Associations utilize any number of contractors to maintain, repair and replace the common elements. These vendors do everything from foundation repairs
to roofing. The work they perform is done pursuant to a contract (hopefully a written one) that exchanges work for money. The contract should specify what work is to be completed by the contractor, when it is to be performed and what happens when it fails to do so. Unfortunately, it usually does not. Instead, the only written agreement is often a one page “work order” that states the contractor will do work for a certain estimated price without saying anything else. It is in this situation that we generally see the case of the contractor who is absent without leave.
The scenario is not new to many associations. The XYZ Condo Association needs a contractor to fix concrete stairs and the metal handrails thereon. It’s a small job. Property Manager P gives several names to the Board and relays its experience with those contractors. One of the vendors is named F Concrete and Metal, Inc. It had done several jobs for P’s other associations, with good results, at the lowest price. The Association pays F a down payment of $5,000.00 (about half of the total cost) so it can buy materials. After months go by, the work has not been started, let alone completed. P reaches out several times to no avail. What can the XYZ Condo Association do?
The first thing XYZ should do is send a formal demand notice to F. The demand notice should state that F is in default of the agreement. It should also give F a firm deadline to complete the work. If F completes the work the Association will get the benefit of its bargain (albeit later than it expected) and the issue will be closed. Assuming
By Kris Kasten, attorney at Michael C. Kim & Associates
By Robert Prince, Cervantes Chatt & Prince P.C.
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When a Contractor Goes AWOL
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