Guttering

[Bazile]

3 Bed Semi

Clean guttering on main roof and on bay windows

Alter drain pipes on one side of house upstairs and downstairs to allow bay windows to fully open

Replace all union joins on guttering


£380

Is that a reasonable price ?

[Bazile]

Thanks TB

I'm not sure if what you have advised is what the builder is proposing to do

Would the £380 be reasonable only if the builder does it on the way you have suggested ( plus the cleaning of the guttering and replacements of all the union joins ) ?

[Atheist]

I think that you'd be doing quite well for that price, if he does a good job. Your house looks rather big and fiddly.

[Bazile]

Not that big Atheist .
It's only the one with the white windows

[Atheist]

I see what you mean, Baz. But you do have a front, a back and a side, plus the twp bays at the back. Good luck.

[anneasquith]

A nice gesture from The Builder .

[The Builder]

Put it this way, Baz.
If it's a biggish building firm, then it's probably what they would charge.
I still say that a handyman should be around £180-200 for a day's work. Plus the other £80 for materials assuming that ladder access is good.
It would have to be someone who knows what they're doing though.
It's always a problem for householders, until they latch on to a reliable tradesman.

[The Builder]

Thanks Anne :o)))

[Atheist]

Say it takes a day for one, and no materials. That makes roughly £380 x 5 = £1900 a week, i.e. £7.6k a month. Deduct tax, materials, insurance, travel and so on, and it doesn't sound so much. Plus, I doubt if he'd work without a mate and it might take more than a day.

[Bazile]

Thanks

Thanks TB - Your advice over and above the call of duty is much appreciated :-)

[Bazile]

Thanks for your advice TB

[Bazile]

Posted too soon

Thanks for your advice TB and extra assistance

[Bazile]

I've been offered a revised price of £300 as a cash deal .

Is there any down side to a cash payment ?

[jno]

he might not pay his tax, the government would go broke and you would be thrown into penury.

I'd have thought even £380 was a good price, but I'm in London.

[The Builder]

Baz, despite what people think, it's perfectly legal to be paid in cash.
It's legal tender.
It's not your responsibility as to what he does regarding how, or if he accounts for it. As self-employed, he should declare it on his returns as "earnings".

One proviso..... don't ask him about it. If he tells you it's going to be spent without declaring it (black economy), then technically you are conspiring to defraud the Revenue.
Pretty remote of course, but you never know.
Just consider the reduced price as a discount.

[The Builder]

...................... again, technically, if he's VAT registered and you know that, then you really are conspiring to defraud if he is not charging you VAT.

I know that all sounds a bit heavy, but this is a public forum

[barry1010]

The downside to cash payment at a discount is that he may not provide a receipt or any form of proof that he has done the work. Difficult to get mistakes put right if he can deny he did the work.

[Bazile]

Thanks all
TB -would you go ahead - but don't ask him how he's accounting for the payment and if he's VAT registered ?

[jno]

that would be wise. Personally, I don't go around asking people if they're VAT registered, any more than I ask them where they really come from...

[The Builder]

Yes, jno's right.

After all... it's common to pay your window cleaner in cash.
Or even buy a newspaper the same way.