I gotta Vent!!!!

[DynoRon]

I am so P#$%@ off,It took me three times to log on. I want a 30x30 garage and a 14x16 room addition, and some work done inside the house. The first guy I talked to was back in December. He gave me the price and told me to give him a call the beginning of April when the ground isn't frozen. I called first week of April and left a message. A week later nothing. I sent an email to his company,he has two partners. I told them forget it.Two days later he calls me and says he was on vacation. I told him I will be looking elsewhere. 2nd guy I called and left message, he never returned my call. 3rd guy gave me a price of $70,000 for garage and $70,000 for addition. NO! 4th guy $65,000 for addition only. He only does additions. NO! 5th guy ,comes over we talk about it,he does not write anything down. He says to email him a list that I want done and he will call me in a week. I did and have not heard from him for a month. 6th guy comes over,we talk about it,he writes stuff down.He has some good ideas. He say he will get back to me with price in about a week.I has been 10 days now. I understand it takes time to figure this stuff out, but can't they just call me and tell me they need a little more time. I guess business is that good ,that they are not worried about finding work.I have to go now. I have a headache.

 

[Outlander]

Welcome to the venting journal

 

[lisiecki1]

Build it yourself.

 

[sammerdog]

You sound like a hot head. You now are being charged what is often referred to as "idiot tax".

 

[SALIV8]

its ashame GC's act like that. Just say, i dont want the job, and thats it.. Dont string us along for whatever reason. I feel the same way- i will NOT chase a contractor and just went through something similar in s/w michigan..

 

[Albiemanmike]

Welcome to my world! We have contacted 10+ asphalt paving companies and only actually got 3 on the phone. None of them ever even called back that we left messages for. The first guy to actually come by and look got back to us within 1 week with a quote in person. The second guy showed up and talked to me for a couple of hours. He has yet to come back with the quote but I got a text from him today after sending him a text saying he had been up in Maine taking care of his fathers estate and will be by this week. Called the third company this morning and they said they will be out tomorrow evening??? We will see???

 

[FunkyfullWidth]

I think a lot of contractors push people away if they're booked up. They'd rather not call someone back and schedule something if they're so busy that their schedule may change.

 

[Twiggss]

please use a spacebar.

 

[Punchwood]

You're 30 mi. outside Chicago. The corrupt, money-embezzling politicians pay waaaaayyyyyy better than you !!

 

[Trey T]

Honestly, I don't know what the big deal is. Sounds to me you don't know what you want because you had so many contractor that came through. I believe your whole process of procurement is all whacked out.

THERE'S MY VENT!

 

[slice]

Try this. Don't call them. Find out where buildings are being built. Find out who it is. Meet em on site. Tell them you have blah blah, You are face to face. Now if they are flakes. You will know it. No phone to hide behind This is not the guy you want building your garage is it. Keep looking. Make sure your organized. Start to finish, plans etc. cash. All ready to go.

They are making a living. Waste time with you or next guy with $$$ this is why they don't call back.

 

[Daniel Dudley]

Guy calls you back and you dump him. Ah well...

 

[southalabama]

I've got a buddy who is a GC. He gets tired of giving free estimates so he now charges.

Sometimes contractors make an evaluation of clients. Rather than say no they just blow them off or make excuses. Not good business but it's their way of dealing with things.

Good luck.

You should also get a detailed contract when you find a contractor so you know what to expect.

 

[DekeT]

You are ENTITLED to better consideration.

 

[Jeff May]

Went through the same thing a few years back when I added on a 24 x 24 addition to my existing shop.
Called 3 GC's, all three were very interested, only one ever showed up. Gave me a really crazy price. I passed on him.
I thought about doing it myself as I did my first shop, being that was over ten years before, I just wasn't sure I was up to building the addition myself. So, back to the phone, called several more, even called three concrete contractors to at least get my slab going. None of them ever returned my calls. Finally, after several more contacts I had one guy show up, on the day and time he said. Gave him my plans, two days later he quoted me a figure and I accepted.
Only sad part was, once he had a crew pour the slab, he sent one guy to do all the frame work, walls and roofing. What should have taken two weeks tops turned into several months. I finally had to threaten him with legal action to get him to send another guy to help finish it.
All in all he didn't do a bad job except for the concrete guys he used, within a year I had a crack the entire width on my new addition, after several years there are more cracks in the floor.
That's about the worst of the whole project, other than the usual things that crop up during a job like this, they were resolved in the end.
It seems to be the way a lot of contractors work nowadays, very independent.
Just hang in there, you'll find one that will get it done.

