Initial Business Response / [redacted] (1000, 12, 2016/06/23) */ In addition to the response for a similar claim on the subject property to the Illinois Attorney General dated 10/31/by [redacted] ***, the following is further clarification to his complaints Multiple Plumbing Leaks Prather Plumbing is the subcontractor for this projectthere was one seeping pipe in the ceiling that was corrected by the plumber Hiring 'convicts' Design Built Homes has and will continue to use some workers from the work release centerThese are skilled tradesmen and laborers that are nearing completion of their sentencing and are provided this opportunity to integrate back into societyWork is supervised and delegated according to abilityA union carpenter from work release center did the trim work on this houseThe homeowner was very pleased with his work and even discussed having him install his fence as a side job Driveway crack Concrete is not guaranteed against crackingI have never warranted concrete for cracking and any concrete company will tell you that concrete is going to crackHowever, we did repair that section of concrete at no cost Air conditioner broke down two times The first time, the breaker was offThe second time, there was a recall on the unit and an additive was added to solve the problem Furnace ports and air returns not hooked up in crawl space The plumber took down two air returns and neglected to hook up them back up [redacted] Heating hooked them back up Furnace broke down There was an electrical spike issueThe home owner also had problems with several appliances that had to be replaced because of thisKeller Heating installed a new panel at no cost to the customerThe reason for the spike was an issue stemming from Ameren Illinois Peeling paint This was corrected last year Nail pops Nail pops were filled last weekThis is a occurrence with new construction Screen and swing door won't open and close properly Initially, I had the representative from the door company look at the doorHe could not positively determine the cause and suggested a carpenter look at itThe homeowner would not allow separate companies I tried to schedule look at the door and repair if possibleThey wanted to dictate who they would allow to look at it and me the names of [redacted] Construction, who was too busy, and [redacted] Construction, who is coming out tomorrow Carpet pad I ordered the carpet pad per the contract that was installed in the houseApproximately a year later in January 2016, the homeowner had leak in the basementI quoted them the cost of materiel and labor to replace, but required the outstanding balance to be paid prior to additional workThe homeowner hired someone else and I have never heard anymore about it until several months later in My in their complaints to the Attorney General and the Revdex.com In summary, Design Built Homes has addressed their complaintswe have gone beyond with doing warranty work and repairs that were not warranted even though the homeowner has never fulfilled payment on the contractIn addition, we researched and negotiated insurance funds to help the homeowner complete his house that they wouldn't have had monies for otherwise Sincerely, [redacted] Design Built Homes, LTD Initial Consumer Rebuttal / [redacted] (3000, 14, 2016/07/02) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) I'd first like to say that I wasn't able to list all the problems we have or all the pictures we have due to a limit on what can be submittedI think the extremely high volume and type of problems we have had, whether eventually fixed or not, should be considered an example of the type of work they do and a warning to othersI'd also like to point out that we have yet to receive a response on these issues from the original filing: Basement not being properly secured, basement damage, mold, delays, drywall, deck boards, electrical outlet, paying of subs & submitting lien waivers, interest being charged, etcRegarding the responses we did receive, here is my response to that: It's not trueThere were multiple leaking pipes as areas had to be repaired in separate rooms(somepictures attached)I'd also like to mention that the plumber has yet to be paid by the builderThis work was part of the original contract (not extras or add ons) and we have paid more than the originally contracted amount We were never notified by the builder that convicts would be usedWe found out from one of them as he felt guilty about us not knowing and decided to tell usThey were not supervisedThey were dropped off each morning and my wife & infant son were there with them some of the timeMany times she had to leave to run an errand and had to leave them aloneThe plumber showed us empty alcohol bottles stuffed in our pipesI found cash in my mailboxThey would leave money in there so their friends could go get them alcohol and then hide the empty bottles in the pipesI'd like to see some kind of proof that they were skilled craftsmenThe guy that did our fireplace tile admitted to us that he'd never done that kind of work before, but he would "do his best"I have pictures of the tile that had to be ripped out of the mud room and be redoneThe tile grout warranty work still hasn't been addressed The driveway I had before the tornado was my original driveway (1998-2013)I never had to have work done on itThis new driveway was cracked within a few months There was never an issue with a breaker being offBoth times