hjffkj Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 Just need to vent because I'm tired of making phone calls and getting no where. We are getting my parents house ready to sell and 95% of the work we can do ourselves. With the things we can do ourselves we plan on being done mid July hopefully at the latest. The only thing we can't do ourselves is replacing an exterior sliding door that has some rot on it so it absolutely needs to be replace. Of the many contractors we have contacted they have all been booked through the summer. I can't even find handy guys who just do it for some side cash. I REALLY don't want to learn how to do it ourselves because we have so many other things to do right now but it is looking like we're gonna have to learn how to do it and just get it done. Wah!!! I don't want to, ha. Vent over, thanks for putting up with me. 1 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saraha Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 I’m sorry. The little old guy I work for just had his sliding glass door replaced. The guys that did his gutters did it. I wonder if there is some kind of outside of the box solution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 That stinks! Learning something for a one time use is annoying. Too bad you’re not in my area-with lumber prices so high, construction is stalling and we’re finding contractors begging for work. We just finished a major garage expansion and we were talking about some drainage work and pavers needed and our contractor quickly bid on it because he has no other work other than things like what you need, or replacing a window or something. Our county has a Facebook page for people who need work done to connect with tradesmen and it’s amazing - often in the past only one or two responses per request was the norm. Now within minutes there are multiple people wanting the jobs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjffkj Posted June 12, 2021 Author Share Posted June 12, 2021 7 minutes ago, saraha said: I’m sorry. The little old guy I work for just had his sliding glass door replaced. The guys that did his gutters did it. I wonder if there is some kind of outside of the box solution. we're shooting around ideas on how to get it done without us having to learn it. I'm sure we have someone in our extended network of people who can help. Once upon a time my dad could do it but he's just not physically capable anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjffkj Posted June 12, 2021 Author Share Posted June 12, 2021 10 minutes ago, Annie G said: That stinks! Learning something for a one time use is annoying. Too bad you’re not in my area-with lumber prices so high, construction is stalling and we’re finding contractors begging for work. We just finished a major garage expansion and we were talking about some drainage work and pavers needed and our contractor quickly bid on it because he has no other work other than things like what you need, or replacing a window or something. Our county has a Facebook page for people who need work done to connect with tradesmen and it’s amazing - often in the past only one or two responses per request was the norm. Now within minutes there are multiple people wanting the jobs. wow that is crazy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 22 minutes ago, Annie G said: That stinks! Learning something for a one time use is annoying. Too bad you’re not in my area-with lumber prices so high, construction is stalling and we’re finding contractors begging for work. We just finished a major garage expansion and we were talking about some drainage work and pavers needed and our contractor quickly bid on it because he has no other work other than things like what you need, or replacing a window or something. Our county has a Facebook page for people who need work done to connect with tradesmen and it’s amazing - often in the past only one or two responses per request was the norm. Now within minutes there are multiple people wanting the jobs. Wow! I could only wish that was the case here. It's taking anywhere from 1-4 months to get contractors to come look at a a project, then it's taking another 2-3 months just to get a bid and smallish building projects (estimated to take 3-4 weeks) are already booked into 2022. Bigger projects are even worse to schedule. @hjffkj I feel your pain. I've been trying to figure out about putting a sunroom on my house since late February/early March. I've talked to multiple contractors but for the most part I don't even have bids yet let alone actually getting any work done. Multiple people have told me they are booked until spring/summer of 2022. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 19 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said: Wow! I could only wish that was the case here. It's taking anywhere from 1-4 months to get contractors to come look at a a project, then it's taking another 2-3 months just to get a bid and smallish building projects (estimated to take 3-4 weeks) are already booked into 2022. Bigger projects are even worse to schedule. @hjffkj I feel your pain. I've been trying to figure out about putting a sunroom on my house since late February/early March. I've talked to multiple contractors but for the most part I don't even have bids yet let alone actually getting any work done. Multiple people have told me they are booked until spring/summer of 2022. Before we moved we wanted to get our house painted in hopes it would sell faster. We called a dozen painters, and only one would come see us. He wouldn’t even offer a quote because he already was booked for more than a year. Granted, it was Illinois so not year round painting, but in March he said he *might* be able to fit us in the following year. He wanted a deposit (nonrefundable) to hold our spot. Are contractors there giving firm bids or just estimates? With lumber prices it has to be hard to know if you’ll be able to afford it when your turn comes around! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjffkj Posted June 12, 2021 Author Share Posted June 12, 2021 4 minutes ago, Annie G said: Are contractors there giving firm bids or just estimates? With lumber prices it has to be hard to know if you’ll be able to afford it when your turn comes around! No idea, I haven't even gotten beyond a phone call and them telling me they're booked for months. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 Did you get some bids? You may be able to put the house up for sale with an included “allowance” for the buyer to have the door replaced on their own time. Especially in this market, buyers may be open to that because houses are moving so fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 I'm sorry. We can't find anyone to do anything at present. Everyone's books are full because the Pandemic meant they couldn't enter houses for so long. We don't have your kind of urgency though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 I'm sorry. Contractors are booked up here too but I think many more places will be experiencing what is going on where @AnnieG lives. Building costs are sky high right now, it is not sustainable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Tiggywinkle Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 8 hours ago, cjzimmer1 said: Wow! I could only wish that was the case here. It's taking anywhere from 1-4 months to get contractors to come look at a a project, then it's taking another 2-3 months just to get a bid and smallish building projects (estimated to take 3-4 weeks) are already booked into 2022. Bigger projects are even worse to schedule. @hjffkj I feel your pain. I've been trying to figure out about putting a sunroom on my house since late February/early March. I've talked to multiple contractors but for the most part I don't even have bids yet let alone actually getting any work done. Multiple people have told me they are booked until spring/summer of 2022. DH has a side contracting business. He is booked until July 2022, and that’s pretty common among the contractors he knows. It’s crazy right now(good for us though lol). