I am a "do it myselfer" and am looking to class up my house by adding 5 1/4" baseboard and crown moulding.

Derek F
by Derek F
I found a company called Premiere Housing Supply on Craigslist that provides and installs 5 1/4" baseboard and crown molding for $1.99 per linear foot. Is this too good to be true? I was going to buy the same materials at Lowes or Home Depot for $2 per linear foot but would have to still install it myself. Why would I spend the same on materials as I would for materials and installation?
  12 answers
  • 3po3 3po3 on Mar 02, 2012
    Sounds like it might be too good to be true, but it's worth checking out. Check references for this company, and don't pay upfront. Crown molding in particular is tricky, and you want to make sure it is going to be done right.
  • SawHorse Design Build SawHorse Design Build on Mar 02, 2012
    Might actually be the price. Home depot does have good prices on some materials and in other cases, I have received much better deals at local suppliers or at Lowe's. You may be getting a deal since they might have come from the new construction sector and are hungry for work. Make sure you get everything in writing and keep the deposit low. Check out their references and see if their work if good. Crown sounds easy, but we have to fix poorly executed trim jobs all the time. Do they have a website? I just looked them up and could not find them.
  • Certainly worth checking out what they can do for you. Just wanted to stress what the others have said - have a written/signed contract and do not put any large money down. Inspect their work before giving them any further payments.
  • Sherrie S Sherrie S on Mar 03, 2012
    I was going to answer you Derek but I am not a professional as you will soon learn. My question to the experts is linear feet. Is it width x length of room - meaning 14 x 14 room is 196 linear feet. I am asking because we just completed a room this size with baseboard & chair rail - no crown molding. I also assume that chair rail installation is easier than crown molding. Now don't laugh at this as I am just learning.
  • The Manly Club The Manly Club on Mar 03, 2012
    If your are wondering how they could possibly do it for so cheap I can tell you. Previous full price projects had major quantities of left over materials (they probably bid the jobs they know they can get away with it on that way) so they basically acquired the materials they are selling you for free. Can't say for sure of course but I have seen this enough to guess this is what is going on. Bad deal for you? No. Bad deal for the previous homeowners that paid for the overrun......yes. If you question the craftsmanship simply hire them for one room.......check the corners! If they do a good job call them back a few days later to do the rest. Good luck!
  • Sherrie S Sherrie S on Mar 03, 2012
    HomePro, yes I was wondering how they could do it so inexpensively and that is why I asked about linear feet to be sure I understood linear feet before I made a comment.
  • The Manly Club The Manly Club on Mar 03, 2012
    Sherrie......linear feet are just like regular feet just in a straight line. 14 linear feet straight across a wall as in a chair rail is 14 feet. A 14X14 room would be 14X4=56 linear feet. Linear feet is used when width is not being calculated. If you buy 196 linear feet to do a chair rail around a 14X14 room you will have 140 feet left over.
  • Derek - get some references on them and go take a look at the work FIRST. Don't pay anything up front until they start the work and only pay for what is finished. CL is full of scammers but there are some good material deals there. That's a very cheap price...installed would normally be double that or a daily minimum. Let us know how it goes!
  • Sherrie S Sherrie S on Mar 04, 2012
    HomeProHub. I just give the store the measurements of the room. I quess they can convert square feet to linear feet. Thank you for not laughing. How about a sheepish grin from me. Derek, now that I know what linear feet are let me know If they do a good job because it isn't worth our time to do it ourselves if it can be done properly at those prices. I still have a lot of rooms to do.
  • for quality materials skillfully installed, I would be expecting to figure $6-10/lin Ft. The materials must be fingerjointed (or worse) rather than solid lumber. They might charge by how they use it off the truck instead of how many feet you have to do. In other words, if you have a wall that is 12' long and they brought 14' materials, you pay that extra two feet whether they use it up in a closet or not. For fast install, they may be using butt blocks instead of coping and fitting the joints. Some people like it with that look, but I don't think it adds any class which is your goal. And those blocks that save them time are probably an "acccessory" that they charge a premium for. There is no free lunch
  • Janet D Janet D on Mar 09, 2012
    See if you can get any refrences of people that have had them work for them, and call to see if they are happy with the workmanship
  • Anna Anna on Jun 14, 2015
    Highly likely to be stolen materiel and non-licensed and/or unknowledgeable workers. Use the internet to investigate backgrounds, references etc. Do NOT rely on the Better Business Bureau.