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These billboard ideas are great!
Homeowners need to get this message, The United Contractors Association has a winner here to fight the unlicensed in Sacramento. See the billboard concepts in link below.
Scott
Billboard (http://gouca.org/bb.html - broken link)
These billboard ideas are great!
Homeowners need to get this message, The United Contractors Association has a winner here to fight the unlicensed in Sacramento. See the billboard concepts in link below.
Scott
Billboard (http://gouca.org/bb.html - broken link)
Check out the news video on that site as well. That is a good example of what happens with many unlicensed contractors.
Another very important consideration of using unlicensed builders, GC's, and other contractors is the lack of support you might receive from your local, county or State officials. These officials generally have control over properly licensed persons conducting business under their jurisdictions. Many times these officials have little authority to chase down and prosecute unlicensed persons on their own. In addition their resources to even do that are limited. The response you will often hear from these officials is that you should speak with an attorney about what your options are. In other words it becomes a civil court issue and you will now have to pay to chase them down.
On the upside from the original post, the owner has given the go-ahead to get everything fixed the right way. Work starts next Tuesday, should take about 4 days to get everything up to standard. Maybe 5 with waiting for drywall mud to cure.
Lisa I barely agree with you on hiring an Inspector. I feel if one is not qualified them self to know what they are getting into then they should not be getting into it. And I can say this because so very few Home Inspectors were ever a contractor of any kind. A written test with ASHI and they are licensed to look at your home and offer opinions. Tell me what's the difference between a Home Inspector who never played the game but passed a test and an Electrician who never played the game but passed the written test.
Besides....you ever see the disclosure the Home Inspectors give you? They are not liable for anything they tell you no matter how wrong, no matter the consequences.
Barking Spider this is not to put you or your trade down in any way but what I said covers the whole scope of what the business is all about.
Pretty general statements here. Sure, there are some home inspectors that don't know what they are doing, just like there are contractors, handymen, and a multitude of other professionals who are neither skilled or experienced enough to perform the tasks of their job.
The tone of this post is pretty offensive to home inspectors who are highly trained and licensed to conduct the scope of services commonly contained in a home inspection contract.
Not only am I a licensed home inspector, but also a licensed Architect. I can assure that my experience, education, and involvement in construction projects from as little as a home additional to as large as a multi-million dollar commercial complex says that my input when I put on my inspector hate should be well regarded.
The reason why there are so many disclosures in a home inspectors agreement is really pretty simple. The majority of times, the person ordering an inspection doesn't own the property to be inspected. This means that we can't punch holes in walls, do any type of distructuve investigation, or peel back any component which doesn't belong to us. Additionally, it is pretty common that before a home goes on the market, "repairs" are made in a manner which is more about concealing the problem than actually fixing it. Those are things that we can't be responsible for either.
As far as the value of a reputable home inspection company, how many contractors do you know that carry moisture detectors, gas detectors, radon detectors, and thermal imaging cameras? These are all pieces of equipment which allow a home inspector the oppurtunity to evaluate potential problems without the need for any destructive investigation.
While we are on the subject, and putting my Architect hat back on. I don't believe that anybody that is not well versed in construction processes or improvement projects should be working with a contractor one on one. Not only does an Architect provide people a knowledgable design process which ensures that the clients goals are met, the Architect also acts as a liason between owner and contractor to ensure that the contracts and agreements are fair and well executed per the construction documents prior to authorized payment. We hear horror stories all the time about people getting taken by contractors, and like the OP I can't count the numbers of times that I have been called in for both roles Architect and Inspector to try and figure out what is done wrong in order to fix it.
Most people think that they can't afford an Architect. Most people end up spending MORE money with the Contractor than if they hired an Architect from the start.
I am just curious desertsun what exactly your profession is.
Pretty general statements here. Sure, there are some home inspectors that don't know what they are doing, just like there are contractors, handymen, and a multitude of other professionals who are neither skilled or experienced enough to perform the tasks of their job.
The tone of this post is pretty offensive to home inspectors who are highly trained and licensed to conduct the scope of services commonly contained in a home inspection contract.
Not only am I a licensed home inspector, but also a licensed Architect. I can assure that my experience, education, and involvement in construction projects from as little as a home additional to as large as a multi-million dollar commercial complex says that my input when I put on my inspector hate should be well regarded.
The reason why there are so many disclosures in a home inspectors agreement is really pretty simple. The majority of times, the person ordering an inspection doesn't own the property to be inspected. This means that we can't punch holes in walls, do any type of distructuve investigation, or peel back any component which doesn't belong to us. Additionally, it is pretty common that before a home goes on the market, "repairs" are made in a manner which is more about concealing the problem than actually fixing it. Those are things that we can't be responsible for either.
As far as the value of a reputable home inspection company, how many contractors do you know that carry moisture detectors, gas detectors, radon detectors, and thermal imaging cameras? These are all pieces of equipment which allow a home inspector the oppurtunity to evaluate potential problems without the need for any destructive investigation.
