Not sure how to protect yourself except to state your wishes in the contract? As for the draws; DH and me had a const. loan through a credit union and all we did was call the CR when the builder provided us with an invoice and usually it included several, so that we didn't take multiple draws, then they would deposit in our Personal account. We would write a check to the builder for the established amount. Worked for us!
Good Luck!

Did you require lien releases? If so, from subs, suppliers or both? I.e., do you get one from the framers AND the lumberyard that provided the materials? What is to prevent you from paying your contractor and him not paying the subs or paying the subs but not the suppliers, etc.? That is the real issue I hear coming up and not sure the best way to prevent that from happening.

We did an a fairly large (1100 sq ft) addition, not a new build, but this might pertain to a whole new build.

We worked with our bank on the loan and had 2 options for paying the builder. The first was a bit more expensive, but the bank carried the risk: The bank basically managed the loan money for us and paid the builder after certain criteria were met (inspections, receipts submitted, proof of paying subs.) With the second option, we got the loan and would be responsible for paying the builder and doing all the checks (looking at receipts, etc.) ourselves.

We opted for the first choice. It was more work for the builder but they wanted the job and completely understood our need for the lower risk.

I don't remember what these different options were called by the bank, but it's worth talking to your banker to see what they say. Even if you're not taking out a loan, they might have some services that you could use to manage the payment process.

Wow...wish I could have read that before we started building! Going to definitely look into #5! I honestly don't think our GC is crooked...just that he doesn't have the backup funds of his own...so behind the 8 ball so to speak. Keeping a close eye on the finances though, and getting site specific lien releases...so the subs are signing that the money he paid them is for OUR project, so he can't pay them for someone elses house with our money. Thanks for the info.

The only way to protect yourself is to not pay the builder for more than he has built and for which he can show evidence of payment. It helps to have a design professional to review the status of the work covered by each invoice. A deposit would be held in an escrow account and drawn down according to the terms of the contract. Sometimes retainage is withheld from each invoice, possibly held in escrow and reduced toward the end of the project. This means the contractor finances the project and you will pay a bit more for that service. Unfortunately only larger builders have enough credit to be able to do this.

keep his nuts as a retainer and promise to give them back when it's done?
that's the only way i would ever do this again.

We are paying all bills. The builder received and expended the downpayment. He provided us with supporting documents and is now requesting a draw. Only DH and I handle the funds from this pont forward. We have all liens for the services purchased with the downpayment. I plan to call each vendor to confirm the lien is legal.

Kate LOL...can't wait to see your house- I've been following your progress, well, for a long time. ;0 Your kitchen alone has me checking back here all the time.

First time poster but once I saw this thread just had to post.

HANDLE ALL BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS PERSONALLY, CHECK UP ON YOUR BUILDER and know exactly which companies they use so that you can personally check the invoices and accounts :) Speaking from experience, a horrible, terrible experience. We began construction in April 2010 using a Highly recommended builder who was also our Uncle's cousin. We interviewed some of his old clients, some of his current clients, no problems. After we felt confident we signed the contract, got our plans and he began construction. He was professional (receipts, permits etc), the house was coming up in a timely manner and about 3 months in we get a call from the cement company wanting their bill paid. Then we get a call from the Electrician, then the Hvac, then the plumber, lumber company etc....all wanting their money to the tune of $50,000. Then the calls from his other current clients start coming in.... he did the same thing to them. About this time is when he disappears and leaves us with the mess.

Remember this was a relative w/ a good reputation. We thought we took every precaution, receipts from him saying everything was paid and only gave him the exact amount he asked for by using a construction loan with a draw type acct...never gave any extra. But he was using our money to cover his other projects since he had went in debt on them too. For some reason the lumber, cement and other companies were STILL giving him in store credit even though he had hundreds of thousands overdue. In court for two years since they tried to sue him but that pond was dry (took his land, house, vehicles everything) but money was still owed so they tried to come after us. Thankfully our receipts, recorded phone calls and misc info saved us. We plan to build again in the future but will personally manage all the money and have a tight reign on everything that happens throughout the building process.

And he was "jacking up the invoices" too, by about 40%.... never, ever again will I trust any builder with paying my construction bills.

Did I mention we had to replace our roof shingles because they were installed wrong and rotted the wood around the edge? And had to replace the showers because noone waterproofed the walls or sealed the drain so black mold set in? Don't expect inspectors to catch everything either.... Our situation is definitely in the minority but these horror stories do happen.

Came across a book the other day that I WISH I had read before we started building. It's called "Crumbling Dreams" by Ruth S. Martin and is is available free on the internet. It'll definitely open your eyes to issues of contractor fraud and incompetence and the total lack of help that homeowners can expect from the legal system if they hire the wrong person. I strongly recommend that anyone getting ready to jump into homebuilding read this first.

Here is a link that might be useful: Crumbling Dreams by Ruth S. Martin

I have been having issues with my builder. One thing you definitely should do is require lien releases from any subs before giving him payment. You can also write a joint check made out to him and to his subs so they both have to cash it together. This means there was implied consent that they were both paid. This way you cannot be held liable later if a sub claims he was not paid. Also don't pay in advance if you can help it!

Securing your self is only possible if you write all your conditions in the contract otherwise you will be the victim if something happens. Usually business exploits the trust that you do not need to write this because I trust you but in business benefits matters.And there is another aspect that there are some companies which can give you complete advice about contract and contractor money

Athens, the way your builder is proposing is exactly what we did. We built cost plus with a fixed fee.

We both happen to bank at the same bank, so I opened a new account and gave my builder online access to that account only. We kept $1 in that account. Weekly, his assistant would email me a scanned copy of all of the invoices to be paid for that week. I would transfer the funds from my savings account into the new account by Thursday evening. Once I made the transfer, she would be able to see it instantly. Then she would transfer the funds out of the new account into their business checking account, leaving the $1 balance. Neither of us could see any of the other accounts the other one had with the bank. After all construction was complete, I had the bank remove their ability to have online access to that account.

Most of the subs pick up their checks from her and would sign their lien waivers when they picked up the check. The rest, she would mail it with the check. The next week when she emailed that week's invoices, she would also send the lien waivers from the previous week.

The builder's fixed fee was paid in 7 draws (if I remember correctly), based upon completion of work. We gave no money to our builder in advance. The last draw was paid after the house was complete.

When we got the original quote from our builder, we had not decided yet to do cost plus. We got a quote from him that was fully broken down and even had copies of the bid for the work submitted to him from most of the subs. The actual invoices we received matched up with the original sub's bids.

We did have a construction loan for our build. We funded all of the construction costs from our savings until we used it up. At that point, we would request a draw from our bank and replenish the savings account. Then we would pay the construction costs until we used it up again and would take another draw.

Crooked builders know exactly how to screw you over.

I will add
1. Be proactive!.

Never ever ever allow deliveries that are not for your site.

Watch for HVAC dealer delivering 10 AC unit to your property. When he does not pay for it - it will be you having to deal with lien against your house. All he has to do is request supply house delivery and you are stuck with cleaning up the mess.

I pay weekly draws to my builder after I receive detailed invoices showing how much I need to pay. If the work wasn't done, I don't pay. We haven't had this problem, and hopefully won't due to the fact that our builder is a reputable person.