Dealing with home improvment contractors

[VINMAN]

I have a home improvement business on the side. Soon to be my main job when I retire in a couple yrs. Have had good luck with it so far. But I know too many that have failed or just plain suck at it. For those that deal or have dealt with contractors, what are your main complaints and dissatisfactions with them.
I'm just trying to get a feel for what pisses people off. I know not returning calls or not showing up is #1 in my area.

[Flatbutt1]

yes that is my issue currently. In the past missing deadlines was an issue. Psst Vinnie, still have no one to my job. AND I do have the $$$$

[304065]

Vin,

It ain't the money so much, it's the time. Doing something like a bathroom or kitchen, which is a frequent rehab job, is a MAJOR lifestyle displacement for the whole family. My personal view is I would rather pay a contractor 110% of his bid if he would be willing to guarantee that he would be finished, and I don't mean having a 100 item punch list, I mean FINISHED, on the day he promises. Here in the City it's not uncommon to have a contractor be fined $10,000 per week pursuant to the agreement if the job takes longer, I suppose with a carveout for things like inspections, etc.

Good luck: the day you put on a toolbelt the average integrity of the profession will skyrocket and that's coming from a guy who has the letters J.D. after his name. . .

[stomachmonkey]

Neatness counts and will get you referrals.

Ex. used the electrical contractors from my office for some stuff at home.

They drilled itty bitty holes and snaked 100's of feet of wire from one end of the house to the other. Cleanup was 1 pass with a dustpan.

Later put in a ceiling fan in the kitchen, my guys were unavailable so I got someone else. He had to go 5 feet from the switch to the fan. Came home and he had torn open my wall and ceiling, done a horrible plaster job to close it up, dust everywhere AND I had to paint.

Show up when you say you will.

Finish when you say you will.

[Rot 911]

The problem you are going to run into is that to make money you need to have more than one job going at a time. Then you have to hire employees. Then the quality goes down.

[legion]

My main complaints:

1) Contractors that don't return phone calls.

Around here, I seem to have to make a dozen phone calls, leave a dozen messages, and I get one returned phone call. This when I'm just looking for a contractor.

2) Contractors that don't keep me informed.

They say they will be there at noon, and never show, and don't answer the phone/return phone calls (see #1). I have had contractors scheduled, an estimate done, money set aside, and had the contractor simply dissapear. They never showed up on the first day for the job.

I realize that contractors miss things. I want to be told when they realize it, not when they present the bill. I want a chance to veto the extra expense or suggest and alternative.

I want to be told when the job is running late--when they realize it. I have a life too and may need to reschedule some things to allow for the extra work. I don't like being told at the end of the supposed completion day that it will take two more weeks.

3) When in doubt, consult with the homeowner.

I want a concrete patio behind the house. I was able to get one contractor out there to do the estimate. Two weeks later I got an estimate in the mail with little more than a dollar amount. I don't know what size patio he was planning on pouring. I wanted to discuss stamped concrete and coloring, running a walkway to the side of the house, and putting in a trench with grates for my sump-pump hose. Apparently the contractor just showed up when I wasn't home, dreamed up what I wanted, and put a dollar amount on it. I called, left messages, and never got a call back.

4) Treat people like you appreciate their business, not like they are lucky to have contracted you.

(See above.)

[craigster59]

It might be different in New Jersey, but here in Calif., one complaint I hear often is not having an english speaking worker on site at all times.

Cleanliness and punctuality are probably the top 2 in my opinion.

[Drago]

Hmm. Off the top of my head and including the no call back thing:

Not showing up on time
Poor workmanship

That about covers 75% of the ones I've dealt with. The remaining 25% have my business in the future.

I'll pay for quality on time work, gladly. Ask JW.

Edit for craigsters comment; same up here these days.

[Dantilla]

You must be very good at two jobs:

-Construction work,
-Businessman.

A friend in Pasadena has buit a painting business on one main principal: Show up when you say you will show up. The radius he is willing to travel has gotten smaller and smaller as his phone is busier and busier. In his contract, he puts a penalty per day if he is not done on time. He schedules accordingly, finishes on time, and doesn't ever have to pay the penalty.

He is also able to charge top dollar.

[legion]

Dantilla, that is one smart guy.

I think most contractors overextend themselves without realizing it until it is too late.

I also think a lot of contractors aren't good at tracking the costs of a specific job. I had one plumbing contractor who did good work, showed up on time, and was a little cheaper than everyone else in town. I recomended him to some friends. He still did good work and showed up on time, but suddenly he was twice as expensive as everyone else. I think he was undercharging before, and started overcharging to make up for it...

[Seahawk]

We just finished a major home improvement job. We ended up firing the original guy due to all the examples cited in the above posts...the guy was a poster child on how not to do business. He came highly recommended

From a month ago. We put an archway in to open up the house, moved the living room, reworked two bathrooms and repainted the entire house, inside and out.

[futuresoptions]

+100 on all of those. I think to be a good contractor you need to find your niche. I think that instead of trying to juggle several residential jobs to make ends meet, that it could be more enjoyable and profitable working contracts for a corporation. It may require some education, but working on buildings for utility companies, real estate firms, and franchised businesses could be the way to go. Usually these companies have protocol to go by as far as repairs and it helps keep you in line as far as what can and cannot be done to a property. Also you have a better chance of getting paid. I have friends that do Govt contracts and I have some that do work for counties and non-profits. They seem to do very well and don't have to worry too much about doing nickle and dime residential work. Communication and punctuality is probably the best two traits you could have though besides honesty in that business.

