"he was going to be doing the framing, siding, insulation, windows/doors, trim and flooring himself"

He *could* possibly manage the GC responsibilities (is he a GC? That would be better than you being GC if he has contacts and insurance), but he would hold you up if you had to wait until 4pm each day for him to start framing.

See if he can line up good subs to take over these responsibilities and still keep to contract price (plan for contingency $ though) or at least less than the other builders.

He has built 2 houses (his own) and this would be his first experience as a GC for a paying customer. What a way to start. He is basically a very good builder who (i thought) wanted to advance his business to building homes, etc. He has a crew who can frame,etc. But I don't know if I trust their ability to handle problems if they arise.

Find another builder, stat. Construction isn't in his future and he isn't going to give it the attention it deserves. You really need someone's full attention to catch mistakes before they become big issues.

We had the builder's full attention and we still have issues- LOL- hope we don't end up in court.

This is a blessing in disguise. Since you haven't signed the contract, you can back out stating you know he won't be able to give it his full attention (and construction would be delayed since he won't be there to do framing, etc.). Find an *experienced* builder and see if you can cut cost with finishes, but build it solid. If you can afford the GC % it can really be worthwhile to have someone else be responsible, though you can negotiate things that you can hire your own subs for if you feel comfortable going w/o the GC's supervision/liability. Just make sure you can pay your subs yourself. Bank may not allow that.

What ever you do, get lien releases on any and all material brought on the property. That is proof that the materials are paid for before they are delivered. You can get these forms at any good stationery store, or possibly online. Also, make sure that the materials delivered are what you/or builder/ ordered and all materials listed on the invoice match--quality and amounts. We acted as our own general contractors with the last house we built, but DH was a building inspector, and had built houses before. He hired the subs, making sure they were bonded and insured, and we also took out insurance thru Allstate and the state to protect ourselves for anyone hurt on the property. This was in CA which is very strick on these matters. We did have material stolen because after a certain part of the job was done, one of the subs thought we wouldn't need the "scraps" and took them. After that, we really were careful. Some of my DH's tools disappeared also, so the garage got locked up. You really do need a GC to be on the job all the time, not just part time. Make sure he is bonded, licensed and certified also. Our credit union gave us the money 1/3 at a time and we wrote the checks. We also kept a seperate banking account and I think there is a quicken program now for building. I still have all the cancelled checks and receipts because we sold just 8 years ago.

I feel your pain. Basically this happened to us with our framer who is also doing windows, doors & hardie plank for us. My DH is our GC, but the framer who came very highly recommended, took a job with a national construction company the week he started our house (after being self-employed for 20 yrs) and told us he could still manage our job. He said they would have the framing done in 4-6 weeks. We are now in week 11 and the windows are just now going in. He comes by a couple times a week, but if he isn't there, his crew isn't too anxious to get any work done as they know this is their last job (with him anyway). He is an excellent framer and knows the business well, but Seriously, I just wish we'd gone with someone else who would've committed time to our house. It's been very frustrating to say the least especially for my DH who is out there helping them!! Good Luck!

Don't assume another contractor would be more expensive; get a price from a real contractor.