Having a room enclosed and some doors installed, not a huge job, quoted around $4,600.

I've had a hard time finding contractors even interested in the job.

Found a highly rated contractor on Thumbtack, he's asking for half payment up front to help purchase supplies, etc… it's in his contract.

I generally feel like if a contractor can't front the cost for supplies he's not very legit but I don't have a lot of options.

Thoughts?

Where is he ordering it from? Can you order it and just pay by credit? For small jobs before the contractor has called me from Lowe's and I paid over the phone but he was a trusted friend.

I've done half down. I've done nothing down. It usually depends on what I'm having done.

I prefer 25 percent down. Another 25 when you show up with materials and the balance upon completion

It's very common. It just depends on the size of the company and their credit line. If you must do this, make sure your contract is solid, check references, pay with credit card if you can so you can at least dispute a charge if you need to. Making sure your ducks are lined up will give you some remedies. Check his other work. Call past customers. Bad contractors don't just show up and all of a sudden suck. They have a pattern.

I agree

Op. Where are you located

Give us a rough material list of the job
How many doors because depending on interior at 200.00 or exterior at 6-800 2300 is alot of upfront money

Framing -$1,600
Drywall- $1,400
Doors Install - $450
Baseboards - $250
Paint - $900

I'm purchasing the doors separately.

I've received 3 quotes for the job ranging from $3,800 to $6,500. $6,500 guy won't respond to any communication so he's out.

The ratings were just on Thumbtack and were from prior customers. Not how else I'd to determine if a contractor is good or not.

I'm in the burbs north of Dallas.

Why does he need upfront money for that that is 300-400 in material u til he gets to the paint and honestly I would also buy the paint that way you get to pick the quality

I dont how it works in Dallas and maybe they have alot of people back out before the job starts and with ipfront money that secures you getting him and him not losing a job because you change your mind

The bad thing is that it could be he wants to make sure a customer is committed and secure the job with a downpayment.

It could also mean he is paying for this job with a previous job and has no credit left to pay for materials. I see this a lot as well.

Check ratings. While BBB is generally not useful, it does at least prove that he's willing to play the game. Is he a BBB member? Does he have google reviews ? Does he have a Facebook business page? Does he have an online presence? There is zero reason for a legit contractor not to come up on a Google search in some form in 2023. That's my personal opinion, of course.

BigNastyNate said:

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Framing -$1,600
Drywall- $1,400
Doors Install - $450
Baseboards - $250
Paint - $900

I'm purchasing the doors separately.

I've received 3 quotes for the job ranging from $3,800 to $6,500. $6,500 guy won't respond to any communication so he's out.

The ratings were just on Thumbtack and were from prior customers. Not how else I'd to determine if a contractor is good or not.

I'm in the burbs north of Dallas.

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Tell him you'll pay him promptly after each phase is completed to satisfaction. Most I would give "to start" is $1000. But, again, $1,000 upfront shouldn't matter to him unless he's in over his head elsewhere.

My sister, in Dallas, hired a fence contractor that came highly recommend. Ran away with the half down. Went silent. Her husband finally got a hold of him, the contractor said that if he called him again he would kill their entire family. He had recorded the call. The police and da said it was a civil matter until he acts.

I know it is the 1 in a 1000 situation. I tell contractors that I will pay immediately upon completion and remind them they have lien rights. Never had a problem. If the contractor can't float materials, they aren't worth doing business with.

dallasiteinsa02 said:

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My sister, in Dallas, hired a fence contractor that came highly recommend. Ran away with the half down. Went silent. Her husband finally got a hold of him, the contractor said that if he called him again he would kill their entire family. He had recorded the call. The police and da said it was a civil matter until he acts.

I know it is the 1 in a 1000 situation. I tell contractors that I will pay immediately upon completion and remind them they have lien rights. Never had a problem. If the contractor can't float materials, they aren't worth doing business with.

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First half of your story is totally insane, literally. Sorry that happened.

2nd half, I agree. Especially considering the job size of a fence, $4600 job, etc. And if contractor wants to invoice for materials, then those materials need to be on the job and in-use by various trades. I mean, heck, whether it's a supply house or big box store, materials can be bought with credit card which doesn't have to be paid off right away. Also, no trade that a GC/remodeler would pay gets paid until work is done, so I have never understood the upfront thing. It doesn't add up.
- materials on the job and in-use
- trades on the job and working
If those things are happening then an invoice by the GC/remodeler for those specific things is valid because it can be somewhat quantified by the customer.

Tell him to get you a materials list and go buy the materials yourself. He can keep his markup on materials if you just deduct the materials bill from his quote.

Or DIY. Sounds like he is making some good coin.

I had a bigger contractor remodel my bathroom. I had to put 1/3rd down.

When I had my house painted, nothing down, but I paid for the paint and materials that the contractor ordered from Sherwin Williams.

Many smaller scale contractors are not very rigid with writing up a contract, and even if they do, rarely get a signature. If a contractor does not get an official contract signed, a deposit, be it 1/3 or 1/2, is in many states considered an agreement to the contract and is binding.

A deposit, even if it is a few hundred dollars, represents commitment for both parties. If a contractor does not get at least a small deposit, goes and purchases materials, the customer could find a cheaper contractor in the meantime and before you know it, the contractor may have been purchased materials and is stuck with them. Yes, 2x4's and sheetrock can be used again, but in general the situation is not good. Conversely the contractor SHOULD keep that customer's place in line and even if a more lucrative job should come along, he should do the jobs in order.

