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bikramaddict
mommy-to-be
Member since 8/06 4376 total posts
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Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Dh and I have a lot of damage as a result of the hurricane. We had a contractor come give us an estimate on the same day (coincidentally) that the adjuster was coming to look at our house. He spent a few hours talking to dh and gave a rough estimate of 20-30k. He offered to come back in the afternoon when the adjuster was there to explain everything he found. He heard the adjuster say she was recommending a claim of about 50k. I knew he would suddenly bump his estimate up and I was right.
He was supposed to start demo on weds but with dh away on business I wanted to hold. Our house also isn't ready for it right now. The entire downstairs needs to be ripped out :( so I called him today to say we want to postpone and also asked about my formal estimate. He got super annoyed at me, first saying that dh made a point of saying he wanted the demo this week while he was away (dh said he never said that) and also that when insurance is paying, it is normal to start the work and then get the estimate??? That did not sound right to me. I said I was not comfortable with that and he got upset and accused me of not trusting him.
Am I wrong in thinking that I should have an estimate first, regardless of who is paying? And also ambi wrong for thinking it is strange that a 'rough' estimate could double, strangely after hearing what insurance will pay?
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Posted 9/12/11 7:27 PM  |
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smooney
Hidey Ho!
Member since 2/10 1669 total posts
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Not only should you get an estimate BEFORE he begins work, you should get it in writing. Be sure to read all the small print and clauses. You are totally right, and I would wait until your DH gets home too. Stick to your guns and good luck! There are plenty of other great contractors out there who would be willing to do the work if this doesnt work out..
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| Posted 9/12/11 7:37 PM |
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Mom2Be07
LIF Infant
Member since 7/07 281 total posts
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
I agree with the previous poster. Definitely have an estimate first and get everything in writing. When I did all of the work on my house, the contractor we ended up using gave us an estimate and kept us within our estimate the entire time. He offered a few things here and there as we went along, but left the final decision up to us if we wanted to spend a little extra on a few things. Also, make sure you get copies of his certificate of liability insurance. If he won't give it to you, or keeps coming up with excuses on why he doesn't have it, get rid of him quickly. As far as him getting annoyed with you about waiting until your DH gets home to start, tell him too bad. You are the paying customer and it should be on your terms.
HTH! Good luck!
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| Posted 9/12/11 7:50 PM |
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bikramaddict
mommy-to-be
Member since 8/06 4376 total posts
Name:
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
So I went home and looked at what dh signed. It doesn't detail any scope of work but states that we authorize him to do all necessary repairs to the house to bring it as close back to pre hurricane condition. It also says that the insurance company should pay him directly and has our adjustors name on it. Can he hold us to this?
The first bit of work was drying out our crawlspace which he did and we paid for. That is noted on that paper.
We are so new to all this.
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| Posted 9/12/11 8:34 PM |
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Mrs213
????????
Member since 2/09 18986 total posts
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
He needs to submit an ITEMIZED estimate in writing before doing anything at all!
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| Posted 9/12/11 8:46 PM |
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Have you contacted your lender? I had a sizable claim. The insurance carrier sent the check that had both my name and the lender. In addition, anything over $10,000 would be put into escrow with the lender and as the work progressed they sent a check made out to me only. I signed some papers from the lender that I opted to be the "general contractor" so that I could make the disbursements. There was no way I would allow the contractor to deal directly with my insurance carrier. In fact, I fired my first contractor for contacting the insurance company, where he was arguing with them that he wasn't making much of a profit. I would never let a contractor know how much I received from my insurer. However, did you get this contractor from your insurance company? If so, then the contractor is supposed accept payment directly from the insurer. Good luck!!
I meant to add that I agree with the others, yes, he must give you an itemized estimate. I'm surprised your adjuster didn't tell you this.
Message edited 9/12/2011 11:05:23 PM.
