Re: burned by a contractor
 

Well at least this story has a happy ending:

Here's our newly [URL="http://picasaweb.google.com/kyermt/CompletedKitchen#"]remodeled kitchen[/URL], we took out a wall and opened it up and basically had it gutted. Everything is new.

I'll get some pics of the rest of the place up soon, including the hardwoods that had to be re-finished. They look great now.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Mattyk72;526799]Well at least this story has a happy ending:

Here's our newly [URL="http://picasaweb.google.com/kyermt/CompletedKitchen#"]remodeled kitchen[/URL], we took out a wall and opened it up and basically had it gutted. Everything is new.

I'll get some pics of the rest of the place up soon, including the hardwoods that had to be re-finished. They look great now.[/quote]

Looks Great Matty!

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Mattyk72;526799]Well at least this story has a happy ending:

Here's our newly [URL="http://picasaweb.google.com/kyermt/CompletedKitchen#"]remodeled kitchen[/URL], we took out a wall and opened it up and basically had it gutted. Everything is new.

I'll get some pics of the rest of the place up soon, including the hardwoods that had to be re-finished. They look great now.[/quote]

I really like the small tile backsplash, that's a really nice touch. Glad it worked out.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Schneed10;526804]I really like the small tile backsplash, that's a really nice touch. Glad it worked out.[/quote]

thanks, hate to pat myself on the back but I picked out the backsplash. That was pretty much my only contribution to the kitchen lol. The wife handled the rest and I just agreed with her.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=EternalEnigma21;518829]BTW a suit will be paid out by insurance, so DEF take him to court.[/quote]
Law suits for poor work are not covered by insurance. Insurance coveres things they damage by accident or if they cut a water pipe or cause a fire etc...

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Mattyk72;526799]Well at least this story has a happy ending:

Here's our newly [URL="http://picasaweb.google.com/kyermt/CompletedKitchen#"]remodeled kitchen[/URL], we took out a wall and opened it up and basically had it gutted. Everything is new.

I'll get some pics of the rest of the place up soon, including the hardwoods that had to be re-finished. They look great now.[/quote]
Good to hear things are coming together. For some reason when I click your link all I get is your site and no pics and also happens when I get one of those little red X's to click on. Not sure what I'm doing wrong.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

Looks good Matty. My wife and I are pondering the french door fridge...

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=BDBohnzie;526842]Looks good Matty. My wife and I are pondering the french door fridge...[/quote]


Definatly the way to go. Way more room then a side by side. I love it!!

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Schneed10;518678]No kidding. At the risk of sounding like a major asshole and taking this thread in a totally different direction, I'm pretty glad to see a lot of things happening in the economy right now.

Seeing someone who made less than I did, with worse credit than me, acquire the financing to buy a much bigger house than I had always pissed me off. A big part of me is glad to see it turning around, because now there's some justice in the financial system again.[/quote]

except the asshole that sold them terrible loans made bank and on top of that, I'm paying for it anyways due to some fat bank bailouts with low accountability or tracking on the cash flow.

and now I can't re-finance without putting massive points even though my credit score is over 800, I've never had a late payment, I've got lots of equity and cash assets, plenty of insurance and a guaranteed job.

so I'm paying for the people that couldn't afford their houses and now I also get to pay more for mine and lose value as well.

real win-win.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=That Guy;528996]except the asshole that sold them terrible loans made bank and on top of that, I'm paying for it anyways due to some fat bank bailouts with low accountability or tracking on the cash flow.

and now I can't re-finance without putting massive points even though my credit score is over 800, I've never had a late payment, I've got lots of equity and cash assets, plenty of insurance and a guaranteed job.

so I'm paying for the people that couldn't afford their houses and now I also get to pay more for mine and lose value as well.

real win-win.[/quote]

I hear you man when we bought our house in 2005 we had a budget of $250 that is what we could afford. the bank approved us for $500K, many people bought homes they could not afford. they were like will if the bank says I can get a $500k loan I must be able to afford it.

Hopefully Obama throws us a lifeline because as usually it is the guy who is trying to do the right thing that ends being screwed.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=mredskins;529017]I hear you man when we bought our house in 2005 we had a budget of $250 that is what we could afford. the bank approved us for $500K, many people bought homes they could not afford. they were like will if the bank says I can get a $500k loan I must be able to afford it.

