Question for those who have done major reno or build

[aprilsails]

Finally ask for copies of the invoices from the subs (roofers, plumbers, suppliers, etc). Ask to see the original quote and scope of work and a clear explanation of the required changes. Grill them on why these constitute changes and were not included in the original contract.

In my experience contractors are bullies but they also don’t like to fight. If they don’t have documentation to back up their claims they won’t get anywhere if you go to court and they know it (and in the residential sphere, they are notorious for having poor documentation). Push back hard, ask for all the paperwork, and they will start revising the prices down or dropping them off entirely.

[aprilsails]

rikki And finally, big hugs to you. I realize this was obviously a major investment on your part to make your amazing home your amazing dream home. It’s a huge sacrifice to move out and be inconvenienced for months to do that scale of work. It cannot be at all easier to manage this in the time of Covid.

If you have any other questions please let me know. I’m more than happy to help you draft an email. I deal with $1M change notices on the regular for my job, and it sucks, but I’m not emotionally invested or personally inconvenienced.

[winecat]

Nov 17, 2020 11:07:39 GMT -5 aprilsails said:

Finally ask for copies of the invoices from the subs (roofers, plumbers, suppliers, etc). Ask to see the original quote and scope of work and a clear explanation of the required changes. Grill them on why these constitute changes and were not included in the original contract.

In my experience contractors are bullies but they also don’t like to fight. If they don’t have documentation to back up their claims they won’t get anywhere if you go to court and they know it (and in the residential sphere, they are notorious for having poor documentation). Push back hard, ask for all the paperwork, and they will start revising the prices down or dropping them off entirely.

I have limited experience but in what I've dealt with they were huge bullies with shitty record keeping so I eventually prevailed but they did their best to intimidate me.  I hired a lawyer for an hour to go over what I'd done to make sure all of what I had was watertight before meeting with the contractors.  I wanted to feel 1000% confident because they were such assholes.

[cuadrado]

OMG I would freaking lose my shit.

We renovated our house last year and gutted the entire thing. I would say 90% of our change orders were from decisions we made ourselves (picking out a nicer appliance, upgrading tile, deciding to move a window, etc.). Differences in structural stuff compared to our bid were very insignificant. Maybe a few hundred dollars here or there. We also had to approve everything as we went along. We had an amazing contractor who was also an accountant but the example you posted here is not acceptable IMO.

[hbomdiggity]

Do you have a project manager overseeing the work for you? Is someone visiting the site daily on your behalf?

These issues tend to come down to how tight the scope is drafted. And dealing with an existing structure adds another level of risk. You need someone knowledgeable about the trades to hash out what is a true “change” versus what was reasonably contemplated and included in the bid. Everyone thinks they have an ironclad contract, but as someone who deals with this as a career, it’s never as clear as you thought it was - whether it be a $5k job or $500M.