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Contractor Did not Finish Work

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chloeb

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? California

My husband and I hired a contractor to due work in our house. We had a set of things he was to do for a set amount. As usual, the work went over in time, which we were OK with. We are reasonable and so long as he came to us with updates, we agreed. We had gotten no updates and on the day he was supposed to finish he called my husband and said they "are done" and proceeded to explain that they are out of money and whatever got finished that day was all they were doing and he expected final payment. My husband said he would be home at 7 and we would sit down and try to come to an amicable agreement. When we got home and went to check on his work he ran out saying he had to make a Home Depot run before they closed. My husband waited up until 11 for the guy to come back and talk to us. He never did. The contractor insists that we owe final payment and that every hour he continues to work, we owe more money. There is about two days worth of work left for them to do. So when he called my husband today at work telling him that we owe for every hour he stays, my husband told him to gather his stuff and leave. He threatened to put a lien on the house. My husband and I still want to sit down and talk with him, find out where the communication broke down and why we are being bombarded with threatening emails and messages instead of him coming back and talking with us. I ran home immediately to make sure he was getting his stuff together and leaving without wreaking some kind of havoc on our property. He wasn't there but his stuff still was. I do not want this man on our property. What do I do with his stuff if it is still there tonight when I get home?
 


fairisfair

Senior Member
so, all but about 2 days worth of work is completed, and you owe him ___$ which is what portion of the total job?
 

chloeb

Junior Member
What?

I was asking about what we do with his stuff, legally speaking, as legally if we do not invite him on the property, he cannot get his stuff. I don't want to keep it. I just want him to get it. I just want to know if I give him 24 hours notice to come get it and he doesn't, then what?

As far as the work, my husband thinks it is about 4-5 days of work left. So the best way to find out how much $$ it will cost to finish the work he did not finish is to bid it out to several others to get estimates. But I would say he has done about 65% of the work. We have paid him about 75% of the total agreed upon payment for the finished work. We are willing to just take the loss just to be done with him and have someone else finish up. Right now, I want to stay within the law while getting him out of hair without giving him another penny for his unfinished job.
 

fairisfair

Senior Member
I was asking about what we do with his stuff, legally speaking, as legally if we do not invite him on the property, he cannot get his stuff. I don't want to keep it. I just want him to get it. I just want to know if I give him 24 hours notice to come get it and he doesn't, then what?

As far as the work, my husband thinks it is about 4-5 days of work left. So the best way to find out how much $$ it will cost to finish the work he did not finish is to bid it out to several others to get estimates. But I would say he has done about 65% of the work. We have paid him about 75% of the total agreed upon payment for the finished work. We are willing to just take the loss just to be done with him and have someone else finish up. Right now, I want to stay within the law while getting him out of hair without giving him another penny for his unfinished job.
legally speaking, as legally, it is his "stuff" he can certainly return to the job site and get it. Whether or not he does so with a police escort to assure himself of it's retrieval, is of course, up to him.

Actually the best way to estimate the completion portion of the job, is just that. If 98% of the job is completed, then you should have paid him 98% of the money. Your idea of getting an estimate to complete the unfinished portion is absurd. Of course it is going to cost more to have a contractor come out to finish a couple of piddly little things, than it would cost the to have the original contractor finish the job. Do you have a contract with this person, what is the draw schedule?
 

lcannister

Senior Member
You better hope that he did not run out of money BEFORE paying for supplies and labor used in your home or you will find you have a title with a bunch of liens against it.
 

Eva3

Junior Member
Abandonment

If you are in California. Check CSLB website contractor state license board and check out business and professions codes. You should not pay him a dime if he has not completed his work. Go to a real estate lawyer and ask him to write you a breach of contract and abandonment letter. Ask the lawyer too for advise. This is in California. If you're in a different state, check your state's licensing board and report a claim there. This is not a legal advise ask your own attorney how to proceed. I'm going through a contractor nightmare myself so I've done a lot of reading. Do your homework and you can fight this thing. If he is licensed, find out info about him i.e. Workers comp, bond and insurance and you can go after his bond. Go to your states licensing board website to do this. And use whatever info you get to your own advantage. Check your codes too so you know what he violated. But it is better if you consult with a REAL ESTATE LAWYER and get that abandonment and breach of contract letter out to your shady contractor. Best of luck!
 

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