ComplaintsforR Renovates LLC

• Initial Complaint

  04/12/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We signed a contract with owner Jay R*******, agreeing to pay $37,500 to renovate two bathrooms, and made a first payment of $15,500. Time frame was 4-6 weeks. He assured us he was licensed and insured. Work began Jan. 24, 2022. Initially it went well; the two workers seemed competent, though many days no workers appeared.There would be progress for a few days - enough to encourage us to keep up the payment schedule agreed in the contract. We paid 4 weekly installments of $4,400, ending Feb. 25. After that, work slowed down considerably, frequently stopping. Days went by with no workers appearing, and no contact. He was clearly screening our calls. Workers would appear for a few hours, then leave. When he did contact us, it was typically by text and his attitude was very aggressive. Some work was acceptable, although much is very poor quality. A reputable contractor, who looked at the work, pointed out many significant issues that may require a complete redo of some of the work. 8 weeks into the project, our attorney wrote to R*******,giving him until April 8 to finish. He did a little more work, starting April 3. April 7, they left, taking all tools and materials. By text, he demanded final payment of $4,400, which was due only after completion. At least 25% of the work was not done, and many important components had not been bought. We We declined, and have not heard from him since. While our losses are not easy to pinpoint exactly, we believe they are around $20,000, which includes the materials which should have been purchased through the contract, and the cost to hire another professional to complete the job. This company's website claims they are licensed and insured, wiih 12 years of experience, yet the LLC was formed in Sept. 2021. Other claims are also false. He has over 150 5-star google reviews, coming in at several a day; we believe all are fake. He operated a business in Brooklyn, called R Renovations, which has several very negative reviews.

