Warning: flooring company demanding full payment upfront on big LVP job

Hey guys, we're in north jersey doing a 2500 sq ft luxury vinyl plank install with Mohawk WiseLock planks, gonna take about 3 weeks to knock out. Found this local outfit with solid reviews and tons of Coretec and Shaw options, but they want the full $18k estimate paid on day one before even starting. Never seen that before, makes me nervous as hell, especially after seeing that rant in the Flooring Contractors Network about similar BS. I'm tempted to walk even though their reps seem legit. Anyone dealt with this upfront nonsense? Should I counter with 50% materials in escrow or just bail? Edit: thanks for the input, went with another guy who only asked for 30% down.

screw that, full upfront is straight up scam bait.

i got burned once on a hardwood refinish, paid full up front and they never showed again. lost 5k, lesson learned the hard way.

3 weeks for 2500 sq ft? that's forever, sounds like they're slow or understaffed. i'd run.

never pay full upfront, ever. it's a red flag bigger than a mismatched grout line.

pay half materials when they deliver, rest at completion. anything else is BS.

as a flooring guy with 10 years, this screams fly-by-night. walk away, plenty of legit crews out there.

jersey inspectors are tough, make sure your new guy pulls permits if needed.

i feel you, had a similar deal on a bamboo install, negotiated to 40% and it worked out.

full upfront? hell no, that's how you end up funding their next truck payment.

customer didn't want to pay for underlayment, so i charged extra. upfront demands are worse tho.

same here in flooring pros fb group, everyone says pass on 100% up front.

watched a tommy mello vid on this, he says escrow for materials only.

outrageous, the irs already takes enough without these thieves.

propose 30% down, 40% mid job, rest at punchout. standard for engineered stuff.

use jobber for invoicing, tracks payments and flags red flags early.

frustrated with these demands too, just did a 1500 sq ft vct and same issue.

man, i hate when clients push back but contractors pulling this is worse.

pay materials separate, labor on milestones. keeps everyone honest.

this is why i only take checks after demo day.

disagree, sharkbite for plumbing but for flooring? nah, upfront is always bad news.

got stiffed on a laminate job last year, now i demand progress pics before more cash.

i hear ya, these full upfront guys are ruining the rep for all of us.

frustrated af, just quoted a mohawk job and they tried the same crap.

sharked a deal once by walking, found a better crew for 10% less.

use square for payments, easy splits without full upfront.

sucks, but in flooring contractors network they say always get a contract with milestones.

contrary to popular belief, some legit guys do partial upfront for custom orders, but 100% no.

proud of dodging a bullet on a similar 2k sq ft gig last month.

pay half on material delivery, that's what i do for all vinyl installs.

irritated by the tax man already, don't need shady contractors too.

disagree with upfront ever, even for small jobs.

hit 100k this year by sticking to fair terms, no upfront BS.

warning: check their license on the state site before signing anything.

i feel that, lost a buddy to a scam like this on carpet.

haha, told a guy no and he called me scared, blocked him.

we're all in this crap together with these demands.

helpful tip: get everything in writing, even the payment schedule.

saw a post on r/flooring about this exact thing, everyone said run.

use housecall pro, invoices progress payments automatically.

frustrated, my first big job had this and i almost fell for it.

damn, these stories make me double check every contract.

same, after taxes eat half, can't afford losses.

pay via credit card for protection if they flake.

we all hate the upfront game.

in the tile and stone pros group, same warnings everywhere.

laughed when a client tried to pull upfront on me, flipped it.

solid advice: 25/50/25 split works great for plank jobs.

proud i negotiated down to 20% on my last shaw install.

outrage at these companies, ruining the trade.

i get it, big projects are scary but don't pay full.

frustrated with the whole payment BS in flooring.

watched essential craftsman on contracts, he says same: no full upfront.

got paid on time finally after insisting on milestones.

these full pay guys are the worst.

man, taxes are bad enough without this.

question: did you check their yelp reviews deep?

use quickbooks to track and deduct bad deals.

i feel bad for new guys falling into this.

sucks, had to lien a house once over partial pay.

commiserate, north jersey market is cutthroat.

damn these stories.

haha, upfront? more like up-front and center for lawsuits.

hit my goal by avoiding shady deals like this.

we're pissed at the irs and these contractors.

i hear ya, keep fighting the good fight.

frustrated but learned to spot em quick.

same boat, big lvp jobs are risky.

outrageous demands from these outfits.

question for op: what'd you end up doing?

contrary opinion: if they're bonded, maybe ok, but still risky.

get a cpa to review your contract terms.

frustrated with the whole system.

these groups are full of similar rants.

question: anyone use escrow services for this?

sucks man, hope you found a good one.

outrage at the tax load plus this.

full upfront is for suckers only.

proud of the crews that do it right.

proud i turned down a similar gig.

we're all dealing with this crap.

question: how's the job going now?