[fuelie600]

Originally Posted by VINMAN

I'm just trying to get a feel for what pisses people off.

In no particular order:

-contractors &/or subs that show up hung over
-contractors that ask for draws before agreed milestones are reached
-contractors that show up late in the morning and leave early in the afternoon
-contractors that exceed their bids
-contractors that use down payments from their next job to buy materials for your job
-contractors that don't clean up the job site at the end of the day
-contractors and subs that want to tell you too much about their personal life
-contractors that juggle multiple jobs at once

[pwd72s]

Don't get me started. Cindy would love a kitchen remodel, I'd like to add a game room big enough for a 9' pool table. We're not going to do either after a bathroom remodel that took over 6 weeks...should have taken no more than 6 days.

So, the deal I have with Cindy is simple. She can do all the remodeling she wants. I leave for a destination resort the day the project begins. She can call me when it's over!

[craigster59]

One other thing to add that I recall from my construction days is loud music and foul language. Should be zero tolerance on any jobsite.

[911Rob]

Time & Money

Most of my success as a businessman has come from being able to see it from the clients perspective, no matter what the industry. Give the client what they want, end of story.

For every client, I get their priorities straight. Then I run with those priorities.
for example, in the construction biz:
I'll say to the client; "Alright, I realize you'd like me to complete that change for you; however when we started this job you told me the most important thing for you was the time it would take, then the 2nd thing was the cost. Now making this change is going to affect both of your main priorities; are you sure you want to proceed with this direction?"

Idiots run/plan projects from today and yesterday.
A Project Manager always runs a project in the future, IMHO.

Good Luck, I'm sure you'll be great at it!
(I loved the painter that guaranteed his completion date)

[911Rob]

Originally Posted by pwd72s

Don't get me started. Cindy would love a kitchen remodel, I'd like to add a game room big enough for a 9' pool table. We're not going to do either after a bathroom remodel that took over 6 weeks...should have taken no more than 6 days.

So, the deal I have with Cindy is simple. She can do all the remodeling she wants. I leave for a destination resort the day the project begins. She can call me when it's over!

PWD, simple fix, just get two houses and live in the one your not renovating. Works like a charm!

My wife and I are perpetual renovators.
One of my recently completed projects is adding a theatre room under the double garage! Way cool and the kids love it. I can play movies at midnight full throttle and no one in the house can hear it.

After buying the TT, the wife is drawing new plans for her kitchen! Yikes, she's plannig a total gut and new. We're currently living in a 30 year old architecturally designed home with about 4500 sqft. Very cool house but we had to do alot of updating (all floors, bathrooms, paint), we have an indoor atrium with 3 storey trees growing in our living room

[VINMAN]

Being that most of my work is done on the weekends, the majority of my work is small jobs that most guys don't want to bother with. You would be amazed at how many jobs are turned away because "its not worth my while" or "it is not a 50 g job" Too may contractors have visions of grandeur. I get alot of referrals by other contractor friends that don't have time for the small stuff, or just don't want it.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by VINMAN

Being that most of my work is done on the weekends, the majority of my work is small jobs that most guys don't want to bother with. You would be amazed at how many jobs are turned away because "its not worth my while" or "it is not a 50 g job" Too may contractors have visions of grandeur. I get alot of referrals by other contractor friends that don't have time for the small stuff, or just don't want it.

If you do the little jobs well, you'll be called back for the big ones. My father-in-law has done very well by using this approach. It's worth cleaning some gutters for $50 if they call you back for a $10k garage.

As a former contractor, I've been on both sides. It all comes down to professionalism and respect. Do what you say, when you say, how you say, for what you say. Quality is important, but most homeowners won't notice if you have to use a little putty in an imperfect miter joint. BUT, if you are honest, professional, and act with integrity, you will automatically put yourself ahead of 95% of other contractors.

It's a scary thing for homeowners, most are going to drop a significant amount of money for a project they don't fully understand. Win their trust, do a good job, and you'll be their contractor for life. Contractors constitute the largest number of consumer complaints, and rightly so. My wife and I are working on our second live-in remodel, and I refuse to hire anyone to do anything. Most are just so damn bad, I'd rather do it myself.

[Zeke]

I've been doing the HI contractor thing for 37 years. I have to say that the customers are just as bad as the contractors. I will tell you right now that I won't deal with another contractor. They're all a pile of crap.

But, if you must, do what you say you're' gonna do when you say you're gonna do it. That would include the first appointment to the last broom stroke. Don't promise the world; if your job looks better than expected, you will be a hero. If you have a problem, say it. If you need to go get drunk, tell your customer why.

Frankly, I wouldn't wish this job on my worst enemy and that's why all the dregs are in construction. It's the worst possible job......unless you really like people and you really like to see things made better, both of which I pursue. Money? Well, I'll be lucky to clear 12K this year. It's chicken one day and feathers the next. When the housing boom went bust, my phone stopped ringing overnight. I haven't had a dozen good jobs yet this year. I used to make 50K at this.

Come Jan 08, I'm done. You can have it.