East Wind Builders

Day before he arrived with crew, he whined about lack of experience and concern about losing money; begged for weekly pay, agreeing to keep hybridized contract with fixed sum to secure against going over bid," which likely wouldn't happen". We ended up with a 55 percent cost over-run. $35K vs $21K bid. Dragged is feet through the process, never pushed his crew; failed to meet deadline and cost estimates; lied and dissembled frequently; used inappropriate materials to the weather (interior birch plywood in eaves; non-galvanized brackets in salt-air environment; interior wafer-board sub-floor for outside balcony floor; non-galvanized screws, etc.); poor technique with vapor barriers; damaged custom windows and doors during installation; vandalized door pans so they leaked (punched holes in them), did not complete seismic tie-down installation; hung braces out of square; walked off job when funds were consumed; refused to apply ill-gotten profits to complete the project; left without completing second-story siding; lied about manpower service costs, as he had no manpower assistance firm. The only time the carpentry sounded like real industry was when he needed to finish framing second-story walls for trusses (screaming and hollering, nails pounding, saws shrieking), and when he had to put in second-floor patio door at his own cost (this is when vandalism to drain pan occurred, door not square, warped, leaking, and damaged). He returned to reset the door, but only drove in shims along sides to take out warp in the frame; door still listed. His strategy appears to be to gain a contract for time only, work slowly, and drain the account. I overpaid him $15K, paid $2.5K for the unfinished siding work, and paid $1K to repair the leaking door; so I lost about $18.5K over the proposal. This amounts to an 85 percent effective cost over-run! The only change of work that occurred amounted to 10 hours of his time (a slightly bigger porch and window rough opening changes.) His one (only one) reference complained of a 100+ percent cost overrun for a significant house, ultimately paying $660K, and warned me to get a fixed sum contract; but I succumbed to a good schmoozer, much to my regret. My complaint to the contractor's board was dismissed because it was filed after the 12-month deadline, but still within a 24-month special deadline. I procrastinated about taking him to court, mostly because of the fury and bad feelings, and missed the statute of limitations for a fraud case. Strange psychology in my part. How many others have fallen for this ruse? How can I recommend this person? My recommendation: AVOID HIM AT ALL COSTS! Whoever you use- hire a lawyer to write up the contract. Or speak to a bank that administers contracts for construction projects and follow their advice.