 

[nehog]

please use a spacebar.

Whyuseaspacebar?Spacesarenothingandjusttakeupspace! (Dang, it's hard to type without hitting spaces!)

 

[SALIV8]

On a serious note I have a good gc that my family has used before in the chicago area. NOT cheap at all- but he is thorough and a stickler. Pm if you want a #. For an addition and whatnot i wouldn't cheap out..

 

[Blue]

Where exactly are you? I may know some folks around DeKalb County who do good work.

Honestly though, the one contractor called you back, and you told him to pound sand? Can't do that.

Here's how it works. The guys who are good, are busy, and get to pick and choose their customers. If you seem like a reasonable person, you've got a good chance that they'll want to do business with you. If you seem like a pain in the *** (not saying you are), they'll ignore you, or if they do quote you, they'll give a sky-high price to make you go away.

 

[LB-1911]

I am so P#$%@ off,It took me three times to log on.

I want a 30x30 garage and a 14x16 room addition, and some work done inside the house.

The first guy I talked to was back in December. He gave me the price and told me to give him a call the beginning of April when the ground isn't frozen.

I called first week of April and left a message. A week later nothing. I sent an email to his company,he has two partners.

I told them forget it.Two days later he calls me and says he was on vacation.

I told him I will be looking elsewhere.

2nd guy I called and left message, he never returned my call.

3rd guy gave me a price of $70,000 for garage and $70,000 for addition. NO!

4th guy $65,000 for addition only. He only does additions. NO!

5th guy ,comes over we talk about it,he does not write anything down. He says to email him a list that I want done and he will call me in a week. I did and have not heard from him for a month.

6th guy comes over,we talk about it,he writes stuff down.He has some good ideas. He say he will get back to me with price in about a week.

I has been 10 days now. I understand it takes time to figure this stuff out, but can't they just call me and tell me they need a little more time.

I guess business is that good ,that they are not worried about finding work.I have to go now.

I have a headache.

What was the 1st bid?

 

[Csmnlm]

I feel so used! All you do is VENT and then you just leave! Never posting again. I'm not that kind of man! You can't just start a thread, vent and then never return! Mods ban this man!

 

[aar0s]

I hear stories like this several times a week. When people who are just starting out in construction ask for advice the first thing that the boss ( who has owned the lumber yard I work at for over twenty years) tells them is to show up and call back when you say your going to.

 

[Outlander]

I feel so used! All you do is VENT and then you just leave! Never posting again. I'm not that kind of man! You can't just start a thread, vent and then never return! Mods ban this man!

He had 30 seconds to make a first impression.......

 

[ClineWrench]

I went through a similar situation with my pool. The GC was super busy and couldn't do the job for a little over a month. But I knew this guy was #1 in my area so I waited it out and I'm super happy I did.

He did a fantastic job on the pool. So good in fact that I decided to tip him an extra 15%.

Sometimes it pays to be patient.

 

[wssix99]

You are ENTITLED to better consideration.

I don't think we are. The general population turned its back on these folks during the recession as we hid our money under our mattresses and stopped building. After so many people have gone out of business, lost their jobs, etc. I don't think it's reasonable for us to expect these builders to just pop up like nothing ever happened and give us star treatment. They are still in recovery mode, (some are still just one bad job away from going out of business) trying to recoup what they've lost over the past few years.

Unless we can help a builder with their problem (and give them the type of business and terms they need) they aren't going to give us the time of day.

I guess business is that good ,that they are not worried about finding work.

Business is that good in the Chicagoland area. We have a critical shortage of carpenters in the area, along with a few other trades. During the downturn, some of our builders went to work in North Dakota to feed the oil and building boom out there. Most didn't come back.

The bottom line of that is that you will not be able to get full service at a competitive price/terms, with descent quality in the area that you live. In a few years - you might get what your expecting, but if you want the project to go now, you'll need to let go of (or take scope on yourself) either service/schedule, price/terms, or quality so you can get the other two.

I'm building a house in the City right now and have been feeling this pain for quite some time. The shortage really hit hard early last summer and as the rate of building increased, the problem has just gotten worse.

When you know which direction you want to compromise on, we can probably help you out with some good advice on how to proceed.

