Why is it so hard to find a good contractor?

[MedicYeti 96]

Is it me? Over the years I have hired 4 contractors for various projects.

I wanted to semi-finish my attic to make it a usable space for my wife's crafting and some of my projects, a place we could leave a mess without quests or us looking at it. The guy I hired did an ok job building g a knee wall with open storage compartments and he put up drywall and insulation. He did well until it came time for the doors to storage, they are made of 1/4" plywood and are held in place with Velcro. The Velcro worked for about a month. He moved to FL in the mean time so he wasn't going to improve anything. I disagreed with the use of Velcro but he did it anyway. The 1/4 plywood wasn't insulated so the heat from the attic storage units leaks out into the finished portion essentially negating the insulation that is there.

Another guy (husband of my wife's best friend) was hired to do a bunch of things around the house, gut and redo the bathroom, put up new trim, replace a window and a couple other miscellaneous tasks. His work was great and 10+ years later it is still good. But, he showed up a little later each day and left a little earlier each day; near the end of the project he would come at 11, leave for lunch at noon, come back at 1:30 and leave between 2 and 3. He completed 95% of the job then moved on to another job. Weeks later, after many ignored calls, I got in touch with him and went off. He did show and finish the job. His work was good. Oh, did I mention that he consumed ALL our alcohol while he was working? He even called my wife one day to tell her that her Costarican beer wasn't very good. He drank it all anyway.

We recently had our front deck replaced. We made arrangements and made a deposit for the deck. The contractor started 2 months after the agreed start date, he had a multitude of excuses. Part of the agreement involved removal some painters tape that was on the siding and replacing the porch light with a motion sensing front light. The deck is done and it is done well (3 months after the projected completion date) but the light and tape remained until I did them.

Yesterday we had the back steps replaced. When my wife fell down them a third time we took a closer look. The elevation from one step to the next is not uniform ( 9-3/4", 6-1/2", 7-1/4") the steps have a very utilitarian look, asthetics went out the window. We had this guy do work inside too and he left a huge mess, it's like cleaning up didn't even cross his mind.

All 4 were/are licensed and insured "professionals". I'm in contact with this guy for a refund otherwise I'll have to take him to court, I don't want to do that.

Why is it so hard to find someone who does the freaking job?

[ChrisJM981 924]

You should see the s*** job done by some painters sent by a contractor. I had shelves with 8" speakers on them, which they painted around. Not just around the shelves, but the speakers as well. I think the next time I hire a contractor I'm requiring two forms of ID and a utility bill with matching address.

[345Sire 158]

"All 4 were/are licensed and insured "professionals". "

 

Do you by chance happen to know what's required to be a licensed professional carpenter/remodeler?

You fill out a few forms and send 2 checks, one to the state, and one to your chosen insurance co.

There, you are now a licensed pro.

 

Aside from your wife's connected friend, you don't mention where you got the names of who you used. It's too bad he wasn't more dependable, or a slightly more sober individual. He's the closest to the recommended source for such things, a reference by someone who's used a good man/company.

Licensing of regular carpenters, as opposed to electricians or plumbers, is relatively new to Jerksey, in the last 14  or so years, and it has NONE of the testing the other two fields have. An electrician has to prove his knowledge base, and maintain it. Same for a licensed plumber.

I have been swinging a hammer for better than 50 years, having learned from 2 generations of woodworking/contracting family members  When the state said we had to get licensed, but there would be no confirmation of competence, I opted out. No point in it, as it doesn't differentiate me from the guy who just decides he wants to get you to hire him based on being a "licensed professional".

 

I'm sorry you had poor experiences, and hope you can find in your circle of friends or groups such as this, someone to work with better in the future.

 

There's oodles of rules about hiring someone good, like not paying too much up front, checking references, and so on, I'm sure you have seen at least some of them.

Best is to get a name from a friend and SEE THEIR WORK. And ask the friend if they drank the booze or worked a 3 hour day or cheaped out on 1/4 plywood doors. I'm surprised you didn't mention them warping in the heat of the attic.

 

Good luck. 

 

p.s. Those steps must really be a nightmare, that guy really ripped you off.

