I emphatically dispute this report and would ask you to consider what others have reported for a more accurate description of how I work and take care of my clients. The fact she is the only one who has give less than A ratings should indicate something is not quite right here. For those who would like further explanation, here’s my response… When this project was first proposed to me I declined due to the overall scope and dilapidated condition of the home. Her agent told me she agreed with my assessment and suggested for the homeowner to buy a different house to flip (this is her first house remodel). The homeowner called and asked if I could come look at some other smaller projects that needed to be done. In the span of about 30 minutes we walked through six different projects. One of them was replacing the kitchen cabinets. She wanted to pull the old cabinets and install new Ikea cabinetry. I noticed that the existing cabinets were solid wood, and could be updated by painting and installing new knobs and hinges (saving her thousands of dollars). She asked for an on-the-spot estimate. I told her I would have to sit down and do some calculating. She told me she just wanted a guess and wouldn’t hold me to it. I suggested that based upon another kitchen in which I did the same thing it would cost around $1,000 (see the lower half of this page: http://www.callmyguy.net/pictures-paint.html). I also pointed out a chunk of missing lath and plaster between the upper and lower cabinets (1’ x 1.5’), and that removing the cabinets could disrupt what’s behind them and lead to a much larger job. I suggested that compared to the condition of everything else in the house that fresh paint would be a proportionate remedy. She appeared to have like the idea very much. The homeowner asked for written estimates for all the projects, but was in a hurry to flip the house for a quick sale and asked me to start the kitchen. A few days later I drafted the estimate, and the painting part came out to $1,250. There was additional monies added for two lower units she requested to be made from scratch, painted and installed (this was an estimate, not a bid). My estimates are based on time and materials without a built in markup, but I also provided a marked up price on the estimate if she wanted a flat fee. She wrote back and said I quoted $1,000 for the paint and that’s what she wanted to pay. I prepped and painted the cabinets, but when I went to install the doors I discovered she supplied the wrong replacement hinges. Because she lives in southern California I couldn’t wait for her to come back to get them, so I had to go to three stores to find brushed nickel hinges that would fit her doors. The new hinges were a little thicker than the old ones and that forced the doors to be a little closer in the middle, so they wouldn’t close. I had to reshape the doors in place and apply another coat of paint. In the end I gave her 12 free hours of work. If we could have used chrome hinges I wouldn’t have had to reshape the doors, and if I didn’t have to track them down I would have saved another hour and a half. I would have ended up around the $1,250 I estimated for the painting and new hardware element. Instead I put $1,600 total labor and I only charged $1,000. She felt it was my fault for not estimating correctly since we both saw the condition of the kitchen. I emphasized we only spent a few minutes in there, and that the newer a house it the easier it is to estimate a task, but the older a house is makes it much more possible for challenges to arise. She had a reduced budget in her mind and was allowing it to drive the reality of what was encountered, because she quickly forgot that by taking her original approach it would have been double the cost at least. To me this was a very unthankful and “gotcha” mentality that is not the type of client I prefer to service. She was painting the outside of the house herself by painting directly over the “peeling” old paint. It looked like it had been lightly scraped, but it was in no condition to receive a new coat. I suggested that I spackle and sand so she could have a relatively smooth surface. She agreed and I got started. All my clients know (and it is clearly posted in my work hours) that I need to be home by 2:00 to watch my son, so when I ran out of time and told her I would come back the next morning to finish spackling, she insisted it get done because she had to return to L.A. and wanted to paint before she left. I jokingly said the only way I could do that is if I had my son here with me, and she told me to go get him. She said her son would watch him. I did not want to do this, but did so to service my client. The homeowner, her son, my son, and myself were the only people on the property, so I am confused by her statement about him being disruptive and dangerous… it was at her charge we were even there. When 5:00 came around I was within 30 minutes of finishing up, but she wanted to go eat and asked if her other guy could finish the spackling and do the sanding. I even left my orbital sander and sand paper for her other worker to use to ensure she could get the painting done before she left… she never painted. I suggested and offered to swap out the plugs and switches for new ones to help bring up the quality and appearance inexpensively. She like the idea, but had her other guy do the work. She did the same for caulking the gaps between the windows and trim. I have no problem with other people implementing my ideas, because there is plenty of work to go around. But I am surprised she complained about my suggestions while hiring a cheaper person to do them… I think her comment about me being indignant is a little out of context. She wanted me to glue thin aluminum wall coverings over the missing plaster between the upper and lower kitchen cabinets, and I could not do such incredulous work to a home she was planning to sell (what a surprise that would be for an unsuspecting buyer). She also wanted me to put a peel & stick floor directly over the existing laminate that was failing, and she wanted me to apply a quick coat of paint to hallway and bedroom doors that needed to be shaped (they didn’t close correctly) and needed new hinges and knobs. She agreed to the new hinges and knobs, but my previous experience with the kitchen cabinets raised a red flag for me. Doors can be tricky, and old doors that have had several hinge adjustments can be time consuming to get right. I pulled the doors and marked them where they needed to be cut in order to fit correctly, but declined to accept further work on the project. She sent me an email asking to meet me at 12:30. I arrived about 5 minutes early (all my clients will attest to this), but she was in a meeting with another person. She rudely told me that she couldn’t see me until 1:30, and that was our scheduled time. I told her the email she sent said 12:30. The person she was meeting with confirmed it by saying it was his appointment that was at 1:30, he just came early. She told me I had to wait anyway and continued on. When we did meet she told me the cabinets came out wonderful (and they did), she also thought the front of the house looked 100% better after my suggestion. In my conversations with several other tradesmen onsite I was told that she has handled everyone just as poorly, and that many of the projects expanded well beyond the original scope (just like I thought when I saw the inspector’s report). Most of those guys work for a company, but I am fortunate enough to work for myself, so I was able to distance myself from this situation. I just wanted to give her back her keys and move on. I believe I was more than generous in giving her 12 hours of free time, trying to coach her on decisions that didn’t make sense, weren’t safe, or that would question the integrity of the work being done. Yes, I got frustrated. As a tradesperson I had to go through a lot of training and certification to participate on the jobsite, but a homeowner needs no qualification other than the money to buy, and a budget is only as accurate as the person drafting it understands the complexities of the project. I stand behind my work, and I work to satisfy my clients. A cheap home in Napa that needs a lot of work still runs over $250,000, but this home was only $168,000… that should be a good indicator to the condition it was in. It’s one thing to put quick and dirty fixes on a property the owner will live in themselves, but there is a whole new level of integrity applied when that house is going to be sold for a profit to buy a better home. I can’t put my name on that. My rates are fair. I charge roughly half of my competition, and I offer an introductory discount of 20% on labor for the first 30 days. That discount is extended indefinitely for those in need (people who are senior citizens, on a fixed income, single parents, or those with military spouses serving out of state). My goal is to help those who need it. She kept reminding me she is a single mom, but I never intended my discount to be for those who were buying and flipping properties. Her car cost more than I make in a year. That’s like a retired rich person collecting food stamps just because they don’t have an active income… that’s an abuse of a charitable heart, and should not be treated as an entitlement. Angie’s List has been a great resource for me. All of my Angie’s List clients have been wonderful people. Several have become my friends, and a few have become close friends. Many of them call me back regularly. They know that I have their best interest in mind when I help them. They know I have the safety of their family, or renters in mind (if they have multiple properties). And they know I am very fair priced. I have consistently been an Angie’s List top tier service provider, and I am saddened that one person with an “out of town… I’m better than you” aattitude can tarnish it.