Clarke Carpentry

I hired Mr. Clarke last summer to build custom cabinets in several areas within my Boston condo. He appeared highly knowledgable and professional at the time of the estimate. Based on this, and the estimate itself, I hired him and agreed to pay $4,000 (of the total $7,000) for the purchase of materials, and 40% of the fabrication labor. After he had my money, his responsiveness dwindled to a text message every other week, if I was lucky. He used every excuse in the book about why he was unable to begin the installation. Everything from ailing family members overseas, inability to find a babysitter... I even made one up FOR him one time; I figured the only possible way he forgot to call me (to tell me he couldn't work today) was that he lost his cell phone. And he actually went with it! After 10 weeks of waiting, I threatened legal action. Finally he began to respond to my calls. But every day it was some different excuse as to why he couldn't make it. Meetings with lawyers (he has multiple pending suits), doctors, the list goes on. After another couple weeks of this, I finally pulled the plug and demanded that he deliver everything he had built, and I would attempt to recover the remainder in court. What he delivered was bits and pieces (none assembled, many missing, most not even painted) and assumed he had delivered on our original agreement of "Materials and 40% of Fabrication Labor." I finally was able to hire someone to finish the job. He estimated that Mr. Clarke delivered a fraction of what he claimed he spent on materials (he was unable to provide receipts, I asked a number of times) and about 30% of the fabrication. I have filed suit in Hingham small claims court to try to recuperate the difference, but he had built a clause into the contract (my fault for signing it) that calls for arbitration in lieu of legal settlement for disputes. This would cost me $1,800 just to file, so I'll take my chances in small claims court. I'm writing this today so that you, or someone, can avoid the stress, hassle and financial loss similar to that incurred by me. I'd do anything to have had information like this prior to this debacle. Do yourself a favor, avoid Clarke Carpentry for your project, there are plenty of responsible and competent carpenters out there.

I called Clarke Carpentry to get an estimate for some work we wanted done on our condo. I first spoke with him on December 13 and he told me he could come to give me an estimate at 7am on Monday, December 17. When he did not appear by 7:45 am, I called him to see if he was lost and he told me he had completely forgotten about the appointment. We rescheduled for the following day, Dec. 18, at 7:15 am. At 7:30 on the 18th, he called me to say he would not be able to make it. I asked him when he would be able to come, and he told me he could meet me on Thursday, December 20 at 5:30 pm. At 4:30 on 12/20 I called him to make sure he was still coming, as I told him I would need to leave work early in order to meet him. I also gave him my cell phone number again to make sure he had it. He said he was just leaving a job and would be there by 5:45 at the latest. I waited until 7pm. He never showed up and he never called. Such unprofessionalism is astonishing to me. I would advise anyone considering working with Clarke Carpentry to steer clear of them.

He was always pleasant to work with, had competitive pricing, and pays tremendous attention to detail. He offers excellent craftsmanship and has pride in his work.