Or is DP over 'mates rates' for decorating?

[GillBear]

Moving into a house that needs a fair bit of work in a weeks time and also expecting a baby in 2 weeks.

I would normally do the decorating myself but think I'll be out of action for a while!

DP's brother is a painter & decorator. He lives up north and work is pretty thin on the ground so he struggles.

We live in the south west and have had him and his assistant down to help us paint in the past. He stays with us (we feed him) and charges £130 a day not including materials for himself, then that again for his assistant.

He's said he can come down and help with the new house but he wants more money as the week would include a Sunday and bank holiday, so £300 a day for the two of them not including materials. We'd also pay for their diesel.

DP says it's fair enough, even though they only charge £80 a day each up North. He says his brothers doing us a favour, but I think it works both ways as we're giving him work he desperately needs. DP says this is a horrible attitude and I'm taking advantage of his brother by not paying what he asks for.

Am I being a hormonal cowbag?

Major misunderstanding ...

So basically I fell out with DP again last night. I asked how he could justify £300 and he said "Eh? "....

It turns out he had offered to pay them the same as before, £240 a day. The second decorator (not an assistant) had asked for a bit more money and DP had said no... It does include two unpaid days of travelling either side too (8 hrs), also DP said he'd cook for them or they'd get takeaways.

I mis bloody heard him on phone thinking he said £140 rather than £240 and then added the fuel money on myself.

He showed the the messages he'd sent to his brother too just to prove exactly what was said.

£150 each per day is not expensive for a tradesman, if they are good at what they do then they should be paid accordingly.

It's pure snobbery & the thought that manual labour isn't worth the same as other work that makes you question the cost.

My son in law is a plumber and when he re did our bathroom he charged trade price for all the materials and fittings and 'mates rates' for the work. For him this means half his normal rate for family on the condition that we accept that he'll work on ours late at night and weekends so fit around his usual jobs.
For friends he charges 2/3 normal rate with same conditions. He did a wonderful job and we were able to afford a far better bathroom than if we had paid retail.
I thought mates rates were less not more and if you are putting him up and feeding him and paying fuel costs then it definitely shouldn't be above his usual rate.

No wonder he's got no work on if charging £120 up North. DP always tells me how much cheaper everything is up there!

Like what exactly? A taxi or a pint in a pub! Up north isn't a foreign country with an exchange rate

It's pure snobbery & the thought that manual labour isn't worth the same as other work that makes you question the cost.

No, the fact everyone else is cheaper is what makes me question the cost.

Like what exactly? A taxi or a pint in a pub! Up north isn't a foreign country with an exchange rate

Rent, house prices, rates for tradesmen. When DP was a builder up North he made significantly less than where we live in the South. I do t really know what else but I'm sure DP will come up with a list asking as his arm.

Anyway, the whole bloody cost thing was a misunderstanding so it's kind of irrelevant!

Well I'm sure he'll feel so much better about his work for you given you don't value it at all. 'Everyone is cheaper' - shit workers are cheaper, good workers are worth it.

Our decorator charges £90 per day but we provide all materials, refreshments, meals whilst he is there. We are SW England. He usually takes three days per room.
I think your quote isn't too bad OP when you factor in the travelling days either side.

Well I'm sure he'll feel so much better about his work for you given you don't value it at all. 'Everyone is cheaper' - shit workers are cheaper, good workers are worth it.

Got out of the wrong side of bed this morning Catam?

Oh good on you with PA that'll make your shit attitude better.

And most ironic post of the day goes to Catam

On a more serious note though, it's far too early in the morning for this. Apologies but I will have to bow out.

Ironic? Bow out by all means since you can't defend your lack of respect for tradesmen.

Oh do read the the tbread catam

My BIL is a decorator he's never charged us for work he's done although we always offer. We tend to work tit for tat though as my dh is a gas engineer so any boiler problems etc are always sorted without charge.

All costs are relevant

It's well know the south is more expensive so they charge more to justify living there -

A person earning £100 a day in one area will be better / worse off then someone else elsewhere

Mortgage is a good example - a one bed flat in London is more expensive than a family home in Nottingham

Get real CAT

Read the thread catam. It is about much more than a (rather inflated) price of decorating.

I would imagine that you would always have to pay more if you are asking a tradesperson to be away from home to do the job, even if you are giving accommodation. Working away from home is a hassle and inconvenience, and most people would expect extra money for it.

Honestly you don't trust him and you don't seem to like him very much so it's probably a good thing this has come up now.

Speak to a lawyer and make sure he has no claim to your house. I'd stop hiring him to renovate the house and just hire an outsider. He can just pay rent (with a rental agreement) and you won't feel taken advantage of. That way there's no overlap or suspicion.

That way if (when?) you split, it'll be a clean painless break.

Are you still paying more for the privilege of having work done on the bank holiday and by paying for their food/accommodation/travel.

None of those things benefit you.

If you are paying that much then they need to stay somewhere else and buy their own food.

He is still charging you more than local tradesmen are and more than he charges strangers at home. That is the opposite of mates rates, that is 'doormat rates'.

Even if you misheard him, those aren't 'mates rates'. Those are at the top end of what you've been quoted locally. And local decorators will go home in the evenings, not sit around watching your telly in your living room eating takeaways.

Did you mishear the extra for fuel and working on a BH too?

You're minimising.

Eh I'm confused. You said you misheard and thought he'd said £140 not £240? But that's even more, or did you think he said £140 each not £240 for both

Not sure why you are being asked to pay over the odds. Surely you either get it slightly cheaper as you are family or you pay going rate. Going rate shouldn't include board and lodging nor should you have to pay for him being away from home. If he needs the work then he has to suck that up. Otherwise you get in a local person who does not require board and lodging, additional expenses and doesn't work on the sun or bank holiday. While I would be happy to pay going rate as he doesn't have much work I would not be happy to be paying extra! I think your dp is being v unreasonable. Could it be that he is embarrassed as he has already agreed to these rates with his half brother?? It may also be that if they are not v close he is unable to be clear with his brother that he is taking the piss a bit.