LEE TRIPI DESIGNED INTERIORS

We feel we were over charged. Lee charges for 10 hours up front which equals $1,500. We were told that odds are the whole project would not require 10 hours. After Lee caused multiple delays to our project and was not providing value we parted ways early in the project... On Jan 5th we sent the following email to Lee and did not get a response. When we did get Lee on the phone his response was "I don't have to explain my time log to you, the hours are what they are". -------------------------- Email to Lee and his assistant on 1/5/13 -------------------------- I am surprised by the time log submitted. We all expected that 10 hours would be sufficient to complete the project and unused funds would be refunded. During our initial conversation both the time and budget expectations were discussed. Lee noted that he should have communicated that he was not able to work within those initial constraints at subsequent meetings (e.g.,timeline for drawings). Our meeting on 11/1 (initial consultation) per the agreement should be non- billable. Note that the agreement was signed on 11/3. It also states that travel outside Raleigh-Durham is billed at the hourly rate; which I interpret to mean that travel is not billable within the immediate area. Please note that efforts were made to meet at the studio as soon as it was available. Further, if you recall, there was a miscommunication regarding the meeting at *** in which Lee indicated that he would credit us for the misunderstanding. The final meeting on 11/16 did not exceed 1.5 hours; during this meeting Lee indicated that the design options were not possible within the budget constraints provided by the contractor. Lastly, the agreement indicates that 2 iterations of a drawing were to be delivered, which did not occur. We received one extremely rough sketch; however, this sketch did not meet our expectations. As a professional designer, we expected the sketch to be accurate with color suggestions, furniture placement, etc. We did understand that we would not receive a computer-assisted design. I encourage Lee to review his efforts on our project and reconsider the fee. Unfortunately, after a series of meetings it was determined that the design ideas presented could not work within the budgetary allowances and the project was not completed. - See more at: http://www.bbb.org/raleigh-durham/business-reviews/interior-decorators/lee-tripi-interiors-in-raleigh-nc-6038742/complaints#sthash.OAbxY04X.dpuf

We engaged Lee in early July to provide design work for a complete gutting and remodeling of our 1960's split-level kitchen. We fully intended to purchase our cabinets, counter and sink from Lee Tripi Design. The contract was $1,750 for 10 hours of design work at $175/hour. (Lee assured us this would cover the kitchen design and that he would actually spend far more time than that, at no extra cost, including overseeing the contractor throughout the project.) Approximately three weeks after making a site visit, Lee emailed a hand-drawn simple floor plan sketch that was essentially our existing kitchen with the addition of an island (our suggestion) -- and with multiple inaccuracies, among them: the exterior door was placed squarely into an existing window, the range dimensions, and therefore adjoining cabinets, were incorrect, and it included seating on the end of the island, though we had expressly stated not wanting this, as it intruded well into the dining room. Proceeding on the assumption that more accurate and detailed drawings, incorporating our wishes, would be forthcoming, we met with Lee, selected a cabinet finish from his one line of cabinets (though we originally understood he carried at least two) and counters in wood and quartz from his two lines of counters. We solicited bids from contractors, including the one referred by Lee. As bids came in, and Lee casually mentioned cabinet costs in the $20K range, it became apparent that we were looking at at least 60% over our original $50K budget. (Lee's referred contractor, which he applied considerable pressure for us to use, was 100% higher than our lowest bid.) We understand that our original budget was unrealistic. At this point, we very clearly (verbally and in a detailed email) expressed the necessity of nailing costs down and requested hard numbers for all of the major items we would be purchasing. Nearly a week later, we received an email that gave somewhat vague and incomplete estimates for a few of the items requested. (This included an estimate for our island counter that was 50% higher than we had been originally told.) The sink, toe-kicks, hardware and installation were not noted. And we still did not have an accurate drawing (so I am a bit mystified how an accurate cabinet estimate could have been worked up). Having failed to provide a single accurate drawing or any kind of formal quote for our $25-30K in materials, over the course of more than two months, we could only conclude that Lee was either unwilling or unable to complete the work for which he was hired. As we needed to get started on this project in hopes of finishing before the holidays, we terminated the relationship on 9/11 and subsequently requested an accounting of hours and, given that the sum total of Lee's work had been two in-store meetings, one site visit and one inaccurate simple floor plan, expected some refund. Lee's accounting of his $175-per-hour "design" time included $875 for the one unworkable sketch he provided of our existing kitchen layout with an island added, and $700 for "product research." We do not consider pricing our cabinet and counter selection -- that we were buying from him -- as "product research." Nor can we understand what "research" took place, given that we chose from the single cabinet line he carried. Regardless, precise pricing was never provided. After multiple attempts at some sort of reconciliation, Lee offered to refund $500 in two payments but has failed to respond to our email accepting this offer. At $175 per hour, I would have expected some actual design work, but would have settled for working drawings. Lee was most certainly given a reasonable chance to complete the work and simply did not. He was wholly unprofessional in his dealings with us, and we plan to file a Better Business Bureau complaint as well as a small claims case against him. We have just completed our $75,000 kitchen renovation, using another designer.