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I think I've chipped in with my very unhelpful personal view on this before but in my case I'm a reliable tradesman who solves problems and answers email etc. and I'm not available to any new clients until at least April next year and even then that's not guaranteed yet. If I've never worked for you before there is little to no chance I'm going to discuss working for you next year.
That's just a reality for a lot of honest tradesmen. I can't hire anyone else to do anything either so clients who ask me if I know a roofer etc. etc. unfortunately don't get any joy either.
It seems to me that you can't quite believe that there's no spare quality labour left in the market at the moment but from my perspective that's the case. The problem you have is having no existing relationship with builders, at the moment that or serious disability is the only currency that's worth anything as far as I can see.
Airhead-
April next year, we’re booked about a week in advance maybe 2 weeks. I would be good to be that far in advance but the type of work we do people wouldn’t sit with no heating for 6 months also suits me as I don’t like being pinned down so far in advance
What is it you do?
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very unhelpful personal view
On the contrary, I value your input very much. Again, if they were open about their availability and didn't make woolly promises, I'd not be as vexxed as I am right now. It sounds like I am ranting about trades in general, I am not. As I said, 3 out of the many have been golden. Did what they said they would do, when they said they'd do it. he door guys took months, but then they said they would take months. Totally fine with that.
The problem you have is having no existing relationship with builders
This current lot of builders are a new outfit and our initial discussions were that we wanted someone to have a long standing relationship with as a house of this age/size will need regular maintenance. We don't want to keep having to go to Checkatrade for every little thing that comes up while we live here. They were all over that, to my face. Spent ages going round, measuring up, providing quotes. Then as soon as we said "go", it all went to shit. The electrical work for example was supposed to be on a Saturday/Sunday, dates proffered by them. Then they email late on the Thursday night before the work to say the spark is at a wedding all week so they're moving it to the following Tuesday. This wasn't an unforeseen delay, it was an uncommunicated delay.
konastab01
stevo_com
Winner!
Absolutely. But it is galling getting passed over for other work all the time. Especially when we were front of the queue (whatever that means). I get it, there are very likely more interesting/better paying jobs around at the minute. But have some fucking integrity, or even just basic manners, and either do stuff when you say you will or don't say you'll do it. I'm fucking done with having sympathy for trades who have "too much work".
We're living in this. We are very lucky to have the space that we do, both trying to work from home would be making me even more miserable than I am now, so I know my privilege. But we can't realisitically do anything else until even the two rooms they started are finished as there needs to be some bastard annoying jenga/rubix cube arrangement of our shit from one room to the next to be able to complete/decorate different rooms.
I'm not asking for the moon on the stick. I want to pay decent trades what they are worth to do reasonable work. I don't want unrealistic shit, I don't keep changing my mind or moving the goal posts, I don't even have ridiculous expectations of quality. Just somebody, please come in, let me point at a room and you get it to the stage where I can throw paint at it.