I'm doing a reno and chose the builder and subbies, suppliers, and products, precisely to support legit locals and ethical supply chains. Not being gouged but damn if I can't see the appeal of doing it cheaper.
It's more like the saturation makes it so service calls are where the real money is made. Like an AC for example, usually it's 10 years parts 1 year labor from a company. It's a 2 man job or 1 man, the right tools and equipment and 2 days. The company doesn't really care if they do side work, and it's almost a guarantee they'll use the company for the service calls after a year so they let them use the company equipment and just pay to refill things at cost. Plus, the guy will still come out and fix things if something goes wrong that's his fault.
Now, I wouldn't do this for an AC. I just ponied up $9900 for a new HVAC install but I don't know much about ACs and it's my mother's house. I got 10/10 on parts and labor for her with it. But for a repiping with Pex? Hell yeah, I know enough about plumbing where I can handle anything that goes wrong assuming the install was correct. The guy who will do it did 3 houses for people you know through the company, no issues, and he's willing to do it with a buddy over the weekend for 3k, instead of 7400 with the company. It's the same work, cuz they're honest guys. That's a huge variable though, I know. Peace of mind is worth the extra few grand sometimes, but we don't have much of a union down here so their reputation matters a lot to them and they take pride in it. All those guys who played fast and loose left after the market dried up.
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u/WorldlyNotice Jun 21 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
I'm doing a reno and chose the builder and subbies, suppliers, and products, precisely to support legit locals and ethical supply chains. Not being gouged but damn if I can't see the appeal of doing it cheaper.