Using contractors or making my own crew

[Joshua D.]

Feel pricing has come up i used in the beginning my own crew and employees just alot of headaces but now switched to contractors pricing alot higher but alot less stress wonder what to do. Contractors arent much better wanting more money after contract is signed and so on. Is it just me or are the contractors the hardest thing to deal with in this business?

[Bryan Devitt]

Structure your contracts so that if they leave, you can bring someone else in and not lose money. Pay schedules are the key to dealing with subs. For small jobs, I pay after the rough is signed off and then after the final is signed off. Not after the work is complete in case they screwed something up. If it doesn't require permit signs offs then I structure it different, but most of the money comes when the job is done and I inspect it. If plaster is wavy, I need a reason for them to fix it, etc.