BTW - How you pay the contractor can sometimes be more valuable as to how much you pay them. So, compromising on price/terms doesn't always mean the price goes up.

 

[buddyboy]

i good GC is like a good women.

The good ones are always busy and might not call you back.

the next contractor you call, ASK him if he has time to come out and look at your job to see if it is something he would be WILLING to tackle.

instead of, "see hear buddy, I need this built yesterday, get your **** over here with a quote. and if one thing is done wrong my lawyer will let you know about it"

 

[Kevin54]

**** it up there Buttercup!!!!

I've been waiting on just a price for a garage addition for 6 weeks, and been jacked around from the starting gate. You're in the same boat as many are. After so long, start calling others, and when the initial people come around......"Sorry man, you are SOL"

 

[ffjosh]

Contractors dont like our little jobs. I got concrete quotes from many many companies and either they where way too high (they bid high if its a small job and they dont want to do it) or they dont call back.

I eneded up doing it my self.

 

[Old Moparz]

It doesn't ever change in construction. There are too many companies (owners) that are totally lacking in communication skills. It was almost 20 years ago that I started planning my garage build & had trouble finding a masonry contractor. I was going to stick build the garage myself, so I only needed someone for the foundation & the excavation.

I called three masonry contractors, heard back from only one so I called a couple more with similar results. In all, I called roughly 10 places & only heard back from five of them over a seven or eight week span. Of the five I talked to, I only managed to get two of them to come look at the site & the plans. The last guy said to fax him a sketch so I did.

I finally got 3 quotes & they were so freakin' far apart I didn't know who to trust. One for $6000.....One for $9000....And one for $16,000. The guy in the middle was "impressive" when he was at my house. He said he was going to come back & verify the changes in grade to see if I was going to need a couple of stepped footings.

He was back 2 days later with another guy & they shot some spot elevations across the yard where the garage was going, took notes & said he will be in touch. He got in touch alright, about four weeks later after I left him a few messages. By the time he did call me I wasted three months & decided to redesign the building as a pole barn & said, screw them all, I don't have time to babysit the irresponsible blockheads.

My job as an estimator for a site contractor requires staying in touch with all potential clients. That means I call or email them back immediately whether I have an answer or quote for them or not. One of the worst things to do as a contractor is to ignore clients & customers. I don't care if you're busy, dislike the client, not interested in the job or you're taking time off to pick crud out from between your toes, you need to COMMUNICATE.

I went through a similar problem replacing the roof on my house 2 years ago & ended up doing that myself, too. The last thing you need is an irresponsible GC to start work & leave it unfinished. You'll be afraid to walk away from money paid to him & he'll string you along, intentionally, or not, because you won't be so quick to fire him.

 

[scw1991]

down in Florida you have zero rights as a homeowner. Contractors fleece homeowners out of countless millions of dollars. You sign a contract with the Contractor and he hires a bunch of subs to do the work and places PO's with various building material supply houses for the raw material. He collects your money, doesn't pay the subs or supply houses and they in turn come after you putting liens on your property.

Or the Contractors simply collect a certain percentage up front and leave the homeowner hanging. All they do is declare bankruptcy or shut the doors and the next week they've opened up shop somewhere else with a new company name.

 

[MartyO]

Build it yourself.

He would be dangerous with tools in his hand with that temper.

Just sayin'...

 

[DekeT]

I don't think we are.

I'm sorry I was making light of the OP. I guess a sarcastic smilie would have helped.

 

[truckman5000]

It is all about communication.
Be nice, call back. If you like the guy and seen his work. That is all it takes.


I screwed up today (difficult customer..witch is fine). I want it here, week goes buy i want it there. And done like this and that.. multiple times around. Like 7.

So the job is scheduled for today. Customer not home. I called to verify things, no answer. Customer was supposed to be there to go over things. So we did what we were supposed to do.

Well the guy sends me an email at 3 am. saying he talked it over with the wife and blah blah and he wont be around.

Wife comes home, flip's her lid. And wants this and that...

Being a contractor isnt as easy as people think. Around here on a job like your saing the profit is 10%. So if your being difficult. The contractor isnt going to want the job. Because in the long run. You can go **** up working for a difficult person. And this is the reason people jack the quotes up..

