Advice needed to Avoid Cowboy Builders

bery_451

Doozergirl wrote: »

House prices and the price of building materials and labour are not related. Everyone knows that. Houses in the north of England are often worth less than they cost to build, but you won't be finding many for £20k. Houses in London cost a fraction of their value to build. People in the Midlands need to be sure that the work they carry out will pay off against the value of their home.

And you think extensions are just built by brick layers on an hourly rate? How on earth do you know how long it takes to build a two storey extension when you don't even know a builder?

Of course the price of everything has gone up in the last 10 years. Materials come mainly from outside our country. Unless you've been living under a rock you should know that the pound has tanked and imports are more expensive in only the last month, even.

You've also basically admitted that your neighbour used a cowboy that avoids tax and employs cheap labour and then go on to say that you can't get hold of him as if you wanted to use him! What is the purpose of this thread?

Everything Furts says about cowboy customers applies to you. You assume everything and know nothing, I'm afraid.

£24,000 less VAT is £20,000. If an extension costs that and takes 3 months or 13 weeks, that leaves a budget of £1,538 per week in expenditure. That doesn't even buy you two men for a week, let alone any materials, professionals or indeed, enough men to carry out the work. You tell me how your neighbour did it!

Enough now.

In fact House prices were more expensive 10 years ago nationwide than they were today. Only today only London not nationwide you will house prices that are still expensive.


If the building material are from abroad like you say instead of made in Britain then I guess the quality of the materials wont be good.


Ok so you saying £1538/2= £769 is not enough wages for 1 builder a week? So builders labour wages expect higher that professionals such as GP's, Accountant's, Lawyers's etc?


Ok lets assume my neighbour employed a cowboy builder like you said then how his building work pass inspection stages during the building work?


All that matters at the end of all this is that the building work passes inspection stages right? Or am I wrong on this statement?

southcoastrgi

So are you saying a good builder isn't as professional as a GP/lawyer/accountant ?

GP £100k + a year
Accountant £80k a year
Lawyer £150-£500 a hour

But a builder running a business with all the overheads should earn less than £40k a year

bery_451

southcoastrgi wrote: »

So are you saying a good builder isn't as professional as a GP/lawyer/accountant ?

GP £100k + a year
Accountant £80k a year
Lawyer £150-£500 a hour

But a builder running a business with all the overheads should earn less than £40k a year

I should have studied bricklaying at college lol.

bery_451

Francesanne wrote: »

Hi,
I've used this site https://www.buywithconfidence.gov.uk/to find builder & double glazing firm and have been very pleased with people we've chosen. I've opted for companies with good reviews. Hope it might be helpful.

Interesting that looks like a Government approved website for builders. Is it the only government approved website for builders though?

Doozergirl

bery_451 wrote: »

I should have studied bricklaying at college lol.

Yes, lol. Because building is only about bricklaying. :T

Everyone on here that gives their time on here to help people only love talking about mortar mixes and bonds.

Like accountants file receipts and doctors give stickers to good children.

bery_451

If you go to Dubai which has the best and most Luxurious Buildings in the world that puts Buildings here in the UK to shame apart from medieval buildings and buildings built by the freemasons you come to realise the builders from the east that is India, Bangladesh etc. that built Dubai today don't have no qualifications even no qualifications in bricklaying.


The slaves builders of Egypt that built the Pyramids had no qualifications either yet managed to complete a wonder of the world.


Yes Slavery is wrong but they worked hard to build the best.




I always assumed a Academic Route going to college, uni instead of taking the vocational route is worthy more of a higher wage.


Even Architects that plan the building drawings have to go through a Academic Route. Must hold a degree in Architecture.


Is there a Academic route for brick layers, plumbers, electricians etc. that warrants a higher wage? Or do they like to charge whatever they like?

southcoastrgi

I've been to uni grads with qualifications coming out of their ears but can't even wire a plug, so who deserves more money ?

bery_451

southcoastrgi wrote: »

I've been to uni grads with qualifications coming out of their ears but can't even wire a plug, so who deserves more money ?

It is the Uni Grads that are the inventors and Pioneers so they Invented the Plug. It is them also who will invent a cure for Cancer, Invent a Car that runs only on water, Invent smartphone batteries that only needs charging once a month and so on.


The workers and robots who make these in Chinese factories don't get that much wage even though they are doing most of the physical labour work where as uni grads do most of the theory/brain work.


All depends which is more valuable and carrys more weight to the person.

DaftyDuck

So where do I fit in your delightful hierarchy? I'm an academic at the undoubted best university in the world, but I can lay my own brickwork... mind you, my tummy carries some serious weight to my person


As an academic, I earn peanuts.... Many plumbers would earn more, and why not? They get a view of a drain, I get the Backs.


Oh, and I wouldn't want to be in many buildings in Dubai if there was a fire... they are often not as well built as you imply.

Please, more pearls of wisdom....:D

Furts

DaftyDuck wrote: »

So where do I fit in your delightful hierarchy? I'm an academic at the undoubted best university in the world, but I can lay my own brickwork... mind you, my tummy carries some serious weight to my person


As an academic, I earn peanuts.... Many plumbers would earn more, and why not? They get a view of a drain, I get the Backs.


Oh, and I wouldn't want to be in many buildings in Dubai if there was a fire... they are often not as well built as you imply.

Please, more pearls of wisdom....:D

Well done Dafty, you are hitting the nail on the head here. Not only are the tower blocks poorly built, with a terrible fire risk, they are also built too close together. This means the fires can jump across from one tower block to the next. All built on the cheap, and all built with one concept in mind which is bling, bling, bling.

Even when bling is further down the desire list they still mess up. Have you ever scrutinised Dubai Airport? A chronic lack of seating, an almost total absence of anywhere to have a coffee, a tea. or a snack, and even worse, barely a toilet and wash room facility to be seen. Here one cannot blame the usual culprit in Dubai which is poor workmanship. Here one can blame p-ss poor design. Of course this design will be by the Graduates bery_451 is so keen to praise.

It is a strange world when bery_451 posts on this forum argueing we should all tear up our long fought battles to establish Buildings Regulations, Architecture, RIBA, RICS, CIOB, ICWCI and all the other bodies who strive to avoid what we see in Dubai.