Signing Contract Today with G/C !!! : )

12 years ago

For those of you that remember, back in February our GC that we were working with for 6 months had underestimated his "guestimate" by about $75,000.

Thanks for encouraging us to get other estimates. We took the last 2-3 months to get three MORE estimates and they were all about $40,000 lower than the original guy. (BTW, he had apologized and really took all the blame for being so off. There were some reasons behind it but I won't post the huge thread again now..)

Anyway, he ended up coming down to where the others guys were AND included a bunch of things we wanted! We're so happy as he is quite reputable and I have to say although he screwed up the guestimate he has been a pleasure to work with since last August. DH and I feel he may be making less on this job than he normally does (he has a big overhead with high end customers- which we aren't) but he has shown that his reputation is important to him as well as the fact he knows he messed up and said the least he could do is take most of that on himself.

We're so excited to be working with someone we are confident in has proven himself to be someone you'd want to work with. We really thought he would "let us go" and were shocked he really wanted the job at such a lower cost. Of course, he has workers to keep busy, etc. He said he started the project with us and wants to see it through.

Anyway, we're scheduled to start in June (we hope) so we are thrilled : )

Thanks for listening and for your support. GardenWeb has made a huge difference in all the decisions we are making : )

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Comments (12)

TracyO
12 years ago
Congrats 2LittleFishies.

I can't even imagine going through such a big project. I am so glad this resource exists. Gardenweb helped me make a little(~$700) grill decision a couple weeks ago and it was So helpful to have everyones help.

Go team GW.
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1929Spanish
12 years ago
Yippee...congrats.
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To the OP - I would consult an attorney before you do anything else. Even if it is clearly spelled out in the contract that doesn't necessarily mean it is collectible. From your description I believe you are discussing a design-build firm rather than an independent architect. If it is, in fact, an independent architect then their failure to be aware of costs becomes less of a concern for him and a problem for you. I only understand a small bit of Canadian law, which is to say that I understand that contract law in Canada is pretty similar to contract law in the U.S. and that is the extent of my knowledge. In every contract there is a requirement that the parties act honestly and in good faith. Your theory seems to be that they didn't act in good faith during the design phase, because there is a reasonable expectation that a design-build firm has enough understanding of costs to keep them reasonable. Instead they acted to increase the cost of the build so that they could profit from the additional revenues, in both the design phase and the build phase. That is a theory that gets a lot of traction here in the U.S. and no matter the terms of the contract, they can't act in bad faith. Whether or not that this particular situation gets a lot of traction in Canada is something I just don't know, but I suspect it does. Your best bet is to spend just a little bit on a qualified attorney and get this behind you. I wouldn't advise waiting and doing nothing, although that is also viable, if they do pursue it, waiting will just close several doors that are open to you right now. Personally, I tend to be very aggressive on these things and would communicate to the firm that I will subpoena information on all previous design clients if they want to continue.
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home4all6
12 years ago
Yay!
I followed your thread closely, as we are trying to make decisions on who to sign with as we begin our project. In fact, I *think* we are going to sign a contract with an architect tonight, to get the ball rolling. I am excited, but nervous, too...
I like knowing that GW has my back--
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2LittleFishies
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks!

PS- We are also aware (before someone brings it up) there are annoyances to this situation... like that originally he was asking we cut a bunch of our "wants" to fit into his budget... and NOW we are paying so much less, not cutting anything- and actually have added things! That IS a bit annoying b/c we lost 2 months (not really lost time) to research and now he's doing what we wanted to begin with... We get that. However, like someone said (was it Boxer?) It's better to dance with the devil you know than the one you don't!
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home4all6
12 years ago
We recently bought and read the book "What Your Contractor Can't tell You" and the author talks about that very thing--dance with the devil you know! It's a back-and-forth, and you'd rather know who/what you are dealing with than not.

It's a great book, by the way, that I think you'd find very useful, too!

Here is a link that might be useful: book
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lavender_lass
12 years ago
Fishies- Congrats! Just make sure you get the price in writing, with no confusion this time! I'm so glad that you're finally getting started...but I do think you've taken advantage of the extra time and will end up with a kitchen you'll really love :)

Home- Very exciting! Post a thread and let us know if you're still moving the basement stairs and opening the kitchen to the dining room.
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2LittleFishies
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks lavender- Yes, the 10+ page contract is VERY specific ; )
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CEFreeman
12 years ago
Congrats.

But I'd keep a serious eye on every single step, installation, trim, you name it.

I don't know if I'd be all that happy, but then, like you said, you're not posting all the reasons.

It doesn't matter that he has high end clients, BTW. All that matters is YOU. It's not a recommendation, it's not a given that things will be perfect. Don't let yourself finding reasons why something isn't what you want. Just as it was recommended with that original OMG thread, OK?

You deserve a good, honest job. [inset stern look] We'll be watching to help you keep things in line!
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docmamma
12 years ago
I am very happy for you Fishies. I remember that thread well and I am so glad that it worked out for you. We just signed our contract with our GC and are planning to begin in june too. I can't wait to follow along with your progress.
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clarygrace
12 years ago
Great news after all the delays and I wish you all the best! Will be cheering you along thru GW posts and I agree with CEFFreeman's words of advice and encouragement, she's spot on, as always!!!
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lavender_lass
12 years ago
10 pages is a good start! LOL I'm glad everything has worked out, but don't assume anything. I'm sure he is a very good GC, but if any detail/cost isn't spelled out in the contract, make sure you know where every penny is going. Any changes (even small ones) in the design or finishes will start driving costs up, again.

That being said...I'm so happy you're getting started and I think your 'happy yellow kitchen' is going to be beautiful and charming :)
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gunjan.nnp
11 years ago
Testing only, please ignore
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Signing Contract Today with G/C !!! : )

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