Working with contractor who doesn't want to be w-9ed

[Katrina P.]

Hey everybody,

Hubby and I are in the process of finishing up on our first flip, and we have some finishing touches that need to be done (i.e., changing receptacles, cleaning trash out of attick, painting inside of closets, etc.) to get the house on the market. Well, the "handyman" we found on craigslist gave us a price of around $2k, but when I told him I'm going to send him a w9, he said, "Aw, you're gonna w9 me?" He said that if he gets a w9, they'll take 30% of his profit, and since he does it on the side, he charges less than other contractors would. He said that if we w9 him, he'll meet us "half-way" and just up the price by 15%, so he'll eat the other 15. He said the other way we could to it, is put most of the cost on the "material" side, so that we can still write off our improvements, but he wouldn't be taxed too much. And of course the final option is for us not to w9 him at all...any input? How does either of these scenarios affect us..we're still so new to REI..need help please.

Katrina