Constructive Criticism Of My New Contract

sparehair

1. All labor to be performed is outlined on Metro Maintenance estimates. Metro Maintenance & Landscaping shall be compensated for all additional labor and materials subsequently requested orally or in writing. Half payment of initial estimate is due prior to beginning work. Payment of remaining balance is due within 10 business days of substantial completion of work as determined solely by Metro Maintenance & Landscaping. Interest shall accrue and compound on any outstanding balance, following the initial ten day payment window, at a rate of 35% per annum or the maximum allowed by state law; whichever is greater.

2. Warranty. All paint and other building materials, supplied by Metro Maintenance & Landscaping, are warrantied against defects in application for 36 months from time of substantial completion of work. Products, paints, construction materials supplied by the customer are not warrantied. Defect of the product itself, in its manufacture or composition, are not warrantied by Metro Maintenance & Landscaping. Changes in substrate to which paint or other coatings are applied due to humidity, weather, settling of a building or foundation, heat, cold or water are not warrantied. Examples include but are not limited to sheetrock, cement, wood flooring, decking, vinyl siding, wood siding, cementacious siding etc…

3. Timeliness. Metro Maintenance agrees to perform all work in a timely manner. Metro Maintenance assumes no responsibility or liability for delays due to weather, product or equipment availability, injury or illness.

4. Arbitration. In the event of dispute the customer agrees to engage in binding arbitration with an independent agent should Metro Maintenance & Landscaping choose to use a mediator to resolve the dispute.

5. Contract documents. Contract documents include this contract, estimates provided to the customer by Metro Maintenance & Landscaping and __________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ________________________________

6. Performance. Metro Maintenance & Landscaping shall perform the work in accordance with the contract documents. Metro Maintenance & Landscaping shall determine and be solely responsible for the means, methods, techniques, sequences and procedures of performance.

7. Use of Premises. Metro Maintenance & Landscaping shall not unreasonably encumber the property with materials or equipment. At the completion of the work, contractor shall reasonably remove waste materials, rubbish and debris from and about the property as well as all tools, appliances, construction equipment and machinery, and surplus materials. The customer shall make the premises available for performance of contracted work.

8. Damage to Work. Metro Maintenance & Landscaping assumes no responsibility
for damage to work caused by the customer, their agents, family members, other contractors or trades, prior to or following substantial completion of work. Any damage caused to work in progress caused by Metro Maintenance will repaired by them at no additional cost.

9. Termination of contract. All initial deposits secure the time and scheduling of proposed work and are non-refundable. The customer or Metro Maintenance & Landscaping may terminate the contract in the event of a substantial breach of its provisions. Either party must inform the other in writing and allow seven consecutive days wherein to resolve the breach and/or diligently pursue its remediation.

10. Lead paint, asbestos disclaimer: Sanding, scraping or otherwise disturbing lead paint and/or asbestos can release contaminants. By accepting this proposal the owner agrees to hold Metro Maintenance & Landscaping, its owner and all agents harmless for any damages believed or proven to have been caused by lead or asbestos present on the property. We encourage all prospective clients to test for both lead and asbestos prior to any remodel project. We are unable to provide such testing due to the cost of the requisite liability insurance.

11. Sheen and paint color. The customer acknowledges that all coatings, sheens, textures and colors are chosen by them prior to application. As such, Metro Maintenance & Landscaping shall incur no costs or liabilities in the event of dissatisfaction in the color, texture, or sheen of paint or other coatings. The customer understands and agrees that swatch sample colors may vary somewhat from actual color. Owner also understands and agrees that any change in color once color has been purchased shall be reimbursed to contractor. Owner understands and agrees that any labor spent applying a color change shall incur a change order for reimbursement should a color change be called for.

TIA

NAV

I don't understand your warranty. what are you giving a warranty for?

Does it cover the material if it peals for 36 months? that is a really long time for an exterior wood paint job. what about previously coated substrates - are you warranting the material you are coating over?

