building additions (insurance, house, purchase)

[BigV]

I'd like to know what's involved with building an addition to the house with minimal costs.

There are companies out there who provide their own architects and handle everything from start to finish, and would cost around 120-135K.

However, there is one individual who has a crew and builds additions for around 70-90K, saving a chunk of change.

The issue with this individual is that he is not licensed or insured, however, I'm told that I can purchase a builder's risk policy as a homeowner. I've see this guy's work and feel confident about the quality.

My question is this - have any of you build additions? Pros and Cons?

How did you handle insurance or any tips you can give me to cover my back when venturing into the building/remodeling?

[chet everett]

You would be utterly insane to attempt to have any major addition done by a guy that is not licensed and insured. Odds are the reasons that he does not carry insurance and has not applied to the State of Illinois is becuase he is not qualified to hold an appropriate license. The State of Illinois does NOT license "General Contractors" or "Remodelers" as many states do, however if you are building NEW space that space is going to need a ROOF and THEY DO license roofers. Further to get permits you need to have plans approved by the local authorities and they generally WILL NOT approve plans drawn up by some one that is NOT either a Licensed Architect OR a firm that is a Licensed Design Firm -- http://www.idfpr.com/dpr/apply/forms/f1419lt.pdf (broken link)

It is not just about "quality" it is about timeliness and warranties and responsibility. I have experience with lots of guys that really know their stuff when it comes to carpentry or electrical or plumbing, but getting ONE responsible General Contractor to coordinate all the subs AND provide oversight as well as a single point of contact to remedy any problems costs time and money. The very best GCs will be insured and will have a relationship with the appropriately licensed firms they need. The guys (often from the old country...) that do not follow that model will take longer to get the work done and cannot be relied on to "make sure everything is done right" by the subs.

As far as COSTS I know, from personal experience, that there are DOZENS of fully licensed and insured firms throughout the region that have MUCH more competitive pricing than the places that advertise their "soup to nuts" type services. Many of the firms that are more low key will be glad to work with you to get the best values on materials, while the "soup to nuts" type firms typically like to use their own suppliers to be able to stick to a very tight schedule, and the added costs of the in-house delivery and other overhead are passed on to the customer...

[AuDiBelle]

Originally Posted by BigV

I'd like to know what's involved with building an addition to the house with minimal costs.

There are companies out there who provide their own architects and handle everything from start to finish, and would cost around 120-135K.

However, there is one individual who has a crew and builds additions for around 70-90K, saving a chunk of change.

The issue with this individual is that he is not licensed or insured, however, I'm told that I can purchase a builder's risk policy as a homeowner. I've see this guy's work and feel confident about the quality.

My question is this - have any of you build additions? Pros and Cons?

How did you handle insurance or any tips you can give me to cover my back when venturing into the building/remodeling?

Yikes, I would keep shopping around estimates if I were you. No way would I recommend having any uninsured contractors do work on your home... the risks are too great. They could up and leave mid-project and leave you SOL, and no contractor wants to touch a job that another contractor started. They could get injured on the job and sue you, the homeowner. There are just too many risks to warrant the cost savings.

If you want to limit the costs, look into being your own contractor. Have an architect draw up your plans and hire out the work. This takes a good amount of time, work, and patience on your part, but you stand to save a bundle at the end.

Also, depending on your town ordinances and permits, they most likely will require proof of insurance by any contractor doing work on your home.

[jamaicabound60565]

Don't work with anyone uninsured. Thats a smart policy to have even on a small project but an addition could put the entire structure of your home at risk if not done correctly and to do this with someone who is not insured would not be smart.

I too am always out to save a buck but any reputable contractor will have insurance.

I recently found a guy who did some work for me at a very reasonable price, dirt cheap actually but he was licensed bonded and insured. If your willing to work around his schedule and wait til he's slow to start your work you'll get the best deal. Theres some contractors who would rather go to the bar and nt work than to work for under their ridiculously high prices but ths guys a good guy says he'd rather be working for a days wages than nothing at all so sometiem he may even work hourly just for a days worth of work. If you want pm me. I can show you pics of his work as well.