(03/21/08)
Contractor Services
Please use this discussion thread to inform other homeowners of the quality of service contractors have provided you. It is our intent to provide homeowners with a list of trusted contractors (as determined by you) to ensure that no one falls victim to sub-standard work, extremely high prices, or rip-off scams. Our discussions should help serve as a reference for various types of contractors. Please include enough information for other homeowners to make an informed decision.
Note: As a retired general contractor, I have a few tips I would like to share with you:
(1) If you ask a contractor for a list of references, they will give you a list of only the customers who were satisfied with their services...never the one's who were not! Relatives, friends, and hopefully this discussion thread, should be good sources of information concerning prior contractor experiences.
(2) Never give a contractor money before work begins...you may never see them again. You can, however, agree to pay for materials purchased and delivered to the job site. If a contractor insists on money during the construction phase, ensure that the money given to them is worth the work already performed. For large projects, I recommend that you have a contract that stipulates exactly what is to be done, how much it will cost, how unexpected repairs and costs are to be handled, and how payment(s) will be made. I always provided my customers with a receipt and explanation of all the materials I purchased...no receipt, my loss.
(3) Be cautious of contractors with P.O. Box addresses.
(4) Contractor signs on cars are harder to trace than license plates, should the need arise. It's not a bad idea to write down the license plate number of the primary contractor.
(5) Should you have any major problems with a contractor that can not be adequately resolved, please check San Antonio's Better Business Bureau (BBB) for additional support: http://www.sanantonio.bbb.org/ The BBB provides a link to lodge formal complaints and to obtain information.
We hope this discussion thread proves useful to everyone.
Leonard Minnala / Vice President, Board of Directors