[Guest]

You may have better luck using someplace like Angies list to find contractors but you still need to do your homework and check them out

[ChrisJM981 924]

You may have better luck using someplace like Angies list to find contractors but you still need to do your homework and check them out

I've hired people off there. You do need to do a little more digging, especially if you're dropping a ton of cash. If you're up North there is a good contractor out of Wayne called Shingles N Things. I've seen the work done at another member's home and he swears by them. When I do my bathroom, that's who I'm calling.

[T Bill 649]

In business if you selling

 

Location, Location, Location

 

If you buying goods or services

 

REFERENCES. REFERENCES. REFERENCES.

[Oleg 8]

I hired a contractor with great reviews from angieslist to replace a broken skylight. I talked to a nice lady and dude who told me all about family owned blah-blah-blah company. They were quite expensive and did a great job but work was done by bunch of dudes who did not speak English. This rubs me off wrong way... Have to do a better research next time. 

 

You may have better luck using someplace like Angies list to find contractors but you still need to do your homework and check them out

[Handyman 5,682]

Always write time into the contract. Finish on time, 100% pay. Every day late 5% off...

[AVB-AMG 530]

I am an Architect currently working in commercial Construction Management in NYC, but have had a fair amount of residential design and construction work over the past 35 years. I agree and can empathize with the O.P.'s frustration.

FWISW, here are my general recommendations, (yeah, I know, I know... too long, but it is important!):

 

1. As others have already indicated here, start with some form of organization that vets the various General Contractors, Electricians, Plumbers, HVAC Contractors, Carpenters, Painters, etc who specialize in smaller scale home improvement work. I have had good luck with Angie's List as a starting point.

 

2. Scope of Work: Then prepare a detailed written scope of all the work you want performed, being as specific as you can be and email it to at least three (3) of the type of contractors who do the type of work involved. Ask them if this is a project that they would be interested in doing. If it is, set up an appointment for them to come to your home or project location to see for themselves what the existing conditions are so they can then go back and prepare a detailed itemized cost quotation that they can email you or drop off a written copy. Ask them to provide you with a copy of the one page insurance coverage that they maintain for their work crew so you know they have insurance, (which does not negate your need to also have personal liability insurance to project your assets). Also, ask if they provide a written warranty on their work, materials and labor and for how long?

 

3. Schedule: Ask the contractor how long, how many work days they estimate the project will take to complete. Ask them if you hire them, when will they be able to start the work and when do they anticipate completing the work? Most residential contractors work on multiple projects simultaneously and will probably not have a full crew working on your project continuously. If that is problematic, you need to ask and learn what your contractors thinking is. Write the starting and completion dates into the contract.

 

3. References: Ask for at least three (3) references from the contractors for customers who they performed similar work. Contact those customers and ask them questions on all aspects of their work experience with that contractor, including:

- Did they do what they said they would do?

- Did they clean up after themselves on a daily basis?

- Did they provide protection for adjacent spaces?

- Did the final cost of the work closely match the original estimate?

- Were they satisfied with the completed work?

- What, if anything should I be aware of or concerned about with this Contractor?

- Would you hire this contractor again, knowing what you now know about them and their work?

 

4. Contract: Have a detailed written contract that spells out the scope of work; project schedule; payment terms for how much you may pay initially for materials or long-lead items, hourly labor rates for different levels of workers and a not-to-exceed amount that when they anticipate nearing that number, will speak to you to determine what work remains and how you want to proceed and the clean up and disposal of construction debris at your home and work area. A written contract is vital in case there are unresolved issues or disputes at the end of the project and you may need to consider legal options. Hopefully, it will not come to that but most residential projects that have followed all of this advocated procedures tend to go relatively smoothly since most issues have been considered in advance. If you want, you can also consider including penalty clauses for not finishing the work when promised, which usually then also includes a bonus amount of $ if the contractor finishes at an earlier date.

 

5. Permit(s): Most NJ towns require all sorts of permits, starting with a Building Permit. Either you or your selected Contractor will need to apply for and pay for it. Also, most towns have Inspectors that must physically view and inspect and sign off on various electrical and plumbing work before it is enclosed with new finish walls, floors and/or ceilings. Do not think you can get away without getting all of these permits and inspections since when you go to sell your house it will become a road-block issue in the sale.

