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Things that raise your rate

• Certified Tile Installer

  A hands-on and written test from the Ceramic Tile Education Foundation, which calls it the only outside assessment of installer skill the tile industry recognizes.

• Waterproofing and shower systems

  Showers are where tile jobs fail and where the callbacks come from. Setters who can build one properly charge more.

• Large format tile and thin panels

  Big slabs need different tools, two people and a flat substrate. Fewer setters can do it.

• Natural stone and slab work

  Marble, granite and terrazzo repair. Slower, fussier, better paid.