What questions should I have of an LLC contractor?

[H.G.P.]

Thinking of adding garage space for the cars. Getting estimates.
LLC contractor (general contractor) giving estimate.

What questions should we addresss?

Items like: Legal insurance questions of the contractor and of his workers, etc., ?

Any thing else?

Thanks.

[H.G.P.]

One other thing the last contactor here for an estimate stated that I could be involved in the actual building work itself to save.

[schamp]

What questions. Buy the materials and pay as the work is done or after its completed. References?

[Joeaksa]

Agree to pay for things in stages and never pay too far ahead of anything. If possible pay for things when they are completed.

I have far too many friends who have had someone come and get started on a job, get paid and not be seen again for weeks. It seems that they start jobs, get some bux then move on to a new job for more money, returning to your job only when you start making noise or they run out of money.

[john70t]

The contractor is only legally obligated to what is written in the contract because it would be difficult to prove otherwise if something goes wrong. It should have the building materials(no markup), estimated time to completion, no sub-contracting allowed, and cost of labor-amoung other things.

They get paid when job is completed, or pay a 1/4 when half is done.
It's easy for them to get a construction lien on the title of your house, but if they lose their buisness licence they'll be back working in a week under their brothers name.

[Zeke]

Originally posted by john70t
The contractor is only legally obligated to what is written in the contract because it would be difficult to prove otherwise if something goes wrong. It should have the building materials(no markup), estimated time to completion, no sub-contracting allowed, and cost of labor-amoung other things.

They get paid when job is completed, or pay a 1/4 when half is done.
It's easy for them to get a construction lien on the title of your house, but if they lose their buisness licence they'll be back working in a week under their brothers name.

I won't be working for you. Seriously, contractors are humans, too, and it's a two way relationship. Find a good guy and have fun with the project. You might even crack a beer or two with the right guy when a phase or two gets done well.

The best way to check a contractor is to know as much as you can about the person.

[john70t]

Most right-minded contractors should not flinch by this, they should be proud of their work. References and past completed jobs are a big factor.

The "trust me" unknowns should be quite limited when one is paying a lot of money and juggling time to get a project completed.
After the second or third day, when they've proven themselves, is the best time to give slack and let them choose the quality vs speed.
Heck, even write in a "tip" in the contract for exceptional work.

Sorry, too many roofer-camp-fight stories from Florida to think otherwise, and I'm not a "man is born good" kind of guy(was it John Locke or Hobbs?). Why pay an idiot to f'k up a job when I can do it much cheaper
I couldn't afford you anyways Milt, but wish I could. I'll post picts of the appt. renovation as soon as I get to a stopping point.

[URY914]

Originally posted by john70t
It should have the building materials(no markup),

He gets to order, unload, store, protect and finance the cost of the mat'l but he doesn't get to mark it up? Right...

[H.G.P.]

Originally posted by john70t
The contractor is only legally obligated to what is written in the contract because it would be difficult to prove otherwise if something goes wrong. It should have the building materials(no markup), estimated time to completion, no sub-contracting allowed, and cost of labor-amoung other things.

They get paid when job is completed, or pay a 1/4 when half is done.
It's easy for them to get a construction lien on the title of your house, but if they lose their buisness licence they'll be back working in a week under their brothers name.

The contractor lives only several blocks from me.

Very prompt and timely about his estimate by email, already by e-mail,....and has already given me a quote, good for 14 days as follows:

Quote includes dimensions, materials used, all plans, fees, and permits included, (the overhead door and base is optional)

The quote is a single quote which includes materials and labor. (They're not listed seperately).

He gives references and has a web site.

Not yet sure about the customary procedure of responding by email to the quote.

[woodman]

Oh brother.

For us in Cali, we have the Contractors State License Board to help inform contractors and consumers on the law. Check out the link and peruse a bit. http://www.cslb.ca.gov/

In my experience very few contractors but fewer consumers really understand the law pertaining to contracting. Many painful problems can be avoided when one does their homework.

Asking others their opinion, as you are doing here, is a good thing.

Good luck.

[H.G.P.]

Originally posted by woodman
Oh brother.

For us in Cali, we have the Contractors State License Board to help inform contractors and consumers on the law. Check out the link and peruse a bit. http://www.cslb.ca.gov/

In my experience very few contractors but fewer consumers really understand the law pertaining to contracting. Many painful problems can be avoided when one does their homework.

Asking others their opinion, as you are doing here, is a good thing.

Good luck.

The contractor does have online references.

I live in Ohio and looked for something like the Calif. above, but could not find any information. I did find this online:
http://www.dvslv.com/article-ohiomechanicslienlaw.htm

Looks like what would be a simple project might require too much investigative time and energy for us at the moment.

(One thing I noticed that I liked about the contractor is he knows his stuff...property lines, necessary foundation conditions, etc., , corrected some of my ideas almost instantly.)

Thanks for the comments.

[Eric 951]

His proposal should be in lump-sum form as you mention. No contractor would ever agree to providing materials at cost only without some mark-up.

Some things you should get in writing--a schedule for work completion.
A well-defined scope of work--which should include who is responsible for what--removal of materials, clean-up, electrical, protection of existing items etc.
A payment shcedule which you both agree upon--not give me 50% up-front. Depending upon the length of the project, you could do a monthly progress payment based upon percentage of work completed. Or, you could also agree to hold 10% of payment from all invoices--this is retainage--retainage is paid as a lump sum at the completion of the project(owners' final acceptance).
You should also discuss punch list items and how they are resolved. This would be any errors or deficiencies upon completion of the work.
Make sure they are properly licensed for whatever type of contracting they are doing--especially plumbing and electrical.
Find out his warranty--I don't know the scope of the project--but a warranty against inherent defects in material or workmanship on larger projects can be up to 12 months.
Ask to see a copy of his insurance certificate--check his coverage amounts for general liability and workers comp.

Just remember the more specific you are up-front--with drawings, blueprints, sketches, specific dimensions, sqaure footage, etc. the less ambiguity exposure you face.

Just saw you live in ohio--he should have a seperate workers comp cert since Ohio is monopolistic.

[woodman]

I don't like lump sum contracts. It limits the ability to easily and at a fair price, add or subtract scope of work. If we both know what some thing is worth and I decide to not do it, then we can easily agree what the value is. I like line item bids that clearly show where the money is going.

CA law prevents a contractor from taking more than 10% or $1000, whichever is less, up front. Every time I hear someone say I need 25 or 50% up front to start I cringe.

Mechanics lien law is another element that is there for the contractor to secure what you owe him with your real property. In other words, if he notifies you in the proper way that he has this right, and you decide to not pay him...he can move to foreclose on your property so that he can get paid. Be cautious with this one. It can work in your favor. Most contractors don't understand how this one works and only the most savvy will use it properly.

[MRM]

The bid will be in a lump sum form but that doesn't mean you should pay in a lump sum or that the contractor thinks he's going to be paid in a lump sum. You use the bid to agree on the price. Then you enter a contract outlining the draw and how much is held back for the final payment.

Ask for a copy of his dec page of his insurance and actually call his references. Ask them candidly to tell you about their experiences. Drive by some of his prior projects if you can. Ask how long he has been in business and how long with this name, corporation, and location. Ask if he does any work himself, whether the crews work for him or are subcontractors, and whether he has a full time job superintendent who will oversee the crews at all times.

The best possible answers are that he has been in business with the same name for a long time, has never changed from one corporate entity to another (although one change from an S corp to an LLC can be explained by business necessity) and that he still does some of the work himself. On site supervision is a big issue if his crews are subs, but using subs is not a problem if he has a long relationship with them and supervises them well.