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Seemingly Competent Lawyer: “I don’t see anything in this contract where the builder is obligated to show you he has paid his subs before you pay him.”
Mrs. Groovy: “Yeah, that was one of the things I wanted to ask you about. And what about the part where it says we need to get flood insurance. Have you seen that before?”
Seemingly Competent Lawyer: “Not unless the proposed home was in a flood plain.”
Mr. Groovy: “Do you see anything we should be concerned about?”
Seemingly Competent Lawyer: “Not really. But let me look this over a little more. When I’m done, I’ll write up an addendum that provides you with all key protections I think you need. You can then present the addendum to your builder.”
Mrs. Groovy: “Sounds great. You can call and let me know when the addendum is ready, or you can just send the addendum to my email address. Thanks for all your help.”
This is the gist of the conversation Mrs. Groovy and I had with a lawyer about the building contract our builder, Terry, gave us. We asked this lawyer to review the contract because she was the lawyer who handled the closing of our Groovy land purchase and she seemed very competent. Anyway, we had this conversation in this lawyer’s office around 8:30 am on Monday, June 4.
Come noon on that very same Monday, Mrs. Groovy received an email from the seemingly competent lawyer that the addendum would be attached to a subsequent email by the end of the day.
Well, the end of the day came and went and no addendum was received. Come Tuesday morning, Mrs. Groovy emailed the seemingly competent lawyer and asked, “Did I miss anything from you?” Crickets. No addendum. Not even a response. On Wednesday morning, Mrs. Groovy called the seemingly competent lawyer again and left a message with her office manager: “Did we misunderstand something? Please call and give us an update.”
Queue the crickets. Wednesday came and went without a phone call or an email from the seemingly competent lawyer.
Mrs. Groovy was seriously miffed at this point. And rather than deal with a lawyer who was MIA, I suggested that we write up our own addendum and present it to Terry. After all, Terry gave us no reason to think he was anything but an honorable man, and I was sure he’d agree to any reasonable modifications that allayed our fears. Mrs. Groovy agreed, and I called the seemingly competent lawyer on Thursday morning to let her office manager know that the counselor’s addendum was no longer needed.
[Mrs. Groovy here. I don’t want you to think I just pulled this DIY addendum out of thin air. I did a lot of research on standard clauses for building contracts and I also spoke with an insurance agent about the protections we needed.]
Good News on the Building Front
Last week started badly. Our seemingly competent lawyer turned out to be a dud. But that’s the way it goes. Service people, whether they represent the trades or the professions, are not immune to the disease of over-promising and under-delivering. But happily, the week ended very well. Terry was fine with our DIY contract addendum and we signed the contract on Saturday. Meanwhile, Terry was kind enough to submit an application for a building permit earlier in the week. The county approved those plans yesterday (talk about a streamlined permitting process!) and Terry hopes to pour the foundation footings this week. Groovy Ranch is rapidly becoming a reality.
Fight-O-Meter
For those wishing to see Mrs. Groovy and me at each other’s throat, the past couple of months have been very disappointing. But fear not lovers of pugilism, I see a number of fights on the horizon. Here are three potential flashpoints that are poised to rock the Fight-O-Meter.
- I want a white subway tile back-splash in the kitchen. Mrs. Groovy doesn’t.
- I want open shelving rather than upper cabinets in the kitchen. Mrs. Groovy doesn’t.
- Mrs. Groovy wants to plant a number of trees to increase privacy. I think additional privacy is superfluous.
[Mrs. Groovy here. I was about to get into it here but I’m not gonna even bother. I know I’ll get my way. But I am softening on the subway tile.]
We Met Another Blogger
We’re batting a thousand when it comes to meeting bloggers in person. Everyone has been as wonderful as his or her online persona would suggest—including our sixth blogger acquaintance.
This past Saturday we met our Raleigh neighbor, The Budget Epicurean. For those of you who aren’t familiar with BE, she’s a blogger who writes a lot about—surprise, surprise—food. But she writes with such aplomb, and with such a commitment to frugality, I find it impossible to ignore her blog. Anyway, Mrs. Groovy and I had a rollicking good lunch with BE and her husband. We discussed everything from veganism and GMOs to Millennial stereotypes and my warped taste in YouTube videos. BE is one groovy chick. And Mr. BE is one groovy dude.
Final Thoughts
Okay, groovy freedomist, I’m almost done. Mrs. Groovy and I have finally photographed our first four-legged friend from our walks along Smith Creek Trail. Charlie is a four-month old Goldendoodle whose adorableness is only exceeded by his boundless energy. His mommy, Maria, is pretty awesome too.
Now I’m done. What say you, groovy freedomist? Have you ever had a service person disappear on you for no apparent reason? Let me know when you get a chance. Peace.
