CHRISTOPHER LEE & CO

What was estimated by the contractor to be an 8 week project took over 30 weeks to complete. The primary excuse by the contractor for the length of delays was that we selected higher quality finishes than he anticipated. These finishes took no longer to receive or install than the lowest quality finishes would have. Communication was awful, to non-existent. We nor the sub-contractors were aware of schedules and when they could perform their activities. We, as the homeowners had to take over the scheduling process to get the project completed or it would still be going on. Many of the sub-contractors were very frustrated at the lack of communication, as they would arrive for their portion of the work, and had not been communicated to by the contractor that the prior required work for them to start was not complete, so they'd have to come back days or weeks later. The painter he had hried first ordered the wrong paint, depsite the contractor having been given an extremely clear paint schedule with the brand, type, and color. Then after the area not being ready for him on multiple occasions when his people arrived, the painter walked off the job. We replaced him with another painter. Durign the last couple months of the project, the only time that the contractor would respond to us was if it was in regard to him wanting to get paid for something. Other than that he owuld have his project managers try to communicte, which was not successful. Neither the principal for the contractor nor any of his on site project managers EVER wrote anything down. NEVER! There were repeated issues with the first project manager assigned to our job charging for hours during which he was not even on site, or on sire and did no work, or billed excessive hours for minimal work. The contract included a 20% fee to go to the contractor on all materials and services provided and labor performed. There were several instances of things I highly question that seems to be done specifically to pump up the contractor's fee. We were told it was a bad idea to have a dumpster, and they would haul off trash daily. We were billed $4500 for trash plus $900 in builders fees in the first 4 weeks of the project. I rented my own dumpster and put it on site and the entire trash bill for the remaining 26 weeks of the project was $960. I went to the electrical fixtures supplier that the contractor used to get some additional items on my own. As a civilian off the street, without a contractor's account or discount, I bought items in lesser quantity for 20% less than the contractor had himself invoiced for the project and passed the invoice on to us, plus his 20% fee on the inflated cost for a 33% premium on his fee, compared to what I purchased for, or a 50% premium compared to what he could have bought them for at his contractor's price, and I confirmed he had an account! As a local builder, with what we thought was a strong position in the local building community, he had minimal connections for suppliers. We had to find the correct hardwood floor material and installer ourselves, as he was unable to find a source for the material to match the remainder of the house. His selected tile contractor allowed leveling concreted to leak through the floor and into the room below causing thousands of dollars in damage. We replaced that contractor with our own tile person. Despite my request to use, and my providing of hundreds of matching shingles for the home that remained from the original build of the house, the contractor stated that they did not have enough, proceeded to buy and install thousands of dollars of new shingles, which due to changes from the manufacturer no longer match, and leave the hundreds of shingles I requested they use unused, costing us thousands extra in material and his 20% fee. The insulation installer dislodged HVAC ductwork and displaced furnace unit drain lines such that the entire HVAC system for the home shut down requiring emergency service. Multiple of the sub-contractors provided a quote for their work at one price and then attempted to bill higher amounts for the work performed. We had to meticulously go over every invoice and compare it back to the original quotes ourselves because the contractor made no attempt at that reconciliation. The contractor hired other sub-contractors which he attempted to have work on an hourly basis, then doubling or tripling the estimates he provided for the work, while working extremely slowly to finish work that could have been done in fractions of the time. Several things which should have been simple were messed up due to poor project management. The bathroom soffits were built at different heights. The bathroom cabinets were built too tall requiring they be remade, the cabinet doors were all made too narrow leaving large gaps at the hinge edge, the primary doors were all mis-hung, and we had to have them re-hung, the shower glass was made to the wrong size, and the bath fans were wired wrong. In addition to the cement that was poured through the floor to the room below, and the insulation installer disrupting the HVAC system, other issues occurred. The plumber mis-installed the shower control valve and flooded the water closet, the cabinet for a microwave was done incorrectly, and the thought of having a microwave where it was planned had to be scrapped. The opening for a small refrigerator was built incorrectly requiring the cabinetry to have to be cut up on site to fit the unit. In the end, the quality of the work and finished prodcut is fine. There are issues wer have with things like the mis-sized soffits and odd trim boards put in placed to cover construction mistakes, but they are mainly noticeable to us. If we had not taken over scheduling the porject, getting our own contractors for flooring, tile, paint, and even to finish the trim, I think the project could have gone another 10 weeks. We started out liking the contractor personally, and actually still do, but the communication and project management is so poor, and the lack of access to quality subcontractors so glaring that we highly recommedn against using this contractor for remodeling or building.