(Note: Want the best system for fixing and flipping houses in the world? Get our 17-Step Systemized Renovation Process, guaranteed To make rehabbing houses fast, fun, & easy.)
Here at Real Estate Mogul, we have the privilege of interacting daily with some of the real estate industry’s most respectable contractors.
Most of these talented men and women are consummate professionals, who take justifiable pride in a job well done…
…and humble bloggers like us hold a deep appreciation for their conscientious expertise across such a broad spectrum of renovation-related topics. (Thank-you for all you do!)
But we know that we are spoiled. We know that most folks – including many of you reading these words – are not surrounded by such a high concentration of respectable contractors each day.
Yes, every industry has its fair share of “bad apples”, and the real estate business is no exception… So we hear our fair share of horror stories about the unprofessional contractors – the disappointing minority who attempt to take unfair advantage of Mogul’s 13,000+ members.
And it absolutely breaks our hearts. (Truly.) We hate to see our friends and members suffer from negligent contractors in the same way that we hate to see our children suffer from negligent dentists.
What to Do?
The heartbreaking question that arises most often from these painful situations is this: “What am I supposed to do with my unprofessional contractor?”
Indeed, dealing with contractors who don’t get er’ done seems to be a tricky situation for many investors.
So we sought advice from our in-house rehabbing extraordinaire, Bob McIntosh, who has a long history of providing superb renovation-related advice for us at Mogul. Fortunately, Bob agreed to expound on the subject of firing bad contractors in today’s lesson.
Check-out the following video lesson for Bob’s explanation about why and how to “Donald Trump” their lazy butts!
The Red-Headed Rehabber Explains…
{Mogul Elite: Download a transcript and MP3 of this lesson in the Power Pack tools for this lesson.}
Always keep a list of contractors for replacements. The quickest way to find a replacement is to contact one of the contractors that bid on the same work. If you come up empty-handed here, refer to your master list of Contacts – starting with the most recently used contractors. If all else fails, search for new contacts and recommendations.
Retrieve your key before you fire them! Make sure to always keep an accurate key count.
Bring a lean waiver and your checkbook with you. On the day you fire a contractor, be sure to make them sign a lean waiver – affirming that you paid them – then write their check.
Escort them out of the building. Let them know its business, not personal. Protect your property investment.
Change any lock boxes right away. If you can change the code on your lock boxes, do it right away. If you use lockboxes with a fixed code; it is time to use the extra lockbox, or rotate them. It is a good idea to keep an extra lockbox handy and rotate them on a regular basis.
Bob McIntosh
's Renovation Domination systems and processes for renovating homes has been tested and works successfully in any market anywhere in the US, and probably the world as well! Bob prides himself on taking what many people think of as technical or out of their league and simplifying the process down to something that they not only understand, but comprehend and can replicate over and over!