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Posted by Alexander Galkin on February 11, 2005, 12:03 am
I want to build a kitchen addition to my house. Excavation, foundation and
possible floor framing I want to leave to a contractor. Rest of the work I
will be doing myself. How do I find a good reputable contractor in central
NJ? I asked several friends of mine, no one built additions so they cannot
give me any referrals. I had previously very little and bad experience with
contractors. So this time I want to be very careful. I don't want just to
open YellowPages and start calling all building contractors by alphabet.
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Posted by on February 10, 2005, 10:42 pm
Does your state make complaints public info? If so, any agency that
deals in the building trades or licensing, or consumer protection, may
have info you can use to at least avoid the ones they have complaints
on already. Also, court records are public but not always convenient
to search if not online. You can find out from your state's secretary
of state office, usually, what other names or corporation names a
contractor has gone by, to see if there's a pattern of dissolving
corporations to get out of paying judgments or debts. Asking past
customers of a developer is easier because you can go by property
records and ask customers you choose to ask, not just hand-selected
"references." With a remodeler, that's not likely to work. But, if the
records are public, see if the contractor you're considering has filed
any mechanic's liens, (or if his suppliers have had to), and then try
to find those homeowenrs and ask them their side of the story.
Oftentimes they paid the contractor, but the contractor didn't pay his
supplier. Or, they stopped paying a contractor when he didn't perform,
and he placed the lien himself, even if not valid. It happens. Like
the other suggestions said, ask peole who know, like suppliers,
lawyers, etc, but unfortunately there's no guarantees.
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Posted by Phil Scott on February 11, 2005, 11:57 am
> Does your state make complaints public info? If so, any
agency that
> deals in the building trades or licensing, or consumer
protection, may
> have info you can use to at least avoid the ones they have
complaints
> on already.
that just screens out the lowest level of scum bags on the
bottom... not much of an advantage... but better than
nothing... I suggest calling around and asking who is the best
and most reasonable etc.
Also, court records are public but not always convenient
> to search if not online. You can find out from your state's
secretary
> of state office, usually, what other names or corporation
names a
> contractor has gone by, to see if there's a pattern of
dissolving
> corporations to get out of paying judgments or debts. Asking
past
> customers of a developer is easier because you can go by
property
> records and ask customers you choose to ask, not just
hand-selected
> "references." With a remodeler, that's not likely to work.
But, if the
> records are public, see if the contractor you're considering
has filed
> any mechanic's liens, (or if his suppliers have had to), and
then try
> to find those homeowenrs and ask them their side of the
story.
> Oftentimes they paid the contractor, but the contractor
didn't pay his
> supplier. Or, they stopped paying a contractor when he
didn't perform,
> and he placed the lien himself, even if not valid. It
happens. Like
> the other suggestions said, ask peole who know, like
suppliers,
> lawyers, etc, but unfortunately there's no guarantees.
>
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Posted by Gideon on February 12, 2005, 5:27 am
I like that advise. Obviously there are bad customers out there, but if you
talk to enough customers with liens, you should be able to detect patterns to
help you determine if the contractor is consistently at fault.
frippletoot@hotmail.com wrote in message
Does your state make complaints public info? If so, any agency that
deals in the building trades or licensing, or consumer protection, may
have info you can use to at least avoid the ones they have complaints
on already. Also, court records are public but not always convenient
to search if not online. You can find out from your state's secretary
of state office, usually, what other names or corporation names a
contractor has gone by, to see if there's a pattern of dissolving
corporations to get out of paying judgments or debts. Asking past
customers of a developer is easier because you can go by property
records and ask customers you choose to ask, not just hand-selected
"references." With a remodeler, that's not likely to work. But, if the
records are public, see if the contractor you're considering has filed
any mechanic's liens, (or if his suppliers have had to), and then try
to find those homeowenrs and ask them their side of the story.
Oftentimes they paid the contractor, but the contractor didn't pay his
supplier. Or, they stopped paying a contractor when he didn't perform,
and he placed the lien himself, even if not valid. It happens. Like
the other suggestions said, ask peole who know, like suppliers,
lawyers, etc, but unfortunately there's no guarantees.
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Posted by GLT on February 11, 2005, 5:10 am
You might ask for referals through your local lumber yard.
> I want to build a kitchen addition to my house. Excavation, foundation and
> possible floor framing I want to leave to a contractor. Rest of the work I
> will be doing myself. How do I find a good reputable contractor in central
> NJ? I asked several friends of mine, no one built additions so they cannot
> give me any referrals. I had previously very little and bad experience
with
> contractors. So this time I want to be very careful. I don't want just to
> open YellowPages and start calling all building contractors by alphabet.
>
>
>
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