Need Advice - Contractor is Screwing Me!

[kacyk]

Some fo you may remember that we started to build a vacation home in Leavenworth, WA about 14 months ago. We purchased a great fiverfront lot and purchased a PanAbode Log Kit and engaged in an agreement with Coho Construction to provide the labor to build it.

Unfortunately, the deal with the contractor was doen on a hand shake. I do have supporting documentation where I gave him my spend down (from the original budget) every time I paid him. Unfortunately (again) I pre-paid him to do the work.

14 months later, the exterior is still exposed and the roof is not on (and snow is here!). He basically walked off the job stating that he needed more money. The original scope of work was for excavation, foundation, putting up the house (siding, roof, deck, everything), mechanical, septic, electrical and plumbing.

The bastard has $132,000 or my money and is asking more! All materials were provided on site by PanAbode. All he was supposed to do is provide the labor. Currently I have two liens against me from subs and he is asking for $40,000 more to pay off subs and the rest for him. Additonally, none of the septic, mechanical, electrical or plumbing work was done. The hosue is an empty shell still. I actually had to contract with another guy to make it air tight for the winter and put on the roofing materials, set windows etc.

I admit, I was stupid not to get a contract and prepaying was stupid. But there's a lot to that story which I won't bore you with.

My question is do I have any rights? If so, what can I do? I could get a lawyer but I was wondering if there is anything I can do by way of going after his contractor's license, etc. We just moved to Tampa so I'm 3,000 miles away from being able to take a bat to his head! You can't imagine the rage I feel!

Any advice from an experienced builder, contractor or developer would be appreciate it. Including the land I have $550,000 cash rapped up into this deal. We're still planning on using it as a vacation home but I nee to get this builder off my back and these liens. I'd also like to go after some of my money because he didn't finish what he promised but my documentation there is weak.

[Hucky]

You already know this,
Without a Written Contract providing the Scope of Work to be performed by the Contractor and a Money Schedule, you are in a long fight of Arbitration.

I dont know how the Contractors Licensing Board or lack of works in the state that you mentioned but here in California, we have the California State Contractors Licensing Board that helps situations like these. We are all Issued a Contractors License for the Trade that we do.

The first thing that your taught as a Contractor and also on the test of business law is, Do not do a job without a fully detailed contract, including, Notice to Owner, Lien Rights, etc.... It gets thick.

I have only been taken to the contractors board once and they were definitely in the favor of the Homeowner.

I have a sister in law who took a contractor to the Courts and they were definitely in the favor of the Contractor.

Here in California if we do any advertising, T shirts, business cards etc... They must have our Contractors Number on them.

Get his license number, call the Board, Call the City ask about his business license in that city, call the better business bureau.

Act quickly and be relentless

Good Luck

Remember, there is always 2 sides to Every Story Like This?

[RubHer Yellow Ducky]

GOOD LUCK...

Don't have much advise but document what you know, and keep accurate records of all letters. e-mail and telephone calls from this point in time on...DO NOT SLANDER THE GUY !!!!! be very careful, only speak the truth

Contact whoever issues Builders Licenses, BBB, State Attorneys Office, ALL Local Newspapers in the area as well as Local Radio and TV Stations. Ask for help from from local Church Groups to act as intermediareys, be relentless and again DO NOT SLANDER THE CONTRACTOR...don't give him an excuse to..........

PLEASE keep us informed

[wpage]

Sit down with your spouse and document everything. Compose it into a electronic format MS Word for example. Stay objective with it. Send it to the builder with specific milestones of what you want when past present and future in a cover letter...
Give him a week to respond. Then implement a strategy to get what you want thru whatever channels you choose. Better Bus Bureau etc.
Good Luck!!

[mikejr]

whew....sticky situation....was in commercial construction for many years and deal with builders quite often in my real estate brokerage...

You already know the first mistake which was to commence work without a contract and draw schedule.

From what I can glean from your statement you bought the land, you purchased and paid for the log home package, you then hired the contractor to build the property, basically a labor only situation am I correct?

I would consult an attorney within the state of the project and who is familiar with construction law and mechanics liens. Find out what your rights are and seek advice on how to work this out.

You basically have two options.

1) Work out a deal with the contractor to get the job completed and agree upon a fee schedule for same.

2) Work out a compromised settlement with the contractor, pay him and get him off the job and the liens released. Then hire another contractor to complete the work.

Also, anytime you disburse to a contractor always always get a waiver of lien signed by the contractor for the amount of money you are paying it.

Is it possible that general contractor has used the money for other things other than paying his subcontactors on the job? If so, it is possible you could be liable to pay for the work twice.

As I am sure you know, communication is the key in situations to this.

Sure you can go to the media etc in an attempt to compell this contractor to finish the job BUT do you really want a disgruntled contractor finishing your home? I would be afraid of the quality of the work and the short cuts they might take just to get off the job. Be very careful if you work out a deal to keep them on the job....what makes matters even worse is you are 3000 miles from the project and have no way to monitor the work.