Hopefully Obama throws us a lifeline because as usually it is the guy who is trying to do the right thing that ends being screwed.[/quote]

What do you need a lifeline for if you bought a house you can afford? I'm confused.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=FRPLG;529027]What do you need a lifeline for if you bought a house you can afford? I'm confused.[/quote]


Because it was a starter home and I want to move the hell out of it. It would be nice to have some equity and know it's Days on the Market (DOM) would not be a 100 years when I go to sell.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=mredskins;529066]Because it was a starter home and I want to move the hell out of it. It would be nice to have some equity and know it's Days on the Market (DOM) would not be a 100 years when I go to sell.[/quote]

So you just want a bigger house then? You're not having any monetary problems with it? So you want everyone else to bail you out even though you really don't have any problems> It would just "be nice?" Are you being serious?

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=FRPLG;529072]So you just want a bigger house then? You're not having any monetary problems with it? So you want everyone else to bail you out even though you really don't have any problems> It would just "be nice?" Are you being serious?[/quote]


Here is the deal buddy I went about it the right way. Bought the house that fit my budget and in five years I am looking to move to a house that fits my family's need (we have grown) basically I am looking to have equity in home becasue when I bought it like all of the homes in my area it was over priced. I don't need a bail out I just want a housing market correction.

And you know what if you bought a house you could not afford 5 years ago and now your mortgage is going to flip tough beans, I don't think the goverment should help those people stay in their homes.

I DON"T WANT ANYONE bail out a just want a fair housing market where I am willing/able to sell my house and buy another house thus keeping the econimic housing wheels rolling.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=mredskins;529091]Here is the deal buddy I went about it the right way. Bought the house that fit my budget and in five years I am looking to move to a house that fits my family's need (we have grown) basically I am looking to have equity in home becasue when I bought it like all of the homes in my area it was over priced. I don't need a bail out I just want a housing market correction.

And you know what if you bought a house you could not afford 5 years ago and now your mortgage is going to flip tough beans, I don't think the goverment should help those people stay in their homes.

I DON"T WANT ANYONE bail out a just want a fair housing market where I am willing/able to sell my house and buy another house thus keeping the econimic housing wheels rolling.[/quote]

The problem is that the market is correcting itself and home prices are going to drop. I purchased a home 04/2004 right in middle of the boom and new this was going to be an issue. I looked at alot of homes and knew that this boom had to stop and was very worried about getting stuck in a home. We finally found a nice home which was for sale by owner and way under what the market was bringing. We gave them a deposit on the spot and got the contract done in days. Now I know I was lucky but I just took the time to find a good deal. Even with todays market I can sell our home for around $75,000 to $100,000 more then we paid back in 2004. I understand your concern but I think the market is going to take a hit no matter what is done.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=firstdown;529105]The problem is that the market is correcting itself and home prices are going to drop. I purchased a home 04/2004 right in middle of the boom and new this was going to be an issue. I looked at alot of homes and knew that this boom had to stop and was very worried about getting stuck in a home. We finally found a nice home which was for sale by owner and way under what the market was bringing. We gave them a deposit on the spot and got the contract done in days. Now I know I was lucky but I just took the time to find a good deal. Even with todays market I can sell our home for around $75,000 to $100,000 more then we paid back in 2004. I understand your concern but I think the market is going to take a hit no matter what is done.[/quote]

Agreed. It just sucks right now and you should consider yourself lucky. the orginal complaint in this thread was and S10 point this out that there are tons of people out there that have cut corners not made payments and/or poor decisions and now they are getting help while the guy who is doing it right is left holding the bag.

And yes I realize a lot of people are worst off then me and I am gratful to have a roof and food for my family.

Enough said good luck to everyone in these dark times.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

I didn't want to start a new thread for this.

My wife and I are buying a new home. We have already found the one we wanted and have placed an offer.

If we get this particular home we will want to redo the countertops and incorporate a bar which would T off of the breakfast bar into the kitchen nook.

I want to use granite as the surface for the counters and both bars. My wife suggested some type of "Stone something or rather" or maybe it was "Something or Rather Stone" (I only listen to half the crap she says). Anyways, whatever this material is that she is talking about is cheaper and does not require sealing.

My question is (If you know what in the hell stuff my wife is talking about) "Would you go with the granite or the other material"?


Edit: Silestone! The crap is called Silestone! Does anyone have any input on this?

Re: burned by a contractor
 

Angry, silestone is a quartz product. We just had Corian countertops put in my kitchen, another quartz product. Yes it is less expensive but it's still not cheap. We went with Corian over granite due to the fact we weren't thrilled with the amount of maintenance needed for granite. Quartz is supposed to be more durable and it's not non-porous unlike other stone products.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Mattyk72;538010]Angry, silestone is a quartz product. We just had Corian countertops put in my kitchen, another quartz product. Yes it is less expensive but it's still not cheap. We went with Corian over granite due to the fact we weren't thrilled with the amount of maintenance needed for granite. Quartz is supposed to be more durable and it's not non-porous unlike other stone products.[/quote]

So you are using a quartz product right now. I know that you haven't had it tht long, but are you pleased with it, or do you have regrets about not getting the granite?

