General Advice and Attorney Recommendation for Dispute with Contractor

Tampa, Florida
Legal & Legislation
8moFollow

General Advice and Attorney Recommendation for Dispute with Contractor

Jolanta Krempin
Member since 2026 · 3 posts · 5 votes

I am in the process of renovating my property in Hillsborough County, FL.  I did some work (demo, drywall repair, paint, tile) but then I learned from a real estate agent the requirement for permits.  I hired a contractor and we specified the requirement for permits and bringing everything up to code.  The contractor sent me a proof of permits, which later turned out to be fraudulent (none were filed with the county). The project was supposed to take 2-4 weeks, but 4 weeks later and he has done some electrical and plumbing and a wall removal all without permits and most of my townhouse is still down to studs. He also severed a roof joist to make way for a sewer vent pipe, which will now require repair (I believe that I will need a structural engineer to sign off on a mitigation plan). I paid the contractor $10,000 in advance.  I am behind on the project timeline and now facing additional repair costs.  Should I find an attorney and if so, does anyone know a good one in Tampa, or should I go the small claims court route and only try to recover the max allowable limit of $8,000 to minimize legal fees?

1Reply
92 views

4 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Kevin Sobilo
    Realtor · Hanover Twp, PA · Member since 2018 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    8mo

    @Jolanta Krempin, a few thoughts:

    1. Plumbers always seem to chop up things in ways they shouldn't. A roof rafter being cut is probably not a big deal. Without seeing it, I'm guessing that it just needs another piece of lumber sister-ed up to it. 

    2. What proof did the contractor show you for permits? The permit itself is fairly obvious looking. Did he show you an actual permit to hang in the window? Or did he just show you the forms needed to submit for a permit?

    3. Unless you have hard deadlines in your contract with language to enforce lateness, what you describe is not at all unusual. To be honest it would be expected more often than not. 

    4. I cannot speak specifically to your state, but in general its very difficult to force payment of a civil judgement. Many small contractors have no significant assets to go after or operate in an LLC and will shut that one down and start a new one to operate under.

    So, before you take action I might try to research this guy more. For example, is the contract with him PERSONALLY in his name? If so, does he own real estate? If so that is great news because there is an asset to attach. 

    5. It doesn't seem clear that you would be awarded more then $8k given that he did some work and that your contract may not allow for any penalty/damages for lateness. 

    Given that and the fact that collecting the debt is likely uncertain at best, I would proceed by myself in small claims court. 

    6. Instead of blaming the contractor, I would try to take a step back and look for some lessons learned. Learn from this experience so that you have a better outcome next time around. 

    This is not at all an unusual series of events. Doing rehabs isn't like ordering a pizza. You can't just place the order be told it'll be delivered in 30 minutes and expect that to happen as promised. If it was that easy, everyone would be doing it. 

    1Reply
  • Jolanta Krempin
    OP
    Member since 2026 · 3 posts · 5 votes
    8mo

    @Kevin Sobilo

    Thank you for your insights. I was already leaning toward small claims court, largely because I do not believe this matter would attract much interest from an attorney. Your points in items 3–5 align exactly with my concerns. I am not confident that the contract clearly defined deadlines, and I also believe there are likely no meaningful assets to pursue. That said, I place responsibility squarely on the contractor and do not believe they should be excused for their conduct.

    I also do not believe I was the first client the contractor misled regarding permits. In our communications, they explicitly stated that they were at the permitting office applying for permits and provided work permit placards for me to display in the window, which reinforced that representation. This appeared to be a deliberate and well-thought-out process. At the very least, I hope that pursuing legal action will give the contractor pause before engaging in similar conduct with other clients.

    That said, there are certainly lessons learned from this experience that I will take with me going forward.

    1Reply
  • Stuart UdisPro Member
    Attorney · Philadelphia · Member since 2018 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    8mo

    I am sorry to hear you are going through this. This is why its important to properly vet contractors. Helpful to obtainn references from past clients as well as sub contractors who work with the GC, collect insurance certificates and execute well drafted vendor contracts. 

    You aren't going to like what I have to say but claims against contractors are rarely worth the pursuit unless there's a GL or E&O policy that could become relevant. Doesn't appear either would be the case given your fact pattern. You mentioned recover but more realistic you will be awarded a judgment which may be worth as much as the piece of paper it's written on. Therefore, you have to ask if that's the best use of your time and resources or are you better off putting all of your energy into finding a replacement contractor and getting the work completed correctly as quickly as possible. That's appears to be a better ROI.

    [email protected]
    2Reply
Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.
Log InJoin for Free