All Forum Posts by: Tom Feret

It seems like emailing Propelio directly might get you the most accurate answer to your question.

Searching these forums for "DFW Real Estate lawyer" will get you plenty of recommendations.
From there it will be up to you to reach out to those that interest you and determine which one matches up with your needs.
Any qualified lawyer should be able to explain the formation of an LLC, fees, documents, etc.

Hi Matt,

Which area of Dallas are you needing the plumber? I have a trusted colleague who is a master plumber and would be happy to recommend dependent on where your project is.

Feel free to PM me.

-Tom

We are nearing the finishing stage, I'd say around the 85% stage. 
Disagreeing on the flooring is one aspect of the change order. He is trying to charge extra for work they underbid to put in French doors, a water heater "broke" as they were raising the height of it up to code...I would accept the cost of a new one but not sure how it is my responsibility for labor to put it in since they had to do so anyways and no one wants to claim responsibility for it "breaking"?

The final straw was going underneath the house: a water damaged subfloor which was there since the house was purchased was to replaced (reminded of it multiple times), it has not and tiling and flooring is down in the area the subfloor covers. Again, my mistake for having it in my provided SOW but not actually written out in the contract.

HVAC vents were not reconnected or run and they said that they had been.

I would much rather split the difference and eat my costs than trust them to complete the job at this stage. I'm trying to avoid the courts because I don't think it is worth my time at this stage.

Hi @Mario Almeida,

Oh he knows that we are unhappy and I'm sure he reciprocates. Of the many issues, the vague contract is clearly the biggest hurdle and I want to make sure I have myself covered.

Also meant to add: He sent me a change order for thousands of dollars from which I've disputed the most was additional hardwood flooring instead of carpeting. 

Since I never asked for carpet or included it my SOW or schedule (he did have carpeting on his contract - we had "verbally" agreed that this was not reflective of the actual work) I had always disputed the additional charge.

I never signed this change order. Am I liable for any of those payments?

I'll have to start off by saying that for a first project I've definitely made all the possible mistakes and have to accept my current situation.

I will be firing my GC and want to make sure 1) I have all my bases covered and 2) help with guidance or anything that I might be missing/exposing myself to.

The contract itself is where my first issue begins. I realize now that the contract I signed was my biggest mistake and even though I had provided a SOW on the initial walk through, I made the horrible rookie mistake of not having it signed/included in the contract. His contract provides a rough outline of the work to be done and the requested itemized portion is not much better in retrospect.

Secondly, I trusted too much in the draws leading up to work instead of paying upon completion of the different tasks. Stupid, I know...and I prepped myself with all the BP material on here and still made all the blunders!

I've seen the red flags along the way but today I've had a long chance to review the work done, what was agreed to be done (although much was verbal...again, I know) and the quality of the work. Let alone the time frame exceeded (again, not in writing. Stupid), essentially being bait and switched on, etc etc.

I could go on and on, but ultimately I'm ready to bury my loses and take this as an expensive lesson.

Which brings me to my questions:

• I'm going to ask him to sign a lien waiver, but what to do if he doesn't?
• His contract and draw schedules are vague, suggestions for coming to an agreement of how much is actually completed?
• How much leverage do I have regarding work that was agreed on but not actually done? (I feel I know the answer already - had to be in writing).
• Contacting a construction lien attorney - am I missing out if I can't contact one in Dallas on a weekend? Should I wait to fire on Monday?

I will be videoing and photographing the project. Should I get another 2-3 GC's to bid the remainder of the project? We're actually close to the end that I would much rather sub contract and do the work myself than bring on another GC at this point. Therefore, just get sub bids on the remaining work?

Anyone with suggestions for an attorney in the DFW area and any other guidance would be greatly appreciated. Going to really take my mistakes and apply them accordingly to the next project.

Looks like a good find Andrew.

Turn that phone sideways for video recordings ;)

Hope you got action early on this Andrew since I saw it pop up on the MLS today.

Hi Anthony,

If you perform a "DFW/Dallas/Frisco"  & "multi-family" search in the forums I think you'll find a common thread:

• There aren't as many 3-4 unit properties in DFW as there are duplexes
• You're likely to have more success locating one of your desired properties further South of Frisco than in it (Think South Dallas, mid cities, Dallas proper)
• If you go retail (MLS) searching you're going to be disappointed trying to find anything that meets any rules of thumb (ex, 1% rule).

That doesn't mean with some hard work and alternative strategies you wouldn't be able to locate a 3-4 plex, just don't expect one to fall into your lap.