the issue was a line freezing upIt took multiple service calls and yes an additive needed to be used to help with the problemMy point is this was a brand new unit and it took multiple calls before it was fixed I'm not sure why the ports weren't hooked up or why the builder, HVAC company or city inspector didn't catch this, but I couldn't get heat into my kids bedrooms during winter and my Ameren bills were higher during this time frameThere were not just two vents unhooked, but five vents (pictures attached) The furnace was brand new and yet broke down within monthsOriginally we thought the problem was solved when all the vents were found unconnected and that was addressedThe plumber showed us they were unconnected, he didn't have anything to do with it and there were vents unconnected...see pictures attachedLater the mother board on the furnace was found needing to be replacedI know nothing about an electrical spike or Ameren issueThe problems we had with our other appliances had nothing to do with electrical problems (dishwasher leaked, gas stove had burner that didn't work, freezer worked but fridge didn't) We are still having issues with paint pealing (picture attached)It hasn't all been correctedThe person doing the touch up work on the nail pops (not the original painter because he's still owed money by the builder) has had to repaint entire areas after doing the touch up work because it's so noticeableThey say many areas weren't sanded firstThey also believe no primer was used and only one coat with a primer mix was applied and that's the reason why a simple touch up can't be done and the entire wall/area need redoneThis work isn't finished yet and in some areas the builder has yet to agree to have the work done Still not finished The builder didn't initially have the door company come out, they had multiple people come look at the door before that and they were told the frame & threshold needed tore out and replacedThe door company was about the third to come see itThe builder brought them in and told them the problem was with the door and that they should fix itHe told the builder the issue wasn't anything to do with the quality of the door, but rather the framing and thresholdI spoke to the door representative about the matterHe said he told the builder to simply do the workHe was told by the builder that they had no employees to do the work (they no longer have anyone on payroll that can do framing work)The builder asked the door rep to recommend someoneHe told me he refused to do so as he didn't want to be involved with this builder regarding the matterThe builder then wanted to send people/subs to do the work that weren't reputable in my opinion (one was a realtor that does remodeling work on the side)Based on my concern about their skills and the multiple egregiously poor subs & workers she had used to date I told her I didn't want them for the workThe builder then offered to let me pic the party to do the workI asked for Cooper Construction (they were too busy) and then MenoldsOne recent morning Menolds sent out three people to look at the door and all said the door needs removed and the framing/threshold replacedTo date the work hasn't been scheduled, let alone done, and the door continues to get damaged and will need replaced The carpet padding that was supposed to be ordered and installed and was paid for was 8lbsThe padding removed after the water damage was 6lbsNo other carpet has been ripped out to check the padding, but I imagine you'll find 6lbs padding throughout the rest of the houseThe closet doors in the basement bedroom won't fit back on now that the 8lbs padding has been installedWhy would we use the builder to replace the carper & padding damaged when they didn't give us what we paid for the first time, wanted us to pay them even though there's all this unfinished work, subs owed money, etc? The builder did find out about the padding thru the Attorney General and Revdex.com fillingsThey have proven themselves unethical and immoral and we felt the best way to proceed in the matter was with helpWhen we tell the builder about problems they take too long to get fixedFor example the fireplace just got fixed last weekThat's months we've lived in this house and never been able to use the fireplace because it hasn't been right and hadn't been fixedThe windows were finally sealed last week, months after we moved in Design Built Homes has NOT addressed all of our complaints, has NOT done all the warranty work, has not installed materials we have paid for, has not been timely, honest or ethical with usSaying they've gone beyond the warranty work and repairs is laughableI've attached pictures of an electrical outlet in one of the children's bedroomThey called the first picture "completed work" and when we complained enough you'll see the picture of their "fix"The builder mentions an outstanding balanceThe builders contract specifically states in section 2.7(b&c) that final payment may be withheld because of failure of builder to pay subcontractors, suppliers, etc and reasonable doubt that the work can be completedAs of now we know that the plumber, electrician, HVAC, lumber supplier and painter has not been paid fully paidOur work hasn't been completed, is beyond a reasonable completion date and the builder has only one person on payroll in the entire companyWe believe these issues to be of reasonable and legal concern to withhold the final payment
