'I told you so': NY contractor is aghast after clients slash budget by $300k "just because," gets bittersweet redemption 2 years later

Author image for Elna McHilderson
Elna McHilderson • Managing Editor
Sep 14, 2023 6:00 PM EDT

Budgeting for a home remodeling is never easy, especially when you live in NYC or any big city, really. Prices are always higher and the market for private contractors is so saturated it gets very overwhelming. However, it's not easy for the contractors either. You think doing construction in an area surrounded by other buildings and nowhere to park heavy machinery is easy? It takes a lot of finesse and experience. 

So when you find a contractor that is known for their honesty and craftsmanship, then you better do whatever you can to stick with them! Unfortunately, this hoity toity couple in NYC did not get that memo. They wanted this specific contractor who was well known in the area. He was so loyal with his clients and got such customer satisfaction, that he would often times end up becoming good friends with the clients and get invited to birthdays etc. 

This couple, however, truly did him dirty. He knew they wanted him, so he was willing to help them out with the budget. They had many luxury items on their docket, so he said, if they were able to slash a few of those more expensive luxury projects, then he could meet them at their budget. 

One day they got back to him super excited that "they did it!" However, when he looked at the budget, nothing had been slashed but the numbers by $300k. Turns out they kept everything the same, they just changed his prices and hoped he wouldn't notice. The audacity! Of course he noticed and called them out. 

He didn't end up working with them for good reason, and found out 2 years later that they hired some shady contractor instead and still have not gotten the remodeling down and were even forced to go through legal processes. Now, if that isn't karma at its finest, I don't know what is. 

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  • 01
    Workwear
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    USACE via flickr

  • 02
    Font - Posted by u/datman510 22 hours ago Clients don't have budget to hire me, so they change me to suit their budget. L
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  • 03
    Font - I was working with a couple to renovate their home in NYC. They had narrowed their search down to myself and one other with me being the preferred and the other being the more budget option.
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  • 04
    Font - I gave these clients my detailed spreadsheet of costs so they could use it to pick and remove the non essentials in the hope of getting closer to the number they wanted. They had SOOO many luxury's is actually shouldn't be hard
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  • 05
    Font - to do. A few days later they both call me announcing "they've done it!!” In a celebratory manner. Now, my price as designed was almost 1.7mil. If I
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  • 06
    Font - removed every single non essential item I could get the budgets down to $1.275mil. I open the sheet and they had somehow got it to $955k. I look through it briefly and see literally nothing has been removed. We are $600k or more lower to build the
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  • 07
    Font - same house. So I call the client to ask if I have the right spreadsheet and the wife answers and says oh sorry maybe not I'll resend. Resends it, we remain on the phone to go through it together. Same
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  • 08
    Font - thing, same pricing, same sheet. I tell the client I'll call her back I open the original sheet and put it side by side and I can't see what's changed initially.
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  • 09
    Font - I finally saw what had happened about a minute later, first thing I notice is the fancy $7k archway which in the spreadsheet was closer to $10k with all the markups etc but the base price was $7,250. The
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  • 10
    Font - had simply gone to that number and changed it to $1,750. I keep looking and they have gone through my whole spreadsheet and done this. Another example is they wanted. this custom railing and staircase on an an exterior metal deck. This was an
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  • 11
    Font - item they were to remove based on conversations. This was $25k or so but they had changed it to $8k. There were so many examples of this.
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  • 12
    Font - I call the client still confused thinking maybe they had thought "oh we won't spend 10k on the fancy archway we will have you just do whatever 2k can buy us". I ask what had happened and they said;
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  • 13
    Font - Client - "We just adjusted some numbers until we came up with our budget" "Ok, to be clear then, in the areas you've lowered my numbers you're expecting less correct?, for example
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  • 14
    Font - the archway you want me just to put a regular trim detail there or whatever $1,750 can buy?" Client - Sounding confused - "ummm no we still want the archway.... Why?"
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  • 15
    Font - "Hang on so you're still expecting the details as they're drawn in the bid set?" **Husband joined call around here
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  • 16
    Font - Client-Yes why? (Sounding really confused or doing a good job of acting confused) "So you haven't removed any items? You've just lowered the price to...... what exactly?"
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  • 17
    Font - Client - "I don't understand" "Maybe I'm not being clear so I'll use an analogy then, I've said I'm going to cook you a burger with all the trimmings for $10. You guys have $6 so I've said hey, here's my menu go
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  • 18
    Font - ahead and remove the bacon the egg and see if we can get to a price your happy with. But it seems like you just changed the price of the burger on the menu to $5 without removing anything is that correct?"
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  • 19
    Font - Client (tone changes for first time ever from upbeat and caring to like..evil stepmother?) - "oooohhh I see, yes well we looked through a lot of your pricing and we just don't see how they could cost what you've quoted so we
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  • 20
    Font - changed them to where we thought they should be" I was up until this point wondering if they're stupid or manipulative and it was in this moment I realized it was the second one. "Based on what?"
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  • 21
    Font - Client - "what?" "What did you base your numbers on, how did you decide what they should be?"
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  • 22
    Font - Client - I guess we just thought about what was reasonable and what we thought was fair for everyone" **Side note - nothing Induced rage in me quicker than a client talking about paying me "fair".
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  • 23
    Font - "Ok look, this is really inappropriate, I gave the sheet over in good faith for you to review what could be removed or retained but it was not so you could decide what you wanted to pay.
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  • 24
    Font - the pricing in there is truly reflective on what I can do the job for in a way that allows for minimal price changes and allows me to be in business after to honor your warranty"
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  • 25
    Font - Client - "we just don't get how these things can cost so much". In that moment I then see at the bottom my profit margin of 15% (standard in the area I worked in) and they had changed it to 5% so we're talking 100k.
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  • 26
    Font - "Guys you changed my profit margin? You can't do that! It's not a negotiation it's an offer to perform services. Ok look I need some time to consider my next move here."
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  • 27
    Font - Client sensing they're losing me - "we're seeing this as a partnership, you could use this house as a showroom for future clients".
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  • 28
    Font - "I see every job as a partnership but ultimately it's your house. Almost all of my old clients allow me to show their home. I get invited to dinners regularly and birthdays. I'd love you guys to be part of that but I can't pay $500k plus to do that here.
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  • 29
    Font - My pricing is set, I've put my best foot forward if you want to work with me I'm going to build you a wonderful home, as always please reach out with questions.
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  • 30
    Font - They ended up hiring at contractor who agreed to their pricing and scope. When he calls to let me know they were going with the other guy (3 weeks after he was supposed to) I said listen, no hard feelings but you have my spreadsheet.
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  • 31
    Font - You can see the jobs raw cost and and it is $300k lower than that number. Be careful. He just replied "it will be fine" kind of smuggly. They also needed the job completed in 8 months which is very tight in NYC.
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  • 32
    Font - 2 years later I ran into the architect, the clients still were yet to move in and they were living in an Airbnb and almost double budget with lawyers involved with the contractor.
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  • 33
    Font - I never take pleasure in others suffering, especially in NYC but it was hard not to feel a small sense of "I told you so". I truly believe when they called saying "they'd done it" I think they were hoping I'd write the contract and not notice. It was truly insulting.
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failblog karma-at-its-finest employee contractors satisfying-justice New-York-City-Contractor construction Justice-served hired-contractor condo-remodeling-job Reddit private-contractor entitled people
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