Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor R D O D G E W O O D S McGraw-Hill New York Chicago San Francisco Lisbon London Madrid Mexico City Milan New Delhi San Juan Seoul Singapore Sydney Toronto O N Copyright © 2005 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc All rights reserved Manufactured in the United States of America Except as permitted under the United States Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher 0-07-146711-4 The material in this eBook also appears in the print version of this title: 0-07-144382-7 All trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners Rather than put a trademark symbol after every occurrence of a trademarked name, we use names in an editorial fashion only, and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of infringement of the trademark Where such designations appear in this book, they have been printed with initial caps McGraw-Hill eBooks are available at special quantity discounts to use as premiums and sales promotions, or for use in corporate training programs For more information, please contact George Hoare, Special Sales, at george_hoare@mcgraw-hill.com or (212) 904-4069 TERMS OF USE This is a copyrighted work and The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc (“McGraw-Hill”) and its licensors reserve all rights in and to the work Use of this work is subject to these terms Except as permitted under the Copyright Act of 1976 and the right to store and retrieve one copy of the work, you may not decompile, disassemble, reverse engineer, reproduce, modify, create derivative works based upon, transmit, distribute, disseminate, sell, publish or sublicense the work or any part of it without McGrawHill’s prior consent You may use the work for your own noncommercial and personal use; any other use of the work is strictly prohibited Your right to use the work may be terminated if you fail to comply with these terms THE WORK IS PROVIDED “AS IS.” McGRAW-HILL AND ITS LICENSORS MAKE NO GUARANTEES OR WARRANTIES AS TO THE ACCURACY, ADEQUACY OR COMPLETENESS OF OR RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED FROM USING THE WORK, INCLUDING ANY INFORMATION THAT CAN BE ACCESSED THROUGH THE WORK VIA HYPERLINK OR OTHERWISE, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE McGraw-Hill and its licensors not warrant or guarantee that the functions contained in the work will meet your requirements or that its operation will be uninterrupted or error free Neither McGraw-Hill nor its licensors shall be liable to you or anyone else for any inaccuracy, error or omission, regardless of cause, in the work or for any damages resulting therefrom McGraw-Hill has no responsibility for the content of any information accessed through the work Under no circumstances shall McGraw-Hill and/or its licensors be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, punitive, consequential or similar damages that result from the use of or inability to use the work, even if any of them has been advised of the possibility of such damages This limitation of liability shall apply to any claim or cause whatsoever whether such claim or cause arises in contract, tort or otherwise DOI: 10.1036/0071467114 ������������ Want to learn more? We hope you enjoy this McGraw-Hill eBook! If you’d like more information about this book, its author, or related books and websites, please click here I dedicate this book to the most important people in my life, who are: Adam, Afton, Victoria, Jon, and Nate For more information about this title, click here Contents Introduction C H A P T E R xiii O N E Going From Carpenter to Remodeling Contractor Basic Needs First Hurdles Knowledge The Dangers How Much Money Can You Make? C H A P T E R 10 T W O When Builders Become Remodelers 11 Which Type of Jobs Should You Start With? 12 Your Edge 13 Bringing It All Together 14 Test the Waters 15 C H A P T E R T H R E E Why Remodeling? 17 When Your Job Becomes Your Business 18 Construction Offers You Many Business Opportunities 19 iv Contents What Do You Want from Your Business? 20 Where Do You Want Your Business to Be in Five Years? 21 What Type of Customer Do You Want to Serve? 23 What Role Will You Play in the Business? 24 Have You Evaluated Your Cash Reserves? 26 C H A P T E R F O U R Kitchens and Bathrooms 29 Will You Hire the Pros? 31 Getting the Work 32 Why Kitchens and Bathrooms? 32 Watch Out 33 Fast Turnaround Time 36 Custom Cabinets 36 A Cabinet Facelift 38 Flooring 38 Countertops 38 Garbage Disposers 39 Light 39 Homework 39 C H A P T E R F I V E Setting Up Your Business 41 Keeping Your Expenses in Check 41 Beating Heavy Overhead Expenses 42 Learn What Expenses to Cut 47 Know Which Expenses Are Justified 49 Cutting the Wrong Expenses Can Be Expensive 50 v vi Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor Looking Into the Future 53 Long-Range Planning Pays Off in the End 56 Focusing on Change 56 C H A P T E R S I X Your Business Structure 61 Choosing Your Business Structure 61 What Type of Business Structure Is Best for You? 63 Learn the Pros and Cons of Each Form of Business 65 C H A P T E R S E V E N Office and Storage Requirements 69 Should You Work from Home or from a Rented Space? 