The Design Box Interior Design, LLC

To Whom I May Concern, The *** did contact me on the 4/about my contractor and told them I was meeting with him on the 16thI had given him their phone number so that he could set up a meeting with themI don’t set up my contractor’s appointments since he does work for other people other
than meOn the 17th *** contacted me which I told her that my contractor was trying to get to their house sometime that week and if he could get done with a jobI told her that I had given him their phone number so and that he would contact them about coming outI also gave them his name and business name*** *** contacted me on Sunday 4/which I responded telling them on 4/that he was running behind on a job and he’s trying to get out to their place on Tues or WedMy contractor called them and left a messageHe came out to their house on 4/He told them that he’d have the bid done the next dayHe also said that he would give them a 10% discount and give them all the materials at his cost since *** is a first responder. In the meantime, *** sent me a text on 4/asking me to clarify that I was going to give them a breakdown of what everything is going to cost before we start so that they could cut and add to prioritize thingsI responded that that was correctHe said that’s what he figured and that he was just double checkingThat being said, I couldn’t get all the pricing together until I had my contractor’s bid since construction costs are a large portion of a project depending on the scope of workFrom there I get pricing for all the materials, etcfor the job so that we could go over the costs before starting to see what was going to fit within their budget.When I met with them on 4/we talked about all the things that they wanted to get doneThey had a deadline of May 19th because they were having their son’s graduation party at their houseI never told them that the contractor could start right awayI told them that I would be starting right away getting other things together like samples, start laying out the kitchen and searching for the best cabinet line to fit within their budgetI never told them that the majority of the work would be done by their deadlineI told them considering the timing I would try to get as much done as I could but that it wasn’t realistic to get this project done and they agreedWe had our first meeting in March to talk about their project but had to wait for their refinanceWhen we meet on 4/9, we did a detailed list of what they wanted done, they said they were ok with the project not being complete by their deadline since the project was delayed from starting since they couldn’t sign the contract until they closed on the refinance of there house since they were using those funds for the remodelThey said the party was going to be outside and that no one would really be inside the house, so they were ok with the house possibly being in some stage of disarrayI told them that the first thing that would need to happen after demo, which *** was going to do to save money, was to do the flooringThat always need to be done firstAt our meeting on 4/9, I had brought some samples of laminate flooring based on our conversation in MarchIt’s a very cost-effective way to get the look that they were going forWhen my contractor met with them they stated that they wanted wood flooring in the entire house and the stairs but not the bedroomsYou can’t do stairs in the laminate because it doesn’t curve which we discussed on 4/Only wood has curved trim pieces for stairsThis is a significant change to the plan since hardwood flooring is very expensive and takes a significant time to complete because of the steps involved.On 4/27, the day after my contractor was there, I got a text from *** to give her a callWhen I called she told me that her father-in-law had a heart attack, he had had surgery, he didn’t have any health insurance and they were going to have him move in with them, so they can take of himShe said that she read the contract and understood that the deposit was non-refundable but if I could refund the money that they gave meI told her that I would think about it and spoke with my lawyerI do have a contract for a reasonShe asked again if I would refund all or some of the deposit and thanked me for considering itShe also said that it’s been one of the hardest things they’ve been through and that you never expect to have to take care of your parents to that extentI told her that I have a contract for a reason and that I go by my contract and if I don’t then I wouldn’t need a contractShe responded that she understood but asked me if I would think about the extra thousand that they ended up putting in to do the cabinetsI only added hours for the kitchenI generally charge to hours for a kitchenSo, I was giving them a break on the cost since they had a tight budget for their project.I think it’s interesting that they are saying two different thingsThe whole time they say they understand since my contract clearly states that the design fee is non-refundable but then are saying something different hereThey are being deceiving by lying to me about a family emergency while sending in a complaint to get their money back.Sincerely,*** *** *** *** Sincerely, *** ***