What do you look for in a web designer?

I have hired webdesigners and this is what I look for:

- past experience
- an understanding of my needs
- the language they use
- the speed their sites load at
- the designer themselves as a person- how dedicated they are, how much pride do they take in their work, how pedantic they are

I tend not to notice price because I look at it as an investment but I certainly expect value for money.