Dealing with bad contractors

[Ivan Aldana]

Hey everybody! I need your guys help and some insight on this BIG problem I got. I hired this contractor that I found on the bigger pockets website actually and I ended up getting burned by him. He’s been working on a rehab, he did a little bit of the work and then just stopped doing the work then started getting hard to reach. So I took it upon me to send somebody out to see what’s going on with my property and come to find out there is this guy that says he’s been working on my property but I never hired him or contracted him. He says the he was hired through Kevin Holmes(my original gc) which I made an payout to already but ended up running away with my money and apparently he’s been also living in my property for the last 90 days!!  I don’t want to do business with this guy at all, very unprofessional and I want him out my house! Tried calling the cops but seems like nobody wants to help me! On top of that he’s threatening to put a lien on my property because supposedly he’s the real guy that did a little bit of work on my property, but I never made a direct contract with this guy. ANY INSIGHT IS MUCH APPRECIATED HELP!!! 

[Ivan Aldana]

Quote from @Todd Jones:

I had a similar experience where a contractor stated they were licensed but they wanted to avoid pulling permits as it took too long. I said do it anyway. The day before the job, the building dept said “they never pulled a permit and their license expired years ago”. The contractor then said “Yea, getting a license is expensive. That’s why I don’t do it.” We went back/forth on his lack of logic and I just ended the call.

To your situation, unless they filled out a adverse possession claim, beautified the home, or lived there 21 years, then squatter’s rights don’t apply.

- As everyone said, get a lawyer ASAP for a civil and possibly criminal trial. Get every ounce of paperwork, emails, voicemails, phone call times, etc available regarding this.

- File a detailed, written police report. If you already done so, it may not seem to do anything but it provides the foundation that you didn’t want this person at the home and helps removes doubt.

- Who pays the utilities? If you do, shut them off. Ask an attorney first as they may have a strategy.

- Do you have any signed documentation indicating a relationship with this guy directly? If not, tell the lawyer this.

- if they say they have a lien or if they threaten you, just ignore them. They’re trying to scare you so they can stay rent free. Don’t ask for the lien documentation. Let your attorney advise you. When dealing with legal matters, the biggest mistake folks make is not listening to the attorney.

It sounds like you’re out of town. Impulsively, I would go to the home and confront them but don’t. It will make matters worse. Again, the attorney will advise.

Don’t worry. This will get resolved and turn into a lesson learn of paying contractors up front. Hey, you don’t know then but now you do.

You will win this!

Thank you so much Todd. That was extremely helpful! Thanks to @Bob Stevens he miraculously found a way to contact my original contractor Kevin Holmes and we talked for a while. Come to find out it appears the sub contractor he hired (the squatter) is the main ********ter in all this mess. And caused concerning issues between Kevin and I. Therefore, when I spoke with Kevin he was able to provide me with receipts of the materials he ordered in which I paid him to do. The squatter never installed nor picked up the material so I was under the impression that nothing was being done after I wired him money because nothing has been installed. The squatter has been the biggest problem with threats and demands of money from me. I have since blocked him from contacting me. Kevin and I agreed the squatter needs to be removed off my property and fired. I have decided to keep Kevin on the job to finish after he explained his side and proved to me that my money didn’t go to waste. I will keep you guys updated on his completion. I know it’s a long reach to still keep him on the job after all I’ve been through with his people but understand I’m on a tight schedule and have a ticking dead line to complete. Thank you to all the bigger pockets community you guys have been so helpful in such a stressful situation and I am forever grateful to have a community like this!