Contractor claims construction costs changed…after completion, billing and payment

[Matthew Hubbell]

Looking for advice on construction costs that a contractor claims changed…after the work was completed, billed and paid.

I recently finished renovating a property. My contractor billed for the first unit (#4) when renovations were completed in April 2022, invoice was paid immediately. He chose not to bill for the remaining work until the rest of the units were completed. His final invoice includes $8k of additional costs on unit #4. He claims the prior invoice mistakenly included unit #4 renovation at cost, without labor and a few subcontractor invoices that trickled in later. Keep in mind, his initial invoice which I paid 8 months ago, reads “here is the final invoice for unit #4.”

Had the contactor raised this oversight within a reasonable time period, it could have been easily resolved. At this stage (8 months later), I question his validity. 

This feels like purchasing a new car, driving off the lot and being told that the dealership forgot to charge for floor mats when you go in for your first oil change. End of the day, my goal is to improve the homes for my tenants and turn a profit. I believe in honoring contracts and don’t ask others to pay for any mistakes I make. 

I appreciate any thoughts on how to handle the situation and if I'm obligated to pay the new bill. Fyi, I won’t be working with this contactor on future deals, for this and other reasons.  

Thanks

[Bruce Woodruff]

Speaking as a 40 year GC (in San Diego), this is easy. Look at your original contract and see what it says. That is what you owe and that is all you owe.

Unless of course you requested additional work, he agreed and you executed a proper Change Order. You must pay any legal Change Orders. A legal CO must be signed by both the Contractor and the Customer and needs to include the original contract amount, the new work amount, and the new total.

Now of course there are disorganized Contractors and Customers and sometimes work gets done without being signed for. That is probably the case here. 

So you need to decide if a) the work was necessary, b) approved even verbally by you, c) done correctly d) you think it is right to pay him for it. I mean we all make mistakes.... if the work was necessary and he did it correctly, then do you want to not pay him even though you could legally get away with it?