 

[Oldbear]

Plus, if he has phoned 6 guys... they may know each other... have coffee... meet at the local lumberyard... blow off a few like that and word gets around. i know contractors here that won't phone certain people back because they get tired of the attitude and sense that the customer is "better than them" or know more about construction, etc. And remember the lowest bidder is the lowest for a reason...

These bad customers will get "fired" by the people they are doing business with.

 

[DynoRon]

Sorry I have not been around. My computer took a dump.

Name calling, attacks on my character. Really!
Hey! I"m a nice guy.

I know what I want. I told all the GC's the same specs.

30x30 garage with vinyl siding and minimal electric to meet code.

14x16 room addition, with windows here, here, and here. Drywall walls and ceiling. Wood trim nothing fancy. Vinyl siding to match garage.

I think $70,000 for 30x30 nothing fancy garage is to much. $30,000 to $40,000 what do you think?

$65,000 to $70,000 for a 14x16 addition, I don't know. Maybe $40,000 to $50,000. Anyway the GC with the $65,000 quote only does additions. I want a GC that will do everything.

Called a GC, Left a message. He never called back.

Called a GC, he came out. He said, he will call back in a week. I never heard from him after that.

Called a GC, he came out. He said, he will call back in a week. Today is week 2.

I was nice to them. I told them, I under stood that this is the busy time of year. They could start whenever they could, as long as the roofs were up by snow fall.

So you see I am a nice guy. I could see from some of reply's that this is going to be a roller coaster ride. So I might as well sit down, hold on and hope the ride ends soon.

Thanks for the replies.

Oh, howwas my typing this time.

 

[wssix99]

Hey! I"m a nice guy.

You'll need to prove that over time as the number under your name gets bigger. Reading your original post, it's easy for some folks to assume otherwise.

I think $70,000 for 30x30 nothing fancy garage is to much. $30,000 to $40,000 what do you think?

Your expectations are way off. $70K for 900 sq. feet is $77 per sq. foot. That's about where it should be if you are planning the kind of garage that is discussed here. (Custom, drywall, some insulation, no holes in the walls, etc.) Completely finished house space will run you $125-$250 per square foot.

$65,000 to $70,000 for a 14x16 addition, I don't know. Maybe $40,000 to $50,000.

That's $280 per square foot. Depending on how much retro-fit you need to do to the existing structure, that might be reasonable. Your price per square foot will go up the smaller the project, but you should be able to get that down if you can find someone to do the addition and garage at the same time. (They can work more efficiently.)

 

[-Brent-]

Venting to strangers is weird.

That said, welcome to the GJ and welcome to the wonderful world of securing a decent contractor. Something that might be beneficial to you is signing up to Angie's List to find a reputable contractor. There's a cost, I believe, but it may be worth it.

What's a decent price to someone west of Chicago might be outrageous or cheap to other members here since we're all over the globe.

Based on what I've read in your posts, here's my advice. Have plans drawn up. It always costs more for clients that have nothing on paper, no permits pulled, etc. Whenever you just point to empty space and say, "I want this here and that there" you're going to get quotes with a lot of extra "cushion."

If you have a plan, it's easy for someone to pull a quote within a day or two of meeting. I'm assuming you don't and that's where a bit of your frustration is stemming from.

 

[signcrafter]

So you have had two contractors show up and give you prices very close. Sounds like you don't want to pay what it costs to hire a contractor that will actually show up. You want a cheap price then you get the contractors that call back when they want. You want a professional that will show up and call back then pay the price to play. Just my opinion but you sound like a guy that wants top notch service for bottom of the bucket prices. And if that's true most contractors can pick up on that and decide it's not worth their time and either not call back or give an inflated price to make it worth their time. I may be off base but that's what I got from your post.

Call a few more contractors until you find one that shows up. But don't hire based on the cheapest quote. You will not be happy in the end.

 

[maxmojo]

Police Squad 1988:

Jane: How could you do something so vicious?
Vincent Ludwig: It was easy my dear. You forget, I spent two years as a building contractor.

 

[ryan77]

those quotes are way high, I would like said, have something drawn up and get permits, and keep looking, drive to job sites and meet and greet, ask around at local lumber yards whos reliable and good. or like you said you may have to do it yourself and get someone to help you, some older retired carpenters can help out quite a bit, and give good advise.

 

[tymbo]

I agree with getting drawings done. Not only will you come across as a serious customer, but you will get more accurate bids from the contractors.

Also, you will need to submit drawings to get a permit, so eventually you must have them.