Renovation Rip offs.

[Roy D. Cooke, Sr]

Renovation Rip offs.

Strange how many talk about Home Inspectors when a far worse problem exists in Canada

http://www.thestar.com/specialsectio...eno-goes-wrong
The money pit: When a reno goes wrong February 09, 2011 Ian Harvey
Mike Howes took the prudent route when planning an addition to his Guildwood area home but still found himself deep in the hole — literally and figuratively.
After contracting with a Hamilton-based company for a 660-square-foot addition with a full basement, which would also see the existing flat roof extended and converted into a conventional sloping roof costing $100,000, Howe ended up with a huge hole in his lawn, a job which was barely started and a contractor who has vanished along with $40,000 in payments.
He’s now likely to spend up to $120,000 more to complete the job and is still trying to find the original contractor to demand his money back.
“What I’ve learned is no matter how good the contract, it’s only as good as the people signing it,” says Howes.
After listening to his story, it seems he did nearly everything right. went through nearly two dozen candidates before settling on a company based in Hamilton, PVC Construction, which claimed to have yards and operations in Toronto and the United States.
“People ask me, why Hamilton?” says Howes. “And it’s because most of the contractors we talked to were mom and pop size and we felt we needed a larger company. These guys seemed to be larger and were eager to work in Toronto.”
Like any prudent homeowner embarking on a major renovation, Howes checked the references provided and researched the company. Or thought he did.
“Of course, I didn’t actually go to the properties and see the work and that was my mistake,” he says with the benefit of hindsight. “And I took what people were saying on the Internet as references or talked to them on the phone.”
It started promisingly enough last spring when Howes signed a contract and made a 40 per cent deposit against the $100,000 job, which was set to start June 28.
Work started on time with a standard crew of two general labourers, a site supervisor and an operations manager. Demolition started with the eaves troughs and so did the trouble. A rain storm triggered leaks and after a two day delay, the company offered $1,500 compensation. From that point, says Howes, work sent slowly.
“After three weeks we were presented with a modified payment schedule which required more frequent payments and left a very small final payment and had no hold-back,” he says. The company started pressuring him for more money, and despite the alarm bells ringing in his head, he forked over another $10,000.
A month later, Howes was getting worried. Work was progressing slowly and there was damage to the neighbour’s property from an excavation. Then the contractor demanded more money or threatened to shut the job down.
Upset, he tried in vain to contact the vice president of the company and then sent a letter saying the contractor was in default of the contract. “We sought legal advice and sent a letter informing them that we were canceling the contract due to their default on delivering the promised.”
The company hasn’t returned calls after the Star tried several times to contact them and the phone lines now aren’t working and their website has a notice saying it’s been suspended for “non payment.”
Embarking on a renovation project shouldn’t be a leap of faith, says Stephen Dupuis, president and CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD).
“One of the things we say, in addition to not always going for the lowest price, is check out the references and get it all in writing in a contract, and not to let the money get ahead of the job,” says Dupuis, adding it’s why the organization, which was founded by new home builders started up a renovation division, RenoMark, which lists approved contractors who are bound by a code of conduct.
He says contracts should list milestones on the job at which point payments are triggered and homeowners should stick to the wording, regardless if there’s pressure from the builder demanding faster or additional payment.
Due diligence really has to be done up front because after the fact it can get expensive of you bring in lawyers, says Dupuis, adding the value of the RenoMark seal is that not only are the contractors well known, they’re also bound to the mediation process should a dispute arise.
“They’re not the lowest price,” says Dupuis of RenoMark. “But we will and do kick people out if they don’t comply.”
Good standing in RenoMark is worth tens of thousands of dollars in reputation and work referrals and contractors take their participation seriously, he says.
For non-RenoMark contractors, checking references is trickier since you’re not always sure if the happy client is in fact a relative or in cahoots with builder. Still, a site visit and a face to face conversation is the minimum level of due diligence.
Howes has found other victims who were similarly stung. He’s filed a complaint with the Ontario Ministry of Consumer Services and is waiting for the outcome.
The ministry also has a “watch list” of contractors who have not responded to complaints and a list of those convicted under the Consumer Protection Act, says spokesperson Vanessa Rae, who also spent five years handling complaints.
Construction is the second biggest complaint the ministry receives, though most of them are from fly by night operators who prey door to door on unsuspecting home owners, using fear to cajole them into “repairs” that aren’t needed and aren’t done and involve less than $5,000.
Though the ministry seeks to resolve complaints in 20 days, the process is frustrating, as Howes has discovered. Still, it can trigger a contractor to make good, though in this case it’s unlikely since the company phones are disconnected and the web site has been “suspended for non-payment.”
The ministry can also investigate, and often does, and when it finds fraud or violations of the Consumer Protection Act will lay charges which usually result in fines.
Still, the company and its principals have to be found first and then brought to justice and that doesn’t always happen.
“It’s harder for them to go out and present themselves as legitimate contractors because now they have no track record,” says Rae. “That’s why people should always check the references.”
In the meantime, Howes wants his story told as a cautionary tale to others who are considering renovations.
“I found a guy to finish it, Fausto Savonarota of Belmonte Homes, and he’s saved me,” says Howes. The addition is nearly finished but he’s still out more than $50,000 in lost deposits. The company had until Feb. 5 to respond to the government’s inquiry but there is no guarantee they’ll be able to get his money refunded and he may have to litigate — an expensive proposition in itself.
Howes isn’t giving up and vows to get his money back or “make their life miserable.”

[Brian A. MacNeish]

Originally Posted by rcooke

Renovation Rip offs.

Strange how many talk about Home Inspectors when a far worse problem exists in Canada

If there's quite a bit of this going on, Little Mikey is going to have to clone himself!!! (let's not go there....it's closer than we think!!)

I wonder if his show is having its intended effect......since this stuff repeats itself over and over. Better HI's with codes experience should consider becoming residential project managers to help protect the consumer.

[Gary Farnsworth]

InterNACHI home inspectors are honest. We perform inspections to the best of our ability, and report our findings properly. We are the police. We are hated for the honesty we promote. Contractors hate us for the shoddy work we find. These are reasons that home inspection laws are being pushed into law, so we will be required, by law, to write basic, soft reports.

You have to think reversely.

All home owners have their own responsibility to investigate contractors and educate themselves about them, before they hire anyone. It is not only in Canada, but throughout the U.S. as well.