As far as the customer paying for materials? I understand some contractors markup heavy. I do not and don't like when some guys get greedy here. If someone were to buy dimensional lumber, sheetock, etc, I wouldn't care. But other parts or materials I would. I used a customer's water-based 2-part urethane a few years ago, applied it according to directions, turned into a nightmare. I have many more examples. Maybe a faucet or other appliance gets installed but there is an issue with it, you may think the plumber installed it incorrectly, but it may be truly defective. Who pays to figure it out and reinstall if you acquired it? So it can muddy up the warranty process.

There will always be exceptions and examples where a customer or contractor does some unethical practices...that is unfortunately a part of the trade and almost all business. The moral of the story is to get a few bids, read his/her contract, do not be afraid to alter the contract to your liking before you sign it, and do your research to find a reputable contractor. See their work. And look at who is recommending that contractor...if your friend has really low standards, and recommends a certain contractor, maybe they are not for you? Or if the work that you see is not really close to what you are looking to have done, they may not have the skill to do your job?

This is why we need licensed contractors in Texas

Just another tax and just fyi

I dont know if still like this but College station to pull a permit had to be a licensed contractor

Fill out a form with name address and phone number
And now you are a licensed contractor

Just another tax no thanks

I'm a licensed contractor in Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Florida. I had to pass a not so easy test to make sure I knew what I was doing before I built buildings that could fall and kill people, or injure our tradesmen.

In Texas, bubba can put his sign on his truck and he's in business. He may or may not be qualified to build anything.

Respectfully disagree. But I know where you are comimg from. Less govt is always better. But there are a lot of really bad contractors in Texas with unlimited competitors.

Check out www.Nextdoor.com for other contractor recommendations. I personally would not pay anything up front.

Besides the consumer protection, the biggest issue for me is safety. Our industry kills a lot of people. The tradesman like yourself deserve a safe job site. Your not getting that with chuck and a truck.

Apparently you have never ordered windows that were 16-20 weeks out, or appliances that were 8-10 months out.

It is a tax if a city requires a permit and never visits the site to inspect the final product. Ex. City requires permit for reroof. Claims it is for safety such as furnance/heater vents not installed back correctly. But never inspects the exterior much less climbs in the attic to check vents.

JP76 said:

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Apparently you have never ordered windows that were 16-20 weeks out, or appliances that were 8-10 months out.

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Sure have - multiple times for hundreds of windows. For my windows I do 50% upfront. My window company/supplier is not a contractor, they are just that a vendor/supplier. And, actually windows is the only category where upfront money is given. My appliances don't get billed for by the supplier until they are in my possession, especially these days/since Covid.

As a reminder we are talking about the OP which is a $4600 job, where the "reputable" contractor wants half upfront. That smells and is a red flag to me. I bill for work completed. That's my stance/opinion. To each their own.

I've never paid anything upfront unless I know the contractor personally and have used before.

Find someone who trusts YOU, not the other way around.

I'd be out on paying 1/2 to some fake reviewed angie's list contractor

JBLHAG03 said:

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Check out www.Nextdoor.com for other contractor recommendations. I personally would not pay anything up front.

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Nextdoor recommendations are usually paid ads.

BigNastyNate said:

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He was cool with 25% down… we shall see.

He's been responsive after I cut him a check so I feel like that's a positive sign.

Not a ton of contractors jumping at a small job so I decided to go with it.

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Just a tick over a $1000 so that's better. Hope all works out! Keep us posted.

mts6175 said:

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JBLHAG03 said:

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Check out www.Nextdoor.com for other contractor recommendations. I personally would not pay anything up front.

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Nextdoor recommendations are usually paid ads.

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Directly from next door, but you can ask other neighbors.

TMoney2007 said:

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maddiedou said:

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Just another tax and just fyi

I dont know if still like this but College station to pull a permit had to be a licensed contractor

Fill out a form with name address and phone number
And now you are a licensed contractor

Just another tax no thanks

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That's not a license,... that's a registration.

You don't get to complain about fly by night contractors anymore because the super obvious answer that mitigates this issue in many many other places is unacceptable to you.

Its not a tax, its a barrier to entry that provides consumer protection. So, again, if you want to dismiss the solution out of hand, you don't get to complain about the problem.

You sound like a peach to work with.

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I was not complaining about fly by night contractors the thread is about upfront money that almost everybody in this industry trys to get upfront but the guy wanted 1/2 (2300) for 2x4s and sheetrock that is where I came in and posted

Then went to contractors having licenses which I disagree with alot and here is why

Builders have licenses and they screw their subs over every week by beating down their price or just not paying
Just because you are licensed does not mean you are ethical or smarter

I do not know JP but I would bet money with or without a license he is smarter than most people in this type of industry

I am also in this type of industry and just for you TMoney I have done many million,1/2 million ,1/4 million and a bunch of less than 100,000 jobs without any upfront money or signing a contract

In fact I just finished over the last three months a closet for10,000 ,a bath for11,000 ,a balcony 17,000 and a plumbing job. 26,000 and all or finished and no upfront or signed contract just a word of mouth

And the bath is paying me out as they get the money
So I would not have you picking any peaches for me if it came to picking a good peach.

I've had a handyman quote $500 for miscellaneous tasks that were labor only and wanted half upfront. Then was a jerk when I questioned it.