Truett, you can do whatever you want, and I only wish you the best, but let me share some wisdom with you. I am a General Contractor and have seen just about everything. Before people jump in and say its different in every state, I have worked in 42 of the 50 states, and in 32 countries.
Payment Plan
50% deposit upon signing contract……………………………………………….…$ 13,050.00
25% of balance due upon receipt of supplied material………………………….…$ 6,525.00
25% of balance due upon install of ThermoTech21 supplied material…………...$ 3,262.50
Balance due upon completion of contracted items………………………………….$ 3,262.50
I know some will agruee this is normal, but it is not. One should fully expect to pay for 100% of the building MATERIALS upon delivery, that is normal. We typically pay nothing upon signing a contract, and then pay 10% upon approval of drawings. We usually have to have a check waiting to give to the driver when the building shows up on site for the balance of the building, just materials now, no labor.
With regards to labor, we do 30%, 30%, 30%, and final 10% 45-60 days upon completion. Mainly to make sure the erector has paid all their subs(crane or all terain forklift).
The key with any contract is to try to decipher what material costs, what labor costs, and what is in for Profit & Overhead. You never what to over pay the Labor, Profit & Overhead part. These amounts apear front loaded to me in the Material(building) portion of the quote.
Ask yourself this question, if the contractor dissappeared, would $6400 be enough money to fully install/erect your building if all the materials were sitting in a huge pile in your driveway. My guess is no.
Most every project boils down to this: 50%-60% is materials, 30%-40% labor, 15%-25% profit & overhead. In your case, assuming 60% for materials that is $15,600 however, your contractor is looking for $19,600. This tells me all of his profit he is trying to capture on the front end, in your case $4000. This practice is used/done a lot, everyone tries to front load their profit, this is business 101 in the construction world. This is where you should work your contractor.
The labor amount looks spot on to me. So with 100% of your contractors profit & overhead build into the building delivery, you will have zero leverage working with your contractor when he is on site. He could walk any day during the construction process and he is out zero money because he captured all his juice up front.
The Non-Compete portion, I would strongly uge you to strike out. Understanding that you are not going to get into the business, it has no place in any contract with a consumer.
The Applicable Law section, I would also stike out, however don't kill yourself over it. It is completly unenforceable, and is not legal or biding in any way. And yes, I have been to court more times than I can count over this exact clause, and it always gets dismissed at pre-trial hearings because it is not legal, regardless if it is agreed to or not.
Good luck!
