Fidelity General Contractors

My home is beautiful

Poorly, had to hire a contractor to fix costing over $5,000 to repair their mistakes. This guys are not only dishonest but are hacks. They abandoned the job and hit my credit card for a payment that was not due. It was supposed to be a "progress payment" after the city inspection of the plumbing. They did install and shower valve but it is having to be redone as it sticks out of the wall a lot. The reveal is meant to have about 1/8 to 1/4 inch, It is over 3 inches. The guy gave me some lip on the phone and took them 3 days to return my calls. This outfit also did a poor job of installing the fan fixture. Bent a new box and anchors it outside the drywall with screws into the drywall and not the framing. The sub they sent out was not qualified to install the shower/tub walls. How did I find this out? He asked if I knew someone that could install them and he would pay because he did not know how to install the Kohler Choreograph system. I sent him a instruction video Sam, who sold the job, said, Sure we know what we are doing. Not so. I had to get the pocket door corrected after they jacked it up. Chipped the door with a router, Did not align the track right either. The door tack needed proper shimming. I did not hire a contractor before these village idiots. They claimed it was a family owned and run business but they only sell the job and sub it out to someone else that is not able to work under his own contractor license for insurance reasons. We had to correct the box for the ceiling fan and light. We also needed to correct the pocket door, I have the new contractor that is cleaning up all the other work they did. The only thing this outfit is good for is demo. They can't do a decent job of putting the place back together. They need training

The workers were very reliable. Always showed up on time and kept me up to speed on everything. The quality of work was great for the deal they gave us. I always knew exactly what was going on and once they were done they left our kitchen looking clean and brand new. I would definitely refer their services to other homeowners.

Finished in a timely manner. No hiccups. I would highly recommend.

Karen is wonderful. She has ideas that no other companies did. She went to the tile store with us and found vanities and bathroom accessories for us online to help us with time management. She is so positive and always available to talk. The bathrooms are are great. I highly recommend you work with Karen.

Everything done with professional detail,did everything we asked for plus...

Fidelity provided a complete kitchen redo in my home that was built in 1934 with the original kitchen cabinets, counter, sinks and layout. It was a complete makeover. From the moment the project manager entered my home, I knew it would be a promising partnership. She was friendly, professional, and inspiring as we discussed the possibilities. She really listened to me and was amazingly detailed orientated. Every worker that entered my home was professional and trustworthy and highly skilled. My kitchen was completed in a timely manner which was very important to me. Also the communication from Fidelity as to the progress was very good. I was even able to travel for work with the full confidence that the project was moving forward. I have recommended the services of Fidelity to a number of my friends, and I feel I have a partner for realizing the vision I have for my entire home in the future. I found them through a recommendation of a friend and I as so thankful.

When a general contractor says this (and I quote this literally from his mouth) "YOU HAVE TO SPECIFY IN THE SCOPE OF WORK THAT YOU WANTED STRAIGHT WALLS", you should either run away, fire him, smack in the brains for being an freaking idiot, or just take away his contractor's license all together and tell him to go back to his clown school! What kind of dumb idiot would say such a thing. Oh that's right, our contractor, Ben Rafael. I asked my fellow colleagues who are real architects and interior designers, and they said that is the most ridiculous thing they have ever heard. Okay good, I'm not the crazy one. Do I really have to specify I wanted straight walls? It goes WITHOUT SAY that every built or renovated wall should be straight! COMMON SENSE BEN!! What's even worse is he proceed to argue with us about it. As if we were crazyfor wanting all our walls straight. Are we in the twilight zone or what?! Are these the words of a licensed contractor? Scary, very scary. He should get his licensed revoked. His subcontractor, Jaime Rosales doesn't even have a license!! Ben claimed Jaime is an employee of Fidelity, but turns out, he's just an unlicensed sub (did a background check). So this whole time, this unlicensed sloppy contractor has been working on our house. If I had know that, I would've hired some idiot off the parking lot of Home Depot!! FAIL!!! At this point, we are obviously appalled and just dumbfounded. Ben is the president and owns this company!! Frightening!! Not to mention, a procrastinating, lazy liar as well. Not only did the project run about 4 weeks over completion date, he never disclosed that there would be significant height/level difference in our bathroom and kitchen transition points. Really? He just responded to us as if there was nothing he could do and basically proceeded without any other alternative. And now, we have ugly level changes in our kitchen and bathroom. Thanks for the heads up!! The contract was signed on August 21st, 2014. The crew didn't start working at the house until August 29th, and I know because I was at the job site every other day, sometimes even every day. That's 8 days after we signed the contract! Ben also said, from the beginning, that because we were not living in the house at the time of renovation, his crew would be able to freely work on both areas at the same time, thus getting work done quicker. He said 6 weeks or mid-October they should be done. There were number of days when I went to the house and nothing was done. They didn't even show up! Infuriating! Wasting my d*** time! Mid-October rolls around. Not even close to done. Not only were delayed, they didn't even apologize for delaying our move. We were supposed to move in November 1st......so when did they actually complete the project (the word "complete" is questionable). NOVEMBER 11th!!! A mere 3-4 weeks more than what was scheduled. Not a couple days, not a week, 3 weeks delayed!! We paid close to $50,000 to get the quality and craftsmanship of a group of guys from Home Depot! - Nickel and dimed us for the stupidest little change orders - THREE weeks late finishing - Basically had to hold the foreman's hand as he always did things without asking us - Ben NEVER came to job site except to collect money - Ben NEVER once came to check on job unless there was problem - We had to ask several times to remove trash from our yard - Never sent us a schedule or gave us a timeline when we needed things, everything was always, I need this tomorrow! - Has absolutely NO clue how to restore old Craftsman homes - Has absolutely NO sense of what "craft" is, shoddy workmanship all together - Subs ALL his contractors - Didn't finish a lot of things in the house or left them broken/unfixed, lots of loose ends (and now we're stuck with it!!!) ABOVE ALL, VERY UNHAPPY WITH HIRING FIDELITY GENERAL CONTRACTOR (ironic because the name of the company means loyalty/faithfulness), BEN RAFAEL WAS VERY UNPROFESSIONAL, AWFUL AND RUDE, ABSOLUTELY A NIGHTMARE FROM BEGINNING TO END TO WORK WITH, NO REGARDS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE OR QUALITY OF WORK FOR THAT MATTER. DEFINITELY AVOID, WILL NOT RECOMMEND TO ANYONE.

