Seriously? Is this how people do business today??

[TangoJuliet]

Wow. The amount of hate in this thread is appalling. Some of you should be ashamed of yourselves.

I did not try to nickel and dime the guy. We were trying to work with him on a different solution to make it fit in our budget.

The proposal was $2500 for 3 rooms. The windows are really long and one room has a large arch window which requires some additional work.

I asked if he could do it for $2100 and then $2300 which was above our $2000 budget. Since he did not accept either of those offers we asked to substitute some of the stylings to get it to fit the budget. Obviously he didn't have the time or want to be bothered.

It just shocked me that he basically said F YOU. You're not worth my time. Go find someone else that will help you.

And edit he wasn't the cheapest. His proposal was in the middle at $2500. The others were $1600 and $3200.

 

[waggy]

Wow. The amount of hate in this thread is appalling. Some of you should be ashamed of yourselves.

I did not try to nickel and dime the guy. We were trying to work with him on a different solution to make it fit in our budget.

The proposal was $2500 for 3 rooms. The windows are really long and one room has a large arch window which requires some additional work.

I asked if he could do it for $2100 and then $2300 which was above our $2000 budget. Since he did not accept either of those offers we asked to substitute some of the stylings to get it to fit the budget. Obviously he didn't have the time or want to be bothered.

It just shocked me that he basically said F YOU. You're not worth my time. Go find someone else that will help you.

And edit he wasn't the cheapest. His proposal was in the middle at $2500. The others were $1600 and $3200.

so you were mistaken when you wrote this? so we should totally take you at your word on prices then eh?

The one company we like the best was this guy Jimmy. He was really nice and helpful and was the cheapest as well.

 

[ponyo]

Then go with the $1,600 bid if Jimmy was over your budget and won't work with you. I'm not saying what Jimmy did was right or wrong but I can understand his action. It's business. He decided you weren't worth his time and resources. Move on.

 

[Juddog]

Wow. The amount of hate in this thread is appalling. Some of you should be ashamed of yourselves.

I did not try to nickel and dime the guy. We were trying to work with him on a different solution to make it fit in our budget.

The proposal was $2500 for 3 rooms. The windows are really long and one room has a large arch window which requires some additional work.

I asked if he could do it for $2100 and then $2300 which was above our $2000 budget. Since he did not accept either of those offers we asked to substitute some of the stylings to get it to fit the budget. Obviously he didn't have the time or want to be bothered.

It just shocked me that he basically said F YOU. You're not worth my time. Go find someone else that will help you.

And edit he wasn't the cheapest. His proposal was in the middle at $2500. The others were $1600 and $3200.

It's not up to the contractor to squeeze down his prices to fit your budget. If you don't like his quote, then go find someone else.

You're wasting a ton of his time in trying to haggle (nickel and diming) after you already got the lowest possible quote, and he doesn't get paid to haggle. So basically you actually cost him money already, and gas for coming to your place to check out the blinds, and now you want to waste even more of the poor man's time. Customers like you are why contractors get out of the business.

 

[Gunslinger08]

You sound like kind of a pain in the ass customer. I have a lot of questions and want to find a way to get the best value for my money as well. You just have to find contractors who will deal with you and try to figure out as much as you can on your own, to avoid being annoying. That said, I wouldn't deal with this guy. Sounds like he has an attitude.

Edit: Also, generally speaking, estimates aren't negotiable. If you want a lower price, you need to change the scope of work or find someone else. I just went through this with having a deck built. I didn't like the initial quote, so I reduced the size slightly (removing 4 extra posts) and changed the decking material to a cheaper competitor of Trex.

 

[TangoJuliet]

so you were mistaken when you wrote this? so we should totally take you at your word on prices then eh?

The one company we like the best was this guy Jimmy. He was really nice and helpful and was the cheapest as well.

I can scan and post the estimate if you want.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Wow. The amount of hate in this thread is appalling. Some of you should be ashamed of yourselves.

I did not try to nickel and dime the guy. We were trying to work with him on a different solution to make it fit in our budget.

The proposal was $2500 for 3 rooms. The windows are really long and one room has a large arch window which requires some additional work.

I asked if he could do it for $2100 and then $2300 which was above our $2000 budget. Since he did not accept either of those offers we asked to substitute some of the stylings to get it to fit the budget. Obviously he didn't have the time or want to be bothered.

It just shocked me that he basically said F YOU. You're not worth my time. Go find someone else that will help you.

And edit he wasn't the cheapest. His proposal was in the middle at $2500. The others were $1600 and $3200.

Dude, if you're afraid of honest opinions don't ask for them. You are a SHITTY potential customer and only a fool would waste money trying to coddle somebody who can't make a decision and who wants to argue over every penny. Has is sunk in that the nice guy doesn't want your business? Have you stopped to ask yourself why? We already gave you the answer and the sooner you accept that the sooner you'll be able to grow up. You're not worth his effort. Deal with it.

 

[Theb]

And edit he wasn't the cheapest. His proposal was in the middle at $2500. The others were $1600 and $3200.

Guys- I install blinds now, let me know if you need some blinds installed (not you Tango).

 

[OlafSicky]

I give props to the blind guy he handled it the way it should be.

 

[purbeast0]

so you were mistaken when you wrote this? so we should totally take you at your word on prices then eh?

The one company we like the best was this guy Jimmy. He was really nice and helpful and was the cheapest as well.

Lol thread backfire and he changes his story.

 

[waggy]

It's not up to the contractor to squeeze down his prices to fit your budget. If you don't like his quote, then go find someone else.

