Well, apparently I’m not the only one who is experiencing general contractor woes. It’s nothing deadly, and is mostly annoying. We’re starting to creep over budget and construction time will easily take double what was originally estimated. I guess, given other home renovation horror stories I’ve heard, I should count my lucky stars.
He came on strong, loving, empathetic, attentive, and then before you even realize it, the anomalies begin to become patterns, not unlike, as a NYT author points out, a bad boyfriend.
OK, so this is my current renovation story but it is also the premise of a very funny (sadly funny) New York Times article by Deborah Derrickson Kossman, “Why We Needed a Prenup with Our Contractor.”
The memory starts to go, they stop writing things down, the excuses become more prolific and creative, and the project lingers. This is my “rebound” contractor; the first one was sent packing early on. I’m just not sure I’ll use him for the inside renovation once we wrap up the outside. Assuming we do wrap up the outside. I wonder which is worse: The devil you know, or the devil you don’t know?
It is by the way construction day 52.
Here is the article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/28/fashion/28love.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all
I have to ask: Are all the good contractors taken????
Filed under: NYT, dream house renovation and construction