  Business response

  06/15/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 8, 2022/04/29) */ Business response taken verbally by BBB: The customer has an outstanding balance. We will complete the job once the remaining balance has been paid. Consumer Response /* (3000, 10, 2022/04/30) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) We do not have an "outstanding balance." As Mr R******* well knows, our contract stated that the final payment of $4,400 is due upon completion. At this point, we have paid him well over $30,000, and the end result is appalling. As detailed in the attached email string, much of it will have to be redone completely. His response: "that is the way we do it." We have received an acceptable estimate of $10,000 to tear down and redo the shower and tub. There will be another $5,000 needed to paint, install lights, mirrors and vanity top, and correct the toilet, which was installed improperly. In addition, we need to buy a very large vanity top at around $1,000 -- 120 inch, two-basin, marble top with faucets -- a $1,000 shower door set, mirrors, lights etc, all of which should have been purchased by him. We will also need to hire someone to fix holes punched into our closet from the master bathroom by his crew, and holes in the hallway wall, which they damaged while (incorrectly) installing the tub. We made a very fair offer - that he refunds us $10,000, which he declined. Our lives have been extremely disrupted. One of the main purposes of doing these remodels was so that we could put the house on sale and downsize in our retirement. He had promised to complete this job in 4-6 weeks. It is now over three months since work began. It will likely be at least 2 weeks before the new contractors can start. He tells us that he wants to put it behind him. So do we - but he has most of our money, and can walk away. We are out $20,000 and have to start over. His response to our issues is completely inadequate. Business Response /* (4000, 12, 2022/05/06) */ I am willing to complete her project, but she does not want me to complete it. If she chooses to go with another contractor, that is her choice and whatever additional they will charge her. If she does not like the work that I have done, that is my standards and the way I do my projects. I did offer to settle with her for a refund to her of $5,000 with a cashiers check OR I could provide her with the materials to complete the job. Consumer Response /* (4200, 14, 2022/05/06) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) Mr. R******* is missing the point completely. We cannot let him finish the project because the work completed is of such poor quality. Two competent professionals have confirmed that the entire shower and tub portion of the work will have to be torn out and redone, and there are numerous other elements that also have to be fixed, in addition to damage done to our home by his work crew (described previously). He repeated that this is just the way he does things, which is an extremely unprofessional attitude. We proposed that he refund us $10,000, approximately half of the cost it will take to make things right. He countered with an offer of $5,000 or the remaining materials. We believe this is unfair in the extreme, but we have told him that we would accept the $5,000 in order to end this. However, we will consider closing the complaint ONLY when we actually receive and deposit the check. Business Response /* (4000, 19, 2022/05/16) */ I have issued the customer a check for $5,000 (as agreed by both parties). Customer has received and cashed the check. Customer agreed to consider this settled once the check has cleared in their account. Consumer Response /* (3000, 21, 2022/05/16) */ ***Document Attached*** We have received the $5,000 check from R Renovates, but we are still waiting for it to clear our bank. As we told R*******, we agree to close the BB complaint, though it is much less than he owes us, simply so we can end this connection with him. Unfortunately, the situation has got considerably worse.Earlier, I described some of the issues with work done in our large upstairs bathroom. These problems were easily visible, and we had thought they were mainly aesthetic, such as misalignment of the tiles, missing border trim and other problems. However, last week our new contractor began work, and he quickly discovered that the workmanship was much worse, and in fact created major safety issues. 1.The new contractor had to tear out all the tiling on the bathroom walls and shower walls, having quickly established that the tiles were secured improperly, with only small dabs of adhesive. This would have caused potential for major leaking and likely detachment of the tiles. 2.He then discovered there had been no waterproofing used under the tiles in the shower, which would have quickly resulted in water leakage 3.The plumbing to the drain was incorrectly installed, which required cutting a hole in the floor, reinstalling the drain, then patching the hole (all at additional cost). The new contractor noted that if the shower had been turned on (the fittings were not yet installed), it would have flooded, potentially causing damage throughout the home. 4.R******* had installed a shower liner (pan), but it was affixed incorrectly, with many nail holes that would result in leaking. 5.The shower floor was not level and graded for proper drainage. 6.R******* was supposed to create a niche in the shower wall. This should have been done by installing a "box" and tiling around it. Instead, he nailed and glued a strip of contrast tiles directly to the wall. While doing this, his crew punched through the wall into our closet. That wall now needs to be rebuilt. 7.When tiles and drywall were removed from the bathroom wall, the new contractor found exposed, live, electric wires, where R******* had removed an electrical outlet 8.When he attempted to move the toilet to reach the wall behind it, the contractor discovered that the toilet, which should have been installed using bolts and other materials included, was glued to the floor, creating leak danger. 9.R******* had installed a sink faucet into the bathtub. In doing so, he had also punched through the wall into our landing, which will now have to be repaired. The new contractor removed the faucets and is installing the correct set at additional cost. Naturally, the cost of this remodeling this bathroom has now increased significantly. We will be spending approximately $25,000, which will include labor, the cost of replacing all the tile, and the purchase of a many items that should have been provided by R*******, such as 120-inch countertop/sinks, glass shower door, lights, mirrors, faucets, a new toilet etc. The $5,000 provided by R******* will be a help, but he is walking away with many more thousands of our money, paid for work that is drastically substandard (or not done at all). In addition to the upstairs bathroom, R******* also remodeled a smaller bathroom downstairs. He did this at the beginning of the contract period, using a different crew. The work there is of better quality, as far as we can see, but there are several issues there too: 1. He installed the shower door incorrectly, and it now needs to be readjusted 2. He plumbed the sink incorrectly, reversing the hot and cold pipes 3. He installed a new electrical outlet but did not ground it - a major hazard near the sink. 4. He installed light switches, but because he did not cut the adjoining tile trim correctly, he decided to cut out the corner of the switch plate and try to disguise it with grout. These are smaller items but are costing us an additional $500 to repair. We recently discovered that until late last year, he operated as R Renovations Inc in Brooklyn, NY. I am attaching the only three reviews of his work that I could find, all detailing issues very similar to those we experienced. We are a retired couple; our goal in January was to have renovations done in order to put our house on the market and "downsize," which we have been unable to do.We consider ourselves his victims. Consumer Response /* (3000, 24, 2022/05/26) */ I would like to clarify my previous comments. I did receive the $5,000 refund. I had previously stated that after that, I would close the complaint. However, as described in my previous comments, I did not know then the extent of the damage done by this company. Virtually everything they did was faulty and has had to be redone. We currently have a hole cut in our kitchen ceiling, in order to access the plumbing in the shower upstairs, which is leaking -- his work. Every day, the cost of fixing his "work" is growing, and now stands at at least $25,000. He has received over $30,000 of our money, and almost all of that was spent on work that has to be redone. I am not willing to consider this closed, and we now have an active case with the Attorney General's Office.

