Fort Walton Beach Legal Blog

Contractors in Florida may find that they have problems managing cash flow as the construction sector has recently seen significant growth. Typically, a subcontractor will bill the general contractor once a month. Once the general contractor receives bills from the subcontractors, a single invoice is sent to the owner of the property. From there, it could take up to 60 days for the owner to make a payment.

This lack of timely payment may result in squabbling between the different parties involved with a project. Cash flow issues can be especially prevalent in situations when companies take on additional projects since they usually must fund operations on their own up front. Contractors generally have to finance operations because of the way the construction industry changed during the financial crisis. Prior to that time, contractors would generally get money to pay for materials before the job started.

Fort Walton Beach continues to be home to a number of construction projects, with renovations to the Gulfview Hotel expected to be completed by early February 2019. The historic hotel began the project in August 2018, transitioning to become a tourist welcome center for the Okaloosa County development department. The two-story building which dates back 112 years will also be home to a retail store featuring local products operated by the local chamber of commerce. It will include other attractions as well including the Billy Bowlegs Museum and leased meeting and office space.

The Gulfview Hotel is the oldest building in Fort Walton Beach, originally constructed as a hunting and fishing lodge in 1906. It operated as a hotel for over 70 years, from 1913 to 1986. Town officials and experts noted that the building remained structurally sound in many ways but required modern construction techniques to refit it for new purposes. The structure was strong enough to withstand a total move; the entire hotel was moved down Miracle Strip Parkway to a new location.

Commercial development projects continue to rise in Fort Walton Beach with the opening of an Ulta Beauty store near Uptown Station. The cosmetics store and salon, a branch of a national chain, opened on Oct. 26 after a several-month period in which the facility was under construction. A spokesperson for the chain said that the store carries 500 brands and 20,000 different products as a major national beauty marketer.

Ulta is only the latest tenant in the Uptown Station shopping center. Five Below, a clothing chain, also recently opened a retail store in the development. Shopping center representatives said that they hoped the new tenants would continue to revitalize retail development in the area. The center said that two existing tenants relocated their stores to other parts of the outdoor mall to allow room for the construction of the larger store. While there have been concerns raised about the viability of retail outlets with the rise of online shopping, beauty stores like Ulta and competitor Sephora have continued to see strong in-store sales. Because cosmetics chains allow customers to try makeup on in person, they offer opportunities that online sales do not.

Contractors or subcontractors in Florida who have performed work on a construction project but have not been paid may file a claim known as a contractor's lien. Paying invoices sent by contractors on time is the best way to avoid a contractor's lien. If a contractor successfully files a lien against a property, the contractor will be paid from any proceeds that are obtained when the property is sold.

When work is completed and paid for, releases or waivers of liens should be obtained from all subcontractors. Without these waivers, the property may be subject to liens when the property is sold even if a contractor who was paid for the work failed to pay subcontractors on the job after completion of the work.