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| Posted 9/12/11 10:54 PM |
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Posted by Dutchess Cloverly
Have you contacted your lender? I had a sizable claim. The insurance carrier sent the check that had both my name and the lender. In addition, anything over $10,000 would be put into escrow with the lender and as the work progressed they sent a check made out to me only. I signed some papers from the lender that I opted to be the "general contractor" so that I could make the disbursements. There was no way I would allow the contractor to deal directly with my insurance carrier. In fact, I fired my first contractor for contacting the insurance company, where he was arguing with them that he wasn't making much of a profit. I would never let a contractor know how much I received from my insurer. However, did you get this contractor from your insurance company? If so, then the contractor is supposed accept payment directly from the insurer. Good luck!!
I meant to add that I agree with the others, yes, he must give you an itemized estimate. I'm surprised your adjuster didn't tell you this.
I was just going to post the same thing.
We put a claim in with Liberty Mutual and anything over $20K had to get written out to us and our lender. They held it in escrow and gave us a third to start off with. After that we had to show receipts of what we paid and then they gave us the second third. We laid out a lot of money and it was a pain. We also have Wells Fargo which according to our adjuster is the worst bank to deal with when it comes to claims.
I would also reconsider hiring this contractor. He doesn't seem honest to me at all and I don't think he should have been their while the adjuster was there. It seems like he planned for this. I don't think an honest contractor would all of sudden change his estimate.
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| Posted 9/12/11 11:37 PM |
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bikramaddict
mommy-to-be
Member since 8/06 4376 total posts
Name:
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Posted by Dutchess Cloverly
Have you contacted your lender? I had a sizable claim. The insurance carrier sent the check that had both my name and the lender. In addition, anything over $10,000 would be put into escrow with the lender and as the work progressed they sent a check made out to me only. I signed some papers from the lender that I opted to be the "general contractor" so that I could make the disbursements. There was no way I would allow the contractor to deal directly with my insurance carrier. In fact, I fired my first contractor for contacting the insurance company, where he was arguing with them that he wasn't making much of a profit. I would never let a contractor know how much I received from my insurer. However, did you get this contractor from your insurance company? If so, then the contractor is supposed accept payment directly from the insurer. Good luck!!
I meant to add that I agree with the others, yes, he must give you an itemized estimate. I'm surprised your adjuster didn't tell you this.
No I did not get the contractor from the adjustors. We did some research online. This company has good reviews and an A plus rating with the BBB. The adjustors explained that the check would come to me but be made out to my lender. I believe the contractor does have the adjustors info now though, just because he was there at the same time. It didn't even dawn on my that his presence could backfire, I just cringed when I heard that the adjustors shared a figure in his presence.
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| Posted 9/13/11 8:30 AM |
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Posted by bikramaddict
No I did not get the contractor from the adjustors. We did some research online. This company has good reviews and an A plus rating with the BBB. The adjustors explained that the check would come to me but be made out to my lender. I believe the contractor does have the adjustors info now though, just because he was there at the same time. It didn't even dawn on my that his presence could backfire, I just cringed when I heard that the adjustors shared a figure in his presence.
My contractor was also highly recommended but he pulled some crap anyway. In your case, I would also reconsider using him. It seems he is using your inexperience as well as overhearing the settlement amount as an opportunity to take advantage.
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| Posted 9/13/11 10:01 AM |
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bikramaddict
mommy-to-be
Member since 8/06 4376 total posts
Name:
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Posted by Dutchess Cloverly
Posted by bikramaddict
No I did not get the contractor from the adjustors. We did some research online. This company has good reviews and an A plus rating with the BBB. The adjustors explained that the check would come to me but be made out to my lender. I believe the contractor does have the adjustors info now though, just because he was there at the same time. It didn't even dawn on my that his presence could backfire, I just cringed when I heard that the adjustors shared a figure in his presence.
My contractor was also highly recommended but he pulled some crap anyway. In your case, I would also reconsider using him. It seems he is using your inexperience as well as overhearing the settlement amount as an opportunity to take advantage.
I spoke with my adjustor this morning just to double check that the insurance company is happy for me to use any contractor I want (they are) and that they will not get involved with the contractor in any way. Once they send the check they are out of the picture.
So I fired the contractor this morning via email and am sending a second letter via certified mail today. I suspect DH (or me) will get a very angry phone call but I don't care. I hate being so green!
So with that said, can you please recommend your contractor? I need someone who can do mold removal too.
TIA!
