A new stainless steel stove, microwave, and dishwasher have also been installed.

During renovation they barricaded windows and doors with Steel guards.

A trust in the market and/or faith in witchcraft, and finally you must have nerves of steel.  

Decking was pretty straight forward 18 deck boards and fastenersRedwood deck boards: 430Trex deck boards: 900One note on deck boards, I bought the cheaper trex boards and was told by guy at contractors desk that these ones had the slot in them for the deck brackets.

I don't disagree that some of them seem high, but I have to be honest that I have been getting various retail quotes for my own projects that aren't too far off from those listed (for instance, wood exterior door install of similar to their quote of $1200 for a steel door).If they are indeed high, can someone suggest how one can avoid over-priced bids and actually get contractors to do reasonable business with you?

You only have so many time slots in the week.  

From your pictures, it looks like you used Granite and Stainless steel appliances.

However if the problem is black iron or galvanized steel piping that has rusted through or a  copper line which has sprung a leak, it may be an harbinger of things to come {around here many systems were installed or repaired in the 1960s/70s using thin-walled copper pipe which, 50years later, has started to develop pinhole leaks}.

There's a room off the basement with a large steel tank that held oil for heating the house.

The wall shows definite bulging inward.The foundation wall does not appear to have any reinforcing steel embedded in it and the horizontal distress originated in a “cold-joint” that formed in the concrete during the pouring of the foundation.