Palisades Community.

After lunch, Luke rushed to the Palisades community.

He has already got the key to the house, and when he comes here again, his identity has changed from a housekeeper to the owner of the house.

Luke unlocked the door and entered the house. He searched the house inside and out, but found nothing this time.

Standing by the window on the second floor, he saw someone walking into the yard. It was Li Zhaofeng and two strange Chinese men.

Luke went downstairs to meet the three.

Li Zhaofeng pointed to the two Chinese men beside him and introduced, "These two are General Manager Zhang Jianguo and Vice President Zhang Jianmin of Zhang Brothers Construction Company.

This is my son Luke."

The older Chinese man took the initiative to shake Luke's hand and said, "Captain Li, I have long admired your name. You are the light of our Chinese people. My name is Zhang Jianguo. Please take good care of me in the future."

Luke smiled and said, "You're welcome, I will have to hire two more people to take care of this house in the future."

"Our company started from scratch and built it step by step based on the reputation of old customers. They are all veteran workers who have been employed for several years. They are skilled, conscientious, responsible, knowledgeable, and guaranteed to satisfy you.

Moreover, we are old acquaintances with Accountant Li, so we will definitely give you the best price."

"Let me show you around first." Luke led the Zhang brothers around the house.

The Zhang brothers looked at it and knocked it with their hands, knocking off a wall tile and a wooden board.

The younger Zhang Jianmin shook his head, "This house probably hasn't been repaired for many years. It should have been replaced long ago."

Luke didn't respond. He took them around outside and then took them to the house to see. Luke had seen the structural diagram of the house and basically understood the situation inside and out.

After walking around the house, Zhang Jianguo asked, "Captain Li, do you want to repair this house, or do you want to tear it down and rebuild it?"

Luke asked, "Which one do you think is more suitable?"

"Are you investing or living there?"

"live alone."

“How much is the budget for repairs or reconstruction?”

"I haven't thought about this yet." Luke remembered that when he was chatting with real estate agent Tom Ackram yesterday, he mentioned the prices of houses of the same type. He probably had an idea in his mind, but he still didn't say anything.

"If you have a big budget and plan to live in your own home in the future, I suggest you rebuild your house." As he spoke, Zhang Jianguo removed another piece of wall covering to reveal the wooden structure inside.

"This house has been built for at least 20 to 30 years. If it needs to be repaired, it will definitely require major repairs, and it will cost a lot."

Li Zhaofeng asked, "Is it more expensive to demolish and rebuild?"

"That's for sure, but the advantage is that they are all new and there is no need to worry about repairs in a few years.

If it's just repairs, it's impossible to repair everything, and minor problems are likely to continue. This house has been built for a long time, and the decoration concept is also very backward. The pipes and wiring are also aging, so repairs will be very troublesome.

I saw that the foundation is also a wooden structure, which is rare now. Today's foundations are all steel and concrete.

If repairs are needed, the foundation must also be inspected as a whole.

If you need to knock down and rebuild, the foundation of the wooden structure is easier to clean."

Luke looked at the house, and it did feel a little dilapidated. "If it is demolished and rebuilt, how much will it cost?"

"This depends on the style and area of ​​the house you build." Zhang Jianmin took out his tablet computer from his backpack and looked around. There was thick dust everywhere, and there was really no room.

Luke suggested, "Let's go out and talk."

The group of people left the house and simply sat on the lawn outside. Zhang Jianmin turned on the computer and opened a software, "There are various house styles here, and each house has an approximate construction price. The house is delivered

It was always well decorated.

In addition, you can also submit additional requirements if you have any."

While browsing the house styles, Luke asked, "How many house types are there in total?"

"Hundreds of types." Zhang Jianmin pointed to the computer screen and said, "You can enter the requirements of the house, such as the approximate area, the number of floors, and the requirements for the basement.

Housing styles that meet the requirements will appear below.”

"So many styles are designed by your company?" Luke was a little surprised. Didn't he say that this company is not large in scale?

"The wooden structures and parts of these houses are all customized in the factory, and we assemble them after they are shipped. In fact, the big construction companies also customize them from these factories. There is no difference in materials, processes, and technology."

Luke entered his requirements into the software. The building area was between 13,000 and 15,000 square feet, with two floors above ground and one underground floor, with a swimming pool.