Initial Business Response / [redacted] (1000, 12, 2016/06/23) */ In addition to the response for a similar claim on the subject property to the Illinois Attorney General dated 10/31/by [redacted] ***, the following is further clarification to his complaints Multiple Plumbing Leaks Prather Plumbing is the subcontractor for this projectthere was one seeping pipe in the ceiling that was corrected by the plumber Hiring 'convicts' Design Built Homes has and will continue to use some workers from the work release centerThese are skilled tradesmen and laborers that are nearing completion of their sentencing and are provided this opportunity to integrate back into societyWork is supervised and delegated according to abilityA union carpenter from work release center did the trim work on this houseThe homeowner was very pleased with his work and even discussed having him install his fence as a side job Driveway crack Concrete is not guaranteed against crackingI have never warranted concrete for cracking and any concrete company will tell you that concrete is going to crackHowever, we did repair that section of concrete at no cost Air conditioner broke down two times The first time, the breaker was offThe second time, there was a recall on the unit and an additive was added to solve the problem Furnace ports and air returns not hooked up in crawl space The plumber took down two air returns and neglected to hook up them back up [redacted] Heating hooked them back up Furnace broke down There was an electrical spike issueThe home owner also had problems with several appliances that had to be replaced because of thisKeller Heating installed a new panel at no cost to the customerThe reason for the spike was an issue stemming from Ameren Illinois Peeling paint This was corrected last year Nail pops Nail pops were filled last weekThis is a occurrence with new construction Screen and swing door won't open and close properly Initially, I had the representative from the door company look at the doorHe could not positively determine the cause and suggested a carpenter look at itThe homeowner would not allow separate companies I tried to schedule look at the door and repair if possibleThey wanted to dictate who they would allow to look at it and me the names of [redacted] Construction, who was too busy, and [redacted] Construction, who is coming out tomorrow Carpet pad I ordered the carpet pad per the contract that was installed in the houseApproximately a year later in January 2016, the homeowner had leak in the basementI quoted them the cost of materiel and labor to replace, but required the outstanding balance to be paid prior to additional workThe homeowner hired someone else and I have never heard anymore about it until several months later in My in their complaints to the Attorney General and the Revdex.com In summary, Design Built Homes has addressed their complaintswe have gone beyond with doing warranty work and repairs that were not warranted even though the homeowner has never fulfilled payment on the contractIn addition, we researched and negotiated insurance funds to help the homeowner complete his house that they wouldn't have had monies for otherwise Sincerely, [redacted] Design Built Homes, LTD Initial Consumer Rebuttal / [redacted] (3000, 14, 2016/07/02) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) I'd first like to say that I wasn't able to list all the problems we have or all the pictures we have due to a limit on what can be submittedI think the extremely high volume and type of problems we have had, whether eventually fixed or not, should be considered an example of the type of work they do and a warning to othersI'd also like to point out that we have yet to receive a response on these issues from the original filing: Basement not being properly secured, basement damage, mold, delays, drywall, deck boards, electrical outlet, paying of subs & submitting lien waivers, interest being charged, etcRegarding the responses we did receive, here is my response to that: It's not trueThere were multiple leaking pipes as areas had to be repaired in separate rooms(somepictures attached)I'd also like to mention that the plumber has yet to be paid by the builderThis work was part of the original contract (not extras or add ons) and we have paid more than the originally contracted amount We were never notified by the builder that convicts would be usedWe found out from one of them as he felt guilty about us not knowing and decided to tell usThey were not supervisedThey were dropped off each morning and my wife & infant son were there with them some of the timeMany times she had to leave to run an errand and had to leave them aloneThe plumber showed us empty alcohol bottles stuffed in our pipesI found cash in my mailboxThey would leave money in there so their friends could go get them alcohol and then hide the empty bottles in the pipesI'd like to see some kind of proof that they were skilled craftsmenThe guy that did our fireplace tile admitted to us that he'd never done that kind of work before, but he would "do his best"I have pictures of the tile that had to be ripped out of the mud room and be redoneThe tile grout warranty work still hasn't been addressed The driveway I had before the tornado was my original driveway (1998-2013)I never had to have work done on itThis new driveway was cracked within a few months There was never an issue with a breaker being offBoth times