69 Self-Discipline 69 Storefront Requirements 70 Commercial Image 71 Assess Your Office Needs 71 Location Can Make a Difference 72 How Much Office Can You Afford? 73 Answering Services Compared to Answering Machines 74 C H A P T E R E I G H T Adding a Computer to Your Toolbox 77 Desktop Alternatives 78 Getting Started 78 How Will a Computer Help Your Business? 79 Building Customer Credibility with Computers 83 Spreadsheets, Databases, and Word Processing 85 Contents The Power of Computer-Aided Design (CAD) 88 Selecting Your Hardware 88 C H A P T E R N I N E Keeping Track of Your Cash 91 Keeping Your Accounts Receivable and Payable Under Control 92 Cash Flow 92 Looking Ahead to Financial Challenges 93 Money Management 94 Contract Deposits 94 Eliminating Subcontractor Deposits 95 Stretch Your Money 96 Credit 96 Collecting Past-Due Accounts 97 Construction Loans 98 Taxes 99 Surviving an IRS Audit 101 The Legal Side 102 Choosing Attorneys and Accountants 103 Documenting Your Business Activity 104 Contracts, Change Orders, and Related Paperwork 106 Good Contracts Make Satisfied Customers 129 C H A P T E R T E N Trucks, Tools, Equipment, and Inventory 141 Leasing vs Purchasing 141 Separate Needs from Desires 144 vii viii Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor Financial Justification How Much Inventory Should You Stock? 145 145 Controlling Inventory Theft and Waste 147 Stocking Your Trucks Efficiently 147 C H A P T E R E L E V E N Creating and Promoting an Attractive Business Image 149 Public Perception Is Half the Battle 150 Picking a Company Name and Logo 151 How Your Image Affects Your Clientele and Fee Schedule 153 Once You Cast an Image, It Is Difficult to Change 155 Set Yourself Apart from the Crowd 156 Build Demand for Your Services Through a Strong Image 158 Joining Clubs and Organizations to Generate Sales Leads 159 There Is No Business Without Sales 160 Marketing Is a Pivotal Point to Any Business 160 Should You Enlist Commissioned Salespeople? 161 Where Should You Advertise? 162 What Rate of Return Will You Receive on Advertising Costs? 165 Learn To Use Advertising for Multiple Purposes 166 Building Name Recognition Through Advertising 167 Generating Direct Sale Activity with Advertising 167 Without Advertising, the Public Will Not Know You Exist 168 Promotional Activities 168 How To Stay Busy in Slow Times 169 C H A P T E R T W E L V E Hiring Employees 171 Do You Need Employees? 171 Do You Need Employees to Meet Your Goals? 173 308 Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor • Supply your own liability insurance • Supply your own tools • Supply your own insurance for tools and supplies • Establish your own credit for supplies • Supply your own business license (if required in your area) • Run the risk of code and safety violations and the resulting fees • Learn how to your own take-offs and estimates with no margin for error • Develop your own legal and accounting team, even if they are independent professionals • Design and implement your own marketing plan • Design and implement your own advertising plan • Set up and maintain a business address • Establish a merchant account for accepting credit cards (this can be tough) • Weigh the need for a professional office environment • Hire an office administrator or run you own office • Establish a computerized job-costing and estimating system (nearly essential in today’s world) • Hire a payroll company for employee payments, work alone, or your own payroll • Deal with Worker’s Compensation regulations if you hire anyone as an employee • Consider self-employed benefit packages and similar packages for employees • Do your own billing for work done or hire someone to it • Accept the fact that some customers will not pay their bills • Be prepared for potential lawsuits from your work or that of your subcontractors • Purchase, equip, and maintain company trucks as needed for expansion • Maintain inventory control for tax purposes and to prevent theft by employees • Maintain accurate tax records for your accountant • Decide on the most favorable business structure, such as a sole proprietorship, “S” corporation, “C’ corporation, or partnership Nuts and Bolts of General Remodeling Projects 309 • Advertising expenses, such as phone directories • Tool and equipment expenses • Storage facilities for materials and tools • Are you getting the picture? You could review the list above and run away from going into business for yourself Running is rarely the answer, but you might not yet be ready If you have not considered the points above, you should Being in business for yourself is now always what people perceive it to be I roll out of bed by 6:00 a.m and begin my work It is not uncommon for me to still be seeing a clock at 1:00 a.m before I go to bed These are a lot of hours, but I am used to it Don’t get me wrong, you don’t have to be as aggressive as I am But you will have field work during the day and phone calls with customers and subs at night This will not be a walk in the park if you want to make more than a living If you are only making $10 per hour more by being in business for yourself, the