looking for recommendations for a builder for 'home' lakeside

I'm looking for recommendations for builders -- name, contact info, price per sq meter and your experience with them relative to quality of work, materials in the house, timeliness, etc. and whether or not the builder actually shows up at the project for quality control, etc.

I understand there's a 'cost' of building thread on the 'other' board ... listing $7000mx per sq meter. I've been given costs of $10,000 and $12,000 per sq meter so far, which is way past the $7000. What questions should I be asking to get a better idea of how to evaluate the cost per sq meters charges?

I'm talking to one person, Ray Cawthorne (from the US -- experience from there and here). Anyone have experience in using him or know of his work?

As always .... thanks for constructive comments and thoughts.

S.

I can give you the nane of one person NOT to use: Norberto Hernandez Ruiz. AVOID at all costs.

WTH is Ray Cawthorne (from the US ) Never heard of him. Get a few local quotes locally.

I can recommend:

ALEJANDRO (ALEX) SALAZAR GUTIERREZ (Written estimates) (Speaks English) (Work guaranteed)
Calle Paseo de los Veleros #26A, Ajijic
Tel: 045-334-593-6417

He is one of the best in the area. He has built many of the high end homes around here and in Guadalajara. He can take you out and show you his work locally. I used him for several large renovations. He is on time and does what he says. He is certainly not the cheapest but you get what you pay for.

I can also recommend the Gutierrez Salazar family. I have had his brother, Alvaro, do some civil engineering work as well as a roof re-construction and can highly recommend them. Not the cheapest but certainly a high level of integrity and professionalism.

That's a fine old saying, Bob, but when it comes to local builders, it just isn't so.  Too many times you get less...much less than you paid for.

The first "contractor" we used for bringing our old casa to a state of habitability was recommended by a friend who had him do some work on their casita. Nothing really major. In our case, he gave us a fixed bid for the basic work.  He hired the cheapest labor he could find from another town and used the cheapest materials.  Some fixtures already have needed replacement.  His finest hour was when I had asked to have a regular tub installed in the shell of a bathroom, and he had a child sized tub delivered which we were expected to pay for since it was "special ordered" and non-returnable. The explanation was unreal. We had to go back to square one to get an adult tub installed.  The workers threw their trash in a heap and we soon we had a rat problem in the trash pile they created.  I could go on, but that's enough. We moved into the place and took a deep breath before being willing to tackle any more projects that needed doing.

The next contractor, recommended by a neighbor, was conscientious, stayed on top of the job and used local guys as workers who cleaned up at the end of the day. His "cost plus" expenses were much lower, too.
IMO: Don't decide to go with the highest priced one, figuring that "you get what you pay for": try to get several recommendations and take a good look at what they've done already. If you can, talk to the homeowners who used that contractor and ask about their experience.

I'm not going to name names on here.  The bad contractor is still in business.  The good one has moved elsewhere for family reasons.
Also, people should be aware of the need to watch their own backs in a country where "non disclosure" is the rule and building methods are quite different from NOB.  (Some are better here. I like brick and plaster better than drywall.)

I was referring to my reference. He charges more than many others for a reason. He uses quality materials, quality workers, pays all the proper benefits, gets the permits and ensures the job is done right. Many others don't and they charge less.......or more in some cases.

"You may not always get what you pay for, but you always pay for what you get."

David wrote:"You may not always get what you pay for, but you always pay for what you get."

That one works! Our "good contractor" made sure to get all the permits, paid decent wages, took care of the IMSS and whatever else was needed.  He checked with us about what level of quality we wanted in fixtures and he charged costs plus a percentage. It was not the cheapest by any means, but it was an excellent job, including a complete kitchen remodel.  Bob's contractor sounds like another good one.

Recommend Rudy Renteria...(Ajijic Marble & Granite). He has remodeled our kitchen, built an addition and other work. Many of his crew have been with him over 10 years. The crews clean up daily so no problems with neighbors. If there are call backs, he takes care of them in a timely manner... Quality of work is excellent... around 9-10,000 pesos/meter.