 

5. Be Realistic: All home improvement projects have issues and most have some element of surprise along the way. Once you or your contractor start to poke into ceilings and walls you may discover many unforeseen conditions that may or should be addressed, (i.e. structural, water damage, lack of insulation, etc.). Most homeowner's are clueless as to how long construction work takes. Try to factor in additional days where the work may not proceed due to weather or other issues beyond your control. This will affect the cost of the project by creating an additional unanticipated expense and possible delay in the project schedule. My general rule-of-thumb is to take the three (3) cost quotes you received from the three separate contractors and take their average and add 50% to that average to create your realistic project budget. It has been my experience that number is usually not that far off from the actual final total cost of the work.

 

Good luck......

 

AVB-AMG

[Howard 538]

What Handyman and AVB-AMG wrote are very true, yet still no guarantee.  I have never until recently been happy with any contractor.  We have a great HVAC firm owner in our development and he has done great work for me.  I have also recently used a big outfit called Monks and they do good work.  I have a long story about an addition we did years ago.

 

I interviewed many General Contractors and finally found one I liked that was willing to work with me for a fair price.  I had gone and looked at a few projects he had done recently and talked to the homeowners about the work.  I then drew up a contract.  He asked me if I was a lawyer (I am not) as he never saw such a detailed contract.  I asked him how long the job would take and he said six weeks.  I told him I would give him 90 days and he insisted it would only take six weeks.  I told him then he would have no problems with the penalty clause where he owed me $100 a day for each day over day 90 that it was not done.  Like others mentioned he did great work at first, but then started coming later and leaving earlier.  At day 120 he came to me and said we have to talk about this penalty as it is killing me.  I said fine.  He had done extra work above and beyond the scope as I had asked as I saw things.  I told him OK, how about we call it even and he said that would fine.  I asked how long to finish the job and he said a week.  I said I would give him 10 days, he said not needed it would be a week.  I said fine, you have ten days and each day after that will be $200 a day.  At day 15 my wife fired him.  I told him he had 48 hours to have a full release signed and in my mailbox that we were done and no monies were owed.  I then hired his subs on my own and had the job finished.

[MedicYeti 96]

Thanks guys.

The guy I got to do my attic had 30 years experience. He had references and I checked them. I felt good about this dude. He finished my job (sort of) and left the state.

Bathroom dude I explained.

Front deck guy was a recommendation of a friend who used to work with him but moved to sky scraper construction.

Back deck guy is a former EMT who I used to work with. He got out of the blood and guts business after seeing one too many dead kids. I knew he was doing some sort of apprenticeship and he just started this company and I wanted to help him out.

My father in law is a retired master carpenter, he can't physically do the job and he isn't the most patient person to deal with. I'd love to have him teach me and oversee my work but that's not how he rolls. Oh well. My father in law is going to teach my nephew how to fix the back steps so he told me how much materials and labor will be. I contacted the guy who did the steps and he refunded me enough to fix the stairs. No drama. He even asked if my FIL would teach him how to do it right. I passed the question along, the answer "I don't want that idiot on my job site!" The contractor means well and is very apologetic. I told him before he started the job that if her were to do a good job that my FIL has work that needs to be done at his church and some of the elderly congration need a good worker. In this church praise from me FIL holds a lot of weight. This contractor is struggling and doing a good job for me would have kept him employed for months Now there is no way he will get these jobs. Oh well I guess, you reap what you sew.

My wife says I'm too patient and nice with people. She is probably right (she usually is; just ask her-lol).

[Sota 1,191]

It really is hard to find a good contractor.

Luckily I've found a guy who is actually a friend and we actually work well together.

Yes, I do pay him and quite well. He is a stickler for getting things right, as am I.

There's been some who've come to my house and commented that what I paid for my recent laundry room and downstairs bathroom remodel ($10,000 total) was a bit much, but what they don't see is all the prep work we had to do to get the spaces into a shape to support things. Lots of structural concerns that had to be handled first. I worked along side the guy for 5 weeks, and I am both happy with the work and satisfied that the cost was worth it.

[Schrödinger's cat 87]

My FIL is a HVAC contractor, and his business model is to do things right but charges a little more. Many times people only realize how badly a licensed guy can screw up when they need to call him to fix up someone else's mistake that costed you thousands of dollars.

