It is upsetting to see a review like this almost two years after the job was done. But I do still feel we should explain the owners experience. As in any remodel there can at times be unforeseen costs that can’t be assessed at the initial bid. In this instance as the customer mentioned the had very rotten exterior 4x12 Cedar window sills from a hone that was built in the 70s. Because stain does not hold up as well has paint on an exterior surface, those sills had taken a beating. On top of the fact they were a horizontal surface, any water would sit on that surface and just soak. During the initial estimate the customer has made some inquiries about changing the design of those sills. She wanted to change the angle of them which would have required some different specifications as well as mortar work. As in all my bids, if a customer asks us to do any work outside our wheel house I make it a point to say so. I told [Member Name Removed] that we are strictly a paint and carpentry company. We don’t get into customization nor are we trained in brick work. It’s very important to me that I don’t undersell that idea. We take rotten wood, and replace it with new wood. We aren’t trained or qualified in brick work, roof work, plumbing, replacing windows, or other. We are a specialized trade. We told [Member Name Removed] we could take the old wood window sills off and replace them. She preferred them stained for the cosmetic appeal. Our jobs as trained professionals is to give the pros and cons. Upon removing the window sill we found rot behind the board. In addition, the frame board the sills sat on was rotten as well. Keep in mind this is a 50 year olds house. Now, unfortunately there is no way for us to know those boards were bad as they were hidden behind, until me removed the boards we could see. In addition, the mortar around the sill was in a lot worse condition than could be seen from just looking. Our jobs as estimators is to give an accurate bid based on all visible issues. Because we don’t pull boards off at our free estimates, we can’t foresee the rot to come. And full disclosure, that’s in any remodel. If you have your floors pulled and the sub floor is rotten, that will cost more than the initial estimate. Which is important to note, that’s why they’re called “estimates”. And not “final invoices”. Now, when those instance do happen, I add up the material, then ask the crews how much the want in labor to replace those items. The company makes nothing extra in those cases. We charge the customer our cost. And that’s what we did for [Member Name Removed]. There was rot found behind visible boards in our attempt to fix the house back to the way it was built. We found more rot than we priced. So we charged her “cost” to fix it. And the owner even paid some out of his pocket to help as she mentioned above when he reduced the costs. In those instances the owner isn’t just making less on it, he’s paying out of pocket for part of the labor/material. Which we try to do to help customers. Up to this point things had been running smoothly. But after giving the customer the price to fix the new/unforeseen repair, they told the crew to stop working while they thought about it. In a competitive market, and to give a customer the best and most accurate bid, our estimates are priced to allot for “x” amount of days and “x” amount of material. Our crews know how much they’re making on every job before it starts, so they can plan how many helpers to bring for how many days. When a customer tells a crew to stop working, it literally costs them money. Now we understand that the customer needed to think on the additional costs for the repairs, but there were other areas of the home we could have continued to work on while they contemplated the additional costs. But after 3 hours of the crews waiting in their van, the crew called and said they were leaving if they wouldn’t be allowed to work. I tried calling several times to reach the customer and the calls went unanswered. So as they mentioned, to keep production moving I came by the house. After speaking with the and eating some of the labor costs, they agreed to the repairs. In regards to the paint on their exterior rug and patio furniture seat cushions. We take great pride in protecting our customers belongings. We use all brand new paper, plastic, and masking supplies. However on this summer day the wind picked up unexpectedly and blew some paint on the items mentioned above. We told the customer we would clean them the best we could and get all the paint off, and if she wasn’t happy we would gladly replace the items at no cost. Which is what happened. The customer mentioned they were having people over for a bbq that weekend and the owner left that moment, went to “At Home” and replaced the items that were damaged with brand new identical replacements. Out of his pocket of course. In regards to the boyfriend mentioned. While we are 10000% happy to address all issues, almost all issues in the paint industry are items that get addressed by the crew as they’re wrapping up. And unfortunately if they are stopped frequently to address something that will get addressed at the end, it interrupts their production flow. In this instance the boyfriend (who admittedly “use” to paint) was asking us to do things on his home that weren’t up to spec. We certainly appreciate people having experience in our field. And it does make them more difficult to work with. Not because it’s an issue meeting expectations. But as the industry changes, so do specifications. And we are happy to accommodate certain expectations, provided they’re not costly to the paint work. Here, one particular question was asked by the boyfriend in a very upset tone. As to why we didn’t paint the sides on his back patio door. We had to explain those aren’t painted. Especially with a latex based paint as it’s a very high friction area and that paint would chip off. As politely as we can, the boyfriend was asking us to do things that’s not done by a quality paint company today, and it’s final product would be subpar. And as we mentioned, we are happy to accommodate, as long as it doesn’t compromise the integrity of the paint work. The issue where she mentions the 2 inch gap on the soffit I do believe is an exaggeration. The soffits above the back patio were smooth Masonite. A product night made since 1999. Soffits are the “ceiling” portion of your trim. Texas Heritage Painting does a full recaulk. Unlike other companies who just touch up the cracks. We caulk everything. On her soffits we caulked all the seems. Had their been a 2 inch upside down horizontal gap, we wouldn’t/couldn’t have caulked as there is no way to fill a horizontal gap with 2 inches of caulking as it’s an acrylic latex sealant. It wouldn’t hold. If there had been a two inch gap those are generally attributed to shifting. In which case we suggest replacing with a new wider piece of trim. That wasn’t the case here. It was a standard seam and we caulked it fully with 50 year caulking. At this point the owner did tell the customer that the remainder of correspondence would need to be done via text and email. (Which were all responded to with in minutes by the owner himself) Because any and everything that was discussed in person verbally was either being misinterpreted or forgotten. So that both parties might have a paper trail, he felt this would help clear up any confusion and protect both sides. And lastly, the painting of the freezeboards. During the initial bid the owner asked the customer what paint scheme she had in mind to give her an accurate bid. She stated to liked the “two toned” look. Which is very common and we have preformed for over a decade. We did explain it costs more as it requires more masking. So to ensure the customer was given the exact price for the work she wanted done, it was made clear that the trim would be one color. And the siding alone would be the second color. It’s also important to mention, that having trim one color and siding a second color is what’s done on 99% of two toned homes. And the owner said this at the initial estimate to ensure he was giving all information and again, to ensure an accurate estimate. While the customer might have thought it wouldn’t have taken that long to simply paint the freezeboards, the siding color, not only was it not priced that way, but it would have added more time to the job. Had they requested it in the beginning we gladly could have done it. But the estimate would have been higher. Which is why the owner told her it would have been $1,000 more, because that’s how much it would have added had they requested it in the beginning. Because our homes are sprayed, it takes more time and material to paint homes a two-tone color scheme. Even more when the freezeboards are a different color. (Which isn’t common with two toned schemes as mentioned) The secondary color first has to be masked off so the primary color can be sprayed. Then the primary color is allowed to dry, then it can be masked off, so that the secondary color can be sprayed. Because the customer did not request a secondary color on the freeze boards, the brick was masked so that all the trim was sprayed the same color. So while we are happy to paint a home, with their preferred colors where they want (pending some HOA approvals), certain requests cost more. We pride ourselves on making customers happy. But we can’t do it all for free. We are a small business family owned company who has been in business for 13 years. We are 6th generation Texans. Taking care of our fellow Texans truly is an honor for us. So to receive a review like this almost 2 years after the work was done is confusing and unsettling to us. But we post all of our work on our Facebook page. And [Member Name Removed]’s home is on there 5/25/19 if you’d like to judge the work yourself. It’s the home with the stained window sills, cream trim, and grey/blue siding.