I’m in the same situation, except it’s a vacation house so I have good place to live. I don’t interpret it as dishonesty… I think they are telling me what their plan is optimistically (ie the counter people will be there next week), and then due to other disruptions it doesn’t happen. Any process with a lot of dependencies has many chances for delay. There’s only so much they can control. It is incredibly frustrating. But I don’t think they’re intentionally lying. He won’t give me a final done date. Do they know the importance of finishing for you? From the perspective of getting what you need it’s probably better to enlist their sympathy than approach it with distrust and anger. I also gave them a specific date that I told them I am really hoping to be able to occupy for a specific reason, to put a deadline in their head.

It is not a question of if all general contractors are like this, it is a fact that life is like this.

Some of the trades have been very unreliable in showing up as promised because they are so busy.  I don't think it's the GC being dishonest.  However, it would be a better business practice for your GC to be conservative and give you a safer completion date while possibly finishing early. Sounds like your GC might be too optimistic.

Countertops were to be installed last Friday. Still no countertops. The AC was to be turned on yesterday

You have cabinets in and no AC? Wood floors in and no AC? None of that is supposed to go in until HVAC is working. You're looking at future issues with warping, etc not having AC turned on!

I don't think it's the GC being dishonest.

Ours was. And yes there are delays but the fact that the GC in this case is putting in everything without the house having HVAC is a HUGE red flat.

To answer your other question, our GC told us 1 year. We finally moved in on month 27. We lost a huge tax advantage from selling our condo too early.

Plus we had lots of build issues too.

We wound up working with a construction lawyer.

Thanks for the feedback!

We don’t have any flooring yet. But painting began late last week, and we do have cabinets and some built-in shelving, lockers, and such there. All wood of course. The hvac is all installed, and has been for a while, but the AC hadn’t been turned on as of yesterday. Supposedly the electrician was supposed to go last night and get it hooked up to be turned on. (We were told that around 6 pm last night) And we were just told a bit ago the HVAC company is en route to our house. Hopefully that is true!

We are in the Midwest. The temps this last week have been high 80s, and that’s when the humidity kicked in. Before that they were more in the high 70s. Our cabinets have been in for ~2 weeks. Do you think they will be okay? Do we need to worry about warping with those?

This is our first time doing a project of this scale so we don’t really know what to expect. So while I appreciate your valuable life lesson in your comment, Mark, it’s just been disheartening to have our hopes up so many times, only to be let down again and again. It’s been very trying on our family to commute to work, over an hour each way, with three very little ones. So I feel like our impatience is valid, with all things considered. If we had known it would be this long, we would have opted to find a rental closer, but we thought this would be much more short term. Again, this is our first time doing this, so we believed what we were told.

We have expressed our understanding but also our need for the house to be liveable asap many times, and he seems to know. He has promised us July 1, but I don’t think it’s going to happen. It just feels like he tells us what we want to hear to pacify us, and then when the time comes, he throws another date out. At one point he told us, “well you can move in tomorrow if you want but there’s just gonna be people there working” … which I felt was rude because obviously we can’t move in there with 3 small children, and no lights, no floors, no plumbing completed, etc.

Overall, I know there are many things out of his control and lots of dependencies. I guess I just was wanting a feeler for how common it is to be months outside of the projected date. I guess we need to set our expectations even lower.

The difference is penalties. If you don't get the front end alignment machine installed over the Christmas shutdown, GM will remove you from the bidder's list. Your delays can't cause the layoffs of 3,000 workers. GM will probably kidnap your children.

Residential customers have no such leverage. You're a onesie. If your builder had any brains in his head, there is no penalty clause for delays. Unfortunately, you aren't in a position of strength here. If you'd like to make matters worse, take the inevitable advice that's coming to get a lawyer.

Keep up an unrelenting patient pressure; just enough pain that he wants to get rid of you.

Joseph, your comment made me laugh out loud for real! Great and witty explanation. Will do with the patient pressure and pain. Thank you for the best advice!

I would look up your permit online and see what inspections have been done. Based on my experience, you should be able to determine if you will be able to turn on the HVAC only if mechanical and electrical inspections are done (or there's conditional power).

