"Sis" > wrote in message
...
> Thanks so much for all the good advice, I really appreciate it so much. I
> haven't made the final(second half) of my payment yet, and will try to get
> an adjustment on the bill from the kitchen place. Also, isn't it best to
> wait to make a final payment until all work is completed? The trim isn't
> installed yet for a new, larger window I had installed in my kitchen and
the
> guy from the kitchen place said he will collect all the remainder that I
owe
> except for that fee from me on Monday. Do you think I can tell them to
wait
> until all the work on the contract is completed,since they may take longer
> to do it without that incentive? Thanks, again for your advice. Sis


ABSOLUTELY DO NOT PAY THE FINAL INSTALLMENT UNTIL THE WORK IS DONE!. You
already have issues and who knows what might happen with the rest of the
work. I have two horror stories about similar situations. The first was a
kitchen remodel that my mother had done by Lowe's. They required payment in
full before the work started and she paid the entire thing by check. They
took a reasonable amount of time to get all the cabinets and appliances in.
The subcontractor who did the actual work was a rip-off artist. He came in
with a couple of high school kids and tried to do a rush job. Things
weren't installed properly and the wiring was done in a very sloppy and
dangerous manner. He actually threw a bunch of expensive millwork into the
trash heap and carted it away. When I brought this to his attention he said
he didn't usually install the trim work! The stuff had to be ordered and
the job dragged on partially finished for weeks. The faucet leaked and had
to be replaced three times. The garbage disposal leaked. The exhaust
system wasn't installed right. Some of the cabinet doors had to be
replaced. They damaged the oven when they installed it. They screwed around
with the flooring saying that they couldn't get the adhesive for the sheet
vinyl. I called Armstrong who said that they had shipped the stuff weeks
before. The nightmare just continued on and on, and I won't bore you with
the details.

The second situation was with my kitchen. I had a small kitchen fire and
had to have some renovations. The people who came in to do the work turned
out to be real hacks. They ruined as much as they fixed. Fortunately the
insurance company made out the check in both my name and the contractor's
name in the full amount of the services. They started a very minor
renovation job the first of August and by mid October things had come to a
halt. I refused to accept the horrendous job they had done and was demanding
compensation for the things they had damaged. The contractor hadn't been
paid a penny and threatened to sue me. I threatened to counter-sue and ask
for punitive damages. The contractor decided to settle. We went to
arbitration. I had a stack of documents because I learned my lesson from my
mother's situation. I also had pictures and statements from contractors to
back-up my figures for what it would take to finish the job and correct
their damages. The contractor ended up taking a $4500 reduction in his fee.
If it would have gone to court I am confident that I would have done better,
but who needs that hassle.

The bottom line is not to pay until the job is done and done right. The
contractor my refuse to continue work and threaten you with legal action but
you have to stick to your position. Any reasonable business person will
want to do the job to your satisfaction. I think that business has become
so bottom-line oriented that people will cut any corner possible to make an
extra dollar. Most people don't want to "cause trouble" so they just allow
themselves to be victimized. After a while, the contractor's standard of
quality drops because people will accept inferior workmanship. At the same
time, there are people who are honest and reputable who will do a good job.
Sometimes when things go wrong you need to keep a cool head and insist on
talking to someone who can help you. Often you have to work you way up the
ladder to get help. Be persistent and have clear expectations. Tell them
what you think is fair. Put you position in writing and ask them to do the
same.