[Lifestooshort]

This is a serious question. If you have been doing construction long enough you have had to sue you client to get paid. It's a joke with high end clients they know the law how long a law suite can drag on. 3 year if they are good. They can bond the lien. They can run up legal bills. Who protects us. I am in it now over 1.5 mil. Owed they knew what they were doing. Now I have a lien filed and protected by the law suit. It does me nothing. I know what they owe on there 7 mil third vacation home. They don't need the money. I have paid all subs all suppliers and I realize nobody protects the contractor. One complaint every agency opens a investigation against us very quickly. Contractors have a bad name for very good reason. There are more horrible ones then descent ones. There is a small percentage of great ones. But my god we are on the hook for everything. It's time to think of another approach. Someone has had to find a different way. Come from a bizarre approach that will wake the client up. They enjoy there beautiful vacation home. While we sit and wait. Some loos everything. Some can't get a attorney. Some negotiate for pennies on the dollar. I will find a alternative way to sue them while I watch the lawyers do discovery. Then there experts. Then counter sue. File motions. It's criminal. We will finally get to a mandatory settlement conference that will get pushed off because there lawyer filed a motion for dismissal because I forgot to cross a t or something silly. We defend it. And FINALY maybe we get to this mandatory settlement conference. And no matter what documentation you have. And you and your lawyer can prove without a shadow of a doubt every single allegation in the cross complaint. You settle. I learned at a very young age. From a judge. Approx 5 percent of all lawsuits go to trial. NEVER believe you will win. The truth does not mean a whole lot. Never let your ego get in your way. And if your attorney wants to go to trial. Get a new attorney. There are always exceptions. But are you really willing to risk it on a coin flip. And maybe loss. Maybe have a judgement against you. Who helps us. When we really do deserve to be paid.

 

[griz]

Please re-write this using the space bar & the enter key....

One gets blurry vision and a headache other wise....

 

[TNTRenovate]

This is a serious question.

If you have been doing construction long enough you have had to sue you client to get paid.

It's a joke with high end clients they know the law how long a law suite can drag on. 3 year if they are good. They can bond the lien. They can run up legal bills. Who protects us.

I am in it now over 1.5 mil. Owed they knew what they were doing. Now I have a lien filed and protected by the law suit. It does me nothing.

I know what they owe on there 7 mil third vacation home. They don't need the money. I have paid all subs all suppliers and I realize nobody protects the contractor.

One complaint every agency opens a investigation against us very quickly. Contractors have a bad name for very good reason. There are more horrible ones then descent ones. There is a small percentage of great ones. But my god we are on the hook for everything.

It's time to think of another approach. Someone has had to find a different way. Come from a bizarre approach that will wake the client up. They enjoy there beautiful vacation home. While we sit and wait. Some loos everything. Some can't get a attorney. Some negotiate for pennies on the dollar.

I will find a alternative way to sue them while I watch the lawyers do discovery. Then there experts. Then counter sue. File motions. It's criminal. We will finally get to a mandatory settlement conference that will get pushed off because there lawyer filed a motion for dismissal because I forgot to cross a t or something silly. We defend it.

And FINALY maybe we get to this mandatory settlement conference. And no matter what documentation you have. And you and your lawyer can prove without a shadow of a doubt every single allegation in the cross complaint. You settle.

I learned at a very young age. From a judge. Approx 5 percent of all lawsuits go to trial. NEVER believe you will win. The truth does not mean a whole lot. Never let your ego get in your way. And if your attorney wants to go to trial. Get a new attorney.

There are always exceptions. But are you really willing to risk it on a coin flip. And maybe loss. Maybe have a judgement against you. Who helps us. When we really do deserve to be paid.

As best as I can cipher this post, this is what I came up with. But it doesn't help much.

 

[EricBrancard]

When people with far more means than you decide they aren't going to pay you, you probably aren't getting paid. Any recourse you have will easily be met and countered by them.

The best you can hope for is that karma catches up with them.....but it won't and they won't lose a minute of sleep over what they did to you. Life isn't fair.

 

[griz]

If you are having that much legal trouble....

something stinks like 3 day old fish....

Rich people are not always to blame....

Why have circumstances deteriorated to this extent?

What does your contract say?

Attorney vs Attorney = Contractor lose....

 

[pritch]

Sad as it may be, some owners (and for that matter, some generals, too) find that is cheaper to defend not paying than it is to pay. May there be a pox on their entire family!

 

[Anti-wingnut]

http://www.wordgenerator.net/random-word-generator.php

 

[CENTERLINE MV]

How did you get in over your head 1.5 million?? I'm not saying it's not owed to you, but I AM saying it's your fault.

Your contract should be written that you get BEFORE beginning the next phase of the project. If you don't get the check, you don't continue the work. Same goes for additional work orders. No work will commence until it's signed and check in hand.

