Interior Exterior Remodel and Carpentry

I had a lot issues with this contractor, many of which I need to accept responsibility for because I was a naive idiot to trust this man. To start with, he have a formal contract (nothing was signed, only emails exchanged following an initial quote of dimensions and materials to be used; no other details, which mattered later). He wanted $4000 cash up front and right away, and he pressured me for it. I actually had to carry that money home after work in a dangerous neighborhood and then leave it under my porch because he could not come a time when I was not at work. At this point, I have been screwed by the seller, the contractor who renovated my home and my real estate agent, as well as shed assembly specialists, so this actually didn't faze me at that time. He seemed so nice and had a beautiful portfolio book, and he lowered the price when I balked, so he seemed reasonable. But now I see that as a red flag and suspect I was gouged. He started building my deck within days of our last conversation. Two days later, my neighbors threatened to report me for illegal construction. My contractor had not alerted me I needed a permit and when I raised the issue, he insisted one wasn't required. That left me to do all the work in learning about what was required and how to go about getting a permit, which actually was required, and he was no help. To the contrary, even with the explicit instructions I gave him and the availability of a comprehensive DC deck guide from the government, he didn't seem to have a clue as to the application procedures, so I had to figure it all out myself, and he couldn't seem to draw the plans correctly or give me the right number of copies, which caused further delays and cost me more time off work and effort. He wanted to charging me $100 for architectural plans. The people at the DC Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs were very surprised he didn't get a permit as part of his work and at how uninformed and unhelpful he was. I spent a lot of money, and hours over days of time dealing with this and it held up the deck by a good month. Now the deck is built and he won't seal it or paint it unless I pay him another $450, showing our early negotiations were totally disingenuous. Basically, he is not finishing the work I paid him to do. But since I am an idiot and got no formal contract, I can't do a thing about it, which he would have known when we negotiated a price. And I can't use the deck until I find time and the weather cools enough to spend an entire day doing this myself. Turns out this contractor also cost me the spring weather to do this work thanks to his incompetence with regards to the permit.

For the big job of remodeling our basement, we interviewed 4 different contractors. Eric was selected because we felt he took the time in the interview to completely understand the scope of the project. He was patient to answer our questions. Eric started work immediately. And most importantly, he stayed with our job straight through until it was finished. Eric understood the use for our basement?an apartment for renters. The materials and finishes we're selected accordingly. If something came up during the remodel that wasn't in our estimate, Eric was quick to point out our options. One example, when tearing out the existing drywall, Eric uncovered the original fireplace for the basement. We decided to refurbish it and use it as a centerpiece for the apartment. Eric was able to adjust the plans to accommodate, and it looks great. From drawing up the plans, pulling the necessary permits, demolishing then constructing a new apartment, Eric handled everything in a very professional manner. We feel like we have an indestructible unit that will hold up for a number of years. Overall the projects went well and we are satisfied.

Overall the project was very well completed in a timely and professional manner. Eric is responsive and courteous. When I called Eric back after the job to fix a few things, he came back promptly and remedied the issue. I would definitely recommend Eric for any type of remodeling job. Not only does he produce excellent work in a timely manner (i.e. he is never late), his prices are competitive. Finally, Eric is just a nice guy, who is easy to work with.