How long should I wait before work starts?

Simply put, I would ask for my money back at this stage of the game.

It doesn’t matter how good, how big or how inexpensive the contractor is. If you don’t have a roof, its no good to you.

Good Luck
Matt

Companies that need large deposits before starting work are usually signs of a poorly ran company.

I get 25% the day we start. I out to about July right now and if someone backs out, they back out. My contract is worded that I will be owed 25% no matter what so it does not worry me. I also build very good relationships with customers, I inform them of everything going on and keep the lines of communication open.

I would look into getting the money back. When was the anticipated start and completion date?

Even if a contractor has a long history of doing good business and is booked up a few months out, if a customer gives them a check today for work that should begin in 60 days it has an element of risk for the customer that should not be neccesary.

As we all know, anything can happen in 60 days to either the contractor or the property owner. What if, the owner of the contracting company gets into some unforseen financial difficulties(beyond his control) during that period? He uses up all the “deposits” to stay afloat and ends up having to close the company. He is not dishonest or unethical, he just got in a bind and it didnt work out.

Sure, the customer may have some legal recourse but the odds are the money will not be recovered.

In my opinion, the customer is being asked to take a risk with their money, while the contractor gets the benefit of having a hold on the customer that in all likelyhood cant be broken without a substantial loss to the customer. I guess from a customer point of view, Im not sure I see the benefit of giving that money out for any length of time prior to the start date. And if a contractor told me he wouldnt put me on the schedule without a large deposit, I would assume our contract and my word arent good enough. I would look for another contractor.

I do understand that the contractor may be far superior to his competition and the customer wants to use the best. But if thats the case, the contractor should know that the customer isnt going anywhere and is willing to wait for his roof to go on. And if the contractor is booked for a few months out, what is he worried about? Obviously, he is in very high demand and if someone backs out, he has dozens of customers just waiting to grab that slot. Add a 30% cancellation fee that has teeth and everyone is protected.

For cash work, I agree that 50% the day the work starts is totally reasonable, heck if you can get 90% thats great. Full payment upon completion.

Getting 50% deposits on jobs that may start a few weeks out and being booked up for a few months out is impressive, especially with the seemingly endless number of roofing contractors that are out there. Hats off to ya!

In case anyone’s curious, here’s an update. A crew showed up last Saturday (no, I didn’t know they were coming) and worked for about 6 hours before leaving. I was told back when the bid was done that this would be a two-day job, so no problem so far. I figured they’d come back on Monday, but they didn’t. Instead they came back on Tuesday, but had barely started work when the wind picked up. One of the guys came to the door and told me they were just going to patch things up in case of rain and then leave. Sure enough, we did have rain on Wednesday, and I didn’t spot any internal leaks, but the boards under the eaves were soaked. Thursday was very windy. Friday and Saturday were calm and sunny, but no workers. I suppose I need to start calling the office again or else I’ll be stuck for months with a half-finished roof.

:shock:

I guess you can keep posting about it here or do something about it. I would recommend you get on the phone tomorrow and give them 48 hours to complete your roof replacement with the threat of contacting the BBB to report their negligence if that doesn’t occur. You can contact your attorney and have them contact the contractor. You have numerous options. Were it me, I certainly would choose to take action. There’s being reasonable and there’s being silly, what’s happening to you is beyond silly.

I always want to hear the other side of the story. Usually, it is quite compelling. However, I am grappling with what it might be, in this case.

Did you look in your attic? It is quite likely that water entered it. That could really mess up your house (mold, ruined insulation, sheetrock damage, etc). There is no excuse for what the clown did, no matter what you might have or have not done.

I just think, as I have had from day one, that this clown is no roofer, just a scumbag. Unless you are pulling some tricks in this job, too, then you need to take strong action now, well… weeks ago really.

i would do as au_ dadand gary said also contact local t v station that does stroy on rip offthis time of year no one is back up this long i head stroy all my life.

It was one thing that he was busy and did not show for a week or 2 it was another he can’t keep in touch with you and let you know whats going on. But to show up and rip apart your roof and leave it open for days, thats just nuts. If water was poring out of your soffet i’m sure you have some wet insulation. Whats wrong with this guy (or crew)?

I hate to hear of these things happening. It makes us all look bad. In South Florida, it takes one day to file NoC, one day to two weeks to get the permit (depending on the city) after that we schedule the job. If I were you, I would be making some calls to find out what is going on.