financial portion of your decision is a mistake However, there is the element of freedom and control that you gain by being self-employed that cannot have a fixed price put on it And, if you learn to build a business and have people working effectively for you, the rewards can be quite rich As you move into becoming a remodeling contractor, you will encounter all sorts of work The purpose of this chapter is to discuss, in brief, the various opportunities in front of you With this said, let’s look at some general remodeling topics and evaluate my experiences with each type so that you may be better prepared to make wise decisions for yourself Decks PRO POINTER Decks are an excellent source of quick A deck is a fast job to with limmoney Is this remodeling? Not really It is ited expense and a quick payday more of a home improvement, but remodfrom the customer eling contractors are often called to build decks Most decks require only moderate carpentry skills Some companies specialize in decks, as I specialize in bathroom and kitchens You may have trouble competing with high-volume deck builders, but it can be done I did it in Virginia The key is knowing how to sell the job 310 Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor If you don’t have sales skills, you should strive to gain them as quickly as possible if you are going into business for yourself This applies to all aspects of your new business, not just decks You can sell on the fear factor, the experience factor, the quality factor, and so forth The decision of which method to use will depend on you and your skills But, if you can’t sell, you can’t work as an independent remodeling contractor Risks are minimal with decks It is usually all good if you have a clue about construction For any decent carpenter and most general contractors, decks are a good card to deal into your hand Gazebos and Porches Gazebos and porches are not high-volume deals, but they are good jobs to take In some areas, screened porches are a high-volume opportunity These are simple structures to build They are not true remodeling Like decks, they are home improvements, but they are cash cows for savvy contractors This area of expertise is well worth getting into Small Jobs PRO POINTER If customers like your company, Small jobs, such as installing gutters or they are more likely to hire the replacing a screened door, are often company to larger jobs shrugged off by contractors This is a mistake Small jobs often turn into large jobs One of my means of success if using my plumbing and electrical divisions to get full remodeling jobs My people may respond to a leaking faucet and leave with a bathroom remodel How they this? They are trained to so It is tempting to blow off service calls and tiny jobs, but you shouldn’t Every house you can put people in is an opportunity for future work Set up a single day a week where you small jobs and then use the small jobs as an opening for larger jobs If you have to, set the jobs up as “Will-Call Jobs” This is where you can’t schedule a date or time, but you will call the customer if you have an early afternoon or a busted day due to bad deliveries You will lose some of the jobs, but you will get many of them The key is getting into the home and in front of the homeowner If you this with modest sales skills, you can grow your business quickly Nuts and Bolts of General Remodeling Projects 311 Room Additions Room additions are a gray job in most cases These can be worth tens of thousands of dollars, and the work is clean and simple, most of the time You will probably need some subcontractors At the least, you are likely to need a site-work contractor, someone to dig footings, and someone to pour the foundation Depending on your business structure, you may need the following subs: • Heating mechanics • Plumbers • Electricians • Drywall contractors • Painters • Flooring contractors With my company, we much of this type of work with in-house people But, we sub out the site work, footings, and foundation work The electrical work is subbed out, and the heating work is sometimes subbed out In any event, room additions are a tremendous opportunity for any home-improvement contractor or remodeling contractor Attic Conversions PRO POINTER Attic conversions can be both profitable and Don’t go into attic conversions challenging You may have to remove a roof unless you have extensive experiand replace it A dormer may need to be ence in the field added Finding a suitable location for stairs can pose problems Reinforcing ceiling joists can lower headroom and increase costs This type of work takes special expertise I have done a lot of attics, but they are a difficult job to well You have to protect the ceilings below you, the roof above you, and provide adequate lighting, ventilation, mechanical services, and so forth This is not a good area for a rookie to roam in However, it is a profitable venture for experienced people Basement Conversions Basement conversions are rarely a good investment for homeowners, but they tend to be a safe deal for remodelers Wet basements are the biggest problem for remodelers, 312 Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor