Claymark Homes

On August 5, 2014, I posted a glowing review for Ben Hansen and Claymark Homes. I thought they had done a good job on our window project. In March this year I contracted them to repair damage done to the ceiling in my family room and to my half bath when I had the plumbing replaced in my house. The work was a disaster from the beginning. I removed everything from the room with the exception of an Oriental rug, a leather sofa and chair and a TV cabinet. I asked if those things needed to be removed and was assured they did not and that they would cover everything with plastic. I left the house to run an errand; and when I returned, I discovered wet plaster on my UNCOVERED furniture and rug and dust everywhere. While I knew there would be dust, they made no attempt to reduce the mess. Ben and his crew supervisor promised to be present for the project, but they were nowhere to be found for most of it. After the project was done, I began to see examples of shoddy workmanship. They chipped a corner off the crown molding, and there was a half-inch gap between the wall and the molding. They had HAMMERED the molding back up, denting it. Paint was slopped on the molding. They did not adequately sand the walls before repainting, and the surface was very noticeably uneven. After complaining, I was assured that it would all be taken care of. I was also told he wasn’t so sure that the damage to the molding wasn’t pre-existing (so I was basically accused of lying—I have photo evidence the damage was done by his crew). Ben came once to “fix” the crown molding (which was to slap on filler and stain) for the dents and to reposition the molding. Then I discovered there was a giant half-inch blob of filler at one end of the molding which looks awful (see attached). Ben was to come back to complete the work. Months later and more excuses than I can count, I gave up and did the work myself, knowing full well his work would not be satisfactory. He threatened to share my “comments” with his staff as if I care. I have never encountered such a home improvement disaster and highly suggest you find other options if you’re considering Claymark Homes for your project. This guy has a big chip on his shoulder and is his own worst enemy.

The windows were as advertised. They appear to be of good quality and the installers were friendly and professional. I dealt exclusively with Ben Hanson, Co.President. There were couple of instances when Ben would call and ask if certain dates could be changed either weather related or other reasons. Since the installation was over an extended period, I had no problem with this. Ben kept in close contact with me throughout the process. I am pleased with the result particularly for the price. I would recommend them.

The services they provided me was good. They did a good job. They were good on everything.

Gave us choice on type of windows, gave informative suggestions. Had no problem doing windows in sections, we did, we did 7 windows the first year, 9 the following year. We still have 6 more to go. Very professional. Window installers at time were a father son team. Very nice, hard working and always polite and on time. No complaints what so ever.

We've used Claymark a number of times the past few years, and Ben has become our go-to person for our home projects. He uses excellent craftsmen, and we have never had an issue with their work. They have been careful with landscaping as well as the inside of the house. Our most recent project was to finish the replacement of all the windows in our home (excellent quality windows, I might add). There was never a problem doing just two or three at a time as we could afford it. We found his prices to be very competitive, especially considering the quality of the work. If a project comes in less than what was estimated, you don't have to ask--he will have already reduced the invoice. He has always been fair and as honest as they come. He suggests cost-saving alternatives that you might not have considered. If I absolutely had to fault this company, it would be in the area of communication, as others have mentioned. We have learned that sometimes you have to be persistent; and while it's not ideal, we have found the extra effort to be worth it to have a project done right. In the end, Ben always takes care of you to the best of his ability. Our only regret is that we did not discover Ben several years earlier as I know that some remodeling projects would have turned out far better than they did if we had engaged Claymark Homes.

My initial contact with Claymark Homes was very promising. The company president, Ben, returned my phone call promptly and set up an appointment to come to our home and measure for vinyl siding. This was in the first week of May, 2014. He spent about an hour measuring our home and talking to my husband and I about his products, what we wanted, etc. He was very thorough in explaining the different sizes/styles of vinyl siding, and really was a very likable person. We told him we were headed out of town and would not be able to look at bids for a week, and he indicated that he would email a bid to me. Fast forward to May 30 - we had not gotten an estimate, so I emailed Ben. He immediately replied, said that he had sent bid but it may have been misdirected, and that he would resend the bid. Mid June, I still did not have bid so I left a voice mail saying I was still waiting for his estimate and had checked my spam and did not see the estimate. No response to this voice mail. I made a third attempt to contact Ben, around the first part of July, and spoke with a woman who said she would have someone call me right away. That was at least 3 weeks ago, and I STILL have not heard a word, and do not have an estimate. We have his "sales material" here - a folder with siding samples - that I would assume he wants back. I find it puzzling that after spending over an hour with us, Ben did not follow up. At this point, almost 3 months after the initial contact, we are not interested in having him work on our home.