You're wasting a ton of his time in trying to haggle (nickel and diming) after you already got the lowest possible quote, and he doesn't get paid to haggle. So basically you actually cost him money already, and gas for coming to your place to check out the blinds, and now you want to waste even more of the poor man's time. Customers like you are why contractors get out of the business.

to be fair what the OP did was not totally wrong or outragous. I do think he pushed it to far asking to "meet in the middle" after he was told no.

you get a qoute and its ok to ask to go lower. IF he says nope and does not come down at all then you really don't say "meet in the middle".

i can see why the contractor pulled everything. At that point i also agree with the move. it gives a impression the OP would not be satisfied and demand more work done

 

[Krazy4Real]

Dude, if you're afraid of honest opinions don't ask for them. You are a SHITTY potential customer and only a fool would waste money trying to coddle somebody who can't make a decision and who wants to argue over every penny. Has is sunk in that the nice guy doesn't want your business? Have you stopped to ask yourself why? We already gave you the answer and the sooner you accept that the sooner you'll be able to grow up. You're not worth his effort. Deal with it.

This. You're talking a difference of $500 between your budget and what you really want. Why would you change materials and spend $2k on something that you might not end up liking and potentially replacing it down the road. Find a way to save up that extra $500 by cutting some things for a month or two. Eat out less, don't go to the movies, etc. When you're talking about your home and something you are going to look at every single day, just spend a little extra and get what you like.

 

[SunnyD]

Mr. Tango;

A lot goes into putting together a reply to your thread. There are 3 types of replies to choose from (agreement, admonishment and belittlement), you also have a choice of brevity, terseness and context. I have visited your thread a number of times, I have taken a template of your post and have given numerous responses. At this time I am pulling my responses and retorts. My opinion is you and your wife need to find an outlet for your frustration that best suits your needs and expectations and by posting a lot of different replies is confusing the situation. I want to offer your family the very best in your new rant.

Best wishes,

SunnyD

 

[GlacierFreeze]

Some of you should be ashamed of yourselves.

You should be ashamed for wasting his time. You obviously didn't have the money. They did the right thing.

 

[Juddog]

OP you're a worthless customer - you just waste people's time. I feel sorry for the people that wasted their precious time and gas money to drive out to your place, just so that you could waste more of their time trying to nickle and dime them.

You are bad and you should feel bad.

 

[Humpy]

 

[kranky]

I don't see anything wrong with counter-offering in principal, but your counter-offer was 16% less than the quote. That was probably his entire profit margin, so you got off on the wrong foot by going too low.

I don't see anything wrong with asking what can be done to get the job to fit a budget either.

But you tried both, and I think that was the reason they bid you farewell. They just thought you were too much of a PITA customer.

It's also quite possible that they are busy and don't need the work, and if they needed the work they might have tried to come to terms.

 

[PeeluckyDuckee]

The salesman acted professionally and accordingly, I commend him for his actions. Time is money, and you were simply not worth his time. When someone provides you with a quote, and shoots you down on your inquiry of price flexibility, you shouldn't force your hand further asking for "meeting in the middle", that comes across as being rude, pushy, and signs of issues further down the road if he were to take you on.

We're calling it as we see it. I don't think many of the people here are surprised the thread backfired except the OP. Live and learn. One of the hardest things to do in life is to take negative criticism and coming to terms with yourself that you may be wrong at times.

 

[highland145]

I'm going with TJ on this one. A-hole should have dropped his price. He's making bank on the blinds alone.

 

[GlacierFreeze]

A-hole should have dropped his price.

Entitlement mentality.

 

[Ns1]

TJ has a knack for legendary threads.

 

[highland145]

Entitlement mentality.

Well, yeah. No blinds, get locked up for walking around your house nude. Get raped and have to register as a sex offender.

snap

 

[ponyo]

I don't see anything wrong with counter-offering in principal, but your counter-offer was 16% less than the quote. That was probably his entire profit margin, so you got off on the wrong foot by going too low.

I don't see anything wrong with asking what can be done to get the job to fit a budget either.

But you tried both, and I think that was the reason they bid you farewell. They just thought you were too much of a PITA customer.

It's also quite possible that they are busy and don't need the work, and if they needed the work they might have tried to come to terms.

I agree with you. He might have thought the hassle wasn't worth it or he has lot of work right now so he's not willing to drop his price. Whatever the reason, there's no reason for OP to be upset. It's just business. Find another quote and company and move on.

 

[purbeast0]

this...

The one company we like the best was this guy Jimmy. He was really nice and helpful and was the cheapest as well. The only problem was all of the projects were over budget. I asked him if he could do it for $xxxx which he declined. I asked if he would split the difference and basically told me that is the price - non negotiable.

and this...

The proposal was $2500 for 3 rooms. The windows are really long and one room has a large arch window which requires some additional work.

I asked if he could do it for $2100 and then $2300 which was above our $2000 budget. Since he did not accept either of those offers we asked to substitute some of the stylings to get it to fit the budget. Obviously he didn't have the time or want to be bothered.

And edit he wasn't the cheapest. His proposal was in the middle at $2500. The others were $1600 and $3200.

don't make sense when put together. here are the facts you stated.

1. jimmy was the cheapest at $2500.
2. your budget was $2000.
3. another quote was $1600.
4. all of the quotes were over budget.

your story is full of more holes than a net.

 

[techs]

Sounds to me like he handled it exactly as he should have.

He quoted you a price, then quickly realized that the price he quoted wasn't worth the ensuing headache, so he pulled the quote.

:shrug:

Maybe the other, more expensive, options have the "headache factor" already figured in to their estimate...

qft

I run my business the same way.