Milestone Builders, CCS, Inc.

This following is my response to J[redacted] I[redacted] complaint:
If you will read R**'s comments, he did not say "extremely rude, unprofessional and plainly dishonest".  This is what J[redacted] said and I take exception to being called dishonest. I contacted R** and he did not seem to recall the August post (his j** was done in 2011) and was very pleasant and said if I need any help with this issue to let him know.   So J[redacted]'s made up comments about my being dishonest is strictly hers.  I have never, ever been called dishonest in my personal and business life.  I would like to refresh J[redacted]'s memory to the fake air gap she wanted us to install to pass inspection, or unpermitted work she wanted done or not paying for work she promised she would pay for...might I go on.  In my opinion that is dishonest.  My asking for payment is not dishonest.  Companies cannot exist if clients don't pay their bills.  They interpret our follow up to collect  money as rude.  Let a client want to collect money and see what it is like.  This whole conversation would not be happening if J[redacted] had not interfered with how we do business.  C[redacted] has designed and built hundreds of decks on all kinds of terrain near the ocean and none have failed.   The reason is because we know more than clients like J[redacted] who think they know more than the contractor.  We hardly had a choice in this case.  Even though this situation was caused by the client, we always said we would change the decking.  We have to pay a substantial amount of money to replace the deck due to J[redacted]'s demands and inexperience in knowing how decks are built for their best performance.  A client's incorrect decision and lack of knowledge can cost a contractor lots of money. 
C[redacted] will look at the other work to see if it is valid and make corrections if warranted.  The Fleetwood warranty is valid.  Pr**lems developed on this project because of indecisions, delays, changes to work done and incorrect products by the I[redacted].  In retrospect, we should have finished punch and left without doing any extra work for this client.  We should have known better.
In summary, the I[redacted] would not accept proper installation methods.  Since we are replacing the decking at our cost, proper IPE supplier and warranted installation methods will be applied.  The I[redacted] will not have any option about this.  Milestone Builders has now paid twice for this decking.  
Thank you.  
C[redacted]

Milestone Builders completed a large remodel...

for J[redacted] and S[redacted] and, at the conclusion of the Project, Milestone Builders was asked to construct a 32' x 13' hardwood deck at the front of the house. This was in late October, 2014. 
Chris Whitehead, the principle of Milestone Builders, has successfully designed and completed many new decks since the 1970s.  The Isles deck is simple in nature and requires proper application techniques in order for the deck to last for many years.  Unfortunately, clients who insist on doing it their way, ignoring sound advice, will always blame the contractor if it fails.
The finish decking material was proposed by Milestone Builders as a 1x6 Ipe hardwood. On November 1st, Milestone Builders notified the Isles family the Ipe product was in short supply and that we would switch to a similar Mangaris hardwood product.  .
Upon commencement of the finish decking, S[redacted] and J[redacted] requested that no fasteners be visible on the surface of the deck. Our only option to satisfy the customers request was to use a blind screw application which also left a small portion of the deck screws visible. This was also not acceptable to the customer. At that time, I opted to alter the application method again to avoid further complaints from the customer. We then completed the deck installation.  On December 9, 2014, we received an email from J[redacted] stating the "deck looks great with the oil!"
After freezing and some wet weather in Dec of 2014, it became apparent that the installation method was failing due to extreme temperature and wet weather changes. The mangaris material needed to be removed and reinstalled with a more significant screw application. After rescrewing the material, in part, the customer expressed more dissatisfaction with the appearance of the deck so we stopped work again (March, 2015).
A few  of the deck boards were left open at one end of the deck while we researched a final application method that would properly attach the material and meet with the customers' satisfaction. I was informed about the daughter stepping through the deck so we reattached the open section the same or next day. I was informed by the Isles that their daughter was OK.  We have not been notified of any injuries subsequent to the original comment.
Numerous back and forth communications between the customer and Milestone occurred in April and May 2015 regarding installation methods that would be acceptable to the customer. I informed the customer in May 2015 that I would replace the decking completely using the strongest and longest lasting installation method available. This meant that all of the screws would be installed through the top of the deck boards (the way I wanted to do it originally) and that the customer would have to accept the fact that the fasteners would all be visible. The customer then requested that we only use Ipe wood which was still in short supply.  We contacted many suppliers but they did not have the quantity and quality we wanted to finish the deck. Milestone attempted to locate long straight Ipe product for a few weeks while the customer contemplated an acceptable screw or cut pattern for the new deck product.
We found a really nice Mangaris product in really long straight pieces of sufficient quantity to complete the deck. This was mid June. Customer finally agrees to accept Mangaris in mid June. 
Milestone and customer finally agree on attachment method and product for deck replacement late June 2015. At this time, the customer asked that we wait until August 12 to start the work. Milestone's prior scheduled events were not able to allow for deck replacement on that date. In fact our final payments on other projects are held in retention preventing Milestone from purchasing the product and paying for proper labor until September. I informed the customer Sept 12th or 13th that we would double check the measurements in order to purchase the materials this past week which we did. I am now going to locate the product and inform the customer of available dates for installation in the coming week.
Milestone has never avoided communication with the customer (hundreds of emails) or refused to replace the deck wood finish product. Even though we feel that the customer is a major part of the reason that the decking application needs replacing, we agreed to replace the product months ago.  As always with this customer, we have had a very difficult time agreeing on industry standard application methods and quality standards regarding their Project.  
Following are additional responses to address the Isles' concerns:
Stucco crack at garage door will be remedied ASAP.
Not sure what window not opening. This will be checked.
Fleetwood door is properly installed and warranty is valid.
All other punch list items were completed months ago. If it needs to be rechecked, then it will be.
All exterior doors are installed and sealed properly per book door and aftermarket weatherstripping industry standards. All exterior doors are installed per local codes and approved by the City of Malibu. All exterior doors and windows meet California July 2014 energy and weatherstripping requirements. All exterior doors are installed per manufacturer's recommended procedures. These are not factory doors; they are loose leaf book doors accepted by the customer in an effort to meet the customers' budget constraints.
?
Thank you.
C[redacted]
Milestone Builders CCS, Inc.
Complete Construction Services
[redacted] Road, #50
Thousand Oaks, CA  91360
Tel. No.    ###-###-####
Fax No.    ###-###-####

