As a contractor, you know better than your surety what is happening in the construction marketplace. You see certain contractors who are so desperate for work that they are bidding work at unprofitable levels just to keep their crews busy. You know that a contractor cannot sustain their operations with unprofitable work. You also know [...]
We only gained 162,000 jobs in July. Unemployment dropped to 7.4% but that was largely from frustrated people giving up on even trying to find a job. According to the government, you aren't unemployed unless you are actively seeking work. For some reason, the Fed is apparently more interested in this unemployment rate than total payroll numbers. Thus, [...]
People are not generally evil. They don’t create malicious bond forms because they want to hurt everyone they meet. Usually the toughest of language in a bond form can be traced back to a bad experience the owner or General Contractor is trying to avoid in the future. We should have a good deal of [...]
With the slowdown in construction, we are seeing a dramatic increase in subcontractor defaults. Even subcontractors who have been in business for many years are having some difficulty. Many General Contractors are bemoaning that last year would have been better if it weren't for one subcontractor or another. This is a dangerous time to be [...]
Maintaining the surety relationship requires trust, mutual respect and accountability. These qualities are developed over a long period of time and require open and honest communication. You want to maintain and increase your surety credit. You accomplish this by providing the surety accurate, detailed, and consistent feedback on your business. Over time it will earn [...]
A real focus of a successful contractor is to reach substantial completion on time and within budget. Guess what? Not everyone agrees on what is substantial completion. Usually, you think that getting a certificate of occupancy should suffice. Not necessarily if you are dealing with residential or hotel construction. If substantial completion is the ability [...]
You think it’s time to take your company to the next level? The competition is a little fierce in your arena, so maybe you are looking at yard where the big dogs play. How will you make that step? What are your pitfalls? We represent over 600 contractors in Florida. We've helped many of them [...]
Has your surety started asking more questions? Do they act more nervous? Many sureties are like that subcontractor who is losing money on other jobs; they can make life miserable for you. Because of their losses, many sureties have dramatically raised their underwriting standards along with their rates. Some sureties have severely limited job sizes [...]
Have you ever had a “Slow No?” You give your bond request to the bonding agent and he says he’s “working on it,” and so you think you are OK. Several days go by, and you call again, and he’s still “working on it”. A few more distressing days go by and you start to [...]
The obligees who purchased the bonds win. The subcontractors and suppliers who relied upon that payment bond when they took the job win. When the surety pays claims, (and they paid out billions) they are paying out money that the obligee would otherwise have to pay. Even with the increase in price, bonds are a [...]