Sally is considering remodeling part of her home. She lives in a nice suburban neighborhood. She wants to expand one of the rooms in her house. She wants to hire a contractor to do the work. She has heard all kinds of horror stories about contractors. She wanted to do some investigating before she hired one. She talked to experts and other people who had work with contractors.



She was particularly interested in the ones who were satisfied with their work. After months of investigating she decided on a contractor. People who were satisfied with their work mostly swayed her. Little did she know that the contractor she chose was under new management and had hired almost all new people. She laid the plans out to the contractor. It was extensive project, which required lots of time.

The contractor agreed to do the work in such a manner as to keep her privacy in tact. Finally they were ready to begin work. Sally worked during the day, so she got a relative to keep an eye on the contractor while she was working. The contractor went about its work day by day. They were gone every afternoon when Sally got off work. Sometimes she would drop in unannounced. Everything was going well.

Then one day she heard some of the workers talking among themselves. They said that management had underestimated the cost of the materials on Sallys job. They also said, the job could not be completed with the materials Sally wanted, without going over budget. This alarmed Sally. She knew that the contractor would not want to loose money. She wondered how they would stay within the budget without substituting materials with cheaper ones.

She figured she had better stay on guard. She told the relative what she heard, but her relative had little knowledge of the construction process. So the information did not mean a whole lot. Sally decided to take matters into her own hand and drop in more frequently.

The contractor continued with the work under Sallys watchful eye. She tried to find out as much as she could so she kept her ears open. By this time the contractors were on to her. They knew she was listening to their conversations.

They would only talk when she was not around. Her relative was not much help because she did not understand what they were talking doubt. They finally finished the job. It looked great on the surface. But a few weeks later Sally started experiencing problems with the work. At first it was small problems. Then they got worst. She eventually had to call the contractor back to her house.

She explained the problems. They said, they would see what they could do to fix it, but made no promises. Weeks went by with no response from the contractor. Sally decided to seek the advice of a lawyer. She explained the situation. She told him she thought the contractor had used deficient materials.

The lawyer explained that without evidence their hands were tied. Sally knew what she heard, but had no proof. She ended up getting a new contractor to fix the problems at her expense. Most contractors are honest and will do a good job. Some will take shortcuts to save money. If you have to pursue a matter in court, you will need evidence of wrong the doings. Video or properly recorded conversations can provide that evidence.