[oneshot 45]

Lets be clear here. They are not getting a "license" it is merely a registration number Plumbers and electricians need to actually take a test ,which is not easy in either case . First so the state can keep track and secondly to generate funds.

  I have been in the field for 30 years, i have seen 1000s of horror stories and fixed as many. If someone asks me to price a job and i do, the price is the price

i do allow for a little wiggle room . But i give a fair price and back up my work, When you have people going  and giving a price on a job just to make a days pay you will run into trouble.

  There are literally thousands of contractors in this state , some good ,some great and some that just plain should not be allowed to touch powers tools.The state only requires a liability policy and that you register then you are good to go and hack up as many jobs as you can before you get jammed up. Happens every day all over the country. I suggest people get references , actual customers not websites  and that they ask to see the work that was done and speak with the customer. If the contractor wont do that then stay far away. But that is still no guarantee they will do right by you. Just the facts 

[Newtonian 453]

The state of the trades in NJ is absolutely abominable. It's almost like Lowe's requires proof of having undergone a lobotomy before they'll sell you a tool belt. Guys don't call back, don't show up, or do shit work. Electrician husband of my wife's friend didn't show up for an estimate on rewiring our attic. Gave him a second chance, but the fucker didn't show again -- no phone call either. Six months later, after the work was completed, he's at the back door asking to see my attic. I told him to go fuck himself. 

 

Carpenter spent almost an hour drawing and measuring for a custom book case, and singing the praises of my old windows. He never sent an estimate and never returned my calls. Other carpenter high-balled us with a ludicrous estimate. We bought an antique book case instead and saved 1000s of $$$$, and it's beautiful.

 

Plumber wanted to tear out the cement floor in our bathroom to replace the shower pipes. I asked why he couldn't simply abandon the old pipes and install new ones through the ceiling below. "Wow you just saved yourself ten thousand dollars!" I told him to get back on the boat he floated in on.

 

Female painter did a decent job on the cellar floor but stole 7-8 bottles of wine. Not 1961 Lafite but still...

 

On the bright side, if you live in Sussex Cty:

 

Guys who dug the trench for the solar panel cables tore up a terra cotta drain despite being told exactly where the freaking pipe was. Three plumbers showed up and yanked my chain for about two weeks. Wantage Plumbing to the rescue. Highly recommended. Owner is Clint.

 

Earlier, another plumber wanted to excavate my entire front yard to get at a hissing sound in the water main. Wantage Plumbing immediately diagnosed the problem at the shutoff valve down by the street and fixed it in 3 hours at 1/20th the cost of Excavation Ed.

 

Got high-balled to death for replacing a wooden post-and-rail fence. I'd installed the original myself 25 years ago. Estimates were INSANE. TNT Fencing to the rescue, came in at around $450 above what I would have paid for the materials. Owner is Troy Janoff. Did such a nice job we had him fence in our veggie garden 2 months ago. Highly recommended.

 

Boonton Tire in Newton is 1000% ethical and fair. When was the last time someone charged you $7 for a car repair? Owner is Jay. Avoid Firestone like the plague. You go in for windshield wipers and leave with a new tranny.

 

Also excellent, fair, and professional are George Newman (or Neumann?), electrician; Astral Construction (I believe he now does decks, Russ is owner), Bear's Landscaping. I've had tree guys rape me in the past, but I couldn't believe the $75 estimate for a mid-sized tree removal from McCullough's tree service in Newton. On time, on budget.

[345Sire 158]

The state of the trades in NJ is absolutely abominable. It's almost like Lowe's requires proof of having undergone a lobotomy before they'll sell you a tool belt. Guys don't call back, don't show up, or do shit work. Electrician husband of my wife's friend didn't show up for an estimate on rewiring our attic. Gave him a second chance, but the fucker didn't show again -- no phone call either. Six months later, after the work was completed, he's at the back door asking to see my attic. I told him to go fuck himself. 

 

Carpenter spent almost an hour drawing and measuring for a custom book case, and singing the praises of my old windows. He never sent an estimate and never returned my calls. Other carpenter high-balled us with a ludicrous estimate. We bought an antique book case instead and saved 1000s of $$$$, and it's beautiful.

