responsible for the daily tidy-up and the final clean.

A complete answer is specific enough that you could tell a neighbor what to expect.

A complete answer says which services go off, on which days, and whether the house is liveable through it.

A complete answer is a named person and an agreed rhythm — a daily message, a weekly walk-round — rather than "call any time", which in practice is nobody.

A complete answer says what each payment is tied to and when it falls due, in writing, in the bid. Ask whether payments follow finished work or follow the calendar, and check the current rules on CSLB's own pages before you agree to a schedule.

A complete answer is a written change-order process: nothing extra starts, and nothing extra is owed, until both of you have signed a document saying what it costs and what it does to the schedule.

A complete answer treats them as two different promises from two different parties, states how long each one runs, says what voids them, and says who to call when something goes wrong.

A complete answer covers when you walk the job together to agree the last corrections, who signs the work off, and which documents you are left holding when everyone goes home.