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Angry;538018]So you are using a quartz product right now. I know that you haven't had it tht long, but are you pleased with it, or do you have regrets about not getting the granite?[/quote]

We love it, no regrets.

For what it's worth we have a neighbor who has granite and he told us that he wishes he would have went with Corian.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Mattyk72;538020]We love it, no regrets.

I have a neighbor who has granite and he told us that he wishes he would have went with Corian.[/quote]

Gotcha, thanks for the input and not giving me hell about it. [IMG]http://www.thewarpath.net/images/icons/icon10.gif[/IMG]

Looks my wife wins yet again.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

I have granite and love the way it looks, no complaints. But to be honest I don't really care what material it is, as long as it looks nice.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

granite is expensive if you need a big piece without a seem in it, and I think health wise they aren't as good (from a bacteria stand-point, not the whole radon/gamma radiation thing).

I have corian, as do my parent's, and i'd do it again in a second. they can mold/cut it to any size and it looks great.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Angry;538003]I didn't want to start a new thread for this.

[B]My wife and I are buying a new home. We have already found the one we wanted and have placed an offer.[/B]

If we get this particular home we will want to redo the countertops and incorporate a bar which would T off of the breakfast bar into the kitchen nook.

I want to use granite as the surface for the counters and both bars. My wife suggested some type of "Stone something or rather" or maybe it was "Something or Rather Stone" (I only listen to half the crap she says). Anyways, whatever this material is that she is talking about is cheaper and does not require sealing.

My question is (If you know what in the hell stuff my wife is talking about) "Would you go with the granite or the other material"?


Edit: Silestone! The crap is called Silestone! Does anyone have any input on this?[/quote]

The seller accepted my offer yesterday. I am psyched!

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=That Guy;538097]granite is expensive if you need a big piece without a seem in it, and [B]I think health wise they aren't as good [/B](from a bacteria stand-point, not the whole radon/gamma radiation thing).

I have corian, as do my parent's, and i'd do it again in a second. they can mold/cut it to any size and it looks great.[/quote]

This is a myth propogated by the quartz industry. Studies show that the quartz product do exactly what they say...but not any better than granite.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Angry;538277]The seller accepted my offer yesterday. I am psyched![/quote]
Glade to hear you got the deal and it is exciting time. Is this your first home and ehere is it located? I watch alot of theDIY network and hace you seen the new cement conter tops that they are now doing? Its pretty cool as they can add texture and can do alot with color. I saw one where they took broken glass of all colors and add into the cement mix wich they then buffed out and sealed. It looked pretty cool. This summer I'm going to widen my deck and to cover the current area where the railing attaches to the house we are going to build a bar with a sink. I'm gettin a kit to do a cement counter top to give it a try. I would not try this in my house but I'm sure their are a bunch of contractors now doing cement counter tops.
[url=http://search.msn.com/images/results.aspx?q=Concrete+Countertop+Photos&FORM=IGRE]Concrete Countertop Photos - Live Search Images[/url]#
Here is a link to see what cement counter tops look like.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Angry;538277]The seller accepted my offer yesterday. I am psyched![/quote]

I assume you're staying in the DC area right? Whereabouts is your new place? It's a great time to buy around here. Congrats!

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=FRPLG;538292]This is a myth propogated by the quartz industry. Studies show that the quartz product do exactly what they say...but not any better than granite.[/quote]

by consumer reports?

you have to re-seal granite too.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=That Guy;538362]by consumer reports?

you have to re-seal granite too.[/quote]

Yeah they are relying on pop-science...basically buying into the solid-surface marketing machine. I have solid surface and it is great...but it isn't any more safe than granite. Especially if you clean your kitchen on a regular basis. And I personally think the sealing issue is way way way overblown. Buy the sealer and wipe it on twice a year. You spend like $10 and 5 minutes of your life a year on the "hassle" of sealing.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=firstdown;538317]Is this your first home and where is it located? .[/quote]

[quote=GMScud;538323]I assume you're staying in the DC area right? Whereabouts is your new place? It's a great time to buy around here. Congrats![/quote]


Thanks!
I am moving from Kensington to Silver Spring. It's only about 8 miles away but this place will be my own, and yes I am a first time buyer. I have waited 2 1/2 years for this (since getting out of the Army).

