Mr. Contractor 2 (8/8/2020)

After purchasing a house, the new home owner will likely have to address home maintenance issues that can be classified as "known" and "unknown." To eliminate potential surprises, it is always wise to have the house inspected by a professional. This will alert the buyer to any pre-existing problems in the home. Some can be addressed prior to settlement.

Our home inspector found several major issues with our current house which we purchased last November. These would be the "known" issues. For example, our patio deck needed major repairs and possible re-construction. Either option would be quite costly. The heater and hot water tank were reaching the end of their life cycle and would likely need to be replaced in the near future. Plumbing problems existed as well.

The home inspector discovered that the drains to the shower, sink and toilet in our master bathroom were completely clogged. There was also a leak under the sink. In addition, the home inspector noticed that the main sewer pipe had been clogged at one time in the past and he recommended that a certified plumber run a scope through the pipe to ensure that there were no clogging issues.

We deemed the plumbing problems to be unacceptable and demanded that they be fully repaired at the home owner's expense by settlement. As for the patio deck, we were able to negotiate a discount off the purchase price of the house to pay for the repairs. The home inspector found other issues as well but we felt that they were not major and we could address them at our convenience.

After our move-in date we decided to address the heater and hot-water heater first. Hot-water tanks can fail without warning flooding a room with gallons of water. Because an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, replacing the heater furnace before it failed on a cold winter day seemed prudent. We called three contractors for price estimates. The first two contractors arrived at our home on schedule and provided us with written estimates. Neither required a down payment. Both informed us that a permit from our county was required before the work could begin. Contractor 1 offered to get the permit and included it into his price so we favored him over Contractor 2.

The third contractor to provide a price quote was one that we had used in our first house. I favored them because their price was lower than the other two and we had been pleased with their work in the past. After Contractor 3 sent us their price quote we replied promptly asking when they could start the job.

"Let the games begin." Mr. Contractor replied that he would need a 30% down payment to start the job. He rejected our offer to pay him in full at the end of the job, stating that it was their policy to get a down payment before starting a job. We then hired Contractor 1.

Two days later we received a call from Contractor 3:

Contractor 3: Good Morning, when can I pick up the down payment check so that we can start the job?

Me: I'm sorry we hired Contractor 1.

The next day we received an email from Contractor 3:

Contractor 3: Hello, I Wanted to know if you are still interested in moving forward with the installation. I understand you are concerned with having to put a down payment. This is necessary to order equipment and ancillary parts, schedule techs, and to reserve the date. We have always operated in this manner.

Two days later:

Contractor 3 (the owner): Hello, I just wanted to let you know that you don't have to submit a down payment. My contractor did not know that we often waive the down payment for repeat customers.

Me: I'm sorry I already hired Contractor 1.

Contractor 3 (the owner): We really want your business. I will discount the price quote another 20% if you go with us. I can do that because I am the owner. Again, no need for a down payment.

Me: I'm sorry, I always try to avoid down payments with contractors and am willing to pay a higher price if necessary. It would be hypocritical of me to go back on my commitment with Contractor 1 at this point. If things do not workout with him, I will give you a call.

The job was completed by Contractor 1 with no issues. We are very happy with our new heater.

One of the "unknowns" we discovered after moving in was with our front door. It was an old door that proved to be drafty during the cold weather months. During the summer months the navy-blue colored door attracted heat making it extremely hot during the afternoon hours. We also felt that it was not very secure. Our front door had two panels on each side. We did not like that the glass was clear forcing us to cover them from the inside with curtains, thus eliminating the day light that brightened the foyer. Also, there was no storm door in front of the entry door. This is a security risk. We would not want a family member to open the entry door and have no barrier between them and a potential unwanted visitor.

We paid a visit to the local home-center to select our doors. The representative was knowledgeable and helpful in assisting us to choose the proper doors. We were pleased with our selection and scheduled to have a contractor come to our home to take the measurements. The contractor arrived on time and completed the measurements with no substantial alterations in the price. We decided to purchase our doors at the home-center.

The next day we arrived at the home-center with the intention of paying for the doors and scheduling the job, however, we found that the door and window department was unstaffed. After pressing the button at the counter, the intercom repeated the phrase," customer needs assistance in doors and windows". This was repeated several times throughout the store yet no one arrived to take our money. We stopped an employee of the store and told him we needed assistance in the door department. He said he would have someone paged. Shortly thereafter we were treated to that old familiar song, "customer needs assistance in doors and windows." After completing other shopping and loading our van we returned to counter only to find it still unstaffed.

We were about to leave the store when we noticed that the sales representative who placed our original order was working in the rug department. We were hoping that he would ring our sale but instead he said he would send the door and window specialist. The door and window specialist seemed to specializing in not knowing what he was doing. He could not find our order in the system. He seemed confused and continued to ask us if we were ordering two storm doors. At this point we lost total confidence that he would be able to schedule our order properly so we left the store.

We scheduled an appointment with another contractor (Contractor A) who had a showroom ten minutes from our house. After selecting the doors that we wanted, Contractor A sent us a proposal. Although the price was higher than what we had received from the home-center we decided to go with it. We replied to Contractor A. "Let the games begin:"

Me: We agree to your price and would like to schedule the job. When can you schedule a measurement?

Contractor A: Before we schedule a measurement, we will need a 30% down payment of the total price.

Me: Why would you need a down payment for a measurement? Your webpage states that you give free estimates. We would prefer to give you the down payment after the measurement in case it alters the price of the job.

Contractor A: We need the down payment to order supplies. Well, uh, I guess we don't need supplies to do a measurement but it is our policy not to give measurements until we receive the down payment.

After this exchange we called another contractor (Contractor X) who came to our house and took measurements with no charge. We hired him. Two days later he came back to our home and took a second measurement to make sure he had accurate numbers. His price was higher than Contractor A but we felt he was more professional.

A week later Contractor A gave us a call. "Here we go again:"

Contractor A: Hello, I just wanted to touch base and see when you can send the down payment so we can schedule the job.

Me: I'm sorry, we had every intention of hiring you but you would not complete the measurements without money down. Every other contractor came to our house and measured. You are only 10 minutes away and the measurements can be completed in a short period of time.

Contractor A: We're sorry. If I send a contractor out today to do the measurements can we still earn your business.

Me: No, the job has already been scheduled.

In the experiences listed above three contractors let business walk out the door. I am amazed at how many of these companies stay in business. I can only assume that most customers do not do their homework and allow themselves to be intimidated. For the vast majority of jobs there are many contractors who are qualified to do the job. The consumer should not be afraid to say no and continue to shop around.

When you purchase a house, budget to expect the unexpected. Be wary of contractors. What they say they can't do they often can do.