If these inspections are not done / scheduled - then smoke is being blown about readiness

ETA - delays happen. I can understand that. I am less understanding about a lack of transparency.

We tried being the nice understanding people on a master bath addition/remodel. My parents had used the same contractor for a large bathroom remodel and he was only 2 weeks from the original date promised. It was the main reason we used him. A year later on what was supposed to be a 2-3 month project, we had big regrets. Now granted, we were deep in Covid and there were a lot of issues with getting subs (only some supply chain issues, I feel like it was mostly labor), but I think because we were no nice and understanding, we were deprioritized from the people that were…less so. So we started to be more demanding with things we really should have had anyways - asking for clear dates/schedules, following up on why those weren’t met, etc. Things moved more when we stayed super on top of it and he knew he’d have to answer for when it didn’t vs trying to be overly nice and understanding. I’m sorry. We have little ones too, and it’s extra disruptive. Try being to squeaky wheel and see if it changes.

I did a gut remodel of my condo. I moved out at the end of March for what the contract said would be a six to eight week time frame.

I was able to move back in October with a lot of stuff still being done around me but essentially it was liveable - i.e. bathroom was done except for mirrors - most of the kitchen cabinets were up LOL. As long as my bedroom area was more or less completed I was okay.

My friend was indignant that I didn't have interior door knobs but just holes but that was also my fault as I was looking for very specific door knob style.

If you'd like to make matters worse, take the inevitable advice that's coming to get a lawyer.

BULL PUCKY!

It's because we worked with our CONSTRUCTION lawyer that our builder wound up losing a lot of money he would have been paid if he had done things competently and been somewhat on time.

Not very. My husband and I feel like it’s a product of the industry (I can’t even imagine if I told clients deadlines every week and never met them). In our case, the head guy who handles so much of the planning/communication/scheduling is not really being clued into what’s progressing day to day onsite and approaches everything from an optimistic ideal scenario. He looks at a bathroom and scheduled out one day for demo, one for framing, one for plumbing rough in, two for tile, etc. Then real life happens and five days turns into 10. I continue to wish they built themselves buffers and underpromised/over delivered (especially when I’m not the one creating the deadline - any time is fine, just pick one and stick to it so it’s not constant letdowns!) but I’ve yet to meet anyone who has dealt with a contractor who could do that.

Slipping construction schedules can be due to a variety of factors including, but not limited to supply chain issues, limited availability of trade contractors, inadequate cash flow, and poor planning. Time is money. Smart, successful contractors schedule construction activities and manage to the schedule to deliver homes as fast as is practical. Not-so-smart contractors get managed by their lack of scheduling.

Anyone selecting a builder or remodeler will be well served to inquire how they schedule projects, what tools they use, how frequently the schedules are updated, client access to schedules and their track record of on-time performance.

The only builds that are mostly on time are the large tract builders, who limit and tightly control their options, supply chain relationships, and employees. Contractors who utilize sub labor have lower overhead, but looser control. A multiplicity of supply options also increases a multiplicity of supply problems. The more custom a home is, the longer it takes, and the more the general state of logistics issues will impact it. The fewer employees a contractor has the more chance of delays and things taking longer.

@DeWayne

I don't know about your market area or your personal experience building homes, but the majority of new custom home builds in our area are completed within 12 months or less. That's typically a requirement in the master-planned communities where the majority of higher-end homes are built. Builders who don't learn to deliver within 12 months end up forfeiting their surety deposit-- and if they do it on a regular basis-- the community responds by increasing the amount of surety deposit from the builder.

I’m sorry you’re going through this. That was our experience 20 years ago and it was a constant rollercoaster. I would suggest being a squeaky wheel might help prioritize your project with the contractor. No one likes to be nagged and maybe he needs a pushy push.

I know we’ve been very, very fortunate to be working with the contractor we chose here in Oregon for a kitchen and two bathrooms remodel. They gave us a time schedule and an online calendar of when to expect which tradesmen to do which phase. It’s been followed to a T, even when we had a couple of hiccups (a new back door added, backsplash was 1/4” short of meeting the upper cabs.) The contractor explained that the daily crew are all from his construction company, and uses the same band of subcontractors from job to job to ensure quality and scheduling continuity. Fixtures and appliances were ordered early in the project so everything was here when the crew needed them. We are at the last week of the remodel and if it goes how it’s been going time wise, we’ll be done by this Friday. All in all 7 weeks of actual construction work.

