construction cost, agreement, and billing

[Jud McCranie]

Others have used him before and trust him. We are to meet next week.

[Jud McCranie]

It is $800/week for five weeks, plus 12%, which is another $96, plus

12% of the materials and labor costs.

He prepared the papers and he signed them, we didn't. He said that we didn't need to sign.

[JoeSpareBedroom]

That's quite a gamble. What if he screwed up his relationship with one of his suppliers of materials, and had to use another firm that charged him significantly more?

[trader4]

This is incredible. You have someone building you a house and he didn't have you sign a contract? That didn't set off all kinds of warning bells as to his competency. And you're letting this guy manage sub contractors? I'd get out of this immediately.

The only good news here may be that you didn't sign anything, so it may be easy to get rid of him. One thing for sure, I'd consult an attorney immediately. And when you get the replacement, make sure you have a contract and it's reviewed by your lawyer before you sign it.

[Rueben Konic]

Many people are owners of their business, and in essence, they pay themself. This doesn't mean they're not part of overhead. Whether he puts someone else on the job, or himself, he's still part of his company's overhead. It just happens to be, he's overseeing your project. It would be outrageous for his company to expect him to work for free.

Would you feel better if he didn't get involved with overseeing the project?

[Jud McCranie]

Most of it is several pages of items and costs, stating "materials and labor", and an estimated cost. Then that is added up and his 12% is added.

Wording: ... "The owner will be responsible for the construction costs stipulated as well as any cost incurred due to alterations in the agreed upon plans. The contractor will furnish materials and labor necessary to complete construction and will be done at cost, plus twelve percent (12%). " And then there are sentences about being accordance to building codes, contractor is responsible for workman's comp and liability insurance.

[Rueben Konic]

Then, you have no contract.

[trader4]

Not true. From what he's described it sure sounds like they have a verbal contract.

[bigjim]

[bigjim]

[bigjim]

[Rueben Konic]

wrote

Sure, verbal, implied, or whatever you want to name it. Try making it stick to throughout the entire process, not just the work in progress, or paid for, or not paid for.

I wouldn't want to be involved in any way or form, would you?

[marson]

i think the contractor's mistake is in how he presents his bill. i have had a similar problem before with customers not liking the fact that i added a percentage to my labor. i wised up and started charging more and leaving the percentage off it. people like that better. and why should contractors even advertise their markup? you don't go into a car dealership and read a car price plus the dealers markup do you?

[bigjim]

[JoeSpareBedroom]

That's a myth. There are incentives you never hear about. Cost data that's published does not reflect these incentives, which often change weekly.

[trader4]

No, I agree, I wouldn't want to be involved in any way with this deal. Soon as I heard this general contractor was building a house for this guy without a signed contract, that was all I needed to hear. I

[marson]

[Steve B]

Say what?

You have NO contract. A contract has two steps. Offer and acceptance. By not signing, you have no contract. By him telling you that you didn't need to sign them, he released being able to claim oral contract, which may or may not be recognized in your state when it comes to major construction.

You must now decide whether to keep this guy or give him the boot. In many states, the State Board of Contractors handle issues like this, and in mine, they would be VERY interested in hearing about this. In my state, contracting without a license is a felony, and they have started nailing guys right and left. Is this guy a licensed contractor? Did he provide you proof of that? Did he ever say he was a licensed contractor? Did he have his insurance company send you his certificate of insurance? You notice I DID NOT SAY did he give it to you. He can make one on a copier.

You're stuck at this point. If you keep him, he's pissed. If you chuck him, you have to find another contractor who will pick up where he left off. Good luck.

You are in a deep hole. You will know when you have reached the bottom of this hole when you quit digging. I'd start with the Contractor's Board, and then possibly your Governor's Council on Consumer Affairs. If he is licensed and doing this by the book, he has to have bonds to cover jobs he does not finish. That's part of getting a contractor's license. If he's not licensed, then all bets are off, and you are stuck in a bad position with one broken oar.

Keep us posted.

Steve

[Steve B]

In my state, there is no such thing as a verbal contract when it comes to licensed contractors. Especially general contractors, which this guy would have to be to build an entire structure.

Steve

[Steve B]

That would be nice. Are you buying all the stuff? Do you have control over whether the faucet costs $24 or $42? It is easy to get invoices for goods that cost much less. Labor the same way. $1,200 for hauling and cleanup labor. Who's to say how much he actually paid the guy. You can go right down the line.

If you are controlling all the costs by buying all the materials and having them brought to site, then it is a good deal. If not, he's getting to you on the costs plus the % on inflated costs.

Steve