ᐅ Construction Company – Start of Construction, Communication. Tips, Experiences?
Created on: 23 Jan 2021 11:42
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Robbs84
Hello everyone,
I’m running out of patience dealing with our construction company (general contractor). We signed our building contract in October 2019. Since August 2020, we have had the building permit/planning permission, but we are still waiting for construction to start. Our frustration has been growing because it feels like no one there really cares when our build will begin. Unfortunately, our contract doesn’t specify a fixed start date, only an 11-month construction period guarantee starting from the completion of the foundation slab. So, we are still waiting for any activity on our lot—it's been 15 months since signing and 5 months since getting the permit.
The second issue is related to the first: communication with the site manager and subcontractors. They don’t reply to any emails whatsoever. When we call, they do return the calls, but we’re always given vague phrases like “we’re trying to start soon,” “we’re waiting for good weather,” or “we’ll get to it shortly,” etc. Initially, they said they were waiting for the surveyor, then blamed the weather, then said “it didn’t make sense to start because of upcoming holidays,” and so on. Now we suspect they’ll wait until April due to weather, even though we were told it could start in January. Somehow no one is being honest or straightforward with us!
On the phone, everyone is very polite, and we as homeowners are polite too, but frankly, we feel increasingly ignored and like we’re being fobbed off. Phone calls with polite but firmer requests to improve communication and focus more on our project have made no difference. So we feel powerless and completely at the mercy of the contractor regarding the start of construction—it’s frustrating and really not what we are used to professionally or personally. Is this normal in the construction industry?
Overall, I don’t think the company is unprofessional, but they do seem disorganized and just follow a routine. We try to stay friendly and patient, but it’s starting to wear on us, and we wonder how the actual construction will go.
Thanks for your replies—I’m looking forward to hearing about your experiences.
I’m running out of patience dealing with our construction company (general contractor). We signed our building contract in October 2019. Since August 2020, we have had the building permit/planning permission, but we are still waiting for construction to start. Our frustration has been growing because it feels like no one there really cares when our build will begin. Unfortunately, our contract doesn’t specify a fixed start date, only an 11-month construction period guarantee starting from the completion of the foundation slab. So, we are still waiting for any activity on our lot—it's been 15 months since signing and 5 months since getting the permit.
The second issue is related to the first: communication with the site manager and subcontractors. They don’t reply to any emails whatsoever. When we call, they do return the calls, but we’re always given vague phrases like “we’re trying to start soon,” “we’re waiting for good weather,” or “we’ll get to it shortly,” etc. Initially, they said they were waiting for the surveyor, then blamed the weather, then said “it didn’t make sense to start because of upcoming holidays,” and so on. Now we suspect they’ll wait until April due to weather, even though we were told it could start in January. Somehow no one is being honest or straightforward with us!
On the phone, everyone is very polite, and we as homeowners are polite too, but frankly, we feel increasingly ignored and like we’re being fobbed off. Phone calls with polite but firmer requests to improve communication and focus more on our project have made no difference. So we feel powerless and completely at the mercy of the contractor regarding the start of construction—it’s frustrating and really not what we are used to professionally or personally. Is this normal in the construction industry?
- What are your experiences?
- How was the communication with your contractor, site manager, and tradespeople?
- How long did it take from permit approval until construction started for you?
- Did anyone begin building during winter? Do you really need 2–3 weeks of temperatures above +5°C (41°F), which is unrealistic in a normal winter, or can it be done in stages?
- Did you contact the site manager frequently? Were you considered pushy? We want a good relationship with the site manager since we need him for the project, so we hesitate to “pester” or get too firm in our tone.
Overall, I don’t think the company is unprofessional, but they do seem disorganized and just follow a routine. We try to stay friendly and patient, but it’s starting to wear on us, and we wonder how the actual construction will go.
Thanks for your replies—I’m looking forward to hearing about your experiences.
ypg schrieb:
So, you’re not alone and the only ones?Exactly, there are three of us: a semi-detached house at the front and an urban villa at the back. All three of us are facing the same issues at the moment... We all actually chose the general contractor because we thought having a single point of contact would work better (like with the access road issue).
That is a completely different matter.
In my opinion, this then becomes a profitable deal for the general contractor. The delay must be justified.
The best approach here is always a collaborative one. Instead of acting as individuals, you should try working together.
I don’t understand why you presented the question as if you were the only ones affected.
What do the others say?
In my opinion, this then becomes a profitable deal for the general contractor. The delay must be justified.
The best approach here is always a collaborative one. Instead of acting as individuals, you should try working together.
I don’t understand why you presented the question as if you were the only ones affected.
What do the others say?
ypg schrieb:
That’s a completely different matter then.
In my opinion, this becomes a profitable deal for the general contractor. The delay will be justified.
The best approach here is always to work together. Instead of acting as individuals, you should join forces.
I don’t understand why you presented the question as if you were the only ones affected.
What do the others say? That was not intentional. Yes, we communicate closely and are all annoyed and very dissatisfied.
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allstar8324 Jan 2021 11:39Maybe the general contractor assumed there wouldn’t be a winter again... That took some by surprise. Since the beginning of December until now, conditions haven’t been ideal for construction.
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WilderSueden24 Jan 2021 18:40HilfeHilfe schrieb:
....Professionals don’t just work for Deutsche Bahn 😉Although you can do a lot even in heavy snow if you want to. We had a construction project next to our office where they worked through half the winter, despite the cold. Then came the Christmas break, and nothing happened after that. €200,000 (about $215,000) of equity for a project on a €6 million (about $6.5 million) site was probably a bit tight after all...
Keywords for more details: Car Emotion Center Konstanz, the follow-up project is the Maxx Emotion Center 😉
WilderSueden schrieb:
Professionals don’t only work for Deutsche Bahn 😉Hehe, seems that way. I also wouldn’t have thought that winter would be a big problem for a construction company in the 21st century. I can understand it if temperatures stay consistently below 5°C (41°F), but when there was a milder week, nothing happened either. It feels like they’re just waiting until spring instead of pushing themselves. They aren’t under any pressure, and as non-experts, we can only judge so much whether conditions are suitable for the foundation slab or not. And as I said from the start, there’s no communication and no effort to move things forward. So, I guess we just have to wait or escalate to management. We’re hesitant to do that early on because we don’t know if it will help or how it might affect the cooperation with the site manager and the company overall. Somehow, they still have to build our house 🙄