Our project was to unmuddle an addition that had been done to our 1918 bungalow in the early 1980's. We let the contractor order the windows because we wanted him to be responsible/liable if something was messed up. We wanted to match them to those already in the house. Sure enough, he ordered the wrong type divisions in the lower half of our double hung windows and had to resolve the issue himself. We'd make that decision again. We purchased all doors, 7 of them, because we could get them much cheaper than the contractor (priced them both ways). We purchased other supplies when we could get them at better prices. Where we did save money buying ourselves was always through internet shopping. His quotes from stores were often higher than what I could get after patiently browsing the internet.

when we had some work done over the summer we left all materials up to him, that way if something was wrong HE was responsible for it... worked out good. we could have gotten better prices buying some stuff ourselves, but we figured it was worth it knowing we werent liable for sub standard materials, ordering wrong size, etc. we were replacing about 20 windows with vinyl replacments, and if the size is wrong they are not returnable. our gc ended up eating the cost of 3 picture windows because someone measured wrong.

As electricians frequently working for general contractors, it is common for home owners to purchase ceiling fans and chandeliers as they go out and make their own selections. On the other hand we furnish all materials relating to the wiring. Regarding something as important as windows and doors, you and the GC should be working in concert on these items.

We've done a mix, depending on the work involved.
When we replaced windows, the contractor ordered everything for reasons stated in earlier posts. However, when we did a recent remodel that included new flooring, light fixtures and bathroom upgrade, we made most of the purchases ourselves at the contractor's suggestion. Cheaper for us to do it that way - if it went through the contractor he would have had to add on (taxes, etc.). The materials required for the actual installation he provided.

A contractor should be able to buy any building material cheaper than you can. Even if he marks then up it should be cheaper.

We GC'd the renovation ourselves. I worked with each sub to determine who would purchase materials. For the larger jobs like drywall and roofing, I let the sub supply everything. Most everything else I purchased myself using contractor supply sources, the internet, and my sub's own supply houses.

Many of the subs, such as the electrician and plumber, let me purchase thru their supplier without marking up. I would go choose and pick up the materials, and then pay the supply houses directly, meaning I'd take care of all transportation and taxes. This saved the subs a lot of time schlepping around town.

We have a contractor furnishing mart in Seattle where I could purchase tile, carpeting, flooring, and quartz countertops at wholesale prices. I worked with my tile guy to deterimine exactly how much of each tile I'd need, even the amount of grout. He supplied the backer boards and other construction materials.

For doors, interior trim, wood (finishing and studs), door hardware and hinges I had another supplier that gave me a contractor/industry discount. I worked with my carpenter to determine how much of each I'd need.

For finishing the doors, I went to a commercial finish/paint house. Because I was able to bring in more than 10 doors at one time, they gave me the commercial rate, which was $75 a door for 2 coats of lacquer, vs $150 a door.

Cabinets I got at contractor prices directly from the manufacturer. Sinks and faucets I got online at Homeclick, taking advantage of holiday weekend sales to get upwards of 50% off on high end stuff, such as Grohe and Franke. I compared priced to my plumber's supply house at his contractor prices, and I was still saving money by buying online.

Appliances...I had 3 companies bidding against each other for entire packages. The high end stuff such as the Wolf rangetopo came in at one price set by the regional distributor, no bargaining on that. But we got other things like the LG frige and Asko dishwasher where they could give me a discount.

Just to show you how much markup can be...my entryway chandelier was $750 retail, $500 was the cheapest I could find online, and $250 thru my electrician.

Pricing is difficult and time-consuming. If you have the time and inclination, discuss with your GC where you might be able to save some money and purchase yourself. Ask him if he'll forgo his markup if you do the legwork and transportation, so all he has to do is come to work and everything is there ready to go. Some guys will, others won't. But it never hurts to ask.

>A contractor should be able to buy any building material cheaper than you can. Even if he marks then up it should be cheaper.

I can order from the same lumberyard that he does and I get the same price. *g* So...not always!

And I can go to the same contractor/builder supply houses and get the same discount that he can...so not always also!

We found that our contractor was not reasonable. He charged too much for items like ceiling fans, paint, inferior oak wood for floors, bottom line....he was NOT honest. Keep a close eye on the famous "upcharges!" We have several friends who need work done on their homes and after seeing what our contractor pulled on us, they would never use him. The nut missed out on a lot of business because he got greedy.

Kat123 and others, how do you actually know the split for labor and material in every situation? It is easy for those items where an allowance is specified in the contract (for example, bathroom fixtures) but for example for hardwood floor he has the installation and material as a single amount. Same for wood trim, doors etc. Should we ask for everything to be itemized?

Brunosonio, i have a question about buying cabinets at contractor prices directly from the manufacturer. How do you do that? I asked my contractor whether we can use his discount to buy kitchen cabinets from the local place where he got his own cabinets, he said it is not possible, that the store would not sell to us at contractor discount. I think he was honest because he is not selling cabinets to us so there would be no reason for him to make it up.
So I am very interested to learn how it worked in your case.

Thanks
Anna

Anna...I was able to purchase directly from my cabinet manufacturer by using a contractor license number, even if it wasn't a contractor that was doing my job. I actually had a GC at the time I purchased the cabinets, but fired him soon after before the job even began, for various reasons. But I've heard of cases where someone has a friend who is a contractor or sub who will let them use their number to make the purchase.

Essentially, what it does is to legally bypass the retail restrictions that most wholesale/manufacturers have with their retail outlets. They cannot sell directly to the public, or some choose not to to avoid the mountain of paperwork involved.

It's the same in the decorating business...if you have a designer's license or a friend who has a license, you can buy furniture at outrageous discounts, upwards of 40-60% off retail. We bought some furniture thru a friend who works at a furniture store...he gave us the industry/family discount of 35% and still made his profit.

In our case on the cabinets, all we had to do was supply the contractor number. There were two options for payment...one was for the contractor to open a line of credit, and the other was for us to write a check directly to the manufacturer, which is what we did.

The drawback of doing that is that you have to write a check for the full amount of the cabinets up front, and pay the state sales taxes. But I found customer service at my cabinet company to be exemplary, even when there were some small problems like mis-measured cabinets and missing pieces. Everything was taken care of fairly and honestly, and I was well-looked after thru the whole process.

You have to be able to get a contractor to allow you to use his number. It doesn't have to be a GC, it can be a licensed carpenter or any other sub you know.

One caveat with GC's...if you pay directly, then most likely they will charge you more for labor and installation. They will try to make their 20% upcharge at some point along the way. You might be better off buying the cabinets yourself and paying a carpenter to install them as separate charges. That is, if you can get away from using a GC. GC's have their purpose, and you pay for the convenience of not having to worry about scheduling, ordering materials, and dealing with difficult subs.