contractorsfromhell.com

We bought an old farm and wanted to remodel the farmhouse, which included demolishing some additions, remodeling the original house and adding a new addition. The man we hired (Tony Courtney) went bankrupt and joined another company (Carrington Homes), promising that everything would remain the same regarding our deal, with the exception of a better warranty through the bigger company. He was wrong.  Work was supposed to start in December, but when the Health Department insisted on a new septic system, the contractor washed his hands of that aspect and left us on our own to sort through it, pushing us all the while because “my guys are starving.”  Work began in February, on a rush schedule because we wanted to be in by April and *needed* to be in by May because of livestock arriving.  Work proceeded slowly. Communication was worse. We were doing part of the work ourselves and scheduling certain things related to the work ourselves, so we needed to know when things were happening. But the PM wouldn’t communicate and was always behind; it was a frequent source of contention.  The PM ranted, raved, yelled and cussed whenever we pointed out something wrong that needed to be fixed. He constantly lectured me about scheduling, mistakes and contacting him. He asked that all communication go through my husband. However, my husband travels for work frequently and was not always available, while I was not only here in town, but often on site. When one sub called me to complain about not getting paid, I was forced to call my husband to relay a message to the PM, who then relayed a message back through my husband to me. A ridiculous waste of time that caused considerable problems for my husband at work.  The PM was rarely onsite, even when he was supposed to be. When the appliances were delivered while my husband was out of town and I was at work, the PM was supposed to be here to see that they were set in place. I popped in that night, didn’t see them, contacted him via email. He ranted and raved because I was interrupting his night out at the bar, but I wanted to know where our very expensive appliances were and why he wasn’t there to do his job as promised. The appliances were found the next day, but his lectures continued. He began contacting my husband to complain about me, telling him how sorry he was for being married to me, etc. Highly insulting coming from the “hired help”!! Although the contract specified that all change orders must be between the contractor (no subs) and us and must be in writing, not a single written change order exists. However, we got charged for many. Some involved items that were planned from the start, but the contractor argued that point until we found a drawing with the PM’s handwritten notes to prove us right.  We had more trouble with other changes. The PM insisted we make our own deal with the painter. The painter agreed to an exterior re-paint (due to wrong color) for $500. We were later charged more than double. The painter said he wouldn’t charge extra for the great room color, but because the contract specified a charge for deep-base color (which we were unaware that was), we were charged. The PM promised one exterior color and one trim color for one price, but charged us more, per the contract. In short, they relied on the contract when it was to their financial benefit, but even though the company president (Carl McIntyre) admitted in writing to the BBB that he shouldn’t have charged $500 for a verbal agreement to repaint the exterior, he did charge that and will not refund our money.  The last week that the builder was here, the painters lost the key to the house, so everyone switched to using the garage door opener. When, 3 days later, we found the garage door and back door wide open, lights on, and MY radio blaring at 8:30 at night, we informed the builder that we would secure the house and he would have to notify us when his crews would be there to finish up work. They never came back; we had to finish the final touch-ups — and the builder didn’t want to give us much credit on the bill for doing so. Plus, he wanted us to chase after “Mike the Plumber” for a credit for work we had to finish. He did not provide Mike’s surname, company name or contact information. When we complained about leaving our house open and vulnerable with the appliances and some of our personal and very expensive tools still in the garage, the PM again cussed us out and then threatened us. He swore we would “never f***ing live in that house!!!” and promised to tie it up in court for years. He refused to schedule an inspection for the certificate of occupancy, even though the mortgage lender he sent us to informed him that having a c/o would help secure financing. The lender also informed him that a lien could slow or stop the whole deal. He didn’t listen.  We scheduled our own inspection, fixed the issues ourselves, had a second inspection and moved in. We continued to work on financing the mortgage so we would be able to make the final payment, but the builder made that as difficult as possible by not helping us acquire the c/o and by filing a lien.  After weeks of negotiation on the final bill, the president emailed to say he had signed a final bill that was being hand-delivered to my husband’s place of business since we no longer allowed the PM on our property. We found out a week later that just hours after leaving a signed agreement to one amount, he filed a lien for a higher amount.  We managed to get the loan and sent the builder’s attorney a check for the final amount. We did not include attorney’s fees and filing costs they requested. They promised to release the lien once they received payment. Nearly three weeks later, the lien (for a higher amount!) stands.  We did file complaints with the BBB and the local builders association, which sent letters, but closed the case as soon as the builder replied, no matter that his response was filled with lies and no offer to compromise in order to settle the deal. The sad thing is that there is no public record of our complaints against the contractor, so anyone searching the local builders assocation for a contractor will assume he’s in good standing and have no knowledge of the offenses he committed. We also contacted the Health Department when we discovered that, because the contractor was being cheap and didn’t pay for a portable toilet, the sub-contractors used my barn as a toilet. We were appalled!!  So, if you’re looking for a contractor who doesn’t schedule things properly, is rarely on site, lies, cusses you out, lets his workers sh** on your property, files a fradulent lien and won’t release it after being paid, pads the bill with charges for things you were told would be no extra charge, then call Carrington Homes. If you want an honest, reliable builder who behaves professionally, I’m afraid I can’t recommend them.   Lori L.

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