So I may be going back into business to work on this home that is 80% complete yet the other contractor walked away from.
So how do I effectively estimate this? I am thinking Cost + as a bunch of subs will need to be involved and it will take around 4-5 months. (Its a big house!)And there are some hidden problems I am sure of.
Thoughts?
Thanks
Mike
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Replies
Yes you need something "open" in your estimating.
Even in the "best of circumstances" such as the old contractor got hit my ligthing and everything done was perfect upto that time you will still find problems.
Such a stuffed framed for a specific item and that item is no longer avaialbe. And codes have changed, etc. You find weather damage.
But more likely things had been going bad for a period of time and the contractor started taking short cuts.
.
A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Hey Bill,
You must have seen the same house as you are right on all the things you mentioned!
Mike
I couldn't bid on something like that. Why would you want to? You will spend the rest of your life trying to write a contract with enough assumptions and conditions to cover yourself. Give them a fee schedule along with the warranty exclusions Jeff is talking about and do it cost plus.
my first thot is the start check better include enough to pay a lawyer to draw up an airtite contract that says me and betting none of my subs will warrenty anything and are certainly not responsible for any of the existing work ...
and if I (or my subs) decide the whole house has to be torn down and started over 'cause it's wrong that someone is gonna pay me to do so.
just last month I tiled a house where the original builder was "fired" ... but he owned the development ... and as the developer ... he maintained the rights to a weekly walk thru with courth appointed "third parties" to inspect and make sure the on going work met the standards of his development.
had nothing to do with me ... but looked to be a pretty uncomfy situation.
the second GC brought in to finish the build did a god job ... but seemd the lead's primary job was to complain loudly about any work not done by his hand selected subs!
Jeff
Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
my first thot is the start check better include enough to pay a lawyer to draw up an airtite contract that says me and betting none of my subs will warrenty anything and are certainly not responsible for any of the existing work ...
You are so right.
If the original guy did 80%, the owner should plan on at least 50% more to finish. He needs to take lots of pictures and document everything for the lawsuit.
What Jeff said. BTDT
So has a contractor here from Connecticut whop took over one that was half finished and half azzed. Estimates went right out the window as he kept finding other things wrong or poorly done that needed extra TLC. I don't think he got paid all his final either. Part of that was the clients started right off with a bad attitude against all contractors and transferred that anger from the first 'builder' onto him and that got worse - steeping and brewing everytime he had to give them more bad news about something neglected by the first guys....
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then again ... on a remodeling level ...
these are just the kinda "deals" I seem to find for myself!
Hey ... Let Me go and be a Hero!
usually doesn't work out like that.
Like U said ... they hate the first guy ... they'll usually hate the hero too!
Jeff Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
I usually look like the hero, but have to do a lot of consumer education along the way.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
<<<<his home that is 80% complete yet the other contractor walked away from.>>>if that means it is open framing and still at the rough-in stage, then i'd do it in 2 partsa proposal to prepare a scope of work and another proposalmy first proposal would be for say $3000 to inspect , bring in my subs and determine what has to be redone, and wat needs to be finishedthen i'd write up a proposal to do the workT&M is probably going to bite you in the ####.... because it is open eneded aand the Owners will become more and more bitter as it proceedsif you define the scope at the beginning, then everyone knows where it is going... and don't be basheful about how muc it will costMike Hussein Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
I agree. I'd do the hard bid too. I'd insist on seeing the termination paperwork from the other contractor too. Bob's next test date: 12/10/07
last one idid... the Building Inspector needed a sign-off too... the permit was in the other contractor's nameturns out the contractor used a fictitious name to pull the permit, sinc e he didn't have a valid license in his own namethe only T&M i'd do might be for some hidden conditions that MAY arise...
but if it's still at rough-innot too much can be hidden from someone who knows what they're looking atmatter of fact... a nice long quiet talk with the Building ispector would definitely be in orderMike Hussein Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
When I hear that someone walked away from a job, my first thought is why?Impossible customer?Customer refused to pay progress payments?I wonder if a conversation with the contractor who walked might be appropriate.
The two most common elements in the universe are hydrogen and stupidity.
Thanks for the input guys. Lots of open ends here. Me and my subs spent about two hours on site today.
House is already drywalled and finished and painted yet the engineer's report has alot of items in it. All my subs want to work for Cost + or T&M.
I am thinking about telling them its Cost + or T&M for some aspects and I just work for a flat fee of say x number of dollars as its a pretty big home. Over $1 mill.
No county inspectors or that have been invloved as its all been handled under what we have in Florida called Private Provider.