Front Page Forum: Contractor Hell in Bed Stuy
Dear Brownstoner, Like probably everyone who’s done renovation, I am having a pretty much impossible time finding a decent, timely contractor who is affordable. Two months ago I hired a contractor by the name of Randy Blair at the recommendation of Dalila at Smiling realty in Bed Stuy. We signed a contract for renovation of…
Dear Brownstoner,
Like probably everyone who’s done renovation, I am having a pretty much impossible time finding a decent, timely contractor who is affordable. Two months ago I hired a contractor by the name of Randy Blair at the recommendation of Dalila at Smiling realty in Bed Stuy. We signed a contract for renovation of two floors in my house in Bed Stuy, to be finished in 10 weeks. He required me to get all the materials needed for the job up front because he said he wanted to move fast on this project and didn’t want waiting for materials to hold him up.
Within that timeframe, he opened up huge holes in the exterior walls, one for a new window and one for french doors to the backyard- these were left open for two weeks. It rained a few times and damaged the inlaid mahogany wood floors. This is just the beginning: Three weeks after signing the contract, he left for a one month vacation. Before he left he originally told me it would be for two weeks and that he would have a crew working at the house while he was away. Instead, his brother-in-law did two days worth of framing total blaming the no show electrician. It’s been two months and several thousand dollars in supplies and 1/3 the contract price up front–and basically only 1/8 of the work has been done. Help!!! Hiring contractors is such a nightmare! Can anyone help me find a better contractor or give me advice on how to legally deal with the one I hired/get a lawyer to help me deal with this. I can’t afford to float the mortgage while no work is being done. Any advice at this point is desperately needed.
Signed,
Bedstuy Bedlam
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Oh and it case it’s not obvious, avoid contractors that have that are unlicensed or have expired licenses/insurance.
And avoid contractors with lots of liens/judgements, or recent liens/judgements with very high amounts. Old liens (5 or more years) you can usually forgive if there’s only a few and the amts were low (a couple thou vs. 10s of thous)
Also, Get proof of insurance (anyone contractor doing major repairs/plumbing/electric/demolition should have insurance) BEFORE work beings. If your contractor is uninsured, any injuries to his workers on your property could be YOUR responsibility.
I have hired many contractors for my buildings. Some weren’t perfect, but most performed adequately, and many were great. Here are the things I do:
1. Go on the NYC department of consumer affairs site and look for home improvement contractors (includes roofers, masons, flooring contractors and even some painters) that are licensed. Go to DOB database to check if your plumber/electrician plumbers have valid licenses and insurance.
2. Do a Lien/Judgment/Bankruptcy search on your potential contractor-you can do this through lexis/nexis pay-as-you go – or public records. Liens/Judgments can give you a great idea about your contractors’ credit history, litigiousness, problems with clients.
3. Ask for three recent references AND CHECK THEM. Visit the site of the work if you can. Remember, this is a huge, risky endeavor and it’s WORTH the homework.
PS – deposits are standard in the industry. Even good contractors do it.
Good luck!
Just out of curiousity Pietro – why on earth would you need to show your contractor that you trusted him? I don’t understand that at all.
BigBubba,
I too interviewed a lot of highly recommended contractors. Some asked for deposits, most did not. In my opinion, contractors should be paid for the work they do and the good ones don’t need the cash flow from deposits to afford materials to start a job. In fact – the standard AIA contract calls for billing to be done on a percentage of completion formula with a 10% hold back until punch list items are completed. That is not to say that “reputable” contractors don’t require deposits, I would just not use one that did. Bedstuy Bedlam’s story bears that out – not withstanding success stories to the contrary.
I’d love to have my bathroom renovated but it’s contractor horror stories like this one that make me wary. Maybe I should just continuing saving and wait for the next economic recession when good contractors won’t be so backed up with work.
Pietro,
Was it a relatively small job? I mean would you advance somebody $150,000 of a $300,000 job, just for the sake of showing them you trust them?
IMO, you really got lucky. Even some of the best contractors would have trouble not taking advantage of a 50% upfront if it was any meaningful amount of money.
If you want something done right. . . .
I ended up giving my contractor 50% of the job upfront and it turned out fine. While I trusted the guy because he was recommended, I also thought it was important to show him that I trusted him as well. Sorry to hear about your mess. I agree with everyone else fire them and take them to court. Find someone better to fix it up. It’ll all be fine. Isn’t it about time someone start regulating these bozos?