While we are on the subject, and putting my Architect hat back on. I don't believe that anybody that is not well versed in construction processes or improvement projects should be working with a contractor one on one. Not only does an Architect provide people a knowledgable design process which ensures that the clients goals are met, the Architect also acts as a liason between owner and contractor to ensure that the contracts and agreements are fair and well executed per the construction documents prior to authorized payment. We hear horror stories all the time about people getting taken by contractors, and like the OP I can't count the numbers of times that I have been called in for both roles Architect and Inspector to try and figure out what is done wrong in order to fix it.
Most people think that they can't afford an Architect. Most people end up spending MORE money with the Contractor than if they hired an Architect from the start.
I am just curious desertsun what exactly your profession is.
On Friday, I got called out to look at a house, being told it needed a couple of windows replaced and some trim work done around the tub. This is a house that has been bought, but under contingency that several things be fixed. The owner of the property hired someone to do the work, but didn't check references, licenses, etc.
This is what happens when you hire someone without references.
First, the guy tore out a bearing wall and replaced it with a beam.
See the arrow? The beam is about an inch too short for the opening. It is barely sitting on one stud of the double stud brace. Also, the beam isn't thick enough to attach drywall to and finish out the wall.
Next, he was supposed to replace a vinyl tub surround because the old one was stained and cracked. The new surround was already purchased, just gotta pull the old one off, smooth the walls, and put the new one up.
Got real far, didn't he? The one panel that he managed to pull off is laying on the floor in the bathroom...
Next, he had a "buddy" of his come in and replace the old electrical panel to 'save the owner some money'.
Isn't that nice? He gave them a new panel and a vent at the same time. Btw, the bottom of the panel is almost as bad.
And finally, he was supposed to fix an issue with the kitchen sub-floor and put new linoleum down.
Wonderful job here. From what I can tell, there are are about 6 screws holding down a 4x8 sheet of plywood, which is 1/4" too thin to match the existing sub-floor. Oh, and the shiny stuff you see at the edge of the plywood? That's packing tape.
This is by no means the extent of things that this guy dropped the ball on, but these are the only pictures that turned out well enough to post here (the camera on my phone is pretty poor and I didn't have my digital cam with me). He also neglected to replace the 2 window panes he was originally called out for, installed the new front door in the wrong opening (yeah, he did), and destroyed 2 rooms worth of wainscoting.
The former "contractor" will no longer answer his phone or return phone calls, which is why I got called in. I didn't ask how much he got paid for what he did, but in my opinion he should pay the owner for the things he screwed up. Not that I'm complaining over getting a week's worth of work, but it seriously ticks me off knowing that there are people out there who do this kind of work and call themselves professional handymen.
In another thread, I took exception to desertsun41 making a derogetory comment about handymen. I take pride in my work, and won't even attempt a job unless I know exactly what I am doing. However, these pics show that there are people out there who deserve every bit of disdain we can give them.
Moral of the story? Get references, check licenses, and don't pay until the work is done.
Its a little late but did you ever ask about the required township permits and inspections for this work ?
I say that you need to look at more than if the person is a licensed professional but that he has CURRENT insurance and check that it effective. Many cities maintain this. I have seen when i was working in contstruction professional comments on other so called profesional licensed perosn;"and he is a licensed professional".I also witness many that I worked with i college actually do crummy work.Also make sure inspections are done and you know who the inspector was. All just in case the worse happens and you endup filing a claim or in court.
Its a little late but did you ever ask about the required township permits and inspections for this work ?
Yep, made the calls right after I left the house, before I called the owner to talk it over. I've since then also met the inspector at the house to talk things over.
The electrical is being contracted, since a) I'm not licensed for it and b) I've been shocked plenty in my life, thank you very much.
The only 2 issues that may have been affected by my licensing are the beam wall and the front door issue. However, since the beam wall is already opened up, I can fix it. And since the front door is now considered an interior door, thanks to the last guy putting a new front door on the covered porch, and the new front door is a slab door (therefore no structural demolition to install it, just some trim work afterward), I'm covered on that as well.
The only thing in the house that requires a permit is the beam wall, and the permit is still active.
Quote:
Originally Posted by texdav
I say that you need to look at more than if the person is a licensed professional but that he has CURRENT insurance and check that it effective.
^^ what texdav said.
I always keep 3 things with me when I go to talk to a potential customer:
1) Copy of my business license
2) Copy of my proof of liability insurance
3) A notebook full of references, some of which were jobs that went perfect, and some of which I had to go back a few days later to fix something that I dropped the ball on or that the customer wasn't completely happy with.
The first thing I do once we get past the introduction part is to hand them a copy of my license and POI. I write down the contact number for each so that the customer doesn't have to track it down. If they ask for references, I write down names and phone numbers and a brief summary of the work I did for the person. And I'm always painfully honest if the work is something I haven't done much of.
Again, just because the person is licensed and insured doesn't necessarily mean he's good at what he does. However, it is a good way to make sure you have something to fall back on if things go sour. The references are where you get the information on how good he is. Get at least 3, and preferably 5, and call them.
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