 

Plumber wanted to tear out the cement floor in our bathroom to replace the shower pipes. I asked why he couldn't simply abandon the old pipes and install new ones through the ceiling below. "Wow you just saved yourself ten thousand dollars!" I told him to get back on the boat he floated in on.

 

Female painter did a decent job on the cellar floor but stole 7-8 bottles of wine. Not 1961 Lafite but still...

 

On the bright side, if you live in Sussex Cty:

 

Guys who dug the trench for the solar panel cables tore up a terra cotta drain despite being told exactly where the freaking pipe was. Three plumbers showed up and yanked my chain for about two weeks. Wantage Plumbing to the rescue. Highly recommended. Owner is Clint.

 

Earlier, another plumber wanted to excavate my entire front yard to get at a hissing sound in the water main. Wantage Plumbing immediately diagnosed the problem at the shutoff valve down by the street and fixed it in 3 hours at 1/20th the cost of Excavation Ed.

 

Got high-balled to death for replacing a wooden post-and-rail fence. I'd installed the original myself 25 years ago. Estimates were INSANE. TNT Fencing to the rescue, came in at around $450 above what I would have paid for the materials. Owner is Troy Janoff. Did such a nice job we had him fence in our veggie garden 2 months ago. Highly recommended.

 

Boonton Tire in Newton is 1000% ethical and fair. When was the last time someone charged you $7 for a car repair? Owner is Jay. Avoid Firestone like the plague. You go in for windshield wipers and leave with a new tranny.

 

Also excellent, fair, and professional are George Newman (or Neumann?), electrician; Astral Construction (I believe he now does decks, Russ is owner), Bear's Landscaping. I've had tree guys rape me in the past, but I couldn't believe the $75 estimate for a mid-sized tree removal from McCullough's tree service in Newton. On time, on budget.

This statement alone should be made into a "sticky" for all the names you posted of good workers!!

[345Sire 158]

Lets be clear here. They are not getting a "license" it is merely a registration number Plumbers and electricians need to actually take a test ,which is not easy in either case . First so the state can keep track and secondly to generate funds.

  I have been in the field for 30 years, i have seen 1000s of horror stories and fixed as many. If someone asks me to price a job and i do, the price is the price

i do allow for a little wiggle room . But i give a fair price and back up my work, When you have people going  and giving a price on a job just to make a days pay you will run into trouble.

  There are literally thousands of contractors in this state , some good ,some great and some that just plain should not be allowed to touch powers tools.The state only requires a liability policy and that you register then you are good to go and hack up as many jobs as you can before you get jammed up. Happens every day all over the country. I suggest people get references , actual customers not websites  and that they ask to see the work that was done and speak with the customer. If the contractor wont do that then stay far away. But that is still no guarantee they will do right by you. Just the facts 

License, registration, it makes little difference to those who are looking for a competent worker. You make my point just the same.

 

The rest of your post makes terrific sense. I suspect YOU might be one of the good ones.

[concrete_boots 19]

I can help...your in Cape May County ?

I have 2 VERY reputable contractors I sub for.

[Newtonian 453]

This statement alone should be made into a "sticky" for all the names you posted of good workers!!

I've not been able to reach Newman or Russ for several years. The older Italian guy who was studying history at Sussex CCC, who eventually did the attic wiring, has disappeared off the face of the earth. Russ was a roofer 25 years ago. Would tell us to send him a check "after it rains." Unreal. He went into decks but I suspect he's out of the county. Forgot to mention Bob Castellano, who did our roof, also apparently out of business. Excellent work and very clean.  The solvents eventually got the guy who made our 50 year old kitchen cabinets look new and turned a $5 garage sale rocking chair into a thing of beauty. He's out of business. John Almoro (spelling?), a terrific mason (also gave me half a cord of wood for free), also out of business or moved.

 

Yes the good ones are hard to find and priceless, especially as you get older and feel like doing less physical stuff. My "thief and incompetent" stories could fill a damned encyclopedia.

 

Working for yourself takes a lot of discipline and attention to detail. Unfortunately even many of the good guys eventually succumb to the day-to-day pressures and obligations. 