Popping some popcorn now! 🍿
Just kidding. I could go either way on the subway tile. No to open shelving and yes to privacy trees. The big question: where do you both land on storing bug dope? I think it should be in the garage and my husband thinks it should be in the laundry room cupboard. Oh, the big issues of marriage. 😂
Hope to meet you both some day so I can add you to my blogger bucket list. You seem like fun peeps.
Carol @ DownsizeYour2080 recently posted…Could You Welcome an Income Decrease? 10 Takeaways from the Pay Cuts in My Life
Hey, Carol. Good question on the bug dope. Mrs. Groovy and I stored that stuff in the garage. So Mrs. Groovy and I are with you. And, yes, we would love to meet you one day. Any chance you’ll be in the Raleigh area anytime soon?
I’ve been doing a number of improvements/repairs on our house, and have seen this happen regularly!!! What is up with that? In fact, as a new realtor, I regularly hear “Thank you! You called me back!”. Whaa??? Of course I called you back! That’s what respectful people do! I thought everyone was supposed to return calls and emails! But alas, they don’t. Good for you on writing up your own addendum. Saved you some cash. And Mr. G, remember, “Happy wife, happy life”. But I do like subway tile, personally. 🙂
So true, Laurie. It’s amazing how just being respectful can make you stand out from the crowd. Meh.
DON’T have open shelves in the kitchen. You’ll be constantly washing things as they get dusty and unless you’re fanatical about putting things away neatly, the place will always look like a mess.
Damn it! Now I feel stupid. I forgot all about the dust. Mrs. Groovy is right again. It’s tough being married to someone smart.
We are having issues with contractors disappearing. They show up, give a quote, and at times have text me 5 minutes later asking if I have the quote and if it is good, etc…then I ask when they can start and *poof*…disappear. This has been drywall people, general contractors, tree services. I’m starting to think I’m the common denominator, but mostly I have just agreed to their quote. I hear this story from many people so I don’t think it is me.
Sounds like you are moving forward! Do upper cabinets, white subway backsplash, and get trees for a little privacy, but not so much that in 10 years your yard is shaded all day because you are surrounded in trees and you can’t have a decent garden because you only get 2-3 hours of sun. There’s your unsolicited advice for the day from the peanut gallery 🙂
Hey, Marlena. Sorry to hear about your contractor woes. I know it’s a big problem. But that means it’s also a big opportunity. Any contractor who just does what he says he’s going to do and shows up can make a killing. Good luck going forward. And thanks for stopping by.
Yes to subway tile and a huge NO to open shelving 🙂 And yes to privacy trees! Sorry – Mr. MSD just got the quiz and agreed with each of these too! We’ve dealt with plenty of “disappearing” contractors. Honestly, we just assume they will now. We just got a bid for concrete work today – a patio out back, sidewalk, and small patio out front. We found this guy through a friend. They seem to be the only ones who even call. Looking forward to the next update!
Thank you, Vicki. I’ll stand firm on the subway tile but surrender to standard upper cabinets and privacy trees.
Service folks in our neck of the woods are anything but. One of our biggest frustrations of living in the Appalachian Mountains. Gotta slow down and go with the flow, and that’s not a strength of mine. Ah well, builds character!! Congrats on getting to the pouring of foundations, this thing is gaining momentum!!
I’ve heard of Mexican time from ex-pats in Mexico. Do I now need to be conscious of Appalachian time?
The worst part is you still have to pay said incompetent lawyer for the work he *did* (ie the initial conversation). I feel like there’s no other job where that’s the case.
And yay for meeting BE! She’s my favorite (and my son’s too 😉)
Nope. No payment to incompetent lawyer. Here’s what happened. I emailed her the contract on a Sunday night to ask if she would review it. The email bounced back. Bounced back a second time. Monday morning I phoned. The call wouldn’t go through. I did a search to see if she went out of business but she didn’t. So we took a ride over to her office to drop off the contract and we learned the office’s entire system was down. Basically the staff was sitting there twiddling their thumbs. So the lawyer asked us into the conference room, looked over the agreement and addressed a few of my questions. She then said we could either pay her to do the contract over, or our builder could pay his lawyer to do it over. And we asked her to do it. So that was the first mention of a fee and since she did not provide the work, there’s no payment to be made.
I’d be shocked if she sent a bill because she didn’t acknowledge our cancellation at all. Anyway, I wouldn’t pay it. I consider the contract review a courtesy, and I believe she did too, since we already paid her for the closing on the land.
My neighbors just had a flaky architect. They waited 2 months to get drawings for their patio extension and nothing. Now in the heat of the summer, they are starting over. And speaking of overheating, housing and construction is so hot in Northern California that getting competent service is a challenge. Especially if your air conditioning goes out right now! Sorry about your lawyer, but you guys are really smart to move forward quickly and not let that delay your project.
