"All New Kitchen or Bath Only $5,995!"

          P.T. Barnum was said to have said “there’s a sucker born every minute”. (Actually, no one knows who originally coined the phrase, but Barnum’s arch rival, Adam Forepaugh, attributed it to him, to besmirch his character). Nevertheless, whoever said it, was a pretty bright guy (or gal, to be PC).

I’ve been seeing more and more advertisements offering incredibly low prices for almost anything, and all I can say is, if you believe this, I’ve got a bridge for sale! What has happened to common sense? (Definition: sound judgment, native good judgment, not based on specialized knowledge). Has it disappeared with the affluent days of pre-recession America? Sure, we all want to save money, but it reaches a point where you’ve got to realize that either a price is too good to be true, or the quality of the products and workmanship are so poor you’ll regret your purchase for a long time to come.

These incredibly low offers always have some sort of catch. Often the cabinetry and other materials are imported from that really big, red country in the east (I don’t want to mention names or they may ask for their money back). We have no way of knowing what is in these products or how they are made. Take the sheetrock that was used in the south for example. It was found to emit hydrogen sulphide gas, making people very sick and rotting all the wiring, outlets, pipes, etc. in the houses. "It's economically devastating, and it's emotionally devastating," said Florida attorney Ervin A. Gonzalez. “It would cost a third of an affected home's value to fix the dwelling.” It turns out that about 3,000 homes now have to be gutted and rebuilt, according to the federal government. Now, that was a really great buy!

Sure, there is a range of legitimate prices for any project, but beware of the low bidders. Every time I’ve succumbed to the lowest price for a job at my house I’ve regretted it. As attractive as low bids are, they can be a warning sign that the contractor may be in financial difficulty. He may be desperate to get your deposit in order to pay off bills from a job that he has already started. If this in the case he will no doubt run into the same difficulty when he does your job and may have to abandon it due to lack of funds.

There is a bottom line price that legitimate companies can charge their customers and yet still make a profit (not a dirty word). The profit ensures that the company can cover their overhead and remain in business so that, years down the road, when you have a warranty claim, the company is still around.

You can be fairly certain that many of these incredible prices are being offered by contractors that are living “off the grid”. They don’t bother with the silly expenses of a home improvement license, liability, worker’s compensation and disability insurance, or EPA certification. So what if you get exposed to lead dust or they get hurt while working in your home? I’m sure you won’t mind paying their disability for the rest of their lives. Because, you saved a fortune!

Make sure you select a qualified bidder for your project, whose business and financial capabilities, past performance and reputation guarantee that you will get a job done well, with products that will perform as promised. Otherwise, you may become responsible for a variety of unpaid bills from sub-contractors and costly legal problems from the contractor’s suppliers.

I’m not saying that you can’t find bargains, but remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. That’s common sense.
     (For more info, visit us at www.dreamworkkitchens.com)