[345Sire 158]

I've not been able to reach Newman or Russ for several years. The older Italian guy who was studying history at Sussex CCC, who eventually did the attic wiring, has disappeared off the face of the earth. Russ was a roofer 25 years ago. Would tell us to send him a check "after it rains." Unreal. He went into decks but I suspect he's out of the county. Forgot to mention Bob Castellano, who did our roof, also apparently out of business. Excellent work and very clean.  The solvents eventually got the guy who made our 50 year old kitchen cabinets look new and turned a $5 garage sale rocking chair into a thing of beauty. He's out of business. John Almoro (spelling?), a terrific mason (also gave me half a cord of wood for free), also out of business or moved.

 

Yes the good ones are hard to find and priceless, especially as you get older and feel like doing less physical stuff. My "thief and incompetent" stories could fill a damned encyclopedia.

 

Working for yourself takes a lot of discipline and attention to detail. Unfortunately even many of the good guys eventually succumb to the day-to-day pressures and obligations. 

You got that right! I'm getting fast to the point where I just don't wanna keep going up and down a ladder to pop windows in or siding on, so I'm scaling back to smaller jobs myself, or I'd have offered up my own name. 

Another guy near me is 79, and still putting in 5 or 6 hour days, I'm kinda jealous of him.

 

Not enough younger folks are interested in getting their hands dirty these days, too bad. When SHTF starts, they'll regret it. My boy, on the other hand, listens and pays attention, YAY!!

[SmittyMHS 603]

 

 

Not enough younger folks are interested in getting their hands dirty these days, too bad. When SHTF starts, they'll regret it. My boy, on the other hand, listens and pays attention, YAY!!

 

You're lucky! I offered my step son $100 if he could change his OWN tire. He turned me down. Said thats what AAA is for. Sad.

[AlDente67 563]

We should start a contractor referral section here.  The good guys will be here and the bad ones won't.  We've got the List (who needs Craigslist? says the tag), well who needs Angies's List?

 

I just had a bathroom done by a casual friend and his crew.  All Ukranians (some right off the boat).  They spent 2 full weeks, 6 days per week, from 8am to 6pm every day...cleaned up every night.  I even told one of the guys that he could leave the tools in the bedroom (it is our en-suite bath they were doing).  We don't care, we'll just step around them instead of you spending 20 minutes loading everything back in the truck every night.  He said the boss insists on a thorough cleanup each day.

 

We did a cost plus job.  He told me what the labor nut was going to be upfront, and that was what it was.  We also went to the stores a half dozen times times to pick out materials and brainstorm design.  In the end, it came out perfectly.  There were the usual surprises such as rotted subfloor and a massive wasp nest in the wall (!) but a sheet of plywood was my only extra cost in that case.

 

I made him a website, but I won't post it here without sponsorship, but if anyone in the Mercer/Middlesex areas need a bathroom or kitchen, or any interior trimwork/painting, etc, I can get you in touch.

 

Prior to that, I had tried Home Advisor and got zero responses from their "matched" contractors.  Never tried Angies list before, but I hear they are setting the subscription price to be more realistic than it used to be.

[345Sire 158]

 

 

Not enough younger folks are interested in getting their hands dirty these days, too bad. When SHTF starts, they'll regret it. My boy, on the other hand, listens and pays attention, YAY!!

 

You're lucky! I offered my step son $100 if he could change his OWN tire. He turned me down. Said thats what AAA is for. Sad.

 

That's a shame, he knows not what he's missing. Guess he NEVER goes anywhere that his smart phone doesn't reach a signal, nor too far from the AAA stations. And doesn't believe there will ever be a time when he has to be a little self sufficient. I feel for you.

[SmittyMHS 603]

That's a shame, he knows not what he's missing. Guess he NEVER goes anywhere that his smart phone doesn't reach a signal, nor too far from the AAA stations. And doesn't believe there will ever be a time when he has to be a little self sufficient. I feel for you.

You have no idea! 

[AlDente67 563]

Speaking of which, has anyone watched the Catch a Contractor show with Adam Corrolla?  He doesn't need to even leave LA to film 3-4 seasons of the show...sometimes with repeat offenders.

 

I like Mike Holmes' shows.  He should be cloned like the Star Wars army (no, not Jar-Jar)

[oneshot 45]

License, registration, it makes little difference to those who are looking for a competent worker. You make my point just the same.

