What to ask before hiring a developer
Five questions that separate someone who will hand over a working system from someone who will disappear.
Hiring a developer is hard when you cannot evaluate the work directly. These five questions get you most of the way.
1. Who owns the code when we finish? The answer should be you, with the repository and hosting logins in your name.
2. What happens if I want to move to someone else? If the answer is vague, expect lock-in.
3. Will I get documentation? A system nobody can explain is a system you cannot maintain.
4. Who will actually build this? Ask to speak to that person, not only to whoever is selling.
5. How are changes priced? Scope always shifts. It should be quoted before the work starts, not invoiced afterwards.
Anyone unwilling to answer these plainly is telling you something useful.
An engineer replies within one working day — not a sales sequence.
