This has seriously been one of the more frustrating 2 weeks of my life. I finally bought a condo about a month ago and knew that I would need to spend some $$$ to renovate it. I took out my vanity in the bath, scraped 5 thats 5 LAYERS of vinyl flooring out of the kitchen, bath, and entry, and painted. I got crown moulding and baseboards installed (for some reason the owner didnt have any) and repaired damaged drywall. On August 18th I hired a granite contractor to fabricate and install granite, backsplash, and flooring (hardwoods and travertine tile) throughout the condo. I paid him $1200 up front (1/2 down) to get started. Apparently this is pretty common when dealing with contractors. Last Thursday they installed the granite slab, but to my dismay the granite was sagging in the middle (not horribly, but still noticable). I knew that the cabinets supporting the granite were a little shabby, but I expected them to shore that up. In addition, I noticed a visible crack in the granite from the back of the slab where the holes are drilled for the faucet. I told my contractor that I wanted the slab removed, and he said he would fix it instead - fine. At this point I just wanted something done. They polished out the crack and it isnt as visible now, but still kind of bothers me. He claimed that he fixed the sagging sink area, but I used a level and its still higher on the 2 corners..... At this point I just want this guy gone. He has completed approx. $750 worth of work, and said backsplash would be installed on Thursday.... Guess what..... IT WASNT!! Now Im totally pissed and not sure what my options are at this point. I called today and talked with his secretary (his english is not great) and she said she would try contacting him today. Well its freaking 3:30 now and I havent heard anything..... Anyone know what to do at this point???
Sounds like it is way too late. Did you hire the contractor with the cheapest bid? In this kind of work you get what you pay for. Always try and hire contractors who will do the work themselves. Yes - paying 1/4 to 1/3 of the costs up front is usual so they can purchase the materials. 1/2 sounds like the materials plus his flunky workers salaries. You might want to hold up the other 1/2 until you are satisfied. As for when they finish, Thursday, Friday, or next week - is the exact timing all that important in the longrun? I think not. Focus on them doing the job right.
I know it's a bit late for this, but never ever hire a contractor simply because he's the cheapest (I'm not saying you did), always hire contractors that are recommended by others who have used them (online forums for Houston would be a good place to start), and never hire ones that aren't bonded or have some type of insurance in case they screw something up.
Your contractor is busy at another job. I always go with recommendations even if it cost more, because you don't know the quality of work from unknown contractors. Good luck.
Actually, its pretty much BS when a contractor says he needs up front money. he is just saying that because he needs money to pay for the last job he did. If a contractor ever needs up front money, it would be for materials. Just get a list of what he needs and pay his supplier directly. That way, he shouldn't need any up front money. Im building a house right now and I haven't had to pay 1 contractor 1 dime up front. The only things I will be paying for up front, will be for their materials, which I am buying directly myself.
After the failure of Con-Air, Con-Tractors. A little slower. But the prisoners weren't going anywhere.
Codell's right. Its really better to have a guy who does not need $$ up front even for supplies, because a good contractor will have credit built up with their supplier which makes paying the contractor for supplies a non-issue.
I really wish that I had taken the time to look more closely at who I was getting to do the work. I didnt have any recommendations, so I kind of went out on my own accord, and I end up getting burned. At this point I just want the job done right. I want it to look good and I want the guy out of there. I found someone who can do the flooring work so at this point Im willing to just cut my losses and move on. Unfortunately, I have a semi-shabby job to show for it, and a loss of about $300. Also I think I may have found someone that can possibly make the crap job look a little better.
At long last, Dave Barry, the dean of everything, lets you in on the deepest, darkest mysteries of life and answers your hysterical home purchase questions like they've never been answered before: What's the best way to determine a realistic price range? Take your total family income, including coins that have fallen behind the bureau, and any projected future revenue you have been notified about via personalized letters from Mr. Ed McMahon stating that you may already have won 14 million dollars. Then, multiply by something other than six. Can you recommend a good mortgage? There are several kinds: Fixed Rate, Variable Rate, and the bank's secret weapons, the Party Hat Mortgage and the Mortgage of the Living Dead. How can I avoid spending money on do-it-yourself homeowner's projects? Find a contractor. Their silent motto is "We Never Show Up." The Romans lived among the ruins. You must too. Is there a secret to having a beautiful lawn? Yes and no. If you fail to feed, fertilize, and water your lawn, it will die. However, if you feed, fertilize, and water your lawn, it will die.
I just got finished dealing with the same exact situation with a contractor building a deck in my back year. He gave us a great deal, but was a total jackass to work with. We kept getting pushed to the back of the line in his list of priorites and wanted more money every day. I kept telling him that he'd get the balance once he was finished. He assured us at the beginning that it would take him 2 weekends to complete. Well, a month + later we fired him. He couldn't understand why and threw a fit. I finished the damn thing my self with the help of my father-in-law and my father. It was a total pain in the ass. Next time I use a contractor, they get nothing until I see progress. If they don't like it, then I'll find someone that does.
Man, the guy that did all of my repairs last month was the EXACT opposite. His crews were here every day, rain or shine. They did everything they said they would do and MORE and were extremely fair on the price - in fact, well below what anyone else could've done it for. I got a great recommendation. Sorry you are dealing with a bad one.
What kind of work did they do? I am looking for someone to finish my flooring mainly and possibly do a backsplash as well. This is getting agonizing for me....
They re-roofed, re-painted the exterior, put in doors (front, back and French), repaired the support beams under the house, replaced rotting wood, fixed fences - anything carpentry related.