but they can be overcome with reasonable expense Many homeowners will want you to remodel their basements into configurations that go against code requirements For example, they may want a bedroom in a buried basement This is a problem Without proper egress, such as windows or doors, a bedroom is rarely allowed You will have to decide where you will stand in this type of situation You can call the room a study and get away with it, but can you sleep with yourself when someone dies in a fire due to your actions? I can’t answer this question Only you can determine your ethics PRO POINTER There is decent money in basement conversions, but you may need some special skills to deal with moisture problems This is not hard to gain if you read enough material on the subject Generally speaking, basement conversions are not difficult to Garages Garages are a common request of contractors Many contractors sub out the site work and the slab Do you have these subcontractors? If not, they might be worth finding However, garages are a very competitive field A typical garage has dimensions of 24’ x 24’ This is easy for a homeowner to compare prices on We don’t a lot of garages My reason for this decision is my quality requirements versus the sales mechanisms of other contractors If you get established as a garage contractor, you can make good money off of them quickly My focus is on more technical work, but there is nothing wrong with doing garages if you are geared up for them This phase of work is certainly one well worth considering Basic Remodeling Basic remodeling can include almost anything What will you do? This is a question for you to ask yourself The long story made short is that there is more hourly profit in remodeling than there is in new construction There are multiple reasons for this I often say that any good remodeler can build a house, but not any good builder can remodel a home This is due to the challenges that remodelers face Keep this in mind when hiring your people Nuts and Bolts of General Remodeling Projects Whatever form of remodeling you engage in, the opportunity is there for you If you establish yourself as a specialist in some sort of field, you will have an added advantage Even if you are a cookie-cutter remodeler, you can very well and make money, rather than just making a living It does not take large crews to make major money But, it does take the right people Choose your crews carefully and enjoy the financial gains that are there for professional remodelers PRO POINTER Remodeling requires a lot more thought and experience than building a new house 313 This page intentionally left blank C H A P T E R T W E N T Y Jobsite Safety Construction is one of the most dangerous industries in the nation, vying with mining and meatpacking as workplaces where the most fatalities occur each year The year 2001 marked a high point in construction-related jobsite deaths, reaching 1225 You or your workers not want to be part of those statistics A poor safety record affects your company in a number of ways Ignoring basic safety practices can cause unnecessary human suffering and pain Secondarily, the premiums you pay to the state for Worker’s Compensation insurance will increase your overhead costs quite a bit (and once your rates go up, it will take you three years of good safety records to get a reduction in these costs) And thirdly—something contractors often fail to realize—if one of your key workers or supervisors is injured and out of work, your productivity will take a nosedive until such time as you can temporarily fill the gap Lastly, if an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspector comes to your job site and cites you for a serious violation, your fine can be as much as $70,000, enough to drive a small company into bankruptcy So safety really does pay off Recognizing where and how most accidents on the job occur is the first step in prevention Based upon statistics furnished by the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the most frequently reported accidents were as follows: • Falls from elevated areas—from scaffolding or from working at heights without some kind of fall protection 315 Copyright © 2005 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc Click here for terms of use 316 Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor • Being struck by an object or machine This is why equipment is required to have that beeping device to sound an alarm and alert nearby workers • Being caught in between Many injuries occur when a piece of equipment crushes a worker against a building or material stockpile because neither operator nor worker is paying attention to the activity around them • Electrical hazards caused by nonexistent or poorly grounded electrical cables, excavating equipment hitting power lines, or exposed or poorly insulated wiring Let’s Talk About OSHA OSHA regularly conducts construction site visits, often in conjunction with their state counterparts, since most states have followed suit with the federal government and formed their own OSHA agencies OSHA inspectors are required by law to perform routine inspections on construction sites