I vote for open shelving. My husband hand-built our kitchen cabinets while we were still working, which took a long time. As a result, I was using “open shelving” so long, while he made the upper doors, that I was so sorry I had the doors when they arrived. Maybe you can come up with a design that allows you to try the shelving and if you don’t like it, then put in upper cabinets. Once you try it, you get hooked.
It’s interesting that you got used to the open shelving!
We had to move forward. Hard to believe but we’re living here a month already. Let’s get this show on the road!!!
How exciting that it’s starting! I would have been super pissed too at that lawyer. I mean it’s one thing to not be able to get it done that week and tell you, it’s another and totally unprofessional not to get back in touch with you to tell you that!
Hey, Tonya. Yeah, we totally misread this lawyer. We had no idea she was going to be a sticking point. Like you said, not being able to do it for a week is one thing. Keeping us in the dark is another. But at least her fickleness didn’t screw up our build. Oh, and by the way, your last roundtable with the Shannon and the gang was hysterical. I know it can’t be fun when your parents have a Tonya Summit, but at least you know it’s coming from a place of love. You’re the best, Tonya. You never fail to make me laugh and make me think. Cheers.
Glad to hear things are moving along, well maybe except for that seemingly competent Lawyer. 🙂 I guess you just never can tell, even based on past experiences with a service people. We’ve had a run in or two over the years. With all these meets and greets have we set a date for Groovyfest, or Groovypalooza yet?
Brian recently posted…Divorcing Debt For Good
We’re definitely having Groovypalooza in the spring of 2019. Or maybe we’ll dub it Camp Groovy. Either way, I’m sure whatever we call our meet and greet, I’m sure it will be the talk of Louisberg, North Carolina. How all is well on Long Island, my friend. Cheers.
Sounds like everything is coming along as well as it could.
It also sounds like we are going to see more of a battle soon. Break out the gloves!!!
Yeah, Mrs. Groovy looks like she’s in take-no-prisoners mode when it comes to privacy trees and white subway tiles. I’m in trouble, Mr. WoW. Any chance you can help me out in our roundtable this weekend?
Sounds like things are progressing! So exciting! We had similar discussion about open shelving vs cabinets, and Mrs. SSC is firmly against white subway tile anywhaere. Good luck with those issues. 🙂
I agree with planting trees for privacy however. Why not and it isn’t as stodgy or probably as costly as a massive cedar privacy fence. But then, I’m burnt out of 10 yrs of walking out of my back door to see6-7 other houses around me, with 2nd floor windows looking onto my backyard…
I’m excited to close on our new house this Monday! It has no blinds at all for the back windows because it’s all just trees, woods, and more trees! Yeah, privacy!! 🙂
Mr. SSC recently posted…You’re Promoted! Thanks, But I’m Quitting…
Hey, Mr. SSC. Maybe I have to re-think this privacy thing. Thank you for your perspective. And congratulations on your Monday closing. I’ve seen the aerial view of your new home. Any possibility of some interior shots appearing on your blog?
Yes, there will be some interior shots posted, but since we won’t be moving in for another month, maybe not until August?
Mr. SSC recently posted…You’re Promoted! Thanks, But I’m Quitting…
Lunch was amazing, it was meeting some of my top 10 list of celebrities and feeling like a celebrity myself! As soon as I read “seemingly competent” I got nervous for you. Glad it worked out, and at least now you don’t have to pay the lawyer.
the Budget Epicurean recently posted…We apologize for this interruption in our regularly scheduled programming…
Thank you again, BE, for a very enjoyable lunch. Can’t say enough about you and Mr. BE. You guys rock! We’ll have to do it again soon. And, yes, a missing-in-action lawyer means no attorney fees. Now that’s how you make lemonade out of lemons.
Go for the privacy landscaping! It’s not overrated. You are doing better than me on the build. We are submitted and waiting for the permit- 2 to 3 weeks supposedly. Then we have to figure out when we will break ground.
Haha! Mrs. Groovy was all over your comment. She’s not going to let the privacy thing go. I’m in trouble. Good luck on the permit. California is a little more complicated on the building front than NC. So 2 to 3 weeks seems reasonable. I got my fingers crossed, my friend.
Thanks for the entertaining update Mr. Groovy. Glad you managed to get the contract amended – god forbid you need it for action.
Got a good chuckle from this:
“Mrs. Groovy here. I was about to get into it here but I’m not gonna even bother. I know I’ll get my way. But I am softening on the subway tile.”
Best of luck on your build – we’ll be fun to watch your creations develop.
Thank you, my friend. I have no doubt Mrs. Groovy will get her way as well. A first-rate mind + a supreme dislike of losing = a humbled Mr. Groovy.