Soon, the house styles that met Luke's requirements came out. There were 42 types in total. The first was the exterior structure of the house. After clicking on it, you can also see the internal structure and layout. They were all finely decorated model houses, which looked very good.

pretty.

Luke read it over first and used the elimination method to remove some styles and structures that he didn't like.

The second step is to filter out the house styles you like and compare the prices with your needs.

In the end, Luke chose a house he liked the most, with a construction cost of US$1.5 million.

Luke asked, "What does this $1.5 million fee include?"

Zhang Jianmin said, "This is our contract price, including labor costs, material costs, transportation costs and internal decoration. You can move in directly after completion."

Li Zhaofeng said, "Is this contract price too high?"

Zhang Jianmin explained, "All the materials in this house are the best, and the house is large. Labor costs are also expensive now. Ordinary workers cost 200 a day, and plumber technicians charge by the hour. Those outside cost 2,000."

The contract price for a small villa with a foot of 20,000 to 300,000 US dollars is not high."

Li Zhaofeng said, "Can the price still be negotiated?"

Zhang Jianguo was a little confused, "Yes, it is possible...but we can't talk about it too much."

"Mr. Zhang, we are old acquaintances. Please tell me a minimum price. It will make you happy and I will also be happy."

Zhang Jianguo looked at Li Zhaofeng, then looked at Luke, gritted his teeth and said, "Yes, we have been friends for so many years.

I’ll give you a base price of $1.47 million.”

Luke asked, "How long will it take to complete this house?"

"If you can place the order now, we will hand over the order to the factory and start customizing the wooden structure and installing parts. We can also start cleaning up the old house here, and it should be completed within five months."

Luke asked, "How will the fee be paid?"

"The cost will be written in the contract and can be paid in stages. However, because parts must be customized and installed from the factory, the initial deposit cannot be less than 100,000 US dollars."

"In addition to the house, does it also include the cost of the swimming pool?"

"Yes, water, electricity, natural gas, and even preliminary cleaning of construction waste are included."

Luke asked tentatively, "Can this price be lower?"

"How much do you think is appropriate?"

Listening to what he meant, Luke felt that the price should still be negotiable. However, now that he knew it, Luke didn't need to die, "I'll think about it again."

Zhang Jianguo nodded, "Captain Li, I have known your father for a long time and want to be friends with you.

Nowadays, the cost of building materials and labor are very high, so I can't make too much concessions in terms of price.

However, what I can guarantee is that as long as you sign a contract with us, we will definitely build the house for you wholeheartedly.

Even if there are some minor problems with the house within two or three years, we can repair them for free."

"I understand." Luke still didn't relent. Free things are not necessarily good. You pay, they provide services, and everyone is happy.

It's really going to be free, but the workers are dragging their feet and unwilling to work, which makes everyone unhappy.

The contract price is as high as US$1.47 million. This is not a small matter, and Luke cannot decide immediately.

After chatting with the Zhang brothers for a while, Luke sent the Zhang brothers away.

When only father and son were left, Luke asked, "Dad, what do you think?"

Li Zhaofeng said, "I don't think he would lie to you, nor would he have the guts. He is a smart man, and after knowing your identity, he would probably want to build a good relationship.

However, it’s best to find someone knowledgeable to ask if the price is correct.”

Luke nodded, "Dad, you'll be the one to contact Zhang Brothers Construction Company. I also have a friend who used to be a builder. I'll invite him to come over and take a look and listen to his opinions."

"You have a house to live in now, so you are not in a hurry to move in. The house cannot be built in a day. Don't rush to sign the contract. Take your time." Li Zhaofeng is going back to New York the day after tomorrow. He is worried that his son will sign the contract in a hurry.

, it will be too late to regret it by then.

"I know."

Luke took out his cell phone and called the old rookie patrolman John.

"Hey, buddy, I didn't bother you to catch the suspect."

"No, I'm off today." John's voice came from the other side of the phone, "Luke, do you want a drink tonight?"

Luke listened to his voice being a little low, "What troubles have you encountered?"

"Yes, it is indeed an annoying matter. I just want to find someone to talk to."

"I happen to be looking for you for something, so I'll send you an address."

"OK, see you later." John hung up the phone.
To be continued...