Here in Houston, tile setters generally get about $3-4/SF, which is CHEAP! While that's nice for the builders and homeowners who are more concerned with price than quality, it keeps the trade largely filled with unskilled and illegal workers from Latin America, so finding dedicated, professional tilesetters down here is as rare as hen's teeth. Consequently, while there is a lot of tilework here, it's often shockingly poor. I went on a home tour this past weekend of $1-3 million homes (the tip-top of our market) and the tilework in 7 of the 8 homes positively angered me! To my way of thinking, laying $35-50/sf tile with $3/SF labor, resulting in lippage, miscuts, raw edges and uneven spacing is a crime!

Kathy, I can't begin to tell you how much we have in common! This is my second ground-up build; the first time, my contractor was a very nice guy, but had a major medical event w/his son and basically checked out on me. Luckily I am in a small town where you get to know the guys who have the best reputations in their respective fields, so I had a good relationship already w/my carpenter and my painter, and together they literally helped me finish my house. This time, I was very excited about hiring a real builder, because the stress and sheer time involved in research ( I LIVED on these forums!), purchasing, etc. last time was almost too much. Our GC is a friend, but I also respect his approach to construction ... case in point: most builders in our area like to put on a show of being the boss and rarely want to get their hands dirty; my GC is very hands-on, willing to pick up tools or even a push broom, and I love him for it. After what I've read, I'm very curious about your financial agreement w/this guy. Some builders around here are cost plus, some are flat fee (yes, one guy will build your house for $10K, no matter the size or style, but gets kickbacks from his subs - and squeezes in a bunch of houses in a year), and I'm sure there are other arrangements. We signed a contract w/our builder: after going over the plans, we talked about the level of quality we would want, and he helped us put together a rough budget. After showing us what he thought he could build our house for, we agreed on a flat fee - which came to a little less than 10% of the projected cost. If (when) we went over that number, it would be because of decisions I made and he didn't plan to make money on those. And if those decisions cost me a lot of time and research, that was my choice. I could invest time and save money in the areas I chose, or I could leave decisions and purchasing in his hands and pay the bills when he brought me receipts. We made sure he understood that I'm a very involved homeowner, but I still don't think he'd worked w/anyone who is quite as aggressive as I am about looking for online prices, and buying the things that would save me money in the end. For instance: we wanted the Kohler in-ceiling square shower fixture - the one w/four separate squares of 54 holes? Upon hearing that, he said, "I'll check w/Ardmore Plumbing Supply - they'll probably have to order it, so I'll get an estimated date if you want to start picking out trim for your master shower." Of course, I asked him to get me their price before he ordered through them. I knew I could get the shower for about $460 online; the local store wanted $700+ for the same. Our builder was genuinely surprised when I told him the difference and understood completely why I wanted to order it myself. That Kohler purchase set the tone for the rest of our build so far. He has been great about keeping me abreast of what kinds of things will be needed and when: when the time came to buy lighting, it never occurred to either of us that my desire to go online for great lighting deals should mean it was then my responsibility to buy ALL the lighting - recessed cans/shower lights/fluorescents (sp?) for closets, etc. There aren't many style choices to be made on those pieces of lighting, so he thoughtfully made me a list of lighting he thought I'd want to purchase. I went to Lumens.com - since they don't charge sales tax or shipping charges - and ordered all my bath vanity lighting and ceiling fans while he handled the rest. We found a way to work together that worked for us; as the GC, he took full responsibility for all hiring, scheduling, coordination of subs, measuring and purchasing anything that I didn't speak up to say, "I want to buy this myself." He and his tile guy got a tape, a pad and a pencil, and measured everything for wood flooring and tile - then let me tell him that I'd be getting all the tile, but he should feel free to order the wood flooring from the guy who would be laying it. As on any other project, his first reponsibility is staying on top of the zillion things that have to come together on any construction project. In my opinion, purchasing "visible items", as you said, is a small job compared to what a true GC does. VERY long story short: your GC probably is a nice guy, but he's gotten very comfortable doing things a certain way. An involved homeowner can sometimes be a pain in the *ss, I'm sure, and I can only imagine how much easier it is to work for someone who hands over plans/materials requirements/inspirational photos, and then comes back to the finished product to write checks. But based on my experience, a Contractor who wants to do a quality job and leave a satisfied customer behind is willing to adapt to the needs of that customer, while still offering as much support as possible in the areas that CLEARLY fall under his jurisdiction. Sounds like you need to have a "come to Jesus meeting", as we say here, w/your husband and GC where you state what you plan to do in the process of your reno and what you expect out of your Contractor. If that meeting ends on a positive note, good for you. If not, then - as has already been said - how fortunate you found out now that he isn't a good fit! I wish you all the luck in the world.

momto4boys~~ I didn't keep all of my samples, so don't know if I can help you much or not...but then I was looking for something that would go with pecan stained cherry cabinets instead of black ones. But I did happen to find these the might give you an idea...you can go to the websites and look at them...order several you might want to see (they are free samples) and ask for 5x3" pieces so you have a better idea of the laminate. Have you looked at Wilson Art?...they have some great looking laminate also. The one I saw that was similar was Wilsonart Laminate 4550-01 Granite.... If we had used laminate (although it is not cheap by any means) would have been Formica Labrador Granite Honed Finish #3692-77, but I think it would make your kitchen way too dark with black cabinets, but I just kept going back to that sample. My granite tiles look similar to downsy's (only lighter), but we had the cabinet shop cut our wooden edges in the ogee (?) shape with their router....and wish I knew how to post pics, but I don't seem to get that mastered in this old mind~~~ Your kitchen is going to look great.....and I know it is a huge stress for you. Thinking good thoughts for you and your decisions.

I am almost finished with my MB in Portland, OR. The labor to install calacatta floor, tub surround (including a 16" backsplash plus pencil liner on three sides (very intricate work because of my curved walls and beveled calacatta subway tile), cut down and fabricate edge and install marble base, shower, and vanity backsplash with pencil liner was approximately $8,000.(plus $2500 for demo of my MB) (I don't even want to add up my material cost...I'd rather stay in denial.) My bathroom is approximately 100 sq. feet. The tile work and new shower took 3-1/2 weeks of really hard work by my tile people. My total bill from my tile person which included radiant heating, demolition, the above installation, material (with exception of $2500 of material I supplied and also not including my slab counter) was approximately $17,000. I have been through many remodels, but this was the easiest because of my outstanding tile person. He completed the work as promised in a timely manner and the attitude and workmanship of the entire staff were outstanding. If you need a recommendation in the Portland area, I would highly recommend them.