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAgain Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 It's like that here, too. We scheduled people this winter and waited 3-4 months for our appointments. One of our friends is a contractor and literally has no time right now. The man works as much as possible and still turns people away. It's absolutely crazy right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted June 12, 2021 Share Posted June 12, 2021 Do you have a local window/glass place that sells slider doors? Of so, they might have a few installers they use. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjffkj Posted June 12, 2021 Author Share Posted June 12, 2021 we've resolved to do the job ourselves, hopefully with the help of a friend of ours. I just really wanted to avoid it because we already have to lay new flooring throughout the downstairs, paint almost everything, a few plumbing things and electric things. It'll all be fine and we'll get it done in July, I'm just frustrated because I've been looking for someone since March. Time to research the heck out of door installation! Thanks all for letting me vent and giving suggestions Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 Can you call a window and door place and see if they have their own installers? Yes, you’d have to but through them, but maybe that makes it worth it? Maybe the big box stores have installers? Materials are sky high here and demand is insane because on top of everything else, derecho did unbelievable damage everywhere. We asked friends to work us into their schedule around November time frame and now is when it fit, and that was doing us a favor! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarita Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 Have you found a real estate agent yet to sell the house? When my mom was selling her house her real estate agent suggested all the renovations and supplied contractors. They were much cheaper than any quote I've gotten from contractors. If you were going over the home with a fine tooth comb the details showed it. If it were up to us to decide on renovations and hiring contractors we would have spent a lot more money on it, changed a lot more things and in the end gotten the same price for the house. We do live in CA. I've seen more than one house get renovated to sell and then when the buyers come in they renovate again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjffkj Posted June 13, 2021 Author Share Posted June 13, 2021 38 minutes ago, BlsdMama said: Can you call a window and door place and see if they have their own installers? Yes, you’d have to but through them, but maybe that makes it worth it? Maybe the big box stores have installers? Materials are sky high here and demand is insane because on top of everything else, derecho did unbelievable damage everywhere. We asked friends to work us into their schedule around November time frame and now is when it fit, and that was doing us a favor! big name window and door places aren't worth it at all, just way too expensive. big box stores use local installers who are all already booked. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjffkj Posted June 13, 2021 Author Share Posted June 13, 2021 19 minutes ago, Clarita said: Have you found a real estate agent yet to sell the house? When my mom was selling her house her real estate agent suggested all the renovations and supplied contractors. They were much cheaper than any quote I've gotten from contractors. If you were going over the home with a fine tooth comb the details showed it. If it were up to us to decide on renovations and hiring contractors we would have spent a lot more money on it, changed a lot more things and in the end gotten the same price for the house. We do live in CA. I've seen more than one house get renovated to sell and then when the buyers come in they renovate again. My parents are doing a FSBO, however, one of my mom's best friends is a real estate agent and she actually gave me a list of the people she uses for her rental properties when we were getting our house ready to sell. Sadly, all her people are booked as well. We know the house will sell very quickly and there really is minimal we need to do, almost all cosmetic. This door is the only big non cosmetic issue. It has rotten through to the inside. So, while we could of course sell the house without replacing it because of the market, we'd prefer to replace it to get top dollar and avoid issues with closing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarita Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 3 hours ago, hjffkj said: My parents are doing a FSBO, however, one of my mom's best friends is a real estate agent and she actually gave me a list of the people she uses for her rental properties when we were getting our house ready to sell. Sadly, all her people are booked as well. That's a bummer. Well I wish you luck in finding a contractor. Apparently spending an absurd amount of time at home has caused many to renovate their homes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 14 hours ago, hjffkj said: big name window and door places aren't worth it at all, just way too expensive. big box stores use local installers who are all already booked. Bummer. 😔 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFSinIL Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 (edited) If you need to, get a quote and sell the house with a credit for the repair work. Daughter's townhome had a rusted out front door and sidelights that HAD to be replaced, but thanks to COVID it took six weeks to get the door once the comp[any ordered it. I posted a shot of the purchased door (from a website) inside on the rusted front door to show prospective buyers what had been ordered and was being replaced on our dime. We ended up having the closing and handing over keys to the rusted door...I shared phone numbers with the buyer, and three days after closing was able to come and watch the door finally being installed. We had just been very upfront that the door would not be (finally) installed until after closing. The company we used was Feldco, don't know if they are nationwide (just checked - Iowa/Illinois/Wisconsin only). If you can at least let potential buyers know the door will be replaced when a contractor can get to it - even if after closing - on your dime (or offer a credit if a buyer wants to deal with it) that may be what has to be done. Edited June 13, 2021 by JFSinIL 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted June 13, 2021 Share Posted June 13, 2021 Contractors here were booking out through the summer by March. This is not usual though. This is because of the winter storm in February. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted June 17, 2021 Share Posted June 17, 2021 On 6/12/2021 at 2:09 PM, cjzimmer1 said: Wow! I could only wish that was the case here. It's taking anywhere from 1-4 months to get contractors to come look at a a project, then it's taking another 2-3 months just to get a bid and smallish building projects (estimated to take 3-4 weeks) are already booked into 2022. Bigger projects are even worse to schedule. @hjffkj I feel your pain. I've been trying to figure out about putting a sunroom on my house since late February/early March. I've talked to multiple contractors but for the most part I don't even have bids yet let alone actually getting any work done. Multiple people have told me they are booked until spring/summer of 2022. You probably don't. Unemployed trades equals depressed market. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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