The New "Home Improvement" Thread

Are you going to put a Doge statue in your kitchen?

How much in taxes will you have to pay for selling for I'm assuming quite a profit?

 

I think it's just short term capital gains, assuming he invested and then "cashed out" in the same year.

From what I have read, which I don't completely understand the whole crypto thing, is that people have been getting f'd not realizing how much that they have to end up paying to the IRS for capital gains. They think they hit the jackpot and then screwed b/c they owe way more to the govt.

From what I have read, which I don't completely understand the whole crypto thing, is that people have been getting f'd not realizing how much that they have to end up paying to the IRS for capital gains. They think they hit the jackpot and then screwed b/c they owe way more to the govt.

 

Yeah Im sure I will have to pay a decent amount but im coming out ahead regardless so I'm not one to complain about that

Help! Need opinion/2 cents from you guys....

 

Had my fire pit patio install done 2 weeks ago, followed by the landscape (privacy) install today. All work went well. No complaints......UNTIL they came with a mulch delivery to finish off my landscape portion and in the process of dumping the bulk mulch into my driveway, jacked up my asphalt when one of the truck's back swing-doors was left open, causing a huge rut in the asphalt. 3 workers on site, NONE let me know what happened. Luckily I have it all on video thanks to my cameras. When I noticed them swiftly cleaning up in an attempt to leave IMO, I noticed the rut in the asphalt. I went out and ask what happened and they all played DUMB, said they didn't notice anything including the guy driving/dumping the truck, meanwhile the videos clearly show they all knew what happened for over an hour. I was shocked at the moment, didn't call them out on the spot but informed them that if it was their fault (no shit, no one else was on my property all day) my cameras would have caught it. They didn't say anything and then left with the project complete. I informed their project manager who will be coming out with his manager next week.

 

So, what is proper compensation..... 1. for the fuck up and 2. for lying to my face which I also have recorded???

Ask a driveway paving company for an estimate and consider getting two. At minimum you want that amount. Getting more for lying? The company owner should a) apologize and b) offer to pay for the driveway repair and throw in a bonus like an extra planting or two. Good luck.

Our house is going on the market this week with showings the following weekend. I decided to remove wall paper in the boys bathroom and repaint it. Huge mistake! My usual hot water/vinegar spray to soften up the backing couldn’t penetrate the vinyl surface even after I scored it. Long story short, I had to scrape that top film off with a sharp putty blade then my spray solution worked like a charm. Almost. Too much vinegar ‘attacked’ some of the paint too and I have plenty of areas to spackle. Fortunately I like sparkling and can put it on real smooth. Just a damp sponge to smooth out any high spots. I never have to sand it.

Help! Need opinion/2 cents from you guys....

 

Had my fire pit patio install done 2 weeks ago, followed by the landscape (privacy) install today. All work went well. No complaints......UNTIL they came with a mulch delivery to finish off my landscape portion and in the process of dumping the bulk mulch into my driveway, jacked up my asphalt when one of the truck's back swing-doors was left open, causing a huge rut in the asphalt. 3 workers on site, NONE let me know what happened. Luckily I have it all on video thanks to my cameras. When I noticed them swiftly cleaning up in an attempt to leave IMO, I noticed the rut in the asphalt. I went out and ask what happened and they all played DUMB, said they didn't notice anything including the guy driving/dumping the truck, meanwhile the videos clearly show they all knew what happened for over an hour. I was shocked at the moment, didn't call them out on the spot but informed them that if it was their fault (no shit, no one else was on my property all day) my cameras would have caught it. They didn't say anything and then left with the project complete. I informed their project manager who will be coming out with his manager next week.

 

So, what is proper compensation..... 1. for the fuck up and 2. for lying to my face which I also have recorded???

Do you use “NextDoor”?

 

I’d post this same post, but use the company name, on next door.

Help! Need opinion/2 cents from you guys....

 

Had my fire pit patio install done 2 weeks ago, followed by the landscape (privacy) install today. All work went well. No complaints......UNTIL they came with a mulch delivery to finish off my landscape portion and in the process of dumping the bulk mulch into my driveway, jacked up my asphalt when one of the truck's back swing-doors was left open, causing a huge rut in the asphalt. 3 workers on site, NONE let me know what happened. Luckily I have it all on video thanks to my cameras. When I noticed them swiftly cleaning up in an attempt to leave IMO, I noticed the rut in the asphalt. I went out and ask what happened and they all played DUMB, said they didn't notice anything including the guy driving/dumping the truck, meanwhile the videos clearly show they all knew what happened for over an hour. I was shocked at the moment, didn't call them out on the spot but informed them that if it was their fault (no shit, no one else was on my property all day) my cameras would have caught it. They didn't say anything and then left with the project complete. I informed their project manager who will be coming out with his manager next week.

