I am not building ahome- but I have found out in the past couple of years how people are just absolute blatent liars!! They lie about what they did, when they will be there, steal MY material, do a sh y job when they do do it! And these are people who have been recommended by 'upscale' dealers, they are your (mine) neighbors. I can sooo feel your frustration and pain! WHY are some people like this??? I feel like getting even, somehow, wish I could find a legal forum for advice! Sorry you are going through this- I built a how several years again, and said 'NEVER AGAIN'.... but now I have to ......I wish I drank, (alot), I wish I had some 'happy' drugs. I wish I had a gun, a flame thrower, a voodoo doll, great big bulldozer.....

I am at my wits end today. When DH talked to the builder yesterday he said he would be at the house this morning, he never showed up. I guess I could understand the subs but now he is doing it to us. He was suppose to be putting in the trim and the closet shelves over a week ago and still nothing. DH called him today and asked him to call us and he never did. DH said he sees how it works now. He will not call us back until he goes out there and does something. I am just tired of it. Tired of fighting to get someone out there, tired of being told something is going to happen, driving out there all happy and then having this HUGE disappointment. I told DH the excitement is just gone. Knowing you are so close but yet it seems like there is so much left to do. I talked to the bank today and she said she does not see how we would be ready to close before Christmas if no one has been out there working. She said they would have to be out there everyday the next few weeks. We still have to have the inspections done by the bank and for the septic, we need to get our inspector out there it has to be surveyed again. I really am trying to stay positive but when you told lies day after day you just give up. I am so at the point. LOL! DH and I are going to drive out there once DD goes to sleep. She hates going out there anymore. She said it has looked the same since her birthday (Oct 6th) and she is right!! *sigh* I really do not think they were there this afternoon and it is just a waste of gas but DH wants to go.

ilmbg, I am so with you on the voodoo doll! If I could make them work on my house I would do anything I could! LOL!

I really don't want to be a whiner! I went out to mine 3 times today just to see WHAT was getting done. To GC's credit, he's busting his hump finishing all HIS stuff. The marble guy was there all day long and all he got done was the tub surround. Not sure if he OD'd on turkey, or what, but he's moving a little slow.

Okay, so kel, on the bright side, I think I mentioned this before--we must believe that WHEN all the subs do as they should, that things will happen very quickly. Honestly, if you think about it, most subs like plumbers, electricians, really only need a few days to do their thing. SO, if all the stars align and the planets are in their houses...OR WHATEVER!!!!!!!! HAHA!

I told DH I think the thing that really upsets me is I don't like being lied to. I don't appreciate subs making up excuses for why they didn't do their job when they were supposed to do it. If you ain't coming, just say, "I ain't coming". Don't make up some lame excuse why! UGH.

I also have slowly, but surely, figured out that if a sub should be at your house and he's not, he sure enough isn't going to answer the phone!

My build really has been okay up until now. I have found the whole process pretty gratifying, actually. But now that we're down to the wire, we just don't have the luxury of take our sweet time to do things and I'm exhausted. Living in chaos is such a drain and I'm ready for things to calm down and get back to boring ol' family life!

I will say a prayer for all of us and hopefully sleep tonight, knowing that tomorrow is another day...full of promises.

I agree with you superchick, I am sure that what they have to do will probably only take a day or two. I am just so tired of being told this will happen on this day and then it never happens. It is with the subs and the builder! He will tell me they will be there a certain day and they never show up. I have to be honest, I have never once complained to him. I think I have been more then fair. He told my sister that DH and I are the most patient people he has ever know. I think we have been more then patient with everything. The foundation was started in April but never got poured until July. The house sat the whole month of August with the only thing being done was the roof put on and the windows put in. The builder has not even been out to our house in weeks if not more then a month. I have sent him receipts for almost $800 on lights I have bought and have asked and asked if I am going to get refunded for them. DH and I drove out there tonight just to see if maybe they came out and nothing. He never returned out call today so tomorrow I am going to call him and I hope I reach him. I am just going to ask what is going on. Why is nothing being done? Is it because the subs are busy, we can't get them out there? Is he busy to where he is not able to come out? What is going on? That is really all I want to know. I understand that this is not his only job but I want to know why we are not seeing any work done.

Ok, well I am so tired, I have to get to bed.

I am with you Girls!! I can't stand when someone says they will be there and then they are not. I would rather them not even GIVE me a specific time. My mother and I drove out to my house to meet the septic contractor the other day. He said he would be there at 1:00. His wife called and said he would be a little late. At 2:30, after my mother and I fell asleep in the car, he showed up with an excuse. The next time I was to meet him, I said SPECIFICALLY that I need to meet him between 3:45 and 4:00. He said he would be there. At 3:37 I called him to tell him I was already there. He said he was waiting for his wife who had just walked in Lowe's... 20 MINUTES AWAY. I told him to forget it. I couldn't wait. THAT KIND OF STUFF DRIVES ME CRAZY!!!!!!!!!! They sure show up on time to pick up their checks, don't they???

