My experience as a consultant has been the opposite. A lot of overly busy full-time people who don’t document architecture, don’t comment code, and rarely write tests.
But I will admit that with contractors you need to keep a short leash on them. Carefully define the work you expect from them, and negotiate the time frame you require the work to be complete. Metrics for quality would be ideal, but hard to implement.
For large complex projects, make sure you insist on some form of documentation to be included. I consider it part of the work and it goes with the estimates I offer. Other consultants would give a low ball estimate for doing the bare minimum. Then when a client changes their mind they’ll drag their feet unless there is some kind of bonus. Usually a bad experience all around, and I wouldn’t expect anyone to ask for that consultant again or freely refer them.
