Home Contractor vs. Homeowner

Let's face it, if you work in a service industry, occasionally you are going to run across a difficult client. One who is a micromanager, who needs to be overly involved in the project, and who actually impedes progress. Then there is the homeowner who can't make up his or her mind; who orders one type of tile and decides to remove it and use another. How can a contractor handle this type of client? As always, start with the contract. Make sure the description of the work to be performed and the materials to be used is crystal clear. Verify that the client understands the scope of the project and what the end result will be. Try to use pictures or illustrations to ensure that everyone is on the same page. Make sure that the client understands that all change orders will be in writing, and that new requests will cost extra. Designate a point person as the decision maker for the project and do not allow employees or subcontractors to perform work outside the scope of the contract...

When can a contractor terminate the contract? That question should be answered first and foremost within the contractor's contract itself. The contractor should have clear grounds listed for termination, how damages will be determined, and how disputes will be resolved. Hopefully you will notice that there has been a theme running throughout this topic. The contract should be comprehensive and contractors should have their contracts reviewed on a regular basis to make sure that they are availing themselves of all possible protection under the law. What if the contract does not spell out when a contractor can terminate the contract? Then the contractor must have a clearcut basis for ending the work so he will not be found to have defaulted or abandoned the job. The most obvious reason to stop working is when a contractor is no longer getting paid. Hopefully the contractor has a detailed schedule of progress payments in the contract, so he will find out quickly enough if the ho...

When can a homeowner terminate a contract? That should be determined by the contract, but if it is not, the law in your state will govern. However, one should also use some common sense to decide when the time has come. If the contractor has stopped showing up, then he has abandoned the job, and the homeowner has the right to mitigate damages by hiring someone else to finish the work. If the contractor has failed to pull permits, or done something illegal, or blatantly in violation of the contract (substituting inferior materials, for example), the homeowner does not have to stand by and accept it. What about when the homeowner just isn't happy with the work? That is a more tricky issue. Some homeowners have unrealistic expectations about what things should cost, or are not understanding when an unforseen problem arises. Homeowners should voice their concerns to the contractor and give him a chance to address the issue. If after numerous attempts at repair the problem continu...

The issue of how to go about terminating the contract should be addressed in the contract itself. It can be agreed that either side can terminate the contract with a certain amount of notice in writing. The more complicated issue is what one considers a valid reason for termination. For the homeowner, reasons might include abandoning the job (not showing up for a certain amount of time), substandard work as determined by an outside inspector, failure to comply with building codes or the pulling of permits, unreasonable delays (as determined by another contract provision), etc.. The contractor may find that the homeowner is causing delays, has unreasonably hired outside parties to perform aspects of the job, is contracting directly with subcontractors or making unreasonable demands of employees, is expecting work beyond the scope of the contract without being willing to pay for change orders, etc. As you can see, the list is extensive. Although it is impossible to anticipate everythi...

When can either side terminate the contract? When is enough enough? There are numerous disputes that occur when either party terminates the home contractor-homeowner relationship. The homeowner may claim that the contractor has abandoned the job. A contractor may believe that the homeowner wrongfully terminated the contract, and that the job would have been properly completed if hehad been given the opportunity to finish. Courts may hold either party liable for wrongfully terminating a contract. So, how can the parties know what to do when the relationship goes sour? I will cover this topic in my next series of posts, and welcome comments from those of you who have dealt with this issue.