I guess I'm the voice of dissent today. We're using an Amish guy to rehab our sunroom. He came really highly recommended but, gosh, has it been a struggle. We initially just wanted him to replace the windows ... as cheaply as possible for now because we'd just sunk all our available $ into a major remodel inside. I wanted those vinyl patio windows. "No, you don't," he said, then asked if he could bring "his guy" over to show us "real" windows that we could get for almost the same price. The guy came. I chose the single hung windows - there are 9 of them, plenty enough breeze without the movable upper sash. "You don't want those," he said. "Let me talk him into giving you a deal." When we started the demo for the windows, he noticed the doors weren't the "right" size. "You don't want nice new windows with those narrow, old doors," he said. "It won't be that much more. You'll thank me." The next week it was a window in the exterior door that he "knew" I needed. And not just a window, a leaded glass one. I put my foot down then. I've seen a lot of leaded glass insert doors that look cheap. I did not want one. Not for the door to the sunroom and not for the front door either, which he'd now commanded we replace too. Of course, when the doors were delivered, they had leaded glass anyway. Next up was the ceiling, which, according to him, "Just ain't right." He proposed adding to the rafters so we could insulate the room better, and while we were doing that we wanted to replace all the drywall "a' course". And the drywalled ceiling should be textured. "NOT POPCORN!" I begged. "No, no, my guy will do something you'll like." "I don't like this step," he said, one day when he was supposed to be installing the door from the garage to the sunroom. "I know you say it doesn't bother you but, I tell you, I couldn't abide by it." I left to go to the grocery store and, by the time I returned, the concrete saw was out and half of the funky little step over thing was already half gone. "It's not near as bad as your front steps though," he said. "Wait till you see what my guy is gonna do with those." I wasn't crazy about our front steps either, although I'd really planned to wait until spring to replace them. "Oh no," he said. "You don't want to do that." Once the windows, the doors (except the front one), the ceiling joists, the drywall, half of the wall studs and the siding were replaced, it was time to think about trim. "Plain or fancy? Do you think you'll want a sill?" "I don't care," I said, since I knew he was going to do it his way anyway. It's just about done now. There are a couple pieces of trim to paint and we need to wait until spring to do flooring. He's coming out next Saturday to install the front door (with matching leaded glass). And I have to say ... he was right. About all of it. It is a lovely, comfortable room now. The double hung windows are great. The texture on the ceiling helps diffuse all the light. I don't have to watch out for the funky little step when I'm carrying cups of coffee. I love the prisms that fill the room from the beveled leaded glass insert in the door. Yes, it cost more than I thought I wanted to spend, but it wasn't THAT much more. And, in the long run, he saved me money because the changes he proposed uncovered some pretty serious rot. If I'd waited until I knew I could afford it, I might not have a sunroom that could still be saved. He's already told me that we're working on the garage next because "You don't want a pole in there. Nobody likes a pole." He's been eyeing the old lady ramp in there too. "It takes up too much space." I have no doubts that "his guy" will be back to fix the crack in the floor, probably the driveway too. And who knows what else I'll get before he's done. I'm pretty sure we just got lucky but still, sometimes someone else knows what you want better than you do.

Our gc has given us credit when we supplied something he was going to buy or for labor we are not having him do. We also intended to have him do tile floors for us, but will go with Marmoleum instead and get a certified installer for that. He said he will credit us for not doing the floor install, but joked that would be $1 off. I am very interested in how much per square foot that will be and when we figure that out, I will post here. I can't wait to here how much it was for others and where they are located. I am in NY so labor here is not cheap. I am sure we will come to an agreement as he has been fair with us so far. Now, he did mention the bs labor was not in the contract, so whatever he takes off per sq ft for installing tile for the floor, we will add back for the bs. Would the labor charges for a floor be any different than a bs? Hmmmmm...

I met a second contractor yesterday. Not a good fit. He did not listen to me, talked about things that had nothing to do with my project, was argumentative, tried to point out the advantages of laminate counter tops and brought a catalog of very traditional wood cabinets even though I had told him I wanted contemporary euro-style cabinets. Don't contractors bring photos of work they have completed ? This one said he had recently done a remodel in the style I like but he would have to go back to the customer to take a photo of her kitchen. He called her while he was with us to see if he could drop by to take a photo. He was to email it to me but I have not received anything. I find this odd that he would not take a photo of his work when finished. I am meeting a 3rd and last contractor tomorrow. I have the feeling that I will choose # 1.

It is not unusual for homeowners to pay for allowance items out of pocket and a reduction on final payment is not really any different than him paying you back today unless you are doing present value calculations. Ideally (and originally) in a cost plus contract - contractors marked up items only if they paid for them and allowances were really restricted to approved suppliers. Now more and more contractors are allowing users the convenience of buying items wherever they want and making an adjustment to the contract. For example, a builder I was considering said, "I could hook you up with my supply house discount for lighting, or you can go to Lowes and grab most of the lighting yourself. You would then have a budget for a few spectacular lights and inexpensive lighting for other areas." He is a very reputable builder whose accounting system I personally looked over, I would have no trouble paying.