Dishwasher Installation Issues
Hello Fellow Investors,
Help me understand if I got ripped off by this company and how I can do this better in future. My tenant faced issues with dishwasher and I sent a repairman, who checked the dishwasher and told me that motor had issue and it is better to buy a new one then to fix this one as it would cost me $900.
I thought ok let’s buy a new one, I ordered a new dishwasher from Costco and paid for installation as well. Costco uses third party for installation. It was Transmotion. They were horrible. They did not install my dishwasher. They visited three times and went back. There was an issue with 2 way valve. I felt like they were trying to find reasons to not install the dishwasher. I called Costco and asked them to refund my installation money and they did refund and it was around $300.
Now I have to get the dishwasher installed so my property manager recommended a plumbing company with high ratings. They are called At Your Service Plumbing in Tacoma Washington area. It is small business according to them. Before scheduling I asked the person that do they have any estimation as to what would be the installation cost. They kept insisting, they don’t know and they can only know when the plumber is onsite. I asked them multiple times but they didn’t mention anything. So, I ended up scheduling the visit.
On the day of the visit, the plumber quoted a ridiculously high price(higher than national avg) just for uninstalling the old one and installing the new one. Here is the price for uninstalling the old one and installing the new one is 1060 and then fixing the two way valve leak was 942. I totally got blindsided because the plumber said this is a standard price for them. He even opened a booklet to show me the pricing. My question was if this is a standard and it does not change why couldn’t the person told me this earlier. Btw, this plumber was a certified plumber and the son in law of the business owner.
Charging ridiculously high price is not an issue if you think you are worth that but customer also has the right to chose weather we want that high price kind of service. Letting me know beforehand about the minimum atleast gives me a choice.
I know there could be more leaks or damages that can increase the cost and hence they say they can quote at the site but not letting the me know even the minimum is bad when you know the job is to install the dishwasher.
I could have said no when they quoted the price but costco already made three visits and my tenant was without dishwasher for over a month now and hence I said yes with lots of disdain. Now my questions are
1. Do you guys think the prices for just uninstalling and installing was way too high and I got ripped off?
2. How do I do this better in future?
3. Should I have sent them back even if my tenant didn’t have dishwasher for over a month? I mean I could have rescheduled a different one but I didn’t know how long will it take.
I cannot shake this nasty ripped off feeling.
Most Popular Reply
@Tarun Mitra
Yes you got ripped off. To uninstall a dishwasher and install should be $150-$200.
This is assuming it’s a standard installation, which most dishwashers are
It should also not take more than 30-60 Minutes ti install and test
- Chris Seveney
@Tarun Mitra
Yes you got ripped off. To uninstall a dishwasher and install should be $150-$200.
This is assuming it’s a standard installation, which most dishwashers are
It should also not take more than 30-60 Minutes ti install and test
- Chris Seveney
It's times like this when the DIY guys have a big advantage--the price of parts alone.
A workmen said to me one time--"There are those who get their hands dirty and those that don't". Seems like that's what you are paying for.
Plumber comes in to replace a 3 way valve, 12 minutes later he is done, charges $200 and runs out the door to his next appointment.
Plumbers are expensive. Cost to replace a 3-way valve can be $200 in some areas, cost to replace a 3-way valve that has broken and is streaming water into the wall of a 2nd story apartment at 3am could be (whatever the market will bear) $500, $800, 1,200....
Plumbers are expensive.
Did you get an itemized bill?
Did it require a building permit?
Did it involve hot lead, a torch and soldering copper?
Did it involve haul off?
Did it involve broom clean upon leaving (I've had them actually throw used parts in pile on the floor next to the repair and say clean up was not included in the price (it takes their time from other lucrative work).
Minimum wage in Austin is going to be $22 an hour pretty soon--plumbers make a lot more than minimum wage (because they charge whatever the market will bear).
etc....
Good Luck!
#3 Classifieds Contributor
- Real Estate Agent
- Metro Detroit
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#3 Classifieds Contributor
- Real Estate Agent
- Metro Detroit
Ripped off!
Not sure what price is in your area, but in metro Detroit would be total of around $400-500.
I always ask 2 questions, once they are on site:
1) How long will it take?
2) How much is their hourly rate?
These give you a pretty good idea of what the cost SHOULD be.
- Michael Smythe
Yes I feel like I got ripped off big time. The biggest problem is there is no consequence for these vendors or shop who does this kind of things. The only things I could do is to leave a bad review on google but that is it. I feel like that investors should create big strong groups together make these vendors standardize pricing.
- Rock Star Extraordinaire
- Northeast, TN
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You made a big mistake by not ordering a dishwasher from a place that is a primary appliance seller - Lowes, Home Depot, Best Buy, Menards, etc. Install should have been no more than probably $200 depending on your market.
Yes, you got totally ripped off. Installing a dishwasher, especially if there's already one in place, is a pretty simple install. I do them all the time. I can't believe your property manager didn't have a handyman that could have done the install.
- JD Martin
- Podcast Guest on Show #243
#2 Contractors Contributor
- Severna Park, MD
That sounds good , standardized pricing , Maybe there should be rent control also .
You paid a high price , no doubt . But you could have said no .
Now if you are a landlord and you cant do any repairs yourself , it will cost you .$$$$
I just did a total gut rehab on one of my rentals , I had friends pull trade permits , the rest of the work we did when we had down time . If I did this job for you it would have been $140K I did the job for $61K .
All contractors charge what the market will bear , snd there are cheap contractors and expensive contractors . You hired expensive , you didnt get ripped off , you just paid a premium price
You can consider other services like Thumbtack or task rabbit
#3 1031 Exchanges Contributor
- Investor
- Las Vegas, NV
Whoever sells you the dishwasher should offer installation between free and $200. I usually get mine from RC Willey because they install every other appliance for $99 for the year, unlimited appliances, unlimited addresses. ($150 flat rate plus any parts for dishwasher). Lowes is a back up. Used to be $100, I think it’s $200 now. They know what an average job is and they MIGHT take a small loss on a tough job but they make it up with the easy ones.) Always go with flat rate installs.