Thanks, brutuses. I am so glad you said that. We are still in the interviewing GCs stage, and I can't believe that guys won't return calls when you leave a message saying you'd like to meet with them to talk to them about building a house. One guy who came HIGHLY recommended didn't return two phone calls! (said his cell phone must have been out of range) When we finally met him we were very impressed, but still -- I wanted to say "We're interested in having you build our house but are concerned about you not returning phone calls. Would this be the norm all through the build?" Would you really say that to someone you're interviewing? My DH said maybe he doesn't want to give the impression he's desperate for work.

I wouldn't hire a GC who doesn't return phone calls. The GC is essentially a highly paid manager and a manager must be on top of things and if he doesn't return phone calls to a potential client - the future source of his income - he isn't a good manager and therefore probably not a good GC.

With subcontractors, the people who do the actual work, I would be a little bit more accepting. If, let's say, a finish carpenter has phenomenal skills, I'd be willing to accept delayed response, because his expertise is in carpentry, not management.

Brutuses, Why sympathy for those using a GC?

Deanie, when a cell phone is out of range the voice mail system still works. I'd ask the question you posed. If he doesn't like it then you have your answer.

Tom

I also would ask the question. This is a big red flag for me.

Funny. That's exactly what a neighbour told me after a year and a half that he took to g.c. his own home.

Licenced homebuilder

I guess I don't understand the "sympathy" for those of us using a GC, either, in light of the fact that individuals who act as their own GC have to deal with numerous subs, so each one presents the potential for communication problems. Although to each his own, from my perspective, THAT would be a major headache, not to mention time-consuming. Our experience so far is that using a GC makes things VERY simple, b/c we only deal with ONE person--our GC!! HE directs all the subs and handles any "issues" with them. In fact, our GC told us to bring all problems to him and not discuss them with the subs to avoid any potential miscommunications. Of course, I've never waited more than a couple hours for my GC to call me back, on the rare occasion he did not answer the phone when I called. I think you are right that the lesson, regardless of whether we are serving as our own GC or using a GC, is to select people who are accessible and do what they say they will. Good luck!

Without our GC, we would be the ones trying to coordinate a foundation crew, ICF crew, dirt crew, and a framing crew. Our GC has crews that he has used numerous times and who are reliable. Plus he is able to coordinate the crews between multiple jobs. It would have been a huge headache for us to manage all this ourselves.

Unfortunatly, DH has done most of the on-site managing and quality checks. DH gets frustrated since he is missing a lot of work, but at least the job is getting done right.

Oops, I think I offended some people, i.e., GC's. Sorry, that wasn't my intent. I sometimes don't use the correct words when I'm trying to express myself. What I mean to say is those folks who have to hire a stranger to deal with the whole process. I've read horror stories on this forum from people whose GC was incompetent, lazy, and just didn't care. I know not all are like that and the bad ones are in the minority.

deanie1, I'm with your DH on not letting them think I'm desperate. The fact is, my cash money spends anywhere and I'll be darn if I hand it to someone who is not reliable.

We are fortunate that we have not had to hurry to get our house finished. Obviously, it's taken us 4 years now!! We've been able to take our time and hire the right people to do certain jobs. From the very first person I hired, the gentleman who cleared and filled our lot. He didn't srvice residential, but took pity on me and accepted our job. We were so impressed by his professionalism and work ethic. We went out to check on the work and could not believe our eyes when we saw how much time he had taken to ensure the dirt that was added, was level and where it needed to be, not just thrown about and every bit of debri from the tree clearing was removed I'm so glad he was so dependable and that's the foot we started on in building process. I told my husband a that time, this experience reassured me that there are talented and professional people out there to do the work, it's just a matter of finding them.

Up to now we've been blessed with great subs. The gentleman who did our framing was phenominal and we've called him back to put the siding up.

I suppose I posted this message to let people out there who are taking "garbage" from these contrators, that you should stand up to them when they try to jerk you around. Don't accept excuses or poor customer service. Customer service to me is at least 50% of the job if not more?

Again, I apologize if I offended anyone, but if you're doing your job, you shouldn't take offense. You good GC's out there need to be offended by others in your field who are making you look bad by the example they set.

I don't think you offended anyone. I do think that the majority of us using a GC are very happy with them. You read more horror stories posted about GCs because postings saying everything is going great aren't so entertaining. I'm going up to Alaska this autumn and will have a stranger piloting the plane. I have a lot less worries about a stranger GCing my house. Tom