JORDAN'S PAINT WERX

Slow in the beginning then progressively worse because I could never get him to come out to finish the job.

All of our initial conversations were with Tommy Hennings, owner of Jordan's Paint Werx. Tommy provided a written estimate, with 2 options, and strongly recommended the option we chose, because he used self-priming paint and no priming labor was needed. The first day of the project Tommy arrived with a "partner" who would be helping him with the job - his new "business partner". Mike Byers, without asking, planted a job site sign for the "new" company (CORNERSTONE PAINTING AND DRYWALL) on our lawn. Tommy explained that Mike & him were now in business and given the size of this project and their other pending work, Mike would be helping. About 8 days into the project, Tommy notified my wife and I (separately) that the "scraping" on the project was taking longer than he'd anticipated and that he and Mike needed to take more time to scrape, for the paint to stick (and make the warranty valid). My wife and I agreed that the South Facing side of the house was in bad shape, and that we wanted Tommy, as the painting professional, to ensure the house was prepared correctly. At no time did we discuss specific, additional cost. Tommy had prepared a written estimate, based upon his 'professional' assessment of the house and since he was referred by a neighbor, we were confident in his abilities. After 4 weeks, with starts & stops due to rain, the project was near finished, with one day's work remaining. The day before the project was to be finished, Tommy asked if we could 'settle up' on the difference for the scraping. When asked how much that might be, he answered, "$1,925" or a WHOPPING 135% of the original estimate. Tommy explained that it had taken an additional 55 hours of scraping (at $35/hr) to properly prepare the house surface. That he'd included "only 16 hours of scraping in the original bid" which was "double what he would normally estimate," to prep a house that hadn't been painted in 9 years. When I told him I thought 55 hours was excessive and that as a pro he should have done a better job of estimating & communicating, he was argumentative. I suggested we talk about the scraping the next evening (convenient for both of us) and come to an agreement. The following morning, instead of arriving at 7:00 am as planned, Tommy and Mike arrived at 8:00 and sat in my driveway. As I left the house and asked Tommy if he would be finishing, I was met with a belligerent, threatening manner. Tommy insisted, after speaking with his 'new' business partner, Mike, that he could not wait until evening, as we'd previously agreed, and had to have payment settled upon "right now". I told Tommy it was unprofessional of him to not communicate, to ask for 135% of the estimate & to threaten to stop work, after we'd agreed to meet. Tommy only offered a discounted rate of $1,500. Faced with the threat of an unfinished project, I agreed to this unprofessional upcharge.

Selected over three other bids. Gave us the "warm fuzzy" feeling before, and especially after we called references. Started on time, finished two days late due to rain one day and an equipment problem (power-washer had failed, rental unit also failed). He called everyday we were not home at the start or end to tell us he was here, what schedule was for next day, etc. If we didn't have an interior painter we already loved, we'd use Tommy for our next indoor job. Highly recommended. Price a little under what we expected.