Anyone from Reno who is in or knows what the market is for good finish carpenters or remodelers? I’m moving to Reno in the next few weeks and normally just look up the guys with the best reputations and drop by to introduce myself and normally have a job within a few days…..don’t know anything about Reno though.
Is most of the nicer work closer to Tahoe? I’m used to working on big vacation homes and nicer remodels of all sizes….probably best at making difficult remodels work.
Can site build cabinets, furniture, etc. all wood carpentry, tile, smooth wall sr (if you remodel in a historical district you have to get good at it since nobody else is!)….usually get the difficult remodels since I have a nack for making things work and look good.
Just a good all around carpenter looking for nicer projects and a paycheck on short notice. 🙂
Replies
I may have some work for you Coming up soon.Get in touch with me when you get to town.
Vince Pirrone
Expert Woodworks
775-742-0475
As for Tahoe, High Quality Work, High Pay, Not alot of it at this time. Its who you know there. Also Travel in the winter is a Bitch.........
With possibly the nations' highest unemployment (in general) and a complete collapse of the construction industry, I'd hardly consider Reno a good place to start over!
Even in the best of times, Reno is hardly the most prosperous place to be. With shares of it's population either retired or in subsidized housing well above the usual averages, there's really not much money to be found. Housing costs are high and wages are low.
That's one mans opinion. A good High end finish carpenter and do very well here because of the fact they are far and few between. There is a call for high end workers. If you are a mediocre carpenter, It will be hard for you. Available High end work is down, but not out. High end carpenters are strugling like everywhere else. The tuff part would be not knowing anyone that knows your work. I moved here from Philadelphia 11 Years ago. It took me about 4 to make a name for my self and get a good client base, enough to pay my bills thru these times. But I'm doing it.And wages? I know Personally of at least 6 Carpenters Making over $25hr non Union.
But, Not working every week thou.........Tahoe, which is only 30 minutes away starts at $30 to $50hr..... I can tell you, in Philly you will not find that, so don't go their.
Edited 9/12/2009 2:48 am ET by MyCousinVinny
Thanks again to you guys. There has been a snag in my move and it doesn't look good-- the gal I'm moving to Reno for seems to have cold feet. I'll probably still end up in Reno after my current furniture building projects run out in a few months, but maybe not.
Just for general information .... anyone doing construction either side of Lake Tahoe needs to have a contractors' license for the state where the work is taking place - Nevada or California. That number should be on their trucks, signs, etc. Reno requires a Nevada license.
I mention this because there ARE unlicensed guys out there. Get hurt, forget about workmans' comp. Get laid off, forget about unemployment. The 'GC' can't hire you as a 'subcontractor' (or 'independent contractor') unless you have a contractors' license yourself - you need to be an employee.
That is true, and all the GC's know it that I have worked for. Most GC's in Reno have a CA license also. And NV is a right to work state. You can get a Handy man License which allows you to do most anything within limits.
Edited 9/16/2009 2:15 am ET by MyCousinVinny
Don't try to con a con!
I am sure that you know these things, and take pains to do it all properly. Yet, you also know how expensive and convoluted the contractor licensing process can be, and you know all too well the generous number of unlicensed contractors, the substandard wages, and illegal 'creative' hiring practices some have. BTW. "Right to work" relates only to union shops (you can't be forced to join a union, though the employer can choose to hire only through the Union hall), and has nothing to do with contracting, or licensing.
You also know that everyone - from day labor to brain surgeons - make far less in Reno than they would elsewhere .... and that housing will often gobble up more than half the paycheck. As a result, when real skill is needed, it is brought in on a job-by-job basis from elsewhere. (The Silver Legacy casino being a good example).
If this guy is half as good as he claims, Powell Cabinet might have a space for him.
A few years -heck, it had to be the winter of 2001/2002- an area 'contractor' made national news when he put a ship auger through his head, by way of his eye. What was buried in the small print a few days later was that this 'electrician,' working on a custom Tahoe-area house, was unlicensed ("side work"), had no insurance/ workmans' comp, and was pretty much SOL. From my own observations, this sort of arrangement is more the rule than the exception.
Edited 9/16/2009 9:46 am ET by renosteinke
Well, Whats your story with Reno, And where are you at now. What kind of position do you hold, Basically, Are you doing as good as you were 5 years ago. This testing for the license is the same across 30 something states, Using the same testing system. In Philadelphia 11 years ago I only had to give $200 at the counter and walked out with a Contractors license. But wages were no better there. at that time either. And Believe me. It is not any better now. I just finished a Prevailing wage job at Ledgends and it Paid $37. Hr.
Its out there, You just have to look and take what you can get for now, Anywhere.
Edited 9/16/2009 8:21 pm ET by MyCousinVinny
I glad to hear it. Truth be known, I am much better off today than I was 5 years ago. I have been in Reno since 1992, so it's safe to assume I have some familiarity with the place. And, yes, I am a licensed contractor.
$200 and walk away with a license? Not in Nevada. There's you application fee, your test fee, your financial statement, your bond, and (finally) your State license fee. If you hire even temps, you get to enroll in workmans' comp. Then there's the State business license fee, license fees for each town and county, liability insurance (required by many customers, such as Legends). You need an additional license to so much as change a light bulb in a mobile home. The school district requires that ALL tradesmen be asbestos certified, and don't forget the upcoming lead and 30 hr. OSHA certifications.
Good times today in Reno? Right. Ask any convenience store operator: for the past year he has seen a steady parade of customers pass his counter, saying 'No work, I'm going back to Mexico.' No, I am neither making that up, nor exaggerating. The very project you spoke of - Legends - shut down due to the economy last winter.
Or, show up at any bid walk-through. Where you once might have seen a handfull of guys, you now see a busload. Guys who until now only did residential are bidding commercial.
But you already know all this. You know better than to say to the OP "come here, there's lots of work." It's going to cost someone a couple grand to move to a new town, and that's not something to sneeze at.