Complaint: 10810125
I am rejecting this response because:
It's not true.  
C[redacted] suggested the nails himself and didn't say there was a risk of any problems whatsoever.  He changed the wood out from the contract which listed Ipe to Mangaris at the last minute saying he couldn't find Ipe but that Mangaris was the same.  He did not attach the down spout drains to the under deck pipes which he was meant to do and so the water pooled underneath the deck causing a moisture and temperature differential between the air above and the air below and he put the boards too close together so when the boards expanded there was no ventilation.  After this disaster I said I felt the original Ipe was the better wood as the Mangaris didn't work the first time but for months he claimed there was no good Ipe available in all of LA. 
Sliding door - C[redacted] has no idea if the warranty is valid with the current installation because he hasn't asked the manufacturer.  I had another company look at the job and they said the installation wasn't right.
The doors may not be factory made but I've never heard of a door that doesn't seal properly or a builder leaving viciously sharp hack sawed edges on a metal trim on the doors.
The plaster around the garage area needs re-doing because he had to crack it all off to replace wood he did not replace before the plastering was done.  A timing error on his part.  He then had his team re plaster instead of getting the plaster company back.
The window that doesn't close hasn't closed since installation and so we have never been able to fasten the lock as that is dependent on the window closing to work.
And in June 2015 I noticed that the brand new patio has at least two large cracks - I will send a photo.  
The grout in the bathroom cracked within weeks and I sent photos of that - all the water is going down underneath the shower stall and we have rotting trim again (second time as the first leak was ignored for 2 weeks until he finally accepted there was a problem and had to cut out all the plaster board and re- do the trim because of the leak going behind the wall) on a brand new shower he installed.
Our experience has been similar to another complaint about his company and service that I saw about a week ago on the Revdex.com site i.e. many items left unfinished, impossible to get him to return and his wife, who runs the accounts side of the business, became extremely rude, unprofessional and plainly dishonest.
Regards,
J[redacted]

Complaint: 10810125
I am rejecting this response because:
C[redacted] is still being dishonest and obviously doesn't know what C[redacted] says on site.
You can continue to go on with this but I will not accept anything less than the job that was contracted to do.
Regards,
J[redacted]

Review: Milestone Builders installed a deck in Nov 2014 using improper installation techniques (verified by outside companies). The boards then warped, split and pulled up from the frame and by Jan/Feb 2015 the wood was ruined. I sent photos (all available to view) and the owner said he would come and replace it. However, 7 months later he has not come back. When I email and ask when he is coming back he gives me dates and then cancels. He has said he doesn't have the money to buy the wood to repair it. However, when we employed him, he said he had an insurance policy to cover damage caused by improper building work. But he is refusing to make a claim. I have postponed issuing a complaint for so many months hoping that his declared good intentions would materialize into the deck we contracted to have built. This has not happened. Also, over the course of the last 8 months he said he would come back to complete/repair work that wasn't carried out properly such as brand new external plaster his team cracked and split when doing work in the area (which was supposed to have been done before the new plaster was put on but he forgot or simply wasn't paying attention), installing a sliding door so that my warranty from the manufacturer would be valid, adjusting a window that his team installed that won't close, tiling grout that cracked after a few weeks, doors not sealed against the elements, plumbing fixtures crooked etc etc. The list is so long and I have sent several photographic lists - evidence which anyone is welcome to inspect. He said he would come back with his team for a week to complete some of the outstanding work but this hasn't happened either. He advised me to retain a small amount of money from the contract as an incentive for him to finish the work but obviously its not enough as he has not returned.Desired Settlement: I had wanted his team to repair the deck and other problems on the job, but I can see that he has no plans to return after so long and yet more excuses, so we have no choice but to recover funds.And because my daughter fell through the deck where one of the milestone team did not secure a board, we also need to get doctors clearance on her injured leg to make sure that the bruising and subsequent sub dermal hardening will heal completely and not cause any further problems

Business

Response:

Unfortunately, I must submit a negative review. I thought this had previously been submitted but realized it had not gone thru. Although overall the work was sufficient, getting the loose ends or remaining 10% of work completed was impossible. Once the primary work was complete it was next to impossible to get any follow-up to correct a few mistakes and basic clean-up. Its unfortunate, because overall the core work was decent - but following up with the GM/Carol was very disappointing. Once she had collected most or all of the money - she went from nice/pleasant to crickets, and/or responses indicating the final services/clean-up requested were on our own dime because of "extra/free work" already performed. Good basic work - but be prepared to clean-up the mess and foot the bill. I enjoyed Chris and felt he was competent and a nice person - just very disappointed in the lack of follow-up and negative reaction from the GM/Carol which really soured the whole experience and ended up costing us more time, $$ and aggravation.