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Angry;538383]Thanks!
I am moving from Kensington to Silver Spring. It's only about 8 miles away but this place will be my own, and yes I am a first time buyer. I have waited 2 1/2 years for this (since getting out of the Army).[/quote]

Well with the wait you now have lower prices and you will get that Obama first time home buyer thing thats around 8 grand. I didn't own my first home until I was 40 but I had purchased several comercial properties which worked out better in the long run. I don't have a MD license to sell ins. but if you have any questions about what to look for with homeowners ins let me know and I'll PM you my number so we can talk. Most homeowners policies are pretty standard but there are several things you need to make sure are in your policy.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Angry;538383]Thanks!
I am moving from Kensington to Silver Spring. It's only about 8 miles away but this place will be my own, and yes I am a first time buyer. I have waited 2 1/2 years for this (since getting out of the Army).[/quote]

Nice. I grew up in upper NW DC, but I live just across the city line in Silver Spring right now. Let me tell you, it's come a long way in the past 7-10 years. I really love it. Welcome!

Re: burned by a contractor
 

My wife and I make too much to get the full amount of first time buyer thing, but we will get some of it...Thanks Obama! My real estate agent and my lending agent are long time friends of my wife and her family. They have been doing a great job of looking out for us at every decision.

I will not be living so close to the line, I am a few miles up 29. The area is nice and the homes are a bit more reasonably priced.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

That's awesome Angry, congrats! There is nothing like buying your first home...

What's your proximity to Four Corners?

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=BDBohnzie;538525]That's awesome Angry, congrats! There is nothing like buying your first home...

What's your proximity to Four Corners?[/quote]

About 6 miles North East. In between Cherry Hill and Briggs Cheyney

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Mattyk72;518471]So the wife and I are moving into a new house soon and we're doing some major remodeling in the new place.

New hardwood floors throughout the main living area and in the master bedroom, a brand new kitchen, new carpets in the guest bedrooms, new paint, etc.

We hired a guy to do the floors and carpets, and he also did some painting in 2 of the bedrooms, and he scrapped our popcorn ceilings. This guy came recommended from a neighbor, and we checked his work there and everything seemed fine.

We haven't been too happy with this floor guy so far but the crap really hit the fan tonight. Up until now his work wasn't horrible necessarily, but he just kept missing deadlines and was hard to get in touch with sometimes. So we stopped in to check out the floors tonight and they looked horrible, just pathetic. I swear a monkey could have done a better job. Blotches everywhere. Obviously he did a piss poor job with the sanding and every blemish is showing, big time.

So we're into this project pretty deep and I could just throw up after seeing the total amateur job he did with the hardwoods. Luckily, the contractor we have doing the kitchen remodel is a real professional and a great guy, I only wish we would have just hired him to do the whole house. He's calling his guy that does floors to come out and see if he can salvage the damage that's already been done. Best case he can sand them properly and stain them again, worst case we might have to rip up the floors and start over.

We feel like we've been kicked in the gut. We're just thankful the contractor who is doing the kitchen is a real pro who can help us out. Hell, he even flat out old told the floor guy he did a shit job right to his face!

I guess the lesson here is to really do your homework when hiring a contractor for a major job, and get more than just a neighbor's recommendation. I think this contractor was just a small time guy who bit off more than he could chew, and unfortunately we're the ones that have to deal with cleaning up his mess.[/quote]

sorry to hear about your luck

hope this works out man

Re: burned by a contractor
 

Had our small claims case today and we won, slam F'ing dunk. The dude didn't even show up. F'ing coward. Too bad we probably won't see a dime from this scumbag but it's satisfying to at least have the judgment in our favor.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

^ Always feels good.

Re: burned by a contractor
 

[quote=Mattyk72;541320]Had our small claims case today and we won, slam F'ing dunk. The dude didn't even show up. F'ing coward. Too bad we probably won't see a dime from this scumbag but it's satisfying to at least have the judgment in our favor.[/quote]


Congrats. What was the judgment?

Re: burned by a contractor
 

If I'm correct a judgement does not come off your record even if you file bankruptcy but I could be incorrect about that. I have a court order judgment against a guy who stole my truck and snaged around $900 worth of stuff and minor damage. The damage to the truck was not enough to file a claim on my auto ins. and the contents taking was not enough to file a claim on my homeowners ins. I was told at the time it would stay on his record forever and my hope is one day he will clean up his act and want this off his record. I'm not holding my breath as I was one of two people in court who he had stolen a car from. He was out on bail from stealing his first car when he took mine.