Contractors Are From Mars, Owners Are From Venus by Lew Sichelman
Few home owners have warm and fuzzy relationships with their contractors. Indeed, most have horror stories about workers who show up late or not at all, jack up their prices after they start and don't clean up after themselves. But contractors have gripes, too. According to a survey of 400 contractors undertaken by the Opinion Research Corp. this spring, they positively hate customers who continually ask them to do more than the contract calls for at no additional cost. And they pull their hair out over those who don't pay on time. An owner's worst nightmare: Shoddy workmanship. A contractor's: An owner who continually asks them to change or redo their work. See any similarities here? The relationship between contractor and home owner is often fraught with conflict, but the survey of contractors and corresponding one of owners who have had work done in their homes, both on behalf of Kimberly-Clark Professional, reveal some rather striking similarities, similarities that indicate the two sides may not see things differently at all. For example, one of the least favorite aspects of the home improvement experience for owners is feeling like they have to watch workers all the time (17 percent). For contractors, it's the feeling of being watched (10). Another constant complaint of both owners and workers concerns kids and pets. Contractors don't like dealing with these annoying distractions (5) while parents are uncomfortable having workmen around their two and four-legged loved ones (7). And one more thing: Contractors don't want to be your friend and talk to you all day long while they're trying to work (16). Not anymore than you want them to be your buddy and chat with you instead of working (8). Actually, a small percentage of workers take this last point even further. Their worst nightmare isn't being asked to do something over again or being paid late. No, it's lonely or bored customers who make romantic advances toward them (2). Back at ya, says an even larger percentage of owners who don't like being hit on, either (12). Owners also don't like it when workers stick their noses into the owners' refrigerators (3). At the same time, contractors say it would be nice if you offered them water or a soda once in a while (1). Or allow them to use your bathroom (5). These, of course, are mostly small things that all can be overlooked if the contractor started on time (36 percent didn't, according the owners) and if the owner doesn't postpone the job (9 percent did, according to the contractors). Or if the contractor didn't raise his price after work started (22 percent did) and the owner didn't ask the contractor to do more than the contract called for (24 percent did) or didn't try to renegotiate after the work was done (15 percent.) Why, with all this animosity and acrimony, one would think it might just be best to let our houses fall apart, or at least leave them as is. | 