Oh, I feel your pain. I too wonder why people don't just say what they mean and mean what they say. Uggggh. Sometimes people really do come up against a problem and can't make it. But the ones that bother me are the consistantly "absent" ones who, if they do bother to answer the phone, say "I'll be there this evening", or "We'll be there tomorrow" and then you still don't see them for 2 weeks.

How about committing to a trade and thinking that they are going to be working on what you asked them to do. And then when you are down to the wire and ask when they will do their thing, they inform you that you are FIFTH on their list, and they won't be getting to you for 2 months, and then can't even promise for sure that date.

Believe me... that one made me want to tear my hair out. Had they told me that to begin with, I'd have gone with another equally good option. Which is probably why it was never mentioned in ANY conversations. And when I'd ask about scheduling, they'd say "whatever your time frame is". How does that translate to being 5th on a list? ;O(

Anyway, superchick, I'm sorry for your trials. And all of our other GW fellow builders too. I think some of us are having more challenges in this area than others. I just keep telling myself that soon these people will be out of my life and I can get back to real life, enjoying our new home with my family. Oh, that day can't come soon enough!! ;o)

I'm here to join the club. I didn't know how widespread this lying was. I especially like how defensive my builder gets when I politely call him on his false timelines and poor planning. I don't even think my builder is purposely trying to be deceitful. It's ingrained in the trade. He's a nice person and I think he wants things done right.

As far as some subs go a family member told me to remember that they are not "building your house" but they are "collecting a paycheck." How true, I have about 50% of the subs that are great but the house needs all of them to do their jobs to get done on time.

Has anybody sicked their mortgage company on their builder? I'm tempted to ask mine to do it even though they have thought of multiple ways to take more money from me. It's like telling the Wicked Witch of the West to fight Freddy Kruger. You won't like the outcome either way but you're running out of options. I'm on extensions with monthly penalties too.

Back to the lying. I'm not near as mad with "I can't make it." than some outright lie to string me along.

Rant done.

Wish I had an answer for ya'll but it is the nature of the business. I lost excitement for the build after about 3-4 months and my kids hated going out to the site everyday as well. We GC'd the house and I cannot tell you how many people could not believe it was "only" 7 months from slab pour to move in. I stayed on subs (calling or tracking them down) and we never had more than 2 days in a row with no one working at the house. The subs (especially painters) have to move around from house to house so we rarely got a full day out of them. It was more like 1/2 day at one place and 1/2 day at another. Although, I can just picture them sitting at home too!

I hope your builds move along quickly but I will warn you that everyone seems to slow down during the holidays. They do not understand the urgency homeowners feel.

I hate late people but even worse are the ones that fail to show up. I am sure over the course of the build I have lost over $2500 in time off work which I spent waiting for people show up and then having to reschedule. As a mother of 2 kids that works full time and goes to school, I know that things come up and life doesn't always go as planned but give me a break!

The icing on the cake was when the GC accused me of putting things behind schedule because I wouldn't let the trades into the house. GMAFB!! On one occasion I said the painters couldn't come in the house but they could work in the garage. It was only because my daycare was closed and I had a teenager come to the house to look after my girls. I thought it was pretty fair!

I guess we will see if the cabinet guy shows up tomorrow or Thursday. I really will be shocked if he does. At least I am not the only one dealing with this! LOL!

We actually live at our build site ( we will tear down our old house when we are done). I think that actually helps our cause. Although our builder is slow... he is also very meticulus. For the most part our subs do show up when they are supposed to.... most know one of us is usually there. Also every sub that has done ay amount of work for us now know me, knows my kids, knows my dogs ( who chew up their cell phones! LOL) and even know our horses. I think we have gotten a few breaks over a house that's sitting alone.

Of course if my GC isn't there he calls me to get reports as to who is and isn't there, when they left etc!

My DH and I work a lot- but I work at night and him during the day. If our build was off site, we would never see the house and this would be much tougher.

we're living on site too, Ponydoc. It does make it easier to see the progress, and it is making for nice relations between our family and most of our subs too. Actually, we get along great with all of our subs.

We are GC'ing ourselves, and this is a first for a build (we've done remodel before). So maybe there is a learning curve? he, he

It's just disappointing that one trade doesn't always show when they say they will. And the other "fifth on the list trade" has great referrals from everyone, so I'm just hoping that somehow I was supposed to "know" that I'd be on a long list. :op LOL!

OH well. I just tell myself this too shall pass. We are business owners and keep our word. I didn't know anyone ran a business any other way. This has been eye opening, indeed.