When my contractor was through with the job of siding he had 4 squares of siding left ($150 a square)along with extra j channels and outside corners and starter strips... who gets to keep these?I assumed I did because he used my money to order an pay for them... he says its him because I paid for the job getting done... who is correct?

Check your contract, but it sounds like he gets to keep it. If the job was for $X.XX to side your house, then he gets it.

This is true with most contracted jobs that are not bid for materials and labor separately.

There were no contracts but I can't see myself giving away almost $1000 worth of materials... it doesn't seem right

When I had plumbing done there were excess pipes and fittings my plumber said were mine because I paid for them but he would take them if I didn't want them...

When I had the electrical work done they gave me the rolls of wire and breakers to keep...


So realistically you're saying I should pay a contractor to do the job and let him order as much surplus he wants for himself to keep and say that's fine?

Well, this really comes down to what is fair per square for material plus labor to do the job. How much was the total job and how many squares was it (not including the 4 extra)?

I just looked up our last siding job. The building was 26 squares and we paid $7150. That's $275 per square and included everything (wrap, trim, etc.).

The bids ranged from $225 to $350 per square.

The guy could have walked away with 10 squares for all we cared - since the bids were based on the actual number of squares needed. See what I mean?

I think it depends on how this was paid, since you didn't have a contract. Was a set price agreed to up front, or were you told a price at the end of the job?

If a set price was given to you up front, the materials are his.

If after the job, a price was given to you, you should get to keep the materials or have the price reduced by the cost of the materials he keeps.