All Forum Posts by: Dave Martel

Since each unit already has a sub panel it should be pretty easy to separate as Eric stated.

You could install a sub-meter cheaper but you would have do the math and bill them yourself every month. See www.leviton.com/meters

BTW,
The framers suggested you offset the piers, showed up with the wrong material, and are giving you a change order. That's not very cool.

J,
I noticed your temp service on the last page, are you using an overhead service?

The reason I ask is if you where going underground sometimes you can mount the permanent equipment to the foundation at the proper location. That way you are using the permanent as the temp saving some money and you won't have any downtime waiting for the power company to change over.

You probably can't do that with an overhead as it would be too dangerous for the framers/siders. Overheads aren't allowed any more in my area.

I have to respectfully disagree with a few of Michael Woodward's points.

To say that he is never at more risk than you I think is false. There are definitely some shady contractors out there but if he is an established contractor and he takes your money and runs he is done when word gets out.

I'm sure you're all upstanding citizens that pay your bills on time but if you happen to be late you can really put your contactor in a bind. Everyone has credit limits and its not hard for a busy contractor to run up hundreds of thousands of dollars per month in expenses. And its not like he can just report you to the credit agencies to put some pressure on you.

As far as liens go, they are basically worthless IMO. Liens go away after x number years and if you think you can't sell the property or get a CO you are mistaken, you can bond around a lien. I've had It done to me in the past and I know someone doing it right now. Sure I can slap a lien on your property for a few hundred bucks but it can cost tens of thousands to forclose on that lien. Its been my experience that most cases get settled without attorney fees being included so after all said and done it ends up being a wash, or close to it.

I personally think it is good money management to get deposits up front. It allows me to negotiate lower prices for materials by paying cash, in turn being able to offer lower prices to you. And if you're late paying I might be paying interest. GRRR. He's not robbing Peter to pay Paul, he's borrowing from Peter to pay Paul's expenses.

I had a much different experience in 2008. I had customers making their boat payments INSTEAD OF PAYING ME!!! When the market tanked, I didn't get paid for months. How easy do you think it was doing business running balances during the credit crisis?

How can you say a contractor has no incentive to finish on budget if he gets money up front? If you have a contract he is locked into a price, any overages come out of his pocket. And most contractors that don't provide fast quality service usually don't last very long or get much repeat business.

I wish everyone would show up the day I'm finished with a check, if they did I probably wouldn't want a deposit either. Most of my work is on a 30 day draw, I work all month, bill you at the end of the month, and don't get paid till the end of the following month. My money is out there for 30-60 days.

All that being said, I realize I'm sitting on the opposite side of the table as most people on this site and have a different perspective.

Sorry for the long post as well!!

I'm curious as well. Never got a bonus in 23 years...plenty of people want me to work for free though.

Did you do your homework before you hired him? You said he is a big player in your area with lots of work and multiple crews, sounds pretty reputable to me.

@Brian Mathews is right, trust is a two way street. You said he would have $7500 of your money but at that size job he's going to have tens of thousands of his money on the line in no time.

I read lots of posts on these forums that say to never to give upfront deposits. I don't know any contractors that will even put you on the schedule until they get a deposit.

Sander

Give a hoot, don't pollute

Another benefit of volunteering for non profit/charity events is the possibility of meeting private investors. Many times some of the volunteers are wealthy individuals looking to give back to their communities.

Adrian,
You will probably be around $120/sqf (not including land) but the best place to find out is to ask some local contractors.

RSMeans publishes an annual Construction Cost Data manual which can give you a good idea also, its around $200.