[DennisAJC]

Have a heart to heart with this ****. Ask him to justify what he is doing to you. And make sure the tape recorder is running. Sorry to hear. That turns my stomach that you're getting raked by this guy.

Remember to keep your cool. Don't go off kicking his door down shot gun in hand blowin off nipples and kneecaps. You'll lose more than your money.

Sounds like this guy has a gambling or drug or mistress problems.



If it was just labor, the best way would be to pay on job portion completion. He says he'll finish electrical on a certain day, pay him for that portion and so on. Paying somebody in advance for labor is so risky. You put yourself in 100% risk.

[DennisAJC]

Originally Posted by mikejr

Is it possible that general contractor has used the money for other things other than paying his subcontactors on the job? If so, it is possible you could be liable to pay for the work twice.

I've seen that happen before. This is a scary scenario.

[mikejr]

Originally Posted by DennisAJC

I've seen that happen before. This is a scary scenario.

Sure is and with a lien on the property, you cannot convey it and if you arent careful, they claimant can execute the judgement and force the sale of the property. All depends on the laws of your state.

[tower]

I would go with what Hucky said. I have had to deal with this issue before. In CA, there is a website which lists all licensed contractors and all claims brought against them. No contractor wants these "black marks". Also, if you do need to pay again to get the liens lifted, you can pay the subs directly and get releases from them. That way, your GC can't fukk you again.

[NewHummerGuy]

Or you could show them naked pics of your wife.............

[NewHummerGuy]

But seriously though when I had my basement finished and even had a contract with the guy I still got threatened with 3 liens from the electrician, plumber, and concrete guys for the guy I contracted failing to pay them even though I had already paid for job.

Very tricky situation where unfortunately you can be screwed royaly.

Good luck though and I hope it all works out for you

[Alan06SUT]

Call the subs who have the liens and work out a deal with them directly. They want some money and usually are smart enough to realize that half or less is better now than maybe getting the full ammount 2 years plus lawyers fees, etc. down the road. Send a sheriff with a lawsuit to his door. But, get the Lawyer to give you a price first and a schedule of what steps will come, and how much each step will cost, etc. before you start the process. Good luck.

[BKLYNH2]

You need a lawyer.
Your in a bad predicament.
Other than that definitely try to settle with the sub contractors and make sure you get a lien waiver signed by them when you pay them.

[Agriv8r]

our situation was not nearly as bad, the only help i can supply is that in VA since i did not hire the subs, i was not responsible to them...we did go to court and the judge ruled that their beef was with the GC and that we were under no obligation to them....

[Adam in CO]

Originally Posted by kacyk

We purchased a great fiverfront lot

Ours is a sixerfront.

[DRTYFN]

Originally Posted by kacyk

Any advice...

Yeah, you should have had your wife be your liaison - the men would have been mesmerized by her and worked 24 hours a day.

[MarineHawk]

Originally Posted by BKLYNH2

You need a lawyer.
Your in a bad predicament.
Other than that definitely try to settle with the sub contractors and make sure you get a lien waiver signed by them when you pay them.

IMO, BKLYN's right. I would not send anything in writing to this guy until a decent lawyer with experience in contruction litigation approved it. It does not sound like this guy is going to be reasonable without considerable pressure. To whom did you make the checks? To him? Or his co.? Some possible advantages at this point of not having a contract may be that (1) you aren't subject to any arbitration requirements; (2) you are not subject to any contractual damage limitations; and (3) can go after the SOB individually. If you file a credible complaint, including fraud claims seeking punitive and/or treble damages and/or claims for incidental damages (if recoverable under WA state law) against him individually, along with his company, you might get some pretty serious leverage against him pretty quickly. It could make his insurance coverage fail to cover the claims (fraud is never covered, and he is likely not covered individually). In any event, your chances of taking this guy down or even making him become reasonable are vastly improved if you have a good lawyer going at him. It costs, but you are likely to come out ahead in the long run IMO.

[ratesguy]

Lawyer here. Hate to say it but you do need to lawyer up. Did you write any notations on your checks or in the check book? This could be used as a contemporaneous writing evidencing an agreement. Was your deal that he pay the subs out of what you gave him? In that circumstance he would be liable for the subs and you can show you paid him. Remember the law in Washington state may very well have quirks that I don't know(I can not offer you advise as I am not licensed in Wash). Agood lawyer will save you money in the long run.

[mikejr]

Originally Posted by ratesguy

Lawyer here. Hate to say it but you do need to lawyer up. Did you write any notations on your checks or in the check book? This could be used as a contemporaneous writing evidencing an agreement. Was your deal that he pay the subs out of what you gave him? In that circumstance he would be liable for the subs and you can show you paid him. Remember the law in Washington state may very well have quirks that I don't know(I can not offer you advise as I am not licensed in Wash). Agood lawyer will save you money in the long run.