INSTALLATION FINE, HOWEVER, SOME OF THE DETAILS RE: LEGAL/CODE REQUIREMENTS FOR INST5ALLATION RELATED TO LEAD PAINT IN OLDER HOMES, WERE NOT FOLLOWED. ALSO, PROTECTION OF EXISTING SHRUBS, AS DISCUSSED WHEN CONTRACTED, WERE NOT FOLLOWED AND IN FACT, THERE WAS AN ISSUE OF LACK OF TRUTHFULLNESS RE: WHY A LEIN WAIVER WAS NOT ACTUALY NEEDED. WE HAD TO GO DIRECTLY TO SUPPL;IER TO GET, RATHER THAN THE INSTALLING COMPANY PROVIDING IT UPON PAYMENT. PROVIDING LEIN WAIVER BEGAME AN ISSUE WHEN TIME FOR PAYMENT. THEREFORE I GIVE AN F FOR PROFESSIONALISM

Further update from November: I did finally receive the itemized receipt from Ben. (I had forgotten that you only get to take 10% off as a tax credit -- and that you needed to find tax records back to 2005 to make sure you had claimed no more than $500 total... so the financial impact of getting the receipt was not as much as I thought.) Still VERY frustrating to wait so long, but I upgraded the grade back to a B overall. Update: As of October, I *still* haven't gotten an itemized receipt for the window installation, which I need to take the tax deduction. I called Ben several times and the last time (when I actually got him directly on the phone)-- over a week ago now, he said he would put it in the mail that day. If I can't take the window costs off as a tax deduction it essentially doubles the cost of the windows. Because of this lengthy delay and failure to get the receipt to me, I am lowering my original ratings on ratings punctuality and responsiveness-- as well as the rating on price and the overall rating. I haven't totally written off this company, as I have used them for prior work, but will certainly consider other options in the future. ----------------- David did a remarkable job with the new basement windows and concrete patch around them, though he sealed one window that I hadn't anticipated -- and didn't want sealed, hoping to increase the security. I delayed getting it fixed because I wanted to ask the owner a question about another installation first, but it should be unsealed shortly. Ben, the owner of the company, had some family matters taking his attention as this latest job progressed. This happens to all of us at some time, but I wish he had delegated some of the responsibility to another employee, so communication could have been handled more efficiently in his absence. In previous work by this company the communication was more timely, so hopefully this will ease soon. In the interest of kindness, I would note that I would rate the responsiveness grade over the five jobs from this company, would raise the responsiveness grade as a B -- but this last job was definitely frustrating in that regard!

Approximately 4 years after the job was done, our large picture window had a leak between the two panes of glass, causing white cloudy spots across the whole window. We contacted the new owner, Ben Hanson who at first was nice and agreed that the window was under lifetime warranty, and that he would contact them, and replace the window. That was in the early spring of 2013. Evidently, after the window got to their warehouse here, it was dropped or damaged. We were notified on the morning of the scheduled install that there was a problem. Since that time, (YES- a year ago) we have been getting the runaround from Ben, who is now totally ignoring our emails and calls. We spent $39.000 for top quality windows and siding, and had chosen a local, well respected company. That may have been the case with the original owner Mark, but obviously not now with Ben. We have had no response from Ben since January of this year, and now are resorting to handling this thru our attorney. Extremely disappointed. If the warranty it worthless, then what is the point of using a company??

The workers were very courteous and professional. After the work was done, all the extra material and trash was picked up. The job was extended a couple of days due to the rain. I am very happy with the work and would use them again. I think this company should also be classified under siding repair. I called other siding companies and they would only do repairs if they installed or the work had to be more than $1000.00. The siding company that did the original installation is out of business. In flustration I went to my insurance company for help. They recommended a contractor who recommended Claymark Homes.

Excellent. Crew was on time. Windows door are great quality. Price was fair. Only problem with this company is responsiveness after the job is finished and they have your money. There were storms the following year, insurance wrote us a check for damages. Called claymark 10-15 times over a span of a month with no response. I think they might be too busy and proritize jobs based on profitability. If your aren't waiving a fat check, good luck and look else where. I wouldn't have minded the wait, but not returning calls is unprofessional. I'm rating them with an overall B. I was very happy with the windows which weighed more of a factor than the negatives i listed.