This was not our experience 20 years ago when we remodeled our first house in California. There’s be days and days when no one showed up to work, and in fact, the electrician held up the schedule for weeks when nothing could be done until he showed up. So it was a complete delight when our Oregonian contractor presented the calendar and met it each day.

I had the same experience like @midcentura, @cpartist and @S H ( not good). We also were nice and understanding and totally taken advantage of by our GC, after 2 years of building finally we lost our patience. It was 2 years of lying and dragging everything because in meantime they were doing flips and not showing up on site for weeks. The city inspector was willing to do a final inspection without them present because that' s how long it was dragged. Unfortunately many dishonest people in this industry. Finally I can sleep at night comfortably since they are gone from my life.

Ask for a copy of his PERT chart. That chart shows his plan for completing your project (all the trades’ work and dependencies, and the dates he has them scheduled). During our remodels, we kept a COPY of the chart posted in the house so it was handy to consult when things were delayed a day or two. Yes, there were a couple of small delays, but we always knew where we were in the process. There probably is an inspection card posted somewhere on your site. Take a look to see what has been checked off. It might help you to understand how things are progressing. (If your permitting office has online records, you may be able to check that online, and to see when inspections are scheduled. Some/many/most GCs don’t like having clients around during inspections, but you can learn a lot by just happening to be there on a day an inspection is scheduled, and just quietly follow the inspector around. ) And if you get to the point that you want to call the move-in bluff, maybe start by moving a crib into the house. Yes, I’m joking — sorta. And all good wishes for a successful completion of your home. Soon.

I agree that this can happen in any industry. Could be dishonesty (doesn't sound like it though from what you've shared), could just be lack of communication and trades not showing up because the market has been crazy. It's very concerning about the AC and the cabinets already being installed. I do all sorts of things backwards on my projects, including putting cabinets on top of my floors, but I would never do either without AC. Sounds like that's being addressed though.

In terms of timelines, a few extra months over the expected move in date isn't terrible and doesn't actually mean the contractor is dishonest. Our projects routinely go over that much (often weather delays set us back) so we always take that into account with our homes/rentals etc. We usually sell the current house with an extended lease back period and a clause that allows an extension until the new home is done. So far, we've found buyers willing to agree and it saves us from having to rent and move in between. (In case you ever need to do this again. :)) It's much harder with young kids though! My rule of thumb is usually we can "move in" within 6-12 weeks after cabinets are installed (and floors go in earlier on all my projects too). It depends on the finishes and trim carpentry and what you are willing to have done later (special paint finishes, wallpaper, some lighting if it arrives broken, etc.), but if by March you didn't have cabinets, there was no way you were moving in by April. But July 1 may be a possibility!

At this point it would be fair to ask for a schedule update every day at end of day, even if it's just a quick email with a list of what's been done, and what's scheduled for the next day. If they are showing up every day that's a good sign!

PS I've never had a builder provide a pert chart or similar. But I LOVE the idea of seeing it at the beginning and having it on site. I may request it on the next one!

Its definitely challenging out there & we have not always been timely but now have a full time employee expediting decisions so we can order materials early & commit to our trades. Owners who get to drywall stages with a pile of undecided finishes & new changes will have projects delayed.

Regarding selling the home you live in I wouldn't consider until getting an update from the builder you're within 60 days, appliances are in the warehouse, flatwork poured, etc.

I think delays are very common, not necessarily because of dishonesty but more likely issues with subcontractors and vendors and possibly lack of organization on the GC’s side. If windows are delayed that stops many other items from being started. There is a shortage of construction workers pretty much everywhere and labor is huge in a construction project. If your builder doesn’t have his own team and is relying on subs who are working for several other builders, that will cause delays. I have experienced delays in every single construction project I have been involved with. There are so many moving pieces in a new build it is easy for one thing to throw monkey wrench into process. I would definitely ask for an update on a regular basis - maybe not daily, but definitely weekly or bi-weekly. That may at least help with getting the builder more organized. Delays with materials and subs are nearly impossible to control.

This is more than just delays. It's not doing things in proper order.