I think you should limit your warranty to 12 months and say that it does not include previously coated substrates or peeling caused by delamination.

vandyandsons

looks fine to me....

except i don't think that i would be comfortable giving such a "blanket" warranty.

my warranties are based on the nature of the work, and the products used.

sparehair

So you write a new warranty for each job?

vandyandsons

you got it.

think of it like this.

if someone hires you to cherry out the exterior of their house and you really do it up properly.

you know, pressure wash, make repairs, top flight caulking, and prep package, top shelf primer, top shelf finishcoat etc.... you get what i'm saying.

would you give that the same warranty as someone else who hires you at a limited budget that just wants you to "clean it up" and put lipstick on a pig for a one coater with the cheapest material you can use?

2 of the exteriors I did last year:

One was a "lipstick on a pig job"
spray 1 coat A100 flat on the eves, soffits, overhangs
spray one coat A100 flat on the body (staying off of the overhangs!)
tie in the body to the overhangs w/ brush & roller
face off window frames and done
*no warranty

Other was a job that could have been put on the cover of "Better Homes and Gardens"
obscene amount of preparation
Duration on the body
Duration on the trim
Intricate multi color scheme
take your time and do it right typer of job
*7 year warranty

ya know what I mean

Double-A

No good. What you are saying is, "we're going to do all the work we have ever written an estimate for on your house" or you're saying, "somewhere in one of the many estimates we have written over the years are some words that will describe the work this contract covers."

Instead, consider the following:

"Labor, material, and job specifications are outlined in the Scope of Work/Estimate and herein after referred to as Exhibit A."

In other words, you can't create a contract, the theory of which is to be a stand-alone agreement, between you and the client that refers to some other piece of paper called an "Estimate" without making it part of the contract.

This get a bit complicated and I would speak with an attorney versed in construction contract law in your area or pick up a good book and find out what makes a contract a real contract.

For instance, I don't see where you have named the folks involved in the contract anywhere. Is there a place to write that in?

__________________
"My clients’ wishes are the center of my attention." -- David Guido, a contractor in Woodstock, N.Y.
New York Times, July 20, 2006

sparehair

I see what you're saying about the ambiguity of the phrase "metro estimates yadda yadda". I document all bids by estimate # so I'll just include a line to write that # in.

There parties to the contract is a seperate section I didn't think I needed to have you guys look at.

Double-A

Okies.... But, you still might want to have a lawyer look it over. I don't seen anything about the clients rights, jurisdiction, right of cancellation, liens, lien waivers, method of delivery for written notification of contract termination, severability, etc.

I know we all try to keep it simple, but there are just some things that really need to be in a basic contract or a good lawyer will get the whole contract tossed out and where are you then? Forget the arbitration clause, because if I can show that just one sentence in your contract is unenforceable or can not be pursued based on precedent or current law, then the whole thing can be declared severed and therefore useless.

__________________
"My clients’ wishes are the center of my attention." -- David Guido, a contractor in Woodstock, N.Y.
New York Times, July 20, 2006

DBBII

An arbitration and a mediation are two totally different things!

From a strictly personal standpoint, why would I ever want to sign something that basically says you will get done whenever you feel like it. (paragraph 3). Lets see -- one of my employees got arrested last night, another fell off a ladder and the third had to take care of his sick kid today. Oh well, no work going on, but hey, its not MY house that's only half finished.

Oops. The paint supply place sent out the wrong color. I assume as a HO that means I am responsible for the delay costs also.

DavidNTX

2. Warranty. All paint and other building materials, supplied by Metro Maintenance & Landscaping, are warrantied against defects in application for 36 months from time of substantial completion of work. Products, paints, construction materials supplied by the customer are not warrantied. Defect of the product itself, in its manufacture or composition, are not warrantied by Metro Maintenance & Landscaping. Changes in substrate to which paint or other coatings are applied due to humidity, weather, settling of a building or foundation, heat, cold or water are not warrantied. Examples include but are not limited to sheetrock, cement, wood flooring, decking, vinyl siding, wood siding, cementacious siding etc…


With this warranty it wouldn't matter if you warranted it for 20 years. All of the things not covered are all of the causes of paint failure. If you are only providing a warantee on the actual installation of the paint then as soon as it dries your warranty holds up. Any future problems, even in the 3 year period wouldn't be covered. Maybe some obscure condition but it isn't likely.

A year of guarantee not to peel fade or crack should be sufficient and if the substrates have been prepared properly then you will get at least a year out of a paint job.

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