Contractor- it really depends on the scope of the project + how much work do you want to do? Are you talking a major remodel or addition, or just a project here and there?
if you want to sit back and only make the big decisions, and babysit 1 person, don’t want to negotiate on price for each sub/items purchased and, and you are willing to pay a premium, then definitely go the contractor route. The few I’ve talked to charge 10-15% or more just to manage the project. So if your kitchen costs 50k, then they charge at least 5k just to oversee the ordering of cabinets, appliances, and install even if they don’t do the install. And I have found most want you to work with their subs/suppliers.
If you have specific plumbing, electrical, need a new roof, etc you can do this yourself if you have the time and the patience. I have found that you HAVE to be there for at least part of the time to check up on work/quality/progress. No matter how great the reputation. And you have to be willing to get multiple bids and compare what each one bids.
You should expect:
1. get widely varying quotes, confidence levels on doing the work- i call this sandbagging so they can charge you more, i won’t hire someone who is wishy washy about whether they can do the job or start talking too much about the unknown once they start on a relatively simple project (like fixing venting or windows)
2. go back and forth between quotes to ask questions about differences, and potentially beat em up on price
3. workers /contractors to be flaky and unreliable including – not show up entirely, not be on time, not get you a bid in a timely fashion, not complete the work in timeframe estimated. i highly recommend you always confirm via text message the day before as to time/date of appt- especially if you are taking off work to accomodate. can’t tell you how many time ppl didn’t show up or showed up an hour late.
4. get sloppy with their work – you likely have to ask them to fix something, redo something, or catch something they said they would do, that they are charging you for, but do not do.
Also for handyman type projects- you can find people who just charge you for the labor- and you pay all the materials. This is one way to not pay the markup. The materials however might mean you buy a lot more of something you only need a small amount of that you’ll likely not need again. Sometimes its more cost effective, other times its marginally less expensive, but not worth the hassle to track all the receipts.
With any and all of this, GET it all in writing- down to the nitty gritty. Sometimes this means YOU need to write up your expectations/understanding of the scope of the project if the service provider doesn’t – down to how many layers of paint someone is applying. Because most of these guys are not organized. And they will forget, so its best just to get everyone to agree, and then there is no disagreement- just wave an email in front of them.
Estate attorney: I haven’t personally used him but several friends have.
Dan Morrin
858-541-1777
CPA- very reasonably priced
Richard Bruno
(619) 275-0511
