Investor Friendly General Contractor in South Jersey

[Alyssa Coffey]

Hello!

I have been doing several rehabs in the south jersey area and have been through several general contractors and can't seem to find someone who is a good fit that is investor friendly and reliable. I have a few sub-contractors that have been great but when it comes to finding a general contractor, the 3 or 4 I've been through have all been un-reliable, lie, or over charge and aren't exactly investor friendly. I am looking for any recommendations for a general contractor that I can use on all my future jobs that is reliable and investor friendly when it comes to materials and cost. Thank you so much in advance! 

[Ryan McGrath]

Although I can't recommend a GC in NJ as I'm in Mass, I'll give my 2 cents after being in construction for almost 15 years. 

This is a VERY tough time to find a good GC and establish a good relationship with. It's the hottest construction market in decades, and all of the good GC's are extremely busy. 

Construction escalation costs have been through the roof over the last 2 years alone, mostly due to labor shortages and subcontractors having more work than they can handle, so they start submitting high bids that leave owners and investors scratching their heads. 

If you have the knowledge and ability to manage and hire the subcontractors directly, I would do that. Then find a core group of subs, especially important on the plumbing, electrical and HVAC side.

Payment terms are also very important to GC's. So you will have a hard time finding a GC that will agree to anything beyond 30-day pay terms and many residential guys want better terms than that. 

But best of luck in your search--there are too many inexperienced morons out there who call themselves GC's and botch projects left and right.