Professional Window Installation - total rip off?!

also, i just saw something that is key here. you mentioned that this is an apartment. that probably means that the building has requirements on certain things that not only include the window style (am i correct in assuming these are not cheap vinyl windows?), insurance and workers comp. these things force the contractor to be a professional and these mean his expenses are more. that may be why the prices appear out of line with other things.

the ones people want in their homes in Brooklyn are different. you want wood frames and traditional quality. i am not sure how to get those windows, though if i were to install some i am sure i could find out (i am not marketing myself here as i have no interest in installing windows). keep in mind, pricey, quality windows require a lot of responsibility in handling; the contractor is on the hook and he or she gets paid to accept that responsibility and the responsibility for the measurements. window contractors may have additional costs over and above others as insurance may be a bit more as they climb up on ladders (even if your windows can be done from the inside, the contractor’s operational expenses will be based on being someone who climbs outside).

that said, if you are looking for cheap windows like they sell at home depot, you can order them from window places that seem to exist in places like flushing queens. when i did the windows in my own house i went through a contractor friend who got them at wholesale and installed them on a day rate. sure , i saved a lot of money. But at 5 PM he was also done and i got stuck with the clean up and any warranty claims (none 13 years later) and any adjustments (again none; this is what he did for a living); it does not always work this way.

you can try to do it the way i did, find somebody. keep in mind, unless you know someone as i do, you will probably not be hiring a window contractor to do the windows; you will be hiring a generalist. installing these and making sure they work correctly takes some skill (at least to get it done right the first time). who is on the hook if he damages an expensive window? will he be if you are paying him per unit or by the hour to install? if he is not a window contractor per se, will his handling these void a warranty? how long do you want him in your house trying figure out how to do something he has not really done before or he has done one or two of here and there as he did a bathroom or kitchen reno? window contractors are window contractors because that is what they do (and you are correct, there is markup here). contractors do a lot of things and may know nothing about windows; you may be his guinea pig. you might get lucky or you might get a bunch of headaches in six months.

Even with a good contractor, things can go wrong. he could drop something that he had handled every day for ten years with no problem and that day it happens on your job. he could have an auto accident with your windows in his van. he could have a family issue or his number one helper’s mother-in-law dies and he has to travel to East Bunny Hole Nebraska for a week. my point is, even on a good day, things happen. taking chances with people who are not experienced in that trade only increases the chances that something can go wrong. maybe, maybe not.

Consider some of the other stories on here before hiring a generalist for windows.

> @sarahjosette
> are made-to-order/professionally installed windows really THAT different from the ones that you can order to spec from home depot or another big box store and then have installed by a contractor?

yes.