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| Posted 9/13/11 1:30 PM |
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Jenn627
Laaaaaaaambert!
Member since 5/08 9818 total posts
Name:
Jenn
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
We used Forman Construction based out of Massapequa. We were thrilled with him.
Owner is Matt - 516-798-4114
I don't know if he does mold removal though... 
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| Posted 9/13/11 1:33 PM |
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
I used American Remodeling (516) 996-0466. Warren is the owner. If you call him, tell him Laura from Bellmore gave you his #. Did you have someone come in to do the water remediation? If so, they should have a recommendation for someone to handle mold (or they may handle it as well). When my roof collapsed and I lost two-thirds of my walls in one room from water, I used Milro (I think they are located in Freeport).
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| Posted 9/13/11 2:35 PM |
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dpli
Daylight savings :)
Member since 5/05 13973 total posts
Name:
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
You should have a formal, WRITTEN estimate from a contractor before any work gets done, with a detailed scope of work. It's in the best interest of both parties and any reputable contractor would want to write one out for you.
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| Posted 9/14/11 10:30 AM |
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bikramaddict
mommy-to-be
Member since 8/06 4376 total posts
Name:
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Posted by Dutchess Cloverly
I used American Remodeling (516) 996-0466. Warren is the owner. If you call him, tell him Laura from Bellmore gave you his #. Did you have someone come in to do the water remediation? If so, they should have a recommendation for someone to handle mold (or they may handle it as well). When my roof collapsed and I lost two-thirds of my walls in one room from water, I used Milro (I think they are located in Freeport).
Yes, the shady contractor handled the water with a massive system to dry out my house. He won't be doing anything else for me though! I fired him via email and certified letter return receipt.
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| Posted 9/14/11 2:13 PM |
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Good luck! I know how it is to live after a disaster, but it will be nice and new when it's all said and done! I looked up Milro for you on the web. They do handle mold. As I said I've used them, they were very professional and cleaned up and removed everything! Then came back and vacuumed when picking up their equipment!
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| Posted 9/14/11 3:14 PM |
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Blu-ize
Plan B is Now Plan A
Member since 7/05 32475 total posts
Name:
Susan
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
i have no advice, but that would pizz me off.
How dare he get angry with you.
And for your own information, people pay to be a member of the BBB so I don't trust BBB. Consumer affairs is a true judge.
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| Posted 9/14/11 3:36 PM |
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Posted by Blu-ize
And for your own information, people pay to be a member of the BBB so I don't trust BBB. Consumer affairs is a true judge.
I agree with this 100%. I once had a contractor come to my house for an estimate (I checked him on BBB, no complaints) and he was a complete a#s!
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| Posted 9/14/11 3:40 PM |
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bikramaddict
mommy-to-be
Member since 8/06 4376 total posts
Name:
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
Posted by Dutchess Cloverly
Good luck! I know how it is to live after a disaster, but it will be nice and new when it's all said and done! I looked up Milro for you on the web. They do handle mold. As I said I've used them, they were very professional and cleaned up and removed everything! Then came back and vacuumed when picking up their equipment!
You're so sweet to research that for me, thank you!! 
I have someone coming on Friday to look and give me an estimate. This company does work all over my area so they must be doing something right! I figured it couldn't hurt to talk. I will add this one to the list.
Now I need help with questions please!
1. Estimate (itemized!!)
2. License
3. Timeline
4. Possible start date
What else?
Thank you thank you!
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| Posted 9/14/11 7:00 PM |
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LSP2005
Bunny kisses are so cute!
Member since 5/05 19461 total posts
Name:
L
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Re: Contractor situation - does this sound right to you
You want them bonded and insured as well as licensed.
Also do not pay everything up front. Pay in 1/3 increments. 1/3 to start. 1/3 half way through the project and 1/3 to be due two weeks after completion. That way they still have incentive to finish the job to your satisfaction.
Furthermore, you want to know whether they will order the goods, or are you ordering the materials. Will they pass on a contractor discount from home depot when they order from them? Will they give you the extra materials otherwise you should not have to pay for them.
Message edited 9/14/2011 11:30:05 PM.
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| Posted 9/14/11 11:25 PM |
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