Re: breakout of billing
A lot of good suggestions so far but you'll have to implement some of these suggestions and try them out to find out what works for you. If you're dealing with a GC there are some things you should know :
A) GC's will not allow you to make money. Only they can make the money. They get "up-front" money from the homeowner and mysteriously develop arthritis when it comes to writing you a check.
B) Never hook up with a track builder. They do business as ABC Contracting and plan to build 100 condos and are usually 7 or 8 condos behind in your payments throughout the project. When they finish the last condo they close up shop and re-open as XYZ Contracting and you're out the $$$ for 7 or 8 condos
GC's usually don't like to pay any "up-front" money but you can negotiate up-front payments if you're dealing with a homeowner. The most important thing, no matter who you're dealing with, is a SIGNED CONTRACT . When there's big money involved, if you do things with only a handshake - that's exactly what you'll get in the end (no pun intended !). Make sure both you and whoever you're dealing with are comfortable with all the components of the contract. And that reminds me of the Kenny Rogers song that goes "You gotta know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away and know when to run". If you don't feel right about the deal you're about to enter into - don't sign on the dotted line.
Anyway, getting off the soap box, when dealing with a homeowner I've found that the 1/3, 1/3, 1/3 formula works the best. In dealing with a GC I've found that 50% upon completion of rough-in and rough inspection, 25% upon completion of final work and 25% upon final inspection work the best. In either case, getting that last payment is the hardest part of the job. Good luck.
[ May 30, 2004, 08:39 AM: Message edited by: goldstar ]