I have built a home and the contractor gave me an extra bill for work he said he did throughout the 12 months of building my home. I had a 6 month contract which states he has to provide estimates up front for any extra work that he would do to the property that must be signed off by both parties. He took liberties throughout the project of dragging his feet over a whole year, lost labor, ordered materials only when he needed them instead of all up front and this caused numerous delays holding up my build for a complete year and it still is unfinished. He refuses to provide me with a breakdown of the extra work he did and just lumped it all into one lump sum bill. Some of the items he was under contract for he included in this lump sum. How am I supposed to know what he was working on under contract or extra stuff he claims? Is there an Illinois law that requires him to provide me with breakdown or will my contract suffice with legal rep to hold him accountable?
You are entitled to receive an accounting from your contractor detailing how the money was spent on the project. That includes a sworn contractor's statement identifying all the sub-contractors who worked on the project and lien waivers from all contractors/sub-contractors and suppliers who may have worked on the project. Regarding extra work, you should review what the agreement provides, but typically any extra work must be documented by written change order, approved by the owner and signed by all parties. If the claimed extra work was part of the original scope then the additional charge would not be appropriate. I would recommend you consult with an attorney to review the contract and the billings you have received.
Can a lien be filed by a party on a project before that party actually finished all of the work they were contracted to perform? If a home contractor, subcontractor, or supplier files a lien against your or suppliers may try to exaggerate the amount of the lien that they file.