• Initial Complaint

  02/26/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On Dec 7th first transaction was made with this contractor to renovate a house I just bought. This is my first home. They agreed to renovate all the things I requested I saw pictures on website and saw good reviews. Contract was made with a list of everything that was to be done and a payment schedule. Total job cost was $30,000. Contractor now has 25k and per contract job is to be finished before receiving last payment. Contractor has not finish project house is dismantled and is demanding last payment prior to finishing the work. I have been trying to contact contractor relentlessly over the phone but after the last payment was made contractor has not been picking up calls and is only replying via text message. I want my house to be finished but I don't want to pay someone else to do it and I've paid this business $25000 of my hard earned money. They also damage things in the process like my tub and small parts of walls etc. If they are not going to finish the job I would like for them to return my sinks and countertops that they removed.

  Business response

  05/17/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 10, 2022/03/31) */ okay i have no intension of walking away from her project but when shes away her dad keep harassing us ask they keep adding more to my project keep adding and adding for free i had maxxed all the payment i have received from her because they kept changing things around and adding lots to it. not much more left to do not but im afraid they will not pay me my last payment of 5k because i refuse to do new stuff that we hadn't agreed on now if she wants me to continue her project she must pay me my final balance and ill complete her project again im wiling to continue her project but she must make her payment i cannot continue because i have maxed everything she have payed me Consumer Response /* (3000, 12, 2022/03/31) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) This is not the truth. My dad has not harassed anyone. Nothing was added if anything, things were omitted for example instead of removing master vanity this contractor asked if I wanted to keep it and change countertop instead. They installed shower heads and handles faulty and I asked for them to fix it and according to the pictures I provided you can compare to their written contract what was done and what wasn't. Per contract this contractor was to complete job prior to receiving final payment. Every stage of this project I was threaten to pay even when things weren't properly done or else they wouldn't move forward. If I have already paid $25,000 of this project why would I not pay the remaining? Business Response /* (4000, 14, 2022/04/01) */ There is nothing more for me to say here I don't want to go back and forth now she's accusing me of lying. I don't want this to turn into an argument I'm not that type of person I'm sorry. Like I said before I'm willing to move forward and complete her project but I know they will not pay me when I'm done that's why I'm asking for them to pay me and I could complete the project in 3 days. Again make me my payment and I'll complete the project thank you Consumer Response /* (4200, 16, 2022/04/06) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) I will be speaking to the district attorney's office about what further steps to take. This contractor created a contract and is not abiding by it. They have destroyed my home and refusing to fix what they've done. I'm not providing any further payments according to their contract this payment is to be made once completed. Consumer Response /* (3000, 22, 2022/04/21) */ Hi James, I forwarded the email which provides the report licensed contractor gave on the work the contractor in dispute left undone. This contractor is the one I had to pay to finish and fix some of the issues. At this time I'm only asking for this contractor to fix my shower that they installed incorrectly. I did not have enough funds to pay to get it fixed. I am not providing any more money to them. I had to pay $15000 total to get my home in live able conditions. Attached are the pictures of what they (contractor in dispute) did and left unfinished-also their contract/invoice. Nothing more was added as they were falsely saying on their response and you can see that on their contract. Business Response /* (4000, 24, 2022/04/27) */ There is nothing wrong with the shower. We installed it the way it is to our standards and that is how we install shower. If you do not like the way that the shower is installed, then that would require additional payments since in order to change things for the shower new tiles and other materials will need to be bought, and also additional labor. The shower was in acceptable working/living conditions when we installed it.

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