JAMES BENNETT GENERAL CONTRACTOR

The original contract had a timeline of four months to complete the project, which ended on May 31, 2013. Upon the end of this contract Mr. Bennett wasn't even close to completing the work, as the house was still in the rough-in stage for plumbing, HVAC, and electric work. He gave numerous excuses about other tradesman delaying the project, etc and after extensive re-negotiation we agreed to extend his contract by six weeks so that he would be finished with the house by July 15th, 2013. This new deadline was not met either and we still had paint, flooring, trim, cabinets, counters, and all mechanicals to finish up. Part of the roof was never replaced and the finish grade work was not done either. We fired Jim on July 15th and told him we would finish the house on our own and deduct the cost to finish from the remaining amount of his contract. Little did we know that Mr. Bennett did not pay his subcontractors for their work, even after we paid him directly upon completion. We now have had to pay the plumber, electrician, HVAC contractor, and drywall contractor directly for their services to avoid mechanic's liens being filed on the property. However, just yesterday we received a letter stating that the roofer never was paid either and they are placing a lien on the house. Mr. Bennett lied to us directly and said that all of his subs had already been paid when he submitted his invoice for their work. He has not returned any phone calls or text messages for months now and we are seeking legal recourse. As far as I'm concerned this is a case of FRAUD, DECEPTIVE BUSINESS PRACTICES, and TAX-EVASION, as he never signed a W9 and cashed every check we gave him with our bank, rather than depositing it into his own account first.

Don't let his good o' boy country charm fool you. The cost kept increasing, the tile baseboard in the shower wasn't set properly & water got behind and ran out another wall, the floor wasn't graded properly, plumber's tape in a gob was removed from my sink trap, and I had to have the toilet re set and balanced! I HAD to hire another handyman & pay HIM to finish and fix what this guy left undone and incorrect. His web site shows my tiled bathroom but he neglects to say that the floor was not graded properly so when we take a shower water runs all over the bathroom floor. So my handicapped walk-in shower now has a marble sashing to stop the water from running out and flooding the floor. And when I tried to call or email him, he never returned my calls after I found the problems and he was paid in full. He sounded like an honest workman, was polite, and still did shoddy work. I will never recommend him for a job to anyone I like.