TRADEMARK DEVELOPMENT INC

I got four estimates for this job. Trademark was the highest bid, though not by too much, and they came recommended by my Realtor, so I chose them and provided a downpayment. The project officially began in early September 2011. The deck work was done first, and seemed to go OK, though slowly (several weeks, with nothing getting done most days). Demolition under the back of the house also happened in the fall, which left the area under my kitchen and dining room open to the cold for the entire winter. Demolition in the entryway was done the weekend after Thanksgiving, while I was out of town. When I arrived home, I had to move the dust covers from the entryway in order to get into the rest of the house. For the next eight weeks, nothing was done - the entryway was left in its demolished state for the months of December and January. It took six more weeks after that until construction on the entryway was complete and the room could be cleaned. At no point were the dust covers fully re-installed after I moved them. The support under the back of the house was done in February and March, along with the miscellaneous jobs. The contractor finished all the work he was willing to do in mid-April 2012. The project was originally estimated at two weeks, which I assumed would turn into one month. By my count, workmen came to my house a total of 29 days during the project. For about five of those days, the workman was alone, and stayed less than two hours. In total, the project took seven months to complete. Job quality was uneven. Some of the structural work appears well done, some is obviously shoddy (boards cut too short, then used anyway). Inside, there were problems with one group of tradesmen ruining the work of another (the tile workers were particularly bad about this). Cleanup was done poorly - shavings and scraps were left in the crawlspace under the back of the house, and not all debris were removed from the yard. The painters seemed to do all of the cleanup work inside, which was sufficient. The painters were the only workmen who seemed able leave a job in a state that I would consider finished. Overall, the feeling I got from the job supervisor, Mark Seef, was that he was trying to see how little he could get away with doing, and how much money he could get for it. The initial negotiations took the form of "How much money do you have? OK, I'll take it, now what's the minimum amount of work you will accept for that?" Near the end of the project, he seemed to have no idea what it would take to finish. During this phase, he was profoundly unhelpful when discussing what might make some of the unfinished or poorly done areas look better. I had to walk him through the site and make a list of things remaining to be done (a list that included "fix the places where the screws went through the plaster in the basement ceiling," "finish painting that wall," and "put the siding back over the bare plywood outdoor wall"). Trademark failed to complete all of the items on this list. In the end, I decided that it was not worth my time to argue the minor items remaining, and I gave them their final payment so that I would no longer have to deal with them.

I was hired to manage the building after the previous manager was let go. A 1 year job took 2 years. The work men never showed up when promised. The work that was done was very poor with materials scrapped together from whatever was on sale. Almost everything that was done, I am having to do over again. Paint work was not properly prepped and the paint is now falling off the walls. Plumbing work is leaking or clogging up with excess solder. Cement work is cracking and falling apart. Many things had to be redone because the plumbers were not licensed and were working of another plumbers license. Electrical plates were left open, circuits were not labeled and wiring was not done to code. It was the worst work I ever saw done. A previous posting concerning this company was right on the money. The workers were not experienced tradesmen but laborers from around the world with very little knowledge of American codes and building practices. Without constant call backs and withholding money even the job that was done would never have been completed. Now we are paying double for the poor work that is falling apart.

THE WORKMEN ACCIDENTALLY DISCONNECTED THE WATER HEATER FROM THE CHIMNEY, ALLOWING CARBON MONOXIDE INTO THE LIVING SPACE. THIS WAS THE FIRST ON MANY ERRORS. I ASKED THEM TO LEAVE WITHOUT FINISHING THE JOB BECAUSE OF THEIR LACK OF FOLLOWING THE ARCHITECTURAL PLANS I HAD PROVIDED. THIS WAS THE MOST FRUSTRATING EXPERIENCE. ALTHOUGH I PROVIDED A BLUEPRINT UP FRONT, THE SUBCONTRACTORS DID NOT FOLLOW IT. AFTER MANY DISAGREEMENTS I ASKED THEM TO LEAVE.