Mprevo, a couple of great, informative posts. The workers on the "heavy construction" sites will for the most part be dedicated company employees and not available to "freelance" on smaller projects. The same with their materials.
Depending on the local freelance labor force can be problematic. On the island the gardener is also a painter, the painter also knows carpentry, the carpenter also happens to be an expert plumber, and the plumber also does electrical work. The one thing they have in common is they all talk a great game. But when you finally find a qualified, competent tradesman, they take on more jobs than they can handle. So they may spend a couple of hours on your job, then move on to the next job for a couple of hours, and so on just so they can show some progress on each of the jobs. But sometimes they can't even devote a couple of hours to your job, so they leave you in the hands of an apprentice, and you're kind of back dealing with an inadequate level of work product.
Just my thoughts, but based on personal experience over the years of owning on the island.
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