I can understand floating a customer a little bit but 1.5 million sounds fishy to me.

 

[Lifestooshort]

Over my head is a assumption. I wasn't looking for what anyone might think I did wrong. I have a impeccable reputation. I work with 98% absentee owners. Only with referral from a previous client. I don't build new homes. Believe it or not I build and design what I can guarantee you or anyone else will ever see. I have worked with the same sub contractors for over 16 years. And welcome anyone to question my knowledge in every aspect of home building, drainage, structural repair, waterproofing, wells. Tanks, I am called to determine why something fails. I have NEVER lost a case as a expert. And never as a expert gone to trial. I have lost lots of jobs because I won't lie or cover up anything. I can tell you why something failed. Show the engineer why he is wrong. And why houses are failing to hold up if the are built as designed. And when we here in calif. Have a earth quake. Why we will have tremendous loss of structures. Sometimes simple is better. My clients listen. And for 22 years I haven't advertised or taken a cold call.

 

[Anti-wingnut]

It is his first post

 

[480sparky]

Hopefully your contracts are written better than your post.

 

[griz]

Over my head is a assumption. I wasn't looking for what anyone might think I did wrong. I have a impeccable reputation. I work with 98% absentee owners. Only with referral from a previous client. I don't build new homes. Believe it or not I build and design what I can guarantee you or anyone else will ever see. I have worked with the same sub contractors for over 16 years. And welcome anyone to question my knowledge in every aspect of home building, drainage, structural repair, waterproofing, wells. Tanks, I am called to determine why something fails. I have NEVER lost a case as a expert. And never as a expert gone to trial. I have lost lots of jobs because I won't lie or cover up anything. I can tell you why something failed. Show the engineer why he is wrong. And why houses are failing to hold up if the are built as designed. And when we here in calif. Have a earth quake. Why we will have tremendous loss of structures. Sometimes simple is better. My clients listen. And for 22 years I haven't advertised or taken a cold call.

That's cool if you are venting.....

If your asking for advice put on your big boy pants....

whatever you do....

USE THE FVCKING SPACE BAR AND ENTER KEYS!!!!!:thumbsup:

 

[Lifestooshort]

Wow. Interesting to see such responses. But not one answer to a question. WHO PROTECTS THE CONTRACTOR. I won't go out of business. I can't depend on one job. Or silly enough to put all my eggs in one basket. That wasn't my reason for posting. I was hoping someone out there would think about this. A contractor with morals and Who never forgets that everyone needs to be paid. No matter what. That's our job. Weather we are paid or not. We are supposed to protect everyone we hire. We are supposed to protect the home owner. WHO DO WE HAVE TO PROTECT US. ?

 

[480sparky]

....... Who do we have to protect us. ?

. Yourself.

 

[griz]

Wow. Interesting to see such responses. But not one answer to a question. WHO PROTECTS THE CONTRACTOR. I won't go out of business. I can't depend on one job. Or silly enough to put all my eggs in one basket. That wasn't my reason for posting. I was hoping someone out there would think about this. A contractor with morals and Who never forgets that everyone needs to be paid. No matter what. That's our job. Weather we are paid or not. We are supposed to protect everyone we hire. We are supposed to protect the home owner. WHO DO WE HAVE TO PROTECT US. ?

Your reputation
Your common sense
Your business sense
Your experience
Your contract
Your attorney
Your accountant
at times the CSLB

and if all else fails....Guido & Sal...:laughing::whistling:thumbsup:

 

[Tinstaafl]

Wow. Interesting to see such responses. But not one answer to a question. WHO PROTECTS THE CONTRACTOR.

You just [figuratively] walked into a crowded room full of strangers and spouted off a diatribe without even pausing to draw breath. It's not surprising that they don't all immediately offer to buy you a beer.

The answer is that the contractor protects the contractor. Of course there is no totally bulletproof way to ensure that you get every penny due you, but there are many ways to make sure you don't get burned big time.

Put some paragraphs in your posts, like I have, and break down your situation so we can understand it--if you're actually asking for advice. :thumbsup:

 

[PoleBarnsNY]

Got some tips for you.

1. Work on your draw schedule into several smaller milestones and payments
2. Trust no one with I will pay you later excuses. Work stops until payments due are caught up
3. Stop thinking you are going to be paid just because you are swell and do amazing work
4. Learn if you stick your head in the sand, your azz is sticking up just right to get a ramming in your south end
5. For someone that builds multi-million dollar 3rd vacation homes your post sounds very naïve since the person that looks out for contractors is the contractor. It sounds like they saw you coming.

Sorry but that's the way it is.

 

[Lifestooshort]

Wow how true.

 

[PoleBarnsNY]

Their morality ran out at 1.25 mil

 

[TNTRenovate]

Wow how true.

So...20+ years in the business, 1.5 million in the hole and you don't work on a draw system? One word...Darwin.