the issue was a line freezing upIt took multiple service calls and yes an additive needed to be used to help with the problemMy point is this was a brand new unit and it took multiple calls before it was fixed I'm not sure why the ports weren't hooked up or why the builder, HVAC company or city inspector didn't catch this, but I couldn't get heat into my kids bedrooms during winter and my Ameren bills were higher during this time frameThere were not just two vents unhooked, but five vents (pictures attached) The furnace was brand new and yet broke down within monthsOriginally we thought the problem was solved when all the vents were found unconnected and that was addressedThe plumber showed us they were unconnected, he didn't have anything to do with it and there were vents unconnected...see pictures attachedLater the mother board on the furnace was found needing to be replacedI know nothing about an electrical spike or Ameren issueThe problems we had with our other appliances had nothing to do with electrical problems (dishwasher leaked, gas stove had burner that didn't work, freezer worked but fridge didn't) We are still having issues with paint pealing (picture attached)It hasn't all been correctedThe person doing the touch up work on the nail pops (not the original painter because he's still owed money by the builder) has had to repaint entire areas after doing the touch up work because it's so noticeableThey say many areas weren't sanded firstThey also believe no primer was used and only one coat with a primer mix was applied and that's the reason why a simple touch up can't be done and the entire wall/area need redoneThis work isn't finished yet and in some areas the builder has yet to agree to have the work done Still not finished The builder didn't initially have the door company come out, they had multiple people come look at the door before that and they were told the frame & threshold needed tore out and replacedThe door company was about the third to come see itThe builder brought them in and told them the problem was with the door and that they should fix itHe told the builder the issue wasn't anything to do with the quality of the door, but rather the framing and thresholdI spoke to the door representative about the matterHe said he told the builder to simply do the workHe was told by the builder that they had no employees to do the work (they no longer have anyone on payroll that can do framing work)The builder asked the door rep to recommend someoneHe told me he refused to do so as he didn't want to be involved with this builder regarding the matterThe builder then wanted to send people/subs to do the work that weren't reputable in my opinion (one was a realtor that does remodeling work on the side)Based on my concern about their skills and the multiple egregiously poor subs & workers she had used to date I told her I didn't want them for the workThe builder then offered to let me pic the party to do the workI asked for Cooper Construction (they were too busy) and then MenoldsOne recent morning Menolds sent out three people to look at the door and all said the door needs removed and the framing/threshold replacedTo date the work hasn't been scheduled, let alone done, and the door continues to get damaged and will need replaced The carpet padding that was supposed to be ordered and installed and was paid for was 8lbsThe padding removed after the water damage was 6lbsNo other carpet has been ripped out to check the padding, but I imagine you'll find 6lbs padding throughout the rest of the houseThe closet doors in the basement bedroom won't fit back on now that the 8lbs padding has been installedWhy would we use the builder to replace the carper & padding damaged when they didn't give us what we paid for the first time, wanted us to pay them even though there's all this unfinished work, subs owed money, etc? The builder did find out about the padding thru the Attorney General and Revdex.com fillingsThey have proven themselves unethical and immoral and we felt the best way to proceed in the matter was with helpWhen we tell the builder about problems they take too long to get fixedFor example the fireplace just got fixed last weekThat's months we've lived in this house and never been able to use the fireplace because it hasn't been right and hadn't been fixedThe windows were finally sealed last week, months after we moved in Design Built Homes has NOT addressed all of our complaints, has NOT done all the warranty work, has not installed materials we have paid for, has not been timely, honest or ethical with usSaying they've gone beyond the warranty work and repairs is laughableI've attached pictures of an electrical outlet in one of the children's bedroomThey called the first picture "completed work" and when we complained enough you'll see the picture of their "fix"The builder mentions an outstanding balanceThe builders contract specifically states in section 2.7(b&c) that final payment may be withheld because of failure of builder to pay subcontractors, suppliers, etc and reasonable doubt that the work can be completedAs of now we know that the plumber, electrician, HVAC, lumber supplier and painter has not been paid fully paidOur work hasn't been completed, is beyond a reasonable completion date and the builder has only one person on payroll in the entire companyWe believe these issues to be of reasonable and legal concern to withhold the final payment