homebuilding.co.uk 125TheBuild projecT advice
11
esTaBlishconTacTTimes
Small builders leave home early, get home late and often fall asleep as
soon as they’ve had their tea. Most work a five-day week and try to keep their
weekends free. But you are going to have to talk to them from time to time and
possibly even meet them. So work out, right at the beginning, the best times for
you to do this and, genuine emergencies apart, stick to those times.8
Be paTienT
A good builder always has work and is in demand. They may give an
indication of a start date and that may slip. If it slips because they have misled
you then that may give you cause to look elsewhere and even terminate your
proposed relationship — if you can find another builder. But if it slips because
the preceding job has taken longer than anticipated, you may want to comfort
yourself with the thought that at the end of your job they won’t go off to another
and leave you in the lurch.10
make sure you pay
Your builder works
for you for their
wages. They also work to pay
the wages of the people or
subcontractors they employ
and to pay off the large
materials bills they accrue.
Most builders who get into
financial difficulties have viable
businesses and the reason they
get into trouble is cashflow.
Ultimately your end of the
bargain with your builder is
that you pay them promptly
and in the manner and amount
that has been agreed. Don’t
pay upfront — but equally
don’t make payments late that
may send your builder into
cash problems and sour your
relationship.9
knowwhaT
To expecT
Your builder
may not always be on
site. It’s likely that a
medium-sized builder
will have more than one
job on the go at any one
time. But the mark of a
good builder is one who
maintains continuity on
every site.
Don’t just assume
that because your
builder isn’t always
on site they are not
working for you. They
may be picking up or
sourcing materials.
They may be off
arranging for plant. The
job’s not all on site.image: getty images