 

The rest of your post makes terrific sense. I suspect YOU might be one of the good ones.

My point that i did not make clear is that generally when you get a license for somethng it means you were required to pass a test. So i think the uninformed are mislead thinking that a a home improvement contractor had taken a test to get a "license"  . Other than that I'm just an honest guy ,which is probably why i'm broke lol

[maintenanceguy 510]

I was a contractor for several years and I currently manage the buildings for a large organization and hire contractors dozens of times every year.

 

Never choose the contractor based on price.  Good contractors are competing with the guy who builds 1/4" luan doors with Velcro latches.  It's impossible to do a quality job if you have to beat the Velcro guy on price to get a job.   A few contractors have decided not to do that but they are twice the price or more than the velcro guy.   They will spend 5x the money on materials for the right doors and 3 x the time building the doors.  They have to charge you much, much more.  When you call three contractors and tell them that you're getting multiple quotes, the contractors with high standards tell you their schedule is too full.  They know they don't have a chance of getting the job and keeping their high standards.

 

Because these contractors are competing on price alone, there isn't enough money in the budget to survive.  They have  to leave your job half way through to start another job to get the first payment on that job because they need groceries. 

 

The solution:  Find a great contractor and pay him what a great contractor costs.

1) Find a contractor based on a recommendation from a friend.

2) Hire that guy to do the work, don't hire based on price.

3) Tell your contractor your budget up front.  Let him help you design your project to your budget.  Get as much project as you can afford at the quality you want.  There will be compromises between the size of the project you an afford and how good the work is.  Your contractor will help you make those decisions upfront. 

4) Have a complete and clear scope of work that includes the manufacturer and model number of the door latches and a sketch of what the doors will look like.

 

And just to keep everyone focused on your project:

5) Make sure you're making progress payments as work is progressing.  A milestone is met, you write a check.  This keeps them interested.

6) Remember the 80-20 rule.  The last 20% of the project takes 80% of the time.  Structure your payments accordingly.  If I have 80% of a project left to do and can expect only 20% of the cost to be paid, I'm tempted to go to another job and get the first payment.  Remember that this rule is for the labor portion of your cost.  Material costs are almost all in the beginning. 

 

I recently volunteered to manage a small construction project for our church.  We had a clear scope of  work and held a sealed bid based on that scope of work.  We only sent an invitation to bid to a few select contractors and told them that price was not the only consideration.  The lowest bid was $375K.  The highest was $560K.  We ended up hiring the guy who bid $450K.  We got a really good project from a really good contractor.  I am personally familiar with the contractor who bid the highest.  His work is amazing. His clients are always left thrilled.  He sticks around as long as it takes to make everything perfect. He is never in a hurry to get to the next job.  We didn't hire him.  We did get a good contractor and got a really good job but not an amazing job.  We can live with really good.  If we had hired the lowest bidder, it still would have been okay.  We were careful who we invited to bid.  But it wouldn't have been as good.  You usually get what you pay for.

[345Sire 158]

My point that i did not make clear is that generally when you get a license for somethng it means you were required to pass a test. So i think the uninformed are mislead thinking that a a home improvement contractor had taken a test to get a "license"  . Other than that I'm just an honest guy ,which is probably why i'm broke lol

Well said, that makes it easier to get your point. The uninformed make too many assumptions sometimes. And THAT was my point in the first place. 

Like you, I try to point out the difference to people, and it often means the difference between me getting the work or not. Most of the folks I work for know that the skills are what's needed, and the ethics of a conscientious contractor, more than the paperwork. 

 

I'm not quite broke, but I ain't no Hovnanian, either!

[CMJeepster 2,777]

 

 

Not enough younger folks are interested in getting their hands dirty these days, too bad. When SHTF starts, they'll regret it. My boy, on the other hand, listens and pays attention, YAY!!

 

You're lucky! I offered my step son $100 if he could change his OWN tire. He turned me down. Said thats what AAA is for. Sad.

 

[345Sire 158]

maintenanceguy

 

Man oh man, you really said a lot of what I tried to say in much more detail, thanks. I suspect you are a far better typist than I am, and/or have a much better keyboard. It would have taken me 30 minutes or more to get all that down in "print"!!

 

And your church story is a prime example.