The housing market in Florida is currently exploding. With a sudden gigantic rush for property, there are natural growing pains – including a lot of jobs that are not getting finished properly. Suddenly, a lot of Florida families are asking a question they have never had to ask before: how can we collect from a construction contractor who abandoned the job and took our money?
Let’s step back and look at the root of the problem. This issue is happening because of the huge rush in the Florida housing market currently. The boom started as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and now a lot of businesses are moving down to Florida from New York. A large number of young families in Florida are now working from home and ready to move away from the city and get more space. With the increased demand, many Florida construction contractors are taking on more work than they can perform – and consequently, they aren’t fully performing.
There are some effective preemptive approaches to help deal with the issue. To begin with, make sure your contract has a firm deadline and a proper damages clause. This should include a fee for every day past the deadline the project goes. You should also release the payment in performance milestones instead of large lump sums. Make sure you keep tabs on the work by seeing the receipts of everything they spend money on and having inspections done. You need the help of an experienced attorney to be certain this is properly spelled out in the contract. There are a lot of pitfalls in making a case against the contractors if the contract was not written correctly.
The same practice applies to condos, which are even more restrictive than houses. You have to get approval from the management office in order to build or renovate a condo. The contractor has to take out insurance in the name of the building. Everything involved, from the plumbing to the soundproofed walls, needs to be done correctly to make sure the construction does not affect the neighbors.
If you have reached a point where a construction contractor has run off with your money for an unfinished, incomplete, or even plain unstarted gig, give Cueto Law Group P.L. a call. We will try to minimize the situation with pre-litigation protocol. This involves having a letter physically delivered to the contractor and trying to negotiate the situation. If we do reach a point of litigation, the Treble Damages Mechanism on Civil Statutes allows you to sue for up to three times the amount of the original contract. Even if you think it is a small case, it has the potential to be huge. We know that it is a pain to get them back to the job site to finish their work, but we will make sure a solution is reached.
At Cueto Law Group P.L., we won’t let anyone partially perform and take off with your money. If you need help with a construction contractor, contact Cueto Law Group P.L. today! From boardroom to courtroom, we’ve got you covered!
