Ray Cordova Construction & Remodeling

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The work was completed in one day as had been scheduled. We're very happy with the carpet and the baseboard molding looks great.

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This company is also doing business as Ray Cordova Construction and Remodeling. (Please refer to my report re: Ray Cordova Construction and Remodeling.)

Raymond Cordova was the contractor and Joseph (his brother-in-law) was his helper. The following explanations are regarding the indicated ** Performance ratings**. "A" - Responsiveness and Punctuality: - Raymond arrived promptly to evaluate the project and to make a bid. During our discussion, Raymond recommended 'minimal' and 'best' solutions re: - the repair of the existing water and weather damaged siding; - the prevention of future damages; and - the exterior painting project. - Raymond called with a verbal bid: labor cost ($1875) and estimated material costs ($400). - Raymond called a few days later to inform me that his recommended paint was on sale. - The next day Raymond arrived promptly with a handwritten contract. Raymond and I discussed the contract and made changes agreed upon by both of us. - Each day Raymond and his helper promptly arrived together for work. They took a reasonable break each morning and afternoon and a 1/2 hour lunch. They worked steadily until the end of their day (usually 8:00 am to 4:30 pm). - With my approval (while Joseph continued working on my project) .... Raymond left one time to bid on another job .... and .... on the last day ... Raymond left for a few hours to do Phase 1 work on another job. - Throughout the project, Raymond and Joseph were polite and courteous. "A" - Quality: - Raymond did "excellent" work re: carpentry - woodworking - siding - and - the handyman aspects of the project. - Joseph did "excellent" work re: exterior paint preparations (caulking, taping); and the majority of the exterior painting including all of the trim work. - Joseph double checked his own work as he went along. - He minimized splattering and cleaned up incidents at the time they occured except for a spill on a solar screen that requires a special product to prevent damage to the screen. - Joseph and I together inspected his work and he remedied areas we agreed needed redo/touch-up work. - Raymond did "fair" work re: exterior painting of the garage door, the peak above the garage door, the dormers, and some of the overhangs and siding. (see comment #2 re: Professionalism) "B" - Professionalism: 1) Raymond expressed in writing and verbally his desire to do all work to "the satisfaction of the customer". 2) Raymond is very knowledgable and experienced re: carpentry, wood framing and siding. At the store, we discovered that the store didn't carry the siding needed to match the existing siding on the house. Raymond advised me re: the differences in quality of the siding available including the benefits of the available Hardie board/plank product. I decided to go with the Hardie product. Raymond selected all of the other materials/supplies needed to make the necessary repairs re: the water damage at the back of the house and the Handyman tasks. 3) Raymond was not as knowledgeable re: the exterior painting. He recommended Behr Premium "Ultra" (primer/paint all-in-one) exterior paint. While Raymond was painting the garage door ... I noticed that the paint didn't appear to be adequately covering the surface and the paint looked streaky. Raymond immediately touched up the areas pointed out to him and asked me to be sure to point out any other problems that I noticed. After several more areas of inadequate paint coverage were pointed out to him ... Raymond checked with Joseph to see if he was having the same problem. Joseph had initially experienced the same difficulty but had resolved the problem by loading his brush more fully. Enquiries at the store resulted in learning that the "Ultra (all-in-one)" designation did not mean that only one coat of paint would be adequate (as Raymond had mistakenly thought) ... and ... two coats of paint would most likely be required to provide adequate coverage. Unfortunately ... by the time this misunderstanding of the Ultra designation was discovered ... the paint sale was over and all additional paint was more costly. Eventually I suggested to Raymond that perhaps they should complete the painting and then Raymond could perform an inspection of the results to determine what needed to be done to complete the work to his "professional level of satisfaction" before I did any further inspections myself ... however ... Raymond preferred that I continue to do the inspecting to my level of "customer satisfaction" and then, at the end of the painting work, they would redo/touch-up whatever I requested. After the third trip to the store for additional paint, my project funds were depleted. The last can of paint purchased was used to finish painting the last of all surfaces ... however ... there wasn't sufficient enough paint or time left to redo/touch-up all areas of inadequate coverage ... therefore ... I requested that the balance of the paint be used on the most critical areas for weather protection. Joseph continued to inspect his own work and proceeded accordingly. Raymond continued to rely on me to point out areas for him to redo/touch-up. 4) The screens re: the covered porch windows were not able to be put back on before the end of the last day of work (the trim paint had not had time to adequately dry). Although Raymond had another project that he needed to begin the next day, he indicated that he would be happy to return at a later date to put the screens on ... however ... that wasn't necessary because I knew how to put the screens back on myself. 5) Three days after all of the paint was completely dry, more areas needing redo/touch-up were visible than what I had noticed while the paint was still wet during the last rushed day of the project. Most of the areas are where the paint was put on by Raymond when he was thinking that only one coat of paint was necessary to do the job. In conclusion: Raymond would have gotten an "A" performance rating re: Professionalism: - If he had checked into the siding availability and cost before I went with him to purchase materials/supplies for the project. - If he had accurate knowledge (or experience) re: the paint he specified for the project. - If he had been more conscientious re: his painting and conducted his own inspections of his work as he went along (in which case he would have discovered the inadequate coverage problem himself and he could have informed me of the problem instead of me discovering it myself). - If he had offered to return at a later date to finish doing the remaining known necessary redo/touch-up work ... and ... to inspect all painting after it dried to determine if any additional unknown redo/touch-up work was needed. Such an offer would have alleviated my concerns re: the known and unknown inadequately covered and streaky painted areas ... and ... it would have reassured me of his desire to achieve "customer satisfaction". "B" - Pricing: - Total cost of labor: $1,875.00 as per contract. - Total cost of materials/supplies: $550.00 (after paint sale mail-in rebates re: initial purchase of paint). If the need arises again for Carpentry - Woodworking, or Siding repairs and /or flashing protection around the foundation .... I wouldn't hesitate to call Raymond. If the need arises again for Exterior Painting .... I wouldn't hesitate to call Raymond ... for the bid (assuming that he doesn't forget the lesson learned re: the Baer Premium "Ultra" exterior paint) ... but ... I would probably request that Joseph do all of the painting preparations and work (including any necessary redo/touch-up work and clean up).