Welcome to the first edition of the ADC Limited, LLC. Newsletter. This monthly publication is designed to keep our growing membership informed of the difficulties that can be encountered when one ventures into the arena of building, remodeling or moving houses.
We will start with some statistics that are readily available from the State of California Contractors Licensing Board. There are 12.5 million home owners in the state. There are approximately 292,000 licensed contractors on the state rolls as of 2004. There 25,000 new contractors coming into the system annually. There are, between 2002 and 2005, approximately 71,000 complaints lodged against licensed contractors for poor workmanship, abandonment from jobs, no building permits pulled, and violation of home improvement provisions. A total of 422 licenses were suspended in 2004-2005. There were citations issued to 1,711 unlicensed individuals.
The question is what's wrong with this picture? In my opinion, this is what ADC Limited, LLC is about.
Punitive actions against state contractors are not the answer. Trying to address the needs of those 71,000 and future individuals who have filed complaints against state licensed contractors should be the focus. I believe the answer is understanding how this phenomenon occurs.
There are an inordinate number of schools licensed to help individuals get the contractors licenses. Contractor seminars offering accounting, legislative issues.
Where is the out reach to the end user... the home owner?
It is the intent of ADC Limited, LLC to provide some level of education to the homer owner wanting to remodel, add onto, or move a structure. In brief we are of the opinion that this type of service, being provided to home owners will go a long way toward helping educate the home owner.
On a monthly basis we will place articles in our web site to provide the membership with a resource to help them cope with both licensed and non-licensed contractors. The problem as we see it is the lack of a vehicle to facilitate home owners improve their communication skill. |
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In The Words of The Celestines'
In 2001 my husband and I ventured into an area that we thought would be a dream to cap off our careers and provide us with a sense of security for years to come. Little did we realize, however that we were not fully equipped to deal with the disasters we would experience over the seemingly right decision to pursue our dream. That dream was to expand our then small but comfortable 940 square foot bungalow into a home that offered the comfort of spacious, modern upgrades, with 21st century living enjoyed by upwardly mobile American families. That dream, albeit, was shattered.
In 2001 we made the decision to add onto and remodel our house. We looked around, talked to friends and relatives and found a State Licensed Contractor to help us achieve our objective. That decision haunts us to this very day. Although we have weathered the storm partially, we are still puzzled at how this could have happen to us and wonder how many others this has happened to. Here briefly is our story.
After finding the licensed contractor we entered into what we though was a legally written contract. At the time there had been plans drawn up for our dream house and approved permits to start work. Through this nightmare, we have since learned this was our first mistake. Due to limited space in this article we are not able go into full details, however if someone is interested they can contact me through ADC Limited. Essentially after living through eighteen months in a one bedroom with no heat, inadequate lighting, improper sanitation conditions and sustaining severe rain damage from improper work, lack of work, and just plan old procrastination, we found ourselves in dire straights. Only by accident did we find a retired contractor with the skills, professionalism, and above all patience that has helped us band together, stay the course and come out of this experience much wiser and a little saner. Our advice to anyone seeking the dream, as we did, is to take your time, do your home work, research for answers and seek professional advice.
The nightmare with the General Contractor, State Licensing Board, Bonding Company, Insurance Company and City Building Department is daunting. Above all, we suggest that you pay for the education and become more knowledgeable of the building industry. President Reagan once said, "Trust but verify." A good starting point for your training is with ADC Limited, LLC.
For more information and a fuller discussion of this case study, go to henry567@aol.com . |
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It is our objective to provide the maximum education through our workbook(s) and seminars. To that extent, we are starting this column with a "pre-test". We are asking our readers to take this pre-test and register at the link below to receive the correct answers to the questions. We will be using your responses to further develop and expand our educational effort to better prepare our end-user, the home owner and newly licensed contractor. This pre-test will also be used to validate our presentations via our workbook(s) and seminars. Our effort is to assist our reader to gauge their level of knowledge of the building industry and identify areas in which they need further education. It will also aid ADC Limited, LLC to provide more timely information about the industry and how newly acquired information can accelerate the readers understanding.
In no way will the test be used to deny our readers the opportunity to continue receiving the Newsletter. The Newsletter will be distributed monthly without bias whether or not you take the test.
The test will take on the average 5 minutes. Thanks for your cooperation in this venture.
Please click here to take the test. |
