By REMODELING Magazine Staff. John Frasier, Frasier Construction, Boise, Idaho, Big50 2002 It probably happens in about one in 10 contracts. It's driven by budget or the fact that they're really fond of an item or have already purchased it. I have a paragraph in the contract that says anything bought by the client is not under warranty. Also, if, for example, they provide the cabinets and their installer damages the new floor we put down, they're responsible for whatever damage was done. Lynn Monson, DreamMaker Kitchen & Bath/Monson Design, Minneapolis, Big50 2001 For our DreamMaker franchise, where budgets are tight, we allow homeowners to buy their own materials. But the client has to understand that if they hold up the schedule, they'll incur re-scheduling fees. As far as Monson Design goes, where we're doing large, intricate projects, it's a flat-out no. We take care of those things, and it's a complete turnkey service. Cindy Knutson-Lycholat, Knutson Brothers II, East Troy, Wis., Big50 2001 If it's a simple thing at the beginning or the end that doesn't interfere with the schedule, we permit homeowners to buy their own materials. If it's in the middle of the project, we discourage it because it messes up the schedule and there's no warranty. Sue Cosentini, Cosentini Construction, Ithaca, N.Y., Big 50 2000 We don't allow homeowners to buy their own materials because we're not willing to incur the costly delays that could -- and do -- result when they take care of their own stuff. We also need to purchase those materials for a proper markup. In the event they do want to purchase their own products, we terminate our contract at a point that allows them to take over from there. Then we'll come in at some later point and resume the work. Shawn McCadden, Custom Contracting, Arlington, Mass., Big50 2000 With small items, such as surface-mounted electrical fixtures, where there are few warranty issues, lots of client judgment is required, and way too much time might be invested trying to recover markup, we actually ask clients to provide them. Lately, for volume reasons, we are allowing clients on some jobs to provide their own cabinets. We add money to make sure the process goes right. For instance, if I applied my usual (80%) markup to $20,000 cabinets, that would bring them up to $36,000 and throw us out of line price-wise. Instead I add $5,000 to cover my time. They have to order them, pay for them, get a design, have us verify that the design works within the parameters of the overall plan, and have them delivered. Jack Brock, Brock Built, Phoenix, Big50 1987 We allow clients to buy materials themselves on certain occasions -- as a courtesy. We explain that if we encounter a problem or a defect, they will bear sole responsibility for the new purchase as well as the re-installation. Jerry Liu, D.G. Liu Contractor, Dickerson, Md., Big50 2002 We try to limit this practice as much as possible, except in the case of appliances. We need to recover overhead on subs, labor, and materials. Then there's the matter of who's responsible for what. The last thing you want is to unload $30,000 worth of kitchen cabinets obtained by the client and be fully liable from the moment they come off the truck. Ben Tyler, Ben Tyler Building & Remodeling, Louisville, Ky., Big50 2002 Lately we've been getting called into projects where the client's already working with a kitchen contractor. On some of these projects, the countertops and cabinets are being handled by the client and the kitchen people. In that case, if there's a problem, it's not our problem. Other times a client might want to, for example, buy a mantle at a salvage store. We accommodate that kind of thing. But if somebody says they want to do their own flooring or carpentry, that tells me they're not going to be our customer.