 

So, what is proper compensation..... 1. for the fuck up and 2. for lying to my face which I also have recorded???

 

In my experience, there's a couple ways you can play this. I've dealt with similar issues a couple dozen times over the past decade. Usually, as a GC, I pay it out to make the issue go away for high visibility clients. Off the top of my head, I'm well over 100k in making driveway issues go away.

 

Unfortunately, the Landscape company wasn't there on business for some F500 company, so you won't be able to pressure them that way.

 

First thing I would do is determine what you want done to fix the issue. If they cut out the affected section, and patch it, it won't match perfectly. Are you OK with that? Most reasonable people are, but some sticklers are not.

 

If you aren't OK with that, and without understanding the size of your driveway, a full replacement isn't completely out of the question in my experience. Asphalt is easier to "fix" but in cases of stamped concrete, exposed aggregate concrete, etc, it's impossible to fix perfectly and even a 3x3 patch costs me north of 1k to fix.

 

If it's in the utility ROW (public) you have less leverage than if it's above your property line. If private property is the case, seeing as you have video evidence, you could go for a home run.

 

Usually the compromise I suggest in these situations is that we repair the patch, and then seal the driveway in full, so all matches.

 

One asshole I dealt with last summer demanded his driveway be re-skimmed due to a small utility daylight hole in his driveway. He knew he had me, and my client, by the balls, so good for him. This is a process where the top lift is milled, and then re-layed. It's expensive, but not insane.

 

Either way, come armed with different options, try to be reasonable, but understand that you have the leverage here as you can make a stink on SM if you have to.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

I’m thinking patch and top coat for entire driveway. (For the accident itself).

 

Potentially getting a discount/credit on the work for the blantant lies to my face (which pissed me off the most). Just own up. Your big ass truck gashed my driveway. Not something that fell out of the sky? Lol. That footage recorded of them playing dumb wouldn’t go over well with their bosses I bet. I haven’t paid 2/3 of the project cost (over 10K) so you’d think they’d want to see me happy as they wait on payments.

 

We’ll see. Thanks again.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Blueshirts Brotherhood mobile app powered by Tapatalk

Do you use “NextDoor”?

 

I’d post this same post, but use the company name, on next door.

 

I do not. But a good idea, atleast after a resolution is made or not made. They have already hit me up for facebook/google reviews after the hardscape was done. I was waiting til the whole project was done. So I'll use that as leverage next week too.

 

Ironically, at my old house I had major reno. done. The contractor dropped a dumpster in the driveway, no issues (although I was against it initially)....til they came to pick it up. Then in the process of lifting the dumpster on the flatbed they scraped the driveway (not as bad as yesterday's incident). I had no cameras, but the truck driver came right to the front door, let me know about the accident and said he took pics and sent it to his boss and they would get back to me. Which they did. The exact opposite experience vs. what I had yesterday. I'll use that against them next week too.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

I’m thinking patch and top coat for entire driveway. (For the accident itself).

 

Potentially getting a discount/credit on the work for the blantant lies to my face (which pissed me off the most). Just own up. Your big ass truck gashed my driveway. Not something that fell out of the sky? Lol. That footage recorded of them playing dumb wouldn’t go over well with their bosses I bet. I haven’t paid 2/3 of the project cost (over 10K) so you’d think they’d want to see me happy as they wait on payments.

 

We’ll see. Thanks again.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Blueshirts Brotherhood mobile app powered by Tapatalk

Did you pay in full?

 

Similar issue with my patio, dented the fuck out of my driveway with the bobcat. Vendor said he'd fix it and has been very good about putting everything back as it was. That said, I owe him $2K that I'm holding until the repairs are done to asphalt and Belgium block.

Did you pay the idiot that got paint on your flagstone?

Did you pay the idiot that got paint on your flagstone?

Unfortunately. I didn't realize he fucked it up so I bought a new patio.

 

The paint job was mediocre, at best, anyway.

