All Forum Posts by: Todd Michaels

Excuse me if this topic has already come up recently, I didn't find anything on it.  If the shut down continues, will Section 8 payments to landlords be affected?  For what I have seen online there is funding until Feb 28, and after that payments could be affected, but the info I found were from local newspapers.

We accept pets at $25 per pet per month (limit 2 dogs), and we must met the dog first (cats we don't need to met) to see if they are aggressive or not.  

 I have the same issue with Google Play, only up to the Sept 6th episode.

Thank you all for the replies.

We had used the contractor before for much smaller jobs (exterior lights mostly) and the whole communication process broke down during the course of this project.  I am sure we could have gotten better pricing if we had shopped around more.  We ended up getting a small discount at the end and not worth the effort to try to fight for more as we are still actively getting the unit ready to be rented.  Will for sure be more proactive moving forward with these larger jobs compared to the small ones previously done.

We gutted a unit and hired an electrician to install new can lights, rerun all the electrical in the kitchen, install a larger breaker box, etc.  The company is run by the owner and he has 4 electricians work for him, the electricians do most of the work themselves including e-mailing the the customer.  We had used this company last year for some outside light replacements so it was a small, couple line item project with no issues.

We never had a signed contract for this new work and it all boils down to the worker charging us $2000 to cut holes in drywall which I specifically stated that I would cut the holes, and on the final invoice the owner changed the wording to be installing outlets in the kitchen...  Here is the original text of the e-mail from the worker completely unedited besides names "--XXXX XXXX with XXXX Electric here is a rough est to replace panel with 20 pos panel $800 but could be more if we have to replace pipe coming in, to install cans to cut in cans and fish in cans your looked at $275 per can + cost of can and trim 14 × 275 =3780 + price of cans, if ceiling is completely open we can take $60 off per can we charge 200 per opening and 225 per circuit, dimmers ate $45 each time and mat to move circuit for laundry and anything else that need done just let us know when your ready"

The original breakdown of all the work by the worker had these 2 line items: 

12-Instalm 10 opening at $200 per opening=$2000

13-Install 4 circuits in kitchen at $225 per circuit=$900"

The actual invoice changed 12 to read "Supply and Install duplex G.F.C.I. outlet in bath or kit.  Qty 10, $200 each, $2000". Note that they did zero work in the bathroom. They installed 4 GFCI outlets in the kitchen and 3 normal outlets as well.  Line #13 on the invoice is the same as the quote.

We have paid them $8000 so far and the final invoice is stated at $12,000.  We never signed a contract and never got an official quote, just e-mails similar to was I posted above.  All the work was done and the company is located in Chicago.  We have spoken with the owner several times and will talk to him today, but assuming he doesn't budge what can we do?  

I was able to edit the PDFs using Adobe Acrobat.  We don't use security deposits and instead use move-in fees.  Funny thing is that I was turning over the first unit we were going to use these forms for and was listening to the BP Podcast #275 with an attorney who owns 300 condos in Chicago, and he specifically mentioned in the PodCast how he does not do ANY security deposits due to the tenant friendly laws in Chicago. 

Isn't quartz basically the same as granite but it doesn't have to be sealed/resealed?  We will be install new countertops in a rental in a couple of weeks and plan to use quartz.

@John Hickey Thanks for the recommendation on LP Smart Side, seems like a very solid choice.  But the quote for LP was higher than even Hardie, so we are still moving forward with the Hardie.

Thanks everyone for you input!

We have decided to go with the hardie board siding but due to the slow speed of getting the HELOC and also getting the porches fixed up before the siding is replaced, we are still about 2 months out from the work actually being done. The cost of the hardie board is going to be about 40% more than vinyl, but long term it should work out for us. Several new construction home in our area are all hardie board type siding.

Thank you @Account Closed for the response.  Yes, I meant worn vinyl siding.  Either way we go we will be removing the current siding - as I mentioned we are going to keep this place for a long time and would rather get any unseen issues corrected now instead of down the road.  The house was built in 1903 and the previous owner(s) cut corners on a couple of things, and there has been several changes to the house venting, electrical, etc.; for example I think there are currently about 9 different dryer vent slots located on the exterior but only 2 are actually active...

I am leaning towards the hardie for sure, just got to wait for a couple more of the quotes to come back and see if they are any closer to the cost of vinyl.