It amazes me how often in our profession we come across unscrupulous individuals who take advantage of elderly people. We met a client in Pasco county who had a dilemma; they had a work stoppage placed on a room addition that they were constructing on their home. I went and met with them and come to find out the 'contractor' they had hired to build the room addition was not what he said he was. First off, he never pulled a permit for the addition on the home which is what started this whole mess off in the first place. They had paid this gentleman $15,000.00 up front as a down payment on their new space. He started construction and had the walls framed, roof sheathed, windows and doors installed when the Pasco County inspectors found out about it. They immediately put a work stoppage on the project and told the homeowner that they needed to obtain engineering and submit for a permit. They eventually found out the gentleman they hired wasn't even licensed in the state of Florida (he actually lived out of state). The homeowner came across our name on the internet and wanted to meet and discuss. We came out and inspected the situation; it was not good. Nothing in this room addition was up to code. From window installation, to certain aspects of the framing including thin plywood used as roof sheathing, roof rafters that had dovetails cut too deep jeopardizing the strength of the wood, no footers being poured to support the walls, the list goes on and on. The person they hired obviously had no idea how a proper room addition in the state of Florida is supposed to be constructed. Either that or he was just attempting to build this project on the cheap. Even if we were to obtain proper engineering for this client, there was nothing about the current structure that had been built that we could have used. Unfortunately this client had to hire us to demolish this new room addition they had just paid to have constructed. We had to cut it up and put it in a dumpster and hall it away.
We always tell our customers, please do your research. Make sure you are getting a quality product by a professional company. DCI Home Improvements strives to give our clients the absolute best when it comes to craftsmanship. When you hire us, you are putting a lot of trust in our corner and we aim to give you a product that you will not only enjoy and be issue free, but you will also be safe and secure. Make sure you do your research on the company you hire, whether it is DCI Home Improvements or another contractor. Ask to see licenses. Ask to see insurance paperwork. Ask for references. Do they have a website that you can access project info. Are they affiliated with The Better Business Bureau or Angie's List? Check to see if they have complaints against them. All of this research will pay off in the end as it will give you peace of mind that you have chosen the right contractor for your project.