Our house is going on the market this week with showings the following weekend. I decided to remove wall paper in the boys bathroom and repaint it. Huge mistake! My usual hot water/vinegar spray to soften up the backing couldn’t penetrate the vinyl surface even after I scored it. Long story short, I had to scrape that top film off with a sharp putty blade then my spray solution worked like a charm. Almost. Too much vinegar ‘attacked’ some of the paint too and I have plenty of areas to spackle. Fortunately I like sparkling and can put it on real smooth. Just a damp sponge to smooth out any high spots. I never have to sand it.

 

Laundry softener is usually the best solution to get wallpaper off

Thx for the tip. After this job I hope to never need it.

Did you pay in full?

 

Similar issue with my patio, dented the fuck out of my driveway with the bobcat. Vendor said he'd fix it and has been very good about putting everything back as it was. That said, I owe him $2K that I'm holding until the repairs are done to asphalt and Belgium block.

 

Got the invoice today in the mail for the final 2/3 of payment. Not paying it until after my project designer and his manager come to my home like they say they will next week.

Got the invoice today in the mail for the final 2/3 of payment. Not paying it until after my project designer and his manager come to my home like they say they will next week.

 

Definitely don't pay until the repairs are made to your satisfaction.

How much do you owe vs estimated cost of repair?

 

Maybe it's not financially beneficial for them.

How much do you owe vs estimated cost of repair?

 

Maybe it's not financially beneficial for them.

 

I owe them close to 14K. Repairs if they did them to my liking (top coat + patch) would run $750-$1000 in my estimation. Top coats alone in our neighborhood are running $500-600 for our size driveway.

 

The project was broken down into two parts with the landscaping guys work making up only 20% of the budget cost. So I wouldn't mind them cutting me a discount on that 20% portion (several thousand dollars) since it was the landscape guys who fucked up. Meanwhile the hardscape guys were 10/10 on overall service, attitude, etc.

 

In the end I'd like the patch/top coat for the driveway and then some sort of discount on the landscape portion of the project. Even 10-20% off on that would be $300-$500 Discount I believe.

Definitely don't pay until the repairs are made to your satisfaction.

 

VP of the company called me first thing this morning. Straight up said they were going to have a company patch and then seal coat the driveway. I said great and appreciated the call first thing on a Monday. I then asked since that takes care of the accident can I be compensated (discount off landscape portion) for the way the guys acted toward me and the accident (indifferent, lies, etc.). He said he'd go over my bill and get back to me. Honestly, didn't sound like he was that enthused, but I'll follow up with him if I don't hear anything regarding that request by the end of the week.

 

He also said they fired the worker who was driving the mulch truck as he said he's had other issues in the past.

Glad to hear that got resolved

Glad to hear that got resolved

 

Thanks. Scheduled to be repaired late next week. My landscape designer touched based with me today to see if I was on the schedule for the fix so I'm glad he followed up. I again, reiterated my displeasure with paying full price for the landscape portion of the project, the least I can do is make myself heard even if they don't feel obligated to give me a small discount. We shall see...

Glad to hear that got resolved

 

Thanks. Scheduled to be repaired late next week. My landscape designer touched based with me today to see if I was on the schedule for the fix so I'm glad he followed up. I again, reiterated my displeasure with paying full price for the landscape portion of the project, the least I can do is make myself heard even if they don't feel obligated to give me a small discount. We shall see...

If you don't speak up nobody 'volunteers' to do the right thing.

 

I recently had some pavers re-leveled on my front step. The quote was $4,000-4,500 depending upon how much had to be taken apart and rebuilt. It's a good-sized step but I'm also over a barrel - home showings start this Saturday/Sunday and he knew it. Fine. $2,500 down payment.

 

Their "mason" took the step apart but could not figure out the pattern to replace the pavers even though they took half-assed photos before starting. He spent the entire day scratching his head trying to piece together cut pavers. FAIL! Had I not been in a rush, I would have stopped the job and sent them packing. When the boss came to look, I said that we have a problem. His mason was lost! After apologizing he said that they would 'make it right' and finish by Friday no matter what. He also said, "...and you pay my what you think it's worth." My answer back was, "Why should I be the one on the spot? You see what's happening."

 

The mason spent two more days figuring it all out and just finished. Also, instead of stone dust, they used sand which washes right away when it rains. I already soaked it down with the hose after they left for the day to see how it would settle between the pavers and as expected, much of it washed out. Today, the mason added concrete to block the holes so no more will leak away but still finished the gaps with sand. (I just picked up some stone dust from the quarry myself.)

 

Owner called me and said, "We're square - no more money." Also said he learned a lesson about the mason. I was also dealing with a friend of my wife who knew him as a co-worker years ago so the relationship is too close to scream.