and to conduct an inspection in response to a complaint about a builder who is operating without regard for safety on a project OSHA inspectors are required by law to issue citations to builders for standard violations, and several of these violations carry with them monetary penalties PRO You as a builder will be subjected to POINTER the rules and regulations of both federal and state OSHA organizations You can become familiar with the rules and regulations by obtaining a copy of a booklet known as 29CFR 1926, Subpart L by calling your local U.S Department of Labor office OSHA also has a website that contains a lot of good safety pointers Some of OSHA’s most important safety regulations deal with trenching operations and personal protective equipment (hard hats, eye and ear protection, and so forth) Trenching A high-profile case involving a trenching accident was picked up by the newspaper and TV stations in January 2004 It involved the death of a plumber working in an unprotected ditch OSHA has strict rules about trenching, and depending upon the Jobsite Safety 317 depth of the trench and the type of soil encountered, you either need a trench box to prevent the walls from caving in, or you have to slope the excavation sufficiently to prevent any cave-ins In the case of this plumber, he was working in a deep trench installing a sanitary pipe and noticed water seeping through the walls, but before he could yell for help, he was buried under feet of dirt and died before help arrived His family was thinking about suing the plumbing contractor and possibly filing criminal charges against the owner OSHA is considering a huge fine—so it looks like this company will go out of business and the owner might possibly go to jail This may be an extreme case, but if certain precautions aren’t taken during excavation and deep trenching operations, it could happen to you Go to the OSHA website and get familiar with the correct way to trench for foundations or underground utilities-it could save your life or the life of one of your workers Personal Protection Hard hats, goggles, and earplugs are all part of OSHA’s personal protection concerns, but it doesn’t stop there According to the federal standards, only steel-tipped, thicksoled work shoes are allowed on the construction site Anyone wearing sneakers or running shoes is not permitted to work And you know those polyester shirts that are so easy to wash and usually require no ironing? They are banned when anyone is welding or burning with an open torch If these polyester shirts catch fire, they continue to smolder and burn even as the flames are being extinguished Cotton shirts, on the other hand, not smolder and any fire is quickly extinguished Boom boxes and 200-watt car speakers reduce hearing, and so does operating some noisy construction equipment, jackhammers, and the like Get some inexpensive earplugs for your workers And what about eye protection? How often have you seen masons cutting bricks, rebars, or blocks with their carbon-tipped power saws without any eye protection? Usually the excuse for not wearing protective eyewear is, “Well, I’m only going to cut PRO one block”, but that may just be the one POINTER that blinds them Don’t chance losing your Each year about 100,000 eye eyesight—wear safety glasses when the injuries are caused by workers who occasion arises and require your workers fail to wear proper eye wear to the same 318 Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor Developing a Good Safety Program First of all you as the owner must be aware of good safety practices before you can instruct others If you need help, there are plenty of books on construction safety practices, and your local OSHA office will also be able to provide you with some material or point the way to other sources There are companies that specialize in preparing and administering safety programs but they are expensive and might not be suited to your operation You can write your own safety program, listing the “What to Do’s” and the PRO “What Not to Do’s” and giving it to each POINTER employee Be prepared to answer quesEveryone wants to work safely, and tions, because there will probably be a lot as the owner of the business you of them When you establish rules for have the power to provide each wearing work shoes, safety glasses, employee with a safe environment earplugs, and other personal protective in which to work equipment, enforcement is what will make or break your safety program If you pass someone cutting a brick or block with a masonry saw and they are not wearing safety glasses, stop them immediately and tell them to get the proper glasses or stop cutting When someone is observed wearing sneakers, tell him to get the proper shoes-otherwise he can’t work on the site This is a tough one if you really need that worker to finish a particular operation that day, but unless you tell him to change into a pair of acceptable shoes or leave the job, the rest of the crew will know you are not serious about safety Don’t let a safety violation continue The next minute a serious accident or a fatality could occur, and for many years afterward you will live with that