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Cabinet payment timing
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Posted by colickyboy (My Page) on Tue, Feb 9, 10 at 15:47
| I paid a retainer for cabinets (which is applied towards the price of the cabinets that we buy) with a dealer and am now on the verge of signing a contract. The contract explains the remaining payment schedule: half of the remaining balance is due at signing and the other half is due when notification is given of the cabinet delivery date (generally 2 weeks before delivery).
We will be having our contractor install the cabinets, not the dealer.
I asked the dealer why they require payment before cabinets are received (i.e., why not when I actually receive the cabinets). She told me it's more for their bookkeeping and that there shouldn't be any worries on my end b/c if there are any problems with the cabinets once I receive them, the cabinet company is very good about replacing any damaged or poorly constructed cabinets. And if I have installation issues, I would be taking them up with my installer, not the dealer anyway, since they are separate organizations.
Should I be concerned with being asked to give final payment before I receive the products? Is this fairly common in the industry? What do you advise? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Cabinet payment timing
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| I'm surprised the Dealer has'nt asked for payment in full before placing the order. Think of your purchase this way, you're not just buying cabinets. Your having cabinets built for you. To your specifications. So yes, it is not only fairly common in the industy to require final payment before receiving product, it is standard operating procedure. |
RE: Cabinet payment timing
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| We ordered cabinets, appliances, and most fixtures (sink/faucet/soap dispensers) from our KD but also had one of their installers install them. We paid 1/3 of the total at order time, 1/3 at delivery, and the final 1/3 when the Project was done. You might check with your state's laws. According to my KD, Maryland State Law says no more than 1/3 can be collected at order. In your case, I would expect 1/3 to 1/2 at order time and the remainder at delivery...not when you're notified of a planned delivery. Do you know for a fact that others have not had problems getting things fixed after they've paid in full? Many times the only leverage you have when you have problems is the remaining $$$ you owe. |
RE: Cabinet payment timing
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| We are in Indiana. We also paid 1/3 on order of our custom cabinets and will pay 1/3 at delivery and 1/3 after installation. On another matter for our daughter's wedding we paid the photographer 50% when we reserved the photographer, and 50% 2 weeks before the wedding. 11 months later we are still tring to get her photos. The studio changing hands has seemed to complicate everything. I would NEVER pay the full amount early for something like this again. |
RE: Cabinet payment timing
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| hdg1027, I don't see where the OP says these are custom cabinets, it sounds like they are ordering pre-made. I wouldn't pay in full 2 weeks before delivery. My GC didn't release the final payment to our cabinet guy (and we did have custom cabinets made) until some time after installation so that we had time to inspect them and have any issues resolved. |
RE: Cabinet payment timing
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| I'm in New Jersey and we had custom cabinets made. 10% retainer (for engineering and drawings). 40% on acceptance of drawings. 50% on delivery of cabinets. In our contract, there is a Punch List provision for inspection of work to be completed or corrected once they are installed. Of course, by then the money has been paid. So, as in any contract, it's so important to have a reliable and reputable company to work with. We had a few little dings and imperfections, which are being fixed as I write. |
RE: Cabinet payment timing
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| We paid 50% at the time of order and 50% upon delivery for Shiloh cabinets. We are installing ourselves, although the dealer has been really, really helpful with questions and concerns as we are installing. |
RE: Cabinet payment timing
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| The original poster stated that the cabinet supplier was only supplying cabinets...not installation. Not Appliances or fixtures either. Both of which can be resold to someone else or even sent back to manufacturer. Cabinets are made for you. Your sizes, door styles, finishes. Even a low end semi custom cabinet is not sitting in a warehouse waiting for an order to be picked. Try going to a big box store and ordering cabinets without paying for them before delivery |
RE: Cabinet payment timing
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| A box store isn't going out of business the next week. That's the only scenario where I'd be comfortable paying 100% in advance for a project. On any project dealing with a small business, and especially one with a minor player in the cabinet world, I'd want to have a holdback in case of delivery damage. Since the install isn't associated with the design firm, that holdback amount would just be based on the cost of the cabinets themselves. No less than 10%. (Say 10% design retainer, 40% to order, 40% upon delivery, and 10% a week later after you fully examine the delivery) The actual % should be a part of your contract that you signed. If you haven't signed the contract yet, then it's all negotiable. If they won't agree to that, I'd have to say it's a big RED flag! |
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