House Contractor Won't Finish - Repercussions?

[treillw]

Built a house and moved in about 9 months ago. There are multiple things which the contractor has not completed. At this point, I don't have any indication that he intends to complete it.

What courses of action might I have to either get him to complete this work, or get reimbursed for getting somebody else to complete it? Liens? etc?

Thanks!

 

[*zap*]

First I would have a face to face talk and be sure about where things stand. Why was he paid in full if he was not done or was he not paid in full?

 

[IH8Cali]

What's in writing?

 

[treillw]

First I would have a face to face talk and be sure about where things stand. Why was he paid in full if he was not done or was he not paid in full?

Not paid in full for entire contract, but some of the items have been paid in full and issues discovered after the fact - improperly sized beam, etc.

 

[treillw]

What's in writing?

Most definitely. Unfortunately doesn't seem to matter to him.

 

[*zap*]

That sounds expensive, good luck. I hope it goes well for you.

 

[ben h]

That's a bummer. Just guessing, but you probably don't have a bonded contractor and/or don't have a good contract. Don't waste your time or money in court and get someone else to finish it. I'm a structural engineer, shoot me over some details and I can tell you if you have structural issues.

 

[IH8Cali]

We put off for years, then cancelled plans all together for an addition, specifically because of this reason. I'm truly sympathetic to what you're going through and I wish you the best. If the contractor is not responsive to contractual obligations, you have to get representation. Determine the total cost of unfinished work, and compare that to approximately 6 months to a year of legal battle. Money is not the only cost in this equation as well.

 

[gbflyer]

People get pretty descriptive on Google and Yahoo reviews, Angie’s List, Facebook, etc. It can be fairly damaging. I’d think your contractor would want to take care of you. They aren’t always going to have more work than they can do.

 

[Charlie-NY]

It's funny just how agreeable contractors get when the lawsuit lands. Guess how I know.

 

[wnelson14]

I've been around construction for a while now, just finished building a house (I am no contractor, but have worked for one). This is very common especially where I live. These contractors/tradesman have so much work, are extremely unorganized, stressed etc, they all seem to do a job to 80-95%, its a real bummer and very unprofessional.
If it was me, I would call the contractor to come look at a "new job" you want them to do (Shop, shed, outdoor kitchen, etc.), the new job being completely BS, but upon arrival talk to him about what he hasn't finished, at least that would get him in front of what wasn't done and confronted without being confrontational and a reminder that he hasn't finished. Might work, might not, but at least he would be intrigued to head over if a new job was presented.

 

[Minute_of_Antelope]

We put off for years, then cancelled plans all together for an addition, specifically because of this reason. I'm truly sympathetic to what you're going through and I wish you the best. If the contractor is not responsive to contractual obligations, you have to get representation. Determine the total cost of unfinished work, and compare that to approximately 6 months to a year of legal battle. Money is not the only cost in this equation as well.

I was a litigator in a past life, and this is a good answer you should heed.

You Can hire a lawyer on a small retainer and get them to send some version of a cure letter to the contractor. Maybe that does something. But more importantly the atty can give you some realistic sense of whether the juice is worth the litigation squeeze.

And PS, if it’s a big deal like it sounds, don’t avoid talking to an attorney just because it’s uncomfortable.

 

[Broomd]

Happened to us.

My wife and I built our place here in ID in '06-07. Did much of the work ourselves, but did contract select areas like the electrical work. Near the end of our build, the elect. contractor decided to completely bail on us for absolutely no reason other than he had closer, more porfitable work arise.

We were paying him per as the job went along, so we weren't out a fortune when he abandoned us. He owed us work for some of the money already paid. Aggravating as hell? Damn straight. Worth suing? Hell no.
We picked up all the fixtures at his office (we had pre-purchased them) and never paid him another cent.
Found a very local guy (who we are now great friends with) and got it done. I did much of the work--ceiling fans, spa GFI, etc--he did the service boxes, house and generator, etc and then inspected and signed off on all of it, saved us money in the end.

Maybe you'll come out ahead, hopeful for you!

 

[quaggy25]

If you have an improperly sized beam you probably have code violations and more than one. If they are a licensed contractor, have a building inspector take a look and if there are issues you can report them to the licensing agency and they may revoke their license. Document everything with pictures and documents as well.

 

[wyodan]

Not paid in full for entire contract, but some of the items have been paid in full and issues discovered after the fact - improperly sized beam, etc.

Withhold money from the items he has not been paid in full for. Hopefully your contract indicates that payment does not constitute acceptance.

Now that I am curious though, was the beam not sized as in the plans?

 

[hodgeman]

Consult an attorney... contracts are binding documents. Failure to meet the terms of a contract needs to land in litigation.

 

[fmyth]

Built a house and moved in about 9 months ago. There are multiple things which the contractor has not completed. At this point, I don't have any indication that he intends to complete it.

What courses of action might I have to either get him to complete this work, or get reimbursed for getting somebody else to complete it? Liens? etc?

Thanks!

What State?

 

[hh76]

Is there a disagreement about what they are responsible for, or are they just ignoring?

 

[CRBMAN]

I am an electrical contractor. I can tell you right now, if it's not on a signed contract, you're probably SOL. Too bad we you have to go through this. Consult an attorney. Also was the home inspected?

 

[Bubblehide]

Contractors are licensed/need to be licensed in the state they work in. The is a Contractors Licensing Board for every state. You can file a formal complaint with them, they will investigate, and can revoke his license.