Soloway and Sons LLC

I hired a plaster contractor long before I hired Soloway. He was to completely plaster the house. The plastering began in the first part of March, 2013. Soloway broke the thermostat that controlled the heat in the house. The plaster contractor stressed the importance of having the thermostat replaced for proper plaster cure. It took 4 plus months for it to be replaced and was only done so after I demanded it be replaced. The plaster contractor told me that the entire plaster job had to be primed before I could paint it. Specifically, it had to be rolled on not sprayed. Spraying on primer, I was told, would kick up any dust or dirt that could stick to the new plaster, creating bumps on the surface and make it possibly difficult for the paint to adhere. I passed this information on to the supervisor with specific instructions That he could use the spray painter to paint the ceilings with white primer but that the walls needed primed with a colored primer and it needed to be rolled on. My instructions were completely ignored. Not only were the walls completely sprayed and covered with foreign matter around the floor, the ceilings were primed with green primer as well. I had to hire a third party to come in and fix the ceiling. It took her 3 days to do so. I eventually this person to paint the entire house. Which is another story. The person I hired to paint was a family friend who approached me and asked if she could do the painting of the house for me. After seeing what a nice job she did on the ceiling, I thought it might be a good idea. She quoted me $100.00 per day to paint and I hired her. According to what she told me, The contractor quizzed her about what she was charging me. After she told him, he responded by letting her know that he wouldn't do that job for less than $8,000.00. There by undermining my relationship with her and putting me in a very bad light. As far as painting is concerned. Part of my contract with Soloway was to put new windows and and trim in the house. The windows were over $9,000.00 and the trim was $4,500.00. Judging from the price, I had assumed that was a finished price. It wasn't until after the windows and trim were installed that I discovered from my painter that she was told that filling and painting of trim was not included in the price and that she was to do it. I didn't object and let her paint it and fill. My reasoning was that I liked the quality of her work. The windows were another issue. From the inside of the house they looked fine. From the outside they looked terrible. The old frames had pieces of the old windows still in it and different color paints from prior years that were revealed during demolition. I had this fixed by someone else as well. There was a large picture window that had been taken out of the front window. It was a large double pane plate glass piece. One of the panes was cracked and ready to break. It was very dangerous to handle. I actually helped to remove it from its place. In my absence the contractor decided to store this by leaning it up against his trailer in my front yard, creating a potential deadly hazard for neighborhood children, or for anyone coming into contact with it. Another person and I moved the glass and slid it face down underneath the construction trailer where it was less dangerous. While under construction, my front yard became a catch all for anything that was removed from the house. When I became aware that it was an eyesore in the neighborhood I asked the contractor to clean it up and move it out. I was promised that it would be moved out by friday of that week. On the following Saturday, I came by the house and it was still not removed. I immediately called the contractor about it and was told that he was fishing and would take care of it later. I don't remember exactly how long it was when the mess was cleaned up, but it was at this point that I realized that i didnt seem important to Soloway that he keep his promises or do what he says he was going to do. The next couple of months was pretty much the same.

My opinion is they are dishonest, sloppy, careless and self serving. I have pictures and witnesses to attest to the caliber of character this company has. It is my opinion that they did some illegal things to cut corners. Specifically, they had me pull an electrical permit in my name when it was their job to do so. As I understand it, the electrician they used was not licensed in Michigan. The light fixtures in my kitchen which were installed by Soloway are melted and falling out of the sealing. The trim in my bathroom around the doors and windows were never installed, even though I paid for them to be. They never put in the heat duct into the kitchen addition. I have roof debris all around my house from the roof replcement that they did. I suppose cleanup was not part of the job. I feel like I have been shaken down by these "good ole boys" and did not get nearly the value of what I paid for. I would advise anyone thinking about hiring them to think twice about it and then be prepared for grief. Do I have more to say? way to much to write here. None of it good. totally unrelated but one of my favorite quotes- A friend of mine once told me that "a snake in the grass is always a snake in the grass, even in a suit"