No surprises. The bid was fair and exactly what we paid. Work done on time and in two days. Installers were polite and cleaned up nicely.. Very pleased.

I have dealt with them for many years. They did our sidings a long time ago. They were great! Their window has good quality, and the guys who installed them were really nice, thorough and very professional. They were very thorough. I had an issue before with them. My wife was concerned about on some of the windows on the inside, and they contacted the actual production representative of the windows. This company just installed the windows. They purchased the windows, and they installed them, but they got hold of the actual window factory representative and brought him to the house. We talked to them about the windows and stuff. They went overboard, and they made sure we're really happy with everything. They are not the cheapest, but they are not the most expensive.

In 2005 Claymark Homes installed vinyl siding and replacement windows throughout my home. I just had my roof replaced. When I was meeting with roofers, I discovered that I needed to have continuous venting installed in all of my eves. When the original work was done, Ben Hansen was one of the workers although he did the estimate then. Now he owns the company and still does the estimates. When we did a walk around the house, Ben noticed a slight bulge in one piece of siding so he had the workers look at it while they were here plus they made a minor adjustment around the fireplace at my request. The bulge was due to a problem with the house itself we believe was caused by settling. There was no charge, these were covered under the warranty. The workers that originally installed my siding are still with the company (Scott and Bobby), and they came back to install the venting. Bobby came out twice more to remove siding to allow access for the roofers as needed then re-installed the siding when the roofers were done. I am very happy with their responsiveness, professionalism, and reasonable pricing. One of the questions is, 'would I use this vendor again' - absolutely yes! I'm currently negotiating to have additional work done. I definitely recommend Claymark Homes.

I would use them again in the future.

The work was fine. I had no complaints.

The job was excellent, I would recommend them.

He came right away and gave me a bid right away. The work was done well and efficiently. He came out to inspect the work to make sure it was okay and followed up on it so I thought the service was very personal and good. The price was fair but they didn't cut me and great deals.

I immediately received a call from Ben, the owner, apologizing for "dropping the ball," and he promptly sent his best worker, Scott, out to replace some broken pieces of siding, free of charge. He also had Scott re-do the poor workmanship on a fascia/gutter repair that I had a handyman perform when I couldn't get Claymark to return my calls for a bid on the job. Again, free of charge, and to impeccable standards. I'm happy to start referring others to Claymark Homes, as I had in the past, and look forward to working with them again in the future. Thank you Ben and Scott!!

The owner, Ben, came to my house for a consultation and estimate. He was prompt, willing to go to great lengths for my convenience in scheduling, and was thorough. He made himself reachable by cell phone for my questions during the process. The workers were efficient and did a great job with clean-up. The company rushed so that I could get the project done for the 2010 tax credit. The vinyl windows are of good quality and I'm very pleased with their look and function. The company came by recommendation. I would use them again and recommend them without hesitation.

We were very pleased with the services provided by Claymark Homes. Due to some scheduling conflicts we agreed to push back our original install date. In return we received a nice discount for waiting a little longer. The job took about 3 weeks as quoted. Once the job was completed, we found only two VERY MINOR issues. They came back and resolved within a day. We are extremely pleased with the work performed. Our house looks a lot better with the new siding. Compared to other contractors selling the same product, Claymark was priced right in line and came in lower than some. Considering the high quality of the installation, we feel the price was even more competitive than the other companies out there. If we ever replace our windows, I know Claymark will be at the top of our list to have that work done.

Process went smoothly from start to finish. It was a small job and he still treated it like it was important.

They were very helpful to me. I called and told them I couldn't find a company that could show me anything so he told me to go to the show room and he would set it up for me to talk to someone while I was there. I was able to do that and I think that was very helpful. He showed a very customer oriented attitude. He never called back to set up an appointment, he left that up to me so I felt like I could trust him.

Excellent all around. Work was performed exactly as described. Exceptional service by Ben Hansen who did the estimate, drew up the contract and did the follow up work. The installers did the work fast and accurately. Minor followup on small issues was done in a timely fashion. We would happily use them again.

Got estimate, work was done in a timely manner with no problems at the estimate price