Amateurs, untrustworthy and very messy work
Ok, let me summarize:
- He underestimated the work even though he had 2 visits to scope out the work.
- He could not remove the popcorn ceiling in living room and then wanted to charge me extra.
- He then could not remove the basement popcorn ceilings - so I gave a concession and said that they do not have to remove it.
- Berat then realized that he was not going to finish the job on time and since he had 75% of payment he decided to leave without notice to do another job.
- His team made a huge mess removing popcorn and their clean up was basically to mop the floors but not remove any dirt off it. (I paid $700 for cleaning)
- The did not cover any vents so the entire ventilation system was full of popcorn dust (I paid $600 for cleaning).
- Once I got the house cleaned - it was apparent that Berat and his team cannot paint without making a mess. I found paint splatters all over the entrance tiles and in all the hardwood areas all over the house.
The cleaners exact words to me were these painters had absolutely no respect for your home).
Its been 2 weeks since Berat and team abandoned their job here and he has now texted me saying that he can complete the work (basement remains) however he wants extra money and I have to pay up front.
**update: As you can see from the response, he will not deny he had 2 opportunities to size the work. The fact is he is an amateur and misjudged the job size.
Also, the fact is to date, I have paid him 75% of the total (all in a timely fashion) and he upped and ran after completing less than two thirds of the job (upstairs and ground floor). Ground floor isnt even complete.
As Ive stated - the real issue is that he had committed to another job after 12 days thinking that he would be done by then. He could have even talked to me about it but instead he disappeared with his crew with no communication. Sad really.
He turned up with 2 other guys who have been in the country (from Turkey) for less than six months who didnt speak English so I could not communicate with them.
He can deny none of the above and that is why he is untrustworthy.
My advice is to avoid these cowboys at all costs. They will destroy your home and screw you over then demand more money.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $10,000.00
- Company Response
First of all, let me explain the situation correctly.
-We agreed with Saleem to paint his house and remove the popcorn ceiling. Then I visited his house and gave him a price.
-Then I prepared an invoice for him. As everyone knows, everything is written clearly in invoice. Which jobs will be done and the payment plan, average job delivery date, etc.
- Even now, when you enter the job posting on Saleem Homestar, it says that no work will be done on the basement (popcorn ceiling removal and painting)!! After I threw the contract to him, he told me that he could not see a basement in the contract. Even though it was a waste of money for me, I agreed to do it without charging him anything.
- Normally, we agreed to make a 3-stage payment in the contract. And I brought my materials and he was supposed to pay for 33% of the job, but I brought my materials and the popcorn ceiling of the whole house was removed and I still haven't received payment. Then I brought the painting materials and he still hasn't made any payment!!! Then, when I made the payment, he said there was a transfer limit and did not pay the entire 33% of the job.
- Then, while removing the popcorn ceiling, I discovered that there was a problem with the ceiling of 1 room. And I explained the situation to him and told him that there was a problem with the ceiling of this room, although there was no problem in all the other rooms we did. And he asked me what you would recommend, and I told him that if you want, I can apply 2 code plasters and Sander here, but since this is not a problem caused by us, he should pay extra for it. Agreed to pay extra for room no problem!!! And I specified it as an extra in the invoice and sent it to him and he confirmed that he had reviewed it. Then, as the work was nearing completion, he refused to pay and I was shocked by his hypocritical attitude.
-Then I realized that Saleem was not the right person and would cause problems with our payment. After finishing the painting of the main floor and the upper floor and the popcorn ceiling, I asked him for payment. And he constantly came and started to do extra work, for example, he asked us to remove 3 iron pieces leaning against the wall in a room, to fix the damage on the wall and to apply 3 extra coats of paint, and I still did it without any problems. Then I asked for payment again and this time he said that I did not paint the doors and windows. And I told him that this was not an invoice, you could go and check it if you wanted, but he threatened me with not making the payment and refused to make the extra payment. And I was completely shocked and wanted to complete the job and leave without causing any further damage.
-There were many other actions like this that did not comply with business ethics, but if I were to write it down, it would probably take 3-4 pages, so I will end it here. And I definitely recommend that you do not do business with this guy because he will not pay your money and will not honor the agreement.
- Finally, I spent a serious amount of cover money because the entire house was incredibly messy, everything from their clothes to their technological equipment to the food they ate was messy and dirty and disorganized. And finally, Saleem, I recommend you to at least collect your belongings aside. Having so many personal belongings lying around made it very difficult for us to do our job. Please be clean and tidy!!!
Sincerely.