Solicit bid from builder...and then wait...how long?
cpacker
11 years ago
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Comments (12)
GreenDesigns
11 years agokelhuck
11 years agoRelated Discussions
How long do y'all usually have to wait for your daylily order?
Comments (18)Joy: The seller's name on the LA is Wormman20030, his actual name is Marvin Wilkins and he is from Falkner, Mississippi. I bought from two different vendors in February and March. Remember, I am in Texas and in February I am out in the garden while some of the rest of y'all are looking at snow. I knew they could not dig daylilies in snow and asked when they did ship, and they told me mid April which was fine with me. The other vendor send a beautiful shipment in April but I heard nothing from Marvin. I believe is was the beginning of May I sent him and email and he replied that he was a one man operation and would try to get to it the next week. Weeks went by, and nothing. I sent another email which was ignored. I finally got fed up, left negative feedback, and later took advantage of the mediating service at LA to request a refund. It is extremely hot here in Texas, too hot to plant. I continued to hear nothing from Marvin and wrote again to the LA. They said that Marvin had written them (but not me) and told them he was going to process a refund and all I had to do is provide a Paypal address. (Let me put in a plug for the LA mediating service here, I was upset, they were patient and understanding) I sent him my Paypal address and again, heard nothing. No emails, no explanation, no refund. I feel that from February to June is an unconscionable wait without explanation. If something was wrong, he could have emailed, he was well enough to email the LA, but has ignored me. The money is not a lot to some people, I understand that some people spend thousands on daylilies and I wish I could, but it is enough that I can't afford to buy more daylilies this year and of course even if I could, it is too hot to plant. I felt that since I have been talking about this incident it is only fair to mention the vendor's name. I would more than welcome him to come here and offer an explanation; as of now I have no explanation, no daylilies, and no refund. Some very nice people have taken their time to email me with the names of vendors who they feel have integrity; after getting over my initial hurt I think I will use the DA again but under the guidance of some of those more experienced. Some points were made that there are good, hardworking vendors that sell quality plants and I agree because the other vendor was like that, so my beef is not with the LA, it is with Marvin....See MoreOpinions Solicited: Fabrics to update Dining Room
Comments (34)Tinam, you are right that it's all about the region one lives in.....red may be trendy in some areas and not others. I was kind of hoping to hang on to it until it was in again :-) I like the idea of a stencil, rorah, as that way I could get exactly the right colors--- but mtn has got the red completely right with that Cole and sons wallpaper. I like it, it is a bit toned down but the gold is fantastic, as in the coral and gold paper. Maybe I am just longing for bling and don't realize it! I have to admit I am also liking the idea of a very white or shades of cream room, although that is completely unlike me. Lots of ideas to consider here and I appreciate all the input. Creating a room that is lovely and welcoming and comfortable and elegant is not an easy task! Many thanks! I will post later after I have seen what ID #1 has to say. And VERY good news--- finally got the bid on the basement renovation and it is about 50% less than my "worse case" scenario and about 20% less than my expectation, so I am seriously excited and we are starting right after Christmas! Not getting the handmade brick made a huge difference in the price of the flooring. Luckily, I found a locally made brick I like even more, the brick size is better and they are doing a run just for my basement, then slicing off 1/2" for my floor. The rest of the brick will be pulverized and recycled into more brick. This stuff is so reasonable I am now going to brick the service hallway on the other side of the house AND the wine cellar!...See MoreHow to deal with high contractor bids based on your location?
Comments (25)As a cabinetmaker, here is how I judge cost... Any work that I do in the shop costs the same as any other work in the shop. My shop rate is a product of all of my production costs, overhead, insurances, etc, and profit. It doesn't matter if I'm building a 65k kitchen or a 1500 vanity... if I'm in the shop, same cost per hour. Things that change the equation are location.... If I'm traveling more than an hour away from the shop, or in a strange location (many reasons) price creeps up. If we're dealing w/ a difficult or expensive material, price creeps up. Lots of change orders... price creeps up. When I present a price to a client, I actually give them two prices... basically the high end low end pricing for my product. My clients and I typically agree on a price somewhere in the middle. High end options are things like... beaded inset vs. overlay, mantle style hood cabinet vs. microhood cabinet, frame and panel end panels vs. flat plywood, furniture foot details vs. standard toe space, etc... As a business owner I'm constantly adjusting my shop rate, and bottom line. If the price of plywood goes up, so does my bid. If my insurance rates go up, so does my bid. If I find that most of my bids are received... I probably need to start charging a bit more. If I can't get a bid... probably need to come down. It's an ever changing animal. The most frustrating thing is when you ask a homeowner what their budget is and they look at you like you have two heads. Any time homeowners were honest enough to tell me what they have to spend, things have worked out the best. Since I know my costs... and they have 15k to spend... They can pick from a bunch of options to get what they want for the 15k. And... because I'm crazy I guess... I usually give up a few things because the client is easy to work with... My two cents... worth just that -Kris...See MoreLONG! Builder possibly bankrupt
Comments (39)We are in Iowa. I will look into that contractor recovery fund. That would make us feel better about all this. If we walk away, we will lose our 15k. Actually we've pretty much already lost our 15k. It went to the builder (who's now bankrupt) and the bank says it went towards the build. So we're already getting a 'credit' because otherwise the banks investment would have been $340k. Gee thanks bank. But still, walking away may be our best option unfortunately. I'm trying to take emotions out of it, but the lot is in a secluded neighborhood surrounded by 13 acres of woods. The lot itself is 1.5 acres and most of it will remain timber. It's very unique and not something we will find elsewhere. I know someone will finish the house and live there even if it's not us. That would sting a bit. But also trying to be rationale that I don't want a lemon of a house and definitely don't want to be broke to do it. The excavator only has about 50k into the project. Not sure how it would make financial sense for him to buy it and try to make back his money and a profit. I guess we'll go about getting the numbers to see what it will cost to finish. But I'm afraid to make it viable, we would have to offer the back around 220k or so for the house. A huge loss to the bank, however if they build it themselves with no prospect of a buyer (it's in a small town, over an hour from large cities), they may lose even more....See Morechispa
11 years agocpacker
11 years agocpacker
11 years agobevangel_i_h8_h0uzz
11 years agoBrian_Knight
11 years agoRobin
11 years agorenovator8
11 years agonycefarm_gw
11 years agocpacker
11 years ago
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