Why Don't Contractors Return Phone Calls??

[kmacht]

The above advice is good but I had one more thing I wanted to add in. Don't go with a contractor solely based on good reviews of previous work. I have seen that with contractors when things start going south they tend to go south quickly. Somebody my be reputable for years but if they start running into financial difficulty for various reasons you can still end up getting screwed over. Keep an eye out for red flags and always make sure you protect yourself. If they ask for a large percentage of money up front before even starting work that is a red flag. Before they are scheduled to start work ask to see a copy of the permit. If they can't produce it, that's another red flag. Check with sub contractors for work that has been done before agreeing to pay the next installment. Ensure they are paid or you at least have a release from the general contractor so you don't get stuck with the bill at the end. Above all else, if something seems funny or a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Keith

 

[Jazz]

My wife and I shopped around for a contractor to do our addition for several months. She knows a lot of people and at least 3 of her "friends" said they would love to do the work. NO ONE of them, despite having been given my contact information personally by them contacted me. It ended up going to the company of someone I know from my car club. After we had started construction the same guys all asked why we didn't talk to them about the job. Several said they didn't think we were serious.

It was a pretty good estimate and has gone okay though there have still been some communication problems. Half way through the job they fired the foreman at the site and as I result I ended up keeping an eye on the subs and helping to manage the schedule, which was okay by me anyway. We're doing most of the finishing work ourselves. I'm honestly glad the contracted part is almost over, I'm totally over contractors.

 

[Tom2]

Theres only been a couple times. One was for gutters. I think 1 out of the 3 actually sent me a quote. He was nice and I'm sure did great work, but the costs was just too much.

Then a few years ago I had 3 contractors come out to give me a quote for a new furnace. Only 1 even bothered sending me a written quote!! I mean, they take the time and gas to drive out..You think they would at least sit down for 5 minutes, write out a quote and stick it in the mail.

Ironically the guy who sent me the quote more or less talked me out of hiring someone to do it.. He was like "just from talking with you for a few minutes I can tell you can do it yourself - you'll save a bunch" He gave me a quote for only the furnace, about $500 more than the local furnace sales place, so I bought it there instead.

 

[southernfriedcj]

How does one find out who a GOOD GC is?

Talk to a local building inspector.