Rapid Construction

Very poorly - see above. We had to pay another contractor to actually do the work.

I put an ad on Craigs list for the job. I set up 2 days for the bidders to come out and look at the job. About 15 or so contractors came by and gave me bids on the Job. Stan was not the cheapest but he was the only one who had offered to put a stained and scored finish on the patio for no extra charge. He seemed competent and knowledgeable. He also offered to do the job with no money up front. He asked that we pay for the materials directly to the supplier once they were delivered to the site. When he arrived to sign the contract, he asked for a deposit of $650 which is what I expected to pay anyway. The contract was multiple pages and seemed to cover all the details. It seemed to protect both parties and clearly spelled out the work. He also provided a current proof of liability insurance certificate. Everything seemed to be in order so I wrote the check for $650. After he was awarded the job, he stalled and delayed. On September 23rd he finally sent an uninsured sub-contractor to complete the roof. The sub wanted a separate contract with us so he called Stan and Stan sent us an email releasing us from the roof portion of the contract, but agreeing to complete the concrete work. When I asked the sub for proof of liability insurance, he admitted that he didn't have any. So we had to call Stan again and have it completed under Stan's company name. When the roof was complete I wrote the check for that portion and made it out to Stan, rather than the sub, because that was the name the contract was with. Stan wanted the checks made out to him rather than "Rapid Construction".Since we had purchased the materials, the check was for the labor only. When I tried to deduct the $650 deposit from the roof amount, the sub went ballistic even though he had to take the check to Stan to get his money. That set off a red flag because I got the feeling he was concerned about Stan paying him the full amount. I didn't want the sub registering a lien against our property in the event that Stan didn't pay the sub, so I wrote the check for the full amount. We are in the process of selling our house and needed the job completed in a timely manner. This was made clear to Stan and he promised to have the job complete by September the 12th! We had to hire another contractor to install the patio and that was completed October 30th. The original contract was for scored and stained concrete but since Stan kept our deposit, we had to settle for a regular broom finish. We have been delayed in putting our house on the market by 6 weeks waiting for Stan. Stan still has our $650, despite repeated email promises from him to return our money. I have saved all the emails and will present them in court if necessary. Now he has stopped taking our calls and answering emails. If I could give him negative stars I would.