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Karen doesn't stop. Her efforts are endless. Satisfied customer!

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Ultimately we went with another company but we were very impressed with Karen, her ideas and professional nature. She had a great design in mind.

Karen & Ben sheparded the project all the way thru from picking the materials and getting the permits to completion. I got daily updates on which workmen would be there and what they would be doing. Everything stayed on schedule. I knew what I was responsible for (appliances, cabinet hardware, faucets, sink, etc.) and when they would need to be ready. I really appreciated the advice I got from Karen regarding the selection of materials and color scheme. I am very happy about my finished kitchen.

We should have trusted our gut and canceled. After we signed the contract, the project manager immediately stated, "whoops, I forgot to state the allowance for the granite." Since, we hadn't discussed or looked at granite pricing, we felt like we were being forced to agree to something totally unknown. And thus, we had the first of what proved to be many contract "revisions" that increased overall project cost by almost 20%. Word to the wise, make sure that all items discussed are specifically stated in the contract however minute they may seem. Remember, you get nothing for free even if they say they will do it. You are paying for their services; ALL of them. Pay attention to the detail. If you are not adept at reading diagrams and measurements, we'd suggest getting someone else to look at it for you before agreeing to the floor plan. Despite all my ranting on how much we disliked aspects of the old cabinets and stating that that is why we wanted to remodel, the revised drawing and floor plan still had some similarities that were only noted after cabinets were installed. "But, that is what is indicated on the plans you (we) signed off on." The motto, "measure twice, cut once" is not theirs."There are always adjustments." While I understand and maybe even agree, it seems like more than an adjustment to move a cabinet over so that there is room for the doors to open and clear appliances. The new appliances were purchased and measurements provided almost a month before they finally started any demolition. Responsiveness. For their convenience (their decision, not ours), trash was stored behind our house. When we asked for it to please be removed as it blocked critical drainage from the hillside in case of run-off, it only took three weeks and INSISTENCE on our part. Other projects seemed more important to them. There were days when nothing was being done (i.e., demo), but then it was a rush to complete (cabinets were ready to install but the floors weren't finished). We were told that it would take about 4-5 days after the cabinets and granite were installed to complete the remaining projects and "adjustments". Three weeks later, final adjustments still were not finished and still aren't. We couldn't take the delays any longer and decided we could live without a dimmer that doesn't dim! Our time didn't seem important to them and we feel they never "finished" the services stated in the contract. Overall, the workers seem capable and the problem is in management. We like the new kitchen (don't love it yet as still too close to the issues).

The contractor was scheduled to arrive at 10am on a Saturday morning (Note: upon scheduling with the office manager, I asked TWICE if Saturday was fine for scheduling and she affirmed that in fact Saturdays were "great" for them). On the day of, we waited until 11am without any communication from the contractor or the office. Finally (around 11:15am), I called to find out what was going on. The woman who answered informed me that the contractor had tried to call me but I hadn't answered my phone. I refuted this, as I was constantly checking my phone for his call...and there had been none. She then said, "Oh, right, he said that the call wouldn't go through - it was a weird number or something." She then gave me HIS number, and TOLD ME to call him. Though very friendly and apologetic, the contractor gave me two lame excuses for why his calls didn't go through to EITHER my cell or home lines ("I guess I had the wrong number" "I tried to leave a message on your home line, but it wouldn't let me.") despite the fact that neither line had any incoming calls that morning. He offered to come later that day (this, despite saying that he was already on his way...now an hour and a half late to our scheduled time) and apologized for the miscommunication. Arriving late to provide a BID for work AND not calling (or, worse, making up lame excuses for not calling) is unprofessional and a bad sign for what might lie ahead...so, we cancelled altogether.

Mostly was an outstanding experience, I wish that I had seen actual countertop samples before an order was placed. I found out that the countertop that I wanted (dark gray/black and honed rather than shiny) simply doesn't exist in quartz. Had I known at the beginning, I would have found out who makes the counters in chemistry labs and gone there. To go that route, by the time I discovered that what I wanted wasn't possible, would have delayed completion another 3-6 weeks, so I had to find a compromise. What I got, tho not exactly what I wanted, maintains the style and feel I was looking for and the quality of workmanship is excellent. All my sons have several years of construction experience and they are picky. There was no criticism from any of them on the workmanship, and that says a lot. Early on I felt like I was being pushed to do more work than I could afford to do at this time. I am not sure that is true, I am admittedly hypersensitive to pushy men and can sometimes misinterpret their intentions. In the end, I am genuinely pleased with my kitchen and cannot wait to finish with the painting (which I chose to do myself) so that I can show off my gorgeous new "old" kitchen.

Please see the above description of our first meeting. I have not had the work performed yet. Hopefully in a month I will be able to commit to the remodel.