decision on your conscience Index Entries in italics indicate figures Codes, 186–187, 264, 267 officials, 262 Computer Assisted Design (CAD), 86 Computers, 75–76 hardware, 86–88 Continuing education, 55–56 Contractors, 197, 198 Contracts, 104, 105–118 Corporations, 60–65 Cost projections, 126–127 Countertops, 36 Covenants and restrictions, 200–201 Credit, 51, 94–95, 124, 196, 199 checking subcontractor, 245 Customer base, 11–12, 21–22, 202–203, 207 building credibility, 81–83 communication, 283–286 qualifying, 278 satisfaction, 277–278, 280–281 service, 81, 127, 207 Accounting, 80, 90, 259 past-due, 95–96, 279–280 Addendums, 118, 119–121 Advertising, 43, 51, 160–167 costs, 163–164 Annuities, 305 Answering machines and services, 72–74 Attic conversions, 311 Attorneys, 100–102 Basement conversions, 311–312 Bathrooms, 27–29 Bid sheets, 51, 130–136, 209–211, 215–216, 263 Bidding, 205, 215 Bonds, 211–212 Bonus incentives, 188 -189 Budgets, 79 Business, 17–21, 59–66, 77 growth, 289–290 image, 147–149, 151–154 mistakes, 193–194 Data bases, 80, 84–85 Decks, 309–310 Deliveries, 186 Dental insurance, 50, 292–293 Deposits, 92–94 Directory listings, 49 Disability insurance, 293–294 Cabinets, 36 Call-backs, 187–189 Cash, 24–26, 47, 90–91 flow problems, 212–213 Cell phone, 275–276 Change orders, 118, 122, 203 319 Copyright © 2005 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc Click here for terms of use 320 Be a Successful Remodeling Contractor Direct-contact approach, 82–83 Direct mail, 162–163 Diversity, 56–57 Materials, 46, 234, 235, 236, 237–238, 240, 242, 260–261 Money management, 91–92, 194–196 Employees, 169–174, 189–191 benefits, 297–298 finding good ones, 174–177 motivation tactics, 190 -191 paperwork, 177–181 theft, controlling, 184 training, 183–184 Employment agencies, 175–176 Estimating, 80, 124, 125, 128–129 Expenses, 39–54, 47–51 Newspaper ads, 161, 175 Fees, 152–153 Field supervisors, 45–46 Flooring, 36 Garages, 312 Gazebos, 310 Goals, 19–20 Handouts, pamphlets, and flyers, 162 Health insurance, 50, 290–292 Image, 154–155, 156–157, 225–227 Inspections, 202 Insurance, 43, 172, 201, 290–297 Inventory, 50, 81, 103, 143–145 Job costing, 79 Jobs, types, 10–11 Keogh plans, 304 Kitchens, 27–29 Liability insurance, 300–301 Liability waivers, 123 Licenses, 256 Lien rights, 286–287 Life insurance, 294–296 Loans, 96–97, 279 Logos, 150–151 Marketing, 78, 158 name and logo, 149–151 Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA), 316 Office, 44, 67, 68–72 reducing lost time, 273–274 rent, 40–42 Partnerships, 60–61, 63, 65 Payroll, 78–79, 172–173 Pension plans, 304–305 Phone directory, 161 Phones, 42, 226, 239 Planning, 54–57, 288, 298–300 Porches, 310 Presentation, 225–227 Prices, 11, 219–225 Pricing guides, 223–224 Problems, 261–262 Product lines, 234 Profit sharing, 305 Proposal, 32–33 Protection, personal, 317 Public relations, 282–283 Quotes, 201–202 Radio, 162 Referrals, 205–207 Remodeling, 307–309, 312–313 Rental properties, 303–304 Research, 224–225 Retirement, 50 plan options, 302–306 Room additions, 311 Safety, 315–316, 318 Sales, 51, 158, 165–166 staff, 159–160 Service orders, 123 Slogans, 155–156 Social Security, 305 Sole proprietorship, 61, 65 Specifications, 124, 288 Spreadsheets, 84 Index Subcontractors, 196, 229–230, 231, 230, 233, 238–258, 248–250, 252, 254, 255 application forms, 242–243 interviews, 243, 244 managing, 257 rating, 251, 253 references, 243 specialization, 253 Suppliers, 230, 258 Take-offs, 216–219 Taxes, 79, 97–100, 173, 180 Television, 162 Time management, 267–272 Time-and-material prices, 199–200 Tools, 140 Travel expenses, 47 Trenching, 316–317 Utilities, 42 Vehicles, 45, 172, 187, 227 leasing vs purchasing, 139, 140–142 stocking, 145–146 Vendors, 230 Waivers, 286–287 Warehouse, 70 Weather, 185–186 Word processing, 80, 85–86 Work force, 256–257 Worker’s compensation insurance, 301–302 Zoning, 200 321 ABOUT THE AUTHOR R Dodge Woodson knows the home construction business inside and out The owner of The Masters Group, Inc., of Brunswick, Maine, he has been a successful remodeling contractor for almost a quarter of a century He is also a licensed master plumber, a Class A builder who has constructed over 60 homes in a single year, and a Designated Broker, the highest classification of professional real estate licensure available With nearly 30 years of experience in construction and remodeling, Woodson is a true business insider whose advice has been tried and tested in the field 322 Copyright © 2005 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc Click here for terms of use ... referred to as a “broker” a general contractor who subcontracts all or most of the work to other “specialty” contractors (subcontractors) If you operate as a “full service” contractor, you will have... material in this eBook also appears in the print version of this title: 0-07-144382-7 All trademarks are trademarks of their respective owners Rather than put a trademark symbol after every occurrence... or that its operation will be uninterrupted or error free Neither McGraw-Hill nor its licensors shall be liable to you or anyone else for any inaccuracy, error or omission, regardless of cause,