All Forum Posts by: Christopher Reynolds

Hey everyone. I’m the builder on a new house for my brother, and I was hoping to get some ideas and advice from you. It’s also my first project as a construction supervisor, as I just recently obtained my unrestricted license in my state. 

He purchased the raw land a few years ago from a family friend.  Initially it was a part of the friend’s land where his house is, but he had it broken off into its own separate parcel maybe 20 years ago. The land is in a desirable part of town, and we think he got a great deal. We’ve been slowly preparing the land over the last couple years, clearing trees and shaping it for the house, doing just about everything ourselves so far. He got a construction loan and we have contractors lined up to do most of the work, though we will be doing some of it ourselves (painting, septic system, gutters, some carpentry). Last week we had the foundation poured (we did not do this ourselves!), and it’s starting to look like a house!  

My brother will be building a workshop in the basement, wood and metalworking. Not for a profession, just hobby stuff (though you might not know it by the equipment he has). He had a 9’ ceiling in the basement for extra height clearances. He also had a doghouse bulkhead designed rather than a standard bulkhead, in order to make it easier to get large things in and out of the basement. He also opted for a 300A electrical service for future proofing. 

I’d like to have network drops all over the place, those are always much easier to run before drywall is installed. I know wireless is really fast now, but nothing beats a hard wire and it’s cheap to put in while the frame is open. I plan to put some kind of a server closet in the basement, as well as security cameras and smart lights where it makes sense. 

If you were building a house today, what amenities/features would you want in it?  What things would you not want?  It’s especially important to us because it’s my brother’s house, and our father is also doing a great job keeping everything going. We’d love your advice to make this house even better! Thanks everyone.

@Laureen Youngblood, thank you for the information!  It seems like Home Advisor might not be a great fit for me.  Perhaps if I was a larger operation I could handle more leads that I'd have to decline, but since my time is limited, I think lead quality trumps all.

Good info about my local BNI!  I looked mine up and it seems to be active, I shall check it out!  Thanks again.

Thank you guys for the replies! 

@Aaron McGinnis , I am not a roofer, but in terms of this discussion, I may as well be.  I am a rain gutter contractor.  I work alone so the number of jobs I would be able to take on is limited, but it would be relatively easy for me to collect a zip code list that I'd be willing to work in.

Good to know about the bargain hunters.  I think in this space, I might be among the least expensive player, but I surely would not go cheaper just to get a job.  My time and labor is worth something. 

Also good to know about the ******* nuttery. I wouldn't want to spend my time verifying lead quality, so maybe this wouldn't work for me.  I'm flying solo here, so any time spent qualifying leads is time that I could be working.  

@Michael Hayworth , do you have anything to say about Angie's List?  I expect my reviews to be very good, although I have no public presence to speak of yet.  90% of my work is currently for a couple different builders (one large new construction builder, and a couple other smaller remodelers), and I'd like to branch out a little and start doing some private jobs for homeowners, as it would be more money than I charge builders.  My work is good enough to work for large builders consistently, but I know homeowners are a totally different animal in regards to reviews :) 

Thanks again guys!

Hello everyone! I’m looking for advice from people who have used Home Advisor from the contractor’s side of the business. I am a small contractor who is looking to solicit more business, and Home Advisor seems to be a good way for customers to find me. I’m not sure about the costs (I think it’s a couple hundred dollars a year, plus I’d pay for leads sent my way.  It’s difficult to find reviews for HA because most of them seem to be customers looking for reviews of the contractors themselves. I’d love a contractor’s perspective here. 

 I read one review where the contractor said he was on a job and received several leads that he was unable to respond to immediately, he had to pay for them, and he would have been unable to take on those jobs anyway. He also said HA’s sales tactics make it difficult to cancel their service. Being a small contractor, I likely would not be able to take on every job that comes my way. Depending on the number of leads I'd receive, I might need to turn away most of them, or at book them out several months.  

I have a couple large competitors in the area, and while those competitors have marketing budgets that reflect the size of their business, I am a lot smaller and more affordable. This wouldn’t be my only source of advertising, as I will be branching out with Facebook/Instagram advertising, targeted mailings, Craigslist, and other options.

Has anyone used Home Advisor to connect their business with customers? I’d love to hear your honest positive and negative experiences. Thanks very much!

@Kurt Hines due to the nature of my employer's business, this is not a possible option.  But good information to know in case it ever comes up in the future!  Although I hope this is the last W-2 income I  ever have :)

@George Blower I suspect they will not, as they do not allow loan distributions, though I am still very new to this.  I will login and check their SPD, thanks!

Thank you @George Blower.  While I can have both an employer-provided 401k and a solo 401k for my self-employed business, I wish to use my employer 401k funds rather than starting another one myself. Surely it's not possible to transfer those funds into a solo 401k without leaving my employer, correct?

Thank you @Bernard Reisz!  I would likely only use these funds to invest in real estate for the foreseeable future, but if I could get a plan that would allow both RE and stock market investments, I would choose that one if the cost was comparable.   

Thank you @Brian Eastman!  I'm really encouraged.  I appreciate the help.

Thank you @Brian Eastman!  

Would I need to do anything before leaving my employer?  I want to make sure to do everything in the correct order.  I really like working there, but I want to use these funds more than I want to work there.  Just for clarification: if my current employer does not allow for a loan distribution through their current 401k plan, the only way for me to start my own self-directed solo 401k plan is to leave the employer, correct?

My contracting business has no full time (or part time) employees, it's just me. I will look for a self-directed solo 401k. I want to invest only in real estate with these funds.

Thank you for the reply!