Rant: Got ghosted by a roofer after he took my $500 deposit

Called a guy named Mike from Arlington Heights after a storm took off some shingles. He came by, gave me a quote, took a $500 check, and I never heard from him again. Three weeks later I'm still looking for someone who will actually show up. Has anyone else had a contractor just vanish with your money like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

nina_butler19d ago

and that's exactly why I never give a deposit over like a hundred bucks, no matter what the contractor says. I mean, maybe it's just me but I've seen this story play out way too many times. The good ones don't need a big chunk upfront because they've got enough work lined up. idk, seems like a classic move for the guys who are just running a side hustle out of their truck and might disappear on a whim. you could try looking him up with the state licensing board or small claims court if you've got his full name, but honestly chasing down five hundred bucks through the legal system is gonna cost you more time than it's worth. that whole situation really sucks though, especially after a storm when you're already stressed about your house.

rivera.jake19d ago

People keep saying this like $500 is some huge life changing amount of money. I mean yeah it sucks to lose it but it's not like you're gonna be eating ramen for a month over it, you know? And the whole thing about contractors asking for a big deposit, half the time it's because they got burned by customers who didn't pay after the work was done. There's two sides to every coin. Sure there's scumbags out there but not every guy who asks for a deposit is trying to rip you off, some of them just don't want to buy materials out of their own pocket for a job that might fall through.