…and know that they are getting paid. (This is more important if you use an unbonded contractor, as I suspect many people are.)
Yeah, I just paid $4,000 in tuition for my graduate program at the School of Hard Knocks.
I have dealt with my contractor on several properties, and there’s never been a problem. Now I guess he’s in a bind, so he stiffed the flooring company that he used (I did not know he was subbing that out). He’s also impossible to find.
Guess who’s filing a materialmen’s lien? And guess who has to pay to get it removed?
I second, third, and FOURTH THAT!! I have learned on our last two projects that contractors are one of the MOST important members of your team. They can make you lots of money or cost you lots of money. The two I dealt with last were a couple of real boneheads. The first guy, Chad, quit a week and a half into the job and left us hanging. In the meantime, we already had him lined up to to a second project that we bought a day before he quit on the first one… ya with me??? So we were left high and dry trying to find another contractor to finish the first job… found a GREAT one named Dan, or so we thought. He finished the first job and then started on the second one… took a week longer than he said, never worked an 8 hour day, then had the nerve to ask me to go into business with him and his brother on another house. This dude had every excuse in the book!!! He promised me the world and delivered NOTHING. We got to the point in that project where we just told him to get his shit and get out. We didn’t pay him the agreed price because he didn’t finish in the alloted time or finish everything he said he would. We then put on our work clothes and found out that he didn’t finish anything he started and took shortcuts all the way through. Not worth our time to sue him or anything, just banging our heads against a wall trying to get this project finished. ABSOLUTELY INFURIATING!!! If any of you find a good contractor, keep them!! Pay them well, budget for paying them well, KEEP THEM!!! Man, I needed to rant there. Thanks…
When dealing with contractors you need to ask yourself this question. Why is this guy working for himself? There are only 2 reasons that people work for themselves. #1 He want to make a lot of money and get rich. #2 He is unemployable. If you find a contractor that is making a bunch of money driving around in his brand new F-250 then he is #1. If you find a contractor that is not making a bunch of money and has a beat up old white van worth $500. He is probably unemployable. That means that #1 is his own boss, and #2 needs a boss. I find that #1 is too expensive. I almost always use #2. But since he needs a boss, I become his boss while he is on my job.
I have found, however, that there are several reasons that people are unemployable. They could drink, they could like to go hunting as soon as they make enough money to do it so their attendance is sporadic, they could like to steal. But what I find most here in Houston, is that they are not here legally. Once you find out what this guys problem is you don’t have to hover over the work site, just watch for his problem. I try to find out what the guys problem is and watch him in that area.
Good response Bluemoon. I have used contractor #2 also and am somehow not connecting the dots on what it is that motivates this person. I have tried to become the boss and haven’t done too well with that yet. Obviously I take responsibility for some of that, but come on…
I have just come to the point where I am willing to try contractor #1 on my next few houses. I would rather work with somebody responsible that has their own nice vehicle and works more than 4 hours a day…
If you don’t even know that the sub is the one doing the work, how would you know to pay them?
Also, I’m thinking most general contractors won’t let you do that (unless you hire the subcontractor yourself), because they may not want you to know the spread they are making on the deal. Of course, if you have a cost-plus deal, that’s not a worry.
Anyway, that’s the point of my post…know who is doing what work, and know that they are getting paid.
I have to disagree with ya on this one bluemoon. Why because I am contractor 1.5. Might not be too many of us but i think I qualify. I have worked 10 years in the professional Audio Video industry and hated the holidays, weekends and nights I had to work. I quit a job where they would hire me back today. So I started my own low voltage contract company doing Audio, Video, Telephone, Network systems. I drive a $2000 contractors truck doing installs all day. I am hireable yet I am not rich. I started this company selling and fixing cheap cars on the side because I did not have enough work to pay the bills at 1st. Point being I am not A or B in my eyes yet I am trying very hard to be the A guy!!! I do have a Duramax diesel at home though so maybe I am 1.75!
I gotta agree with you on this one Vmax. I also am a 1.5. The reason you don’t see guys like us around alot is because when you do great work for a reasonable price and are extremely reliable (without being a prima donna), you stay busy and don’t have to mess with the lowball stuff or GC BS that much.
I tend to lean toward the same painter, plumber, carpentor ect. All though it is nice to have a handyman that can do allot of stuff decent. Minus SR texture matching I am fairly handy my self.
We use the same contractors for each type of work. We’ve found this to work out great for many reasons. We Know what we’re getting. WE can generally expect when they will be done. and lastly, repeat business to them means we get special favors including discounts.
Shop around, and obviously once you find a good one for the job, stick with them for all the jobs.
And pay them right! Don’t nickle dime them or they won’t keep working for you. Wanna learn how NOT to treat contractors? Watch Flip That House San Antonio.