Dear PoPville – Using a Contractor on a on a day by day basis?

Photo by PoPville flickr user ekelly80

“Dear PoPville,

I have a 15 year old row house that was poorly constructed. My first floor is sagging very badly and in danger of falling in. I’ve had an inspector come in and give me suggestions on what needs to be done to repair it.

On that note, I went on a site that’s very reputable and contacted a contractor to come in to take a look at it. After much investigating, photo taking and discussions, he suggested a price and said that it would take 5-8 days of jacking up the floor, replacing the joist hangers, nails, replacing the shoddy, weak cross beams with stronger grade beams, re-routing some of the plumbing that’s in the ceiling, etc. My basement is unfinished so you can see the sag, nails coming loose from the walls, etc. and it’s very easy to access the joists and make the repairs.

My question is this – he wants to do the job on a day to day basis, materials not included. While I would like to do the job at a set price. Does anyone in PoPville know if it’s a good idea to pay for a job like this on a per day basis? Or is it better to pay per the job? Finally, does anyone know of a good framing contractor who can repair a badly sagging floor.”