EBA Construction

We contracted EBA to remodel our basement living area in April 2014, with construction to begin in the beginning of June, provided demolition of the old part was completed by us by Memorial Day. Project was originally to be removal of an old bar and flooring, and repair of the wall where the bar was attached, and building doorways to the utility and storage rooms, for $10,000. Demolition was completed at the agreed upon time. Told him (Beau Allard, owner) that we needed the construction to be done by Labor Day, as we were having out of town company staying with us for the holiday. Construction did not begin until the last week of July. Once started, the scope of the project changed, with additional work to reverse the existing floor plan by relocating bedroom to the opposite end of the basement. This included the installation of an egress window in the bedroom to make it a legal bedroom. Construction was sporadic. Beau requested to be paid for the materials as they were used, which we did, making payments that totaled $20,000 by November 2014. Since the Labor Day deadline was missed due to the additional work performed, the dead line was extended to Thanksgiving when we were again hosting out-of-town company. The basement was still uninhabitable, due the sporadic work availability of EBA. The deadline was again extended to Christmas, more out-of-town company, that was also missed. Work was "completed "on December 28, except for the cover on the egress window well and a few other minor items. An additional payment of $8,000 was demanded for the final payment, which we had not been quoted or expecting. I had to use my home as collateral to borrow the additional money, which took a month to process. All that month Beau is demanding he be paid. I paid him on January 21, 2015, with the understanding that he would complete the egress window well cover when the weather got comfortable enough to work outside again (in the spring?). As of this writing (August 2016), my egress window is still not complete. The cover is on but not attached with the included hardware, and the window cannot be opened in case of an emergency. There have been numerous request for Beau to finish the job, but no response in a year and a half! While his work quality is excellent, his scheduling and adherence to deadlines is horrible. If anyone uses him, be sure to include a financial penalty for missed deadlines into the contract.