Q: Reasonable time for a contractor to complete a very small addition to an existing structure.
In May 2022 I signed a contract with a builder where no completion time is fixed in the contract. This contract involves adding on a small office space, approximately 250 square feet to the existing structure of my home. The contractor verbally agreed to a completion date of September 2022. Ordinarily, his crew shows up one or two days out of a month and then disappears for weeks on end, delaying the built and giving me excuse upon excuse. Next month will be exactly one year since the contract was signed. What is a reasonable time within the scope of the law for this very small addition to be completed?
A:
What is considered "reasonable" may vary. For example, if you had to order specialty materials and delivery was affected by the recent supply chain issues, a year might not be extremely unreasonable. However, the fact that the completion date was only agreed on verbally means that you could be facing an uphill battle, since it might not have become part of the contract. With that being said, you likely have several potential options for moving forward.
Consider consulting with a knowledgeable attorney who can review the contract and collect some more information from you. That way, they will be able to advise you on which options might be best for your specific situation, rather than providing broad generalizations that may or may not actually apply to you.
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