NEED WP CODING TIPS FOR WP DESIGN

1. How do I got about finding a reputable WP programmer and what range should I expect to pay?
Depends on what type of quality and customer service you want. You can go to vworker.com and rent a programmer from out of country for $5 or $6 bucks. But your going to have alot of stuff figured out before you go there. You'll need to be able to tell the programmer exactly what you want. Otherwise, you can find a programmer like me or another warrior forum member who can handle everything for you. This is more expensive.

2. Should the web content be 100% finalized prior to the design (since it's WP)?
Not necessarily. The whole concept of Wordpress is that it acts as a framework so you can easily adjust your web content as you see fit.

3. What should look out for or be aware of before going into hiring someone?
Make sure they know what they are doing. There is nothing worse than dealing with a programmer who doesn't have a clue what they are doing. And since your moving from brick and mortar, you'll find that it's much different than finding a supplier. If you go out of country, you'll find a much lower quality and people who really don't care much about you or your business.

The cost really all depends on how much needs to be actually coded, how much can be done with plugins, and the overall complexity. If you want to PM me with your contact details, I can give you an estimate.

I'm also a coder and here is what I would like to see in the transaction:

A clear understanding of what you want from the site with as much written instructions as you can provide in addition to our verbal discussions.

For WP these include design (theme) and functionality (plugin) issues. Marketing is a whole separate topic but integral to the previous two.

Signed approval of a tendered design/development contract that states the outcome of everything we've just discuss.

An understanding that the tender defines exactly what will be produced and changes to it once coding has begun will always require a new tender/contract.

Basically I need to know as much from you as I can. The art to it really is getting that information from you. Barring the ignorant and unscrupulous you should get what you want so besides due-diligence here is one piece of advice you can take to the bank:

If they don't seem to be listening to you or are trying to push a bunch of stuff you don't understand run for the hills...

"Word of mouth" is of course the best advertising any developer can get so talk to other site owners.