Thomas Builders of Virginia, Inc.

Recently built a home w/ Thomas Builders in the Forest area Many say building a new home is stressful & most builders are tough to work with I can honestly say Tom Bell made the process easier than anyone could of thought & he had some great ideas of his own that we incorporated into the home His work ethic & attention to detail & character are 2nd to no one in the area His sub-contractors were also pleasant & worked w/ us on many aspects throughout the process to make sure received what we wanted We actually had fun building our home & enjoyed all that went into it Never imagined it would be this easy, but Tom was exactly what we were looking for He came highly recommended from others around town, & he met or exceeded every expectation we had If we ever decided to build again, w/out a doubt we would choose Thomas Builders Thank you again for building our home, we couldn't be any happier & the end product is absolutely amazing!!!

During the construction of the townhome for the [redacted] family we had issues that we have never had to deal with before.  Mr.  and Mrs. [redacted] showed up on the jobsite repeatedly and unannounced and sometimes more than once a day.  They interfered with the subcontractors and the...

building process repeatedly.  They were suppose to talk with their realtor if there were concerns or changes.  Their trips to the jobsite not only angered the subcontractors and caused confusion but They were at times rude to the workers as well.I will address each of their concerns below.1.  The complaint about structural damage was a small hairline crack in the concrete.  This crack was observed by the county inspector who was not concerned with it. The crack was repaired using a very expensive compound that we have used before with great success and no problems.2.  Regarding the water and electric meters.  During the building process we had a lot of rain delaying the outside ground work making it impossible to put machines there to dig lines, thus, delaying the installation of water meters by [redacted] and electric meters by [redacted].3.  To the animal feces concern.  Yes, during the building process a door was left open and a raccoon entered the building.  We immediately caught the animal in a live trap and released it to the wild.  The water dish and food was part of the trap.  If you talk with companies that trap these animals you will find that this happens occasionally.  Most home buyers would never know this with the exception home buyer that is continually on the job site.4.  As far as flooring not laid, no paint, or refrigerator everything has a process.  The flooring on the first floor was installed but the carpet was not due to waiting on their change in granite.  We install the carpet after all the subcontractors are done to protect it.  Also, the final paint is done after the carpet because of possible scratches on the wall caused from installing the carpet  The refrigerator was in the building and can be confirmed by [redacted].During the building process the buyers fill out a selection sheet of paint colors, granite colors, carpet colors, etc.  Mr. and Mrs. [redacted]' selection sheet stated the granite  colors they wanted.  The granite was installed according to their picks.  Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] showed up on the jobsite the day the granite was installed.  They immediately became irate and began yelling about the wrong granite.  We immediately began removing the granite adding  labor and expense to our project.    The granite was correct according to their selection sheet but according to Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] they had changed their colors a few days earlier and we were not notified of the changes.  We immediately began removing the granite but Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] were very hard to deal with and to say the least ignorant to our workers.I just made a call to our realtor. Again, this was all happening just before I left on vacation and it was being discussed about whether they wanted lights or money. I am being told I was suppose to send them a check which I am doing today in the amount of $300.00.  Before closing there were addendums that needed to be signed by all parties which Mr. and Mr. [redacted] refused to sign.  Even though we had a contract we allowed Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] terminate their contract with no penalties.We have sold 30 of the 40 townhomes built in [redacted] without incident.Copies are the contract and addendums are available upon request. Thank you [redacted]Thomas Builders of Virginia, Inc

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
First and foremost I am appalled at the accusations made by this builder.  We harassed NO ONE. We spoke only to the site foreman (builders father-in-law or so he stated). We were told to follow the build process closely! We were very visible as we are the buyers, but never once had any conversations with the sub contractors other than to say hello in passing. We have pictures of what they are calling a "hairline" crack! I will be happy to provide them if needed. This crack was from the top of the wall to the bottom exhibiting an "X". Nevertheless, we have a separate engineer report that specifically states structural damage that would require professional repairs. (Not someone watching YouTube to figure out how to repair it as was stated by the site foreman). The animal feces was more than once or twice. I also have pics of that.We were provided with a selection sheet to review and sign off on which we clarified what was written on it and returned. This selection sheet was not what was used by the site foreman to install granite. He was using an outdated selection sheet as we had completed an original sheet initially and then I received by email another sheet that had errors which upon review, made the CORRECTIONS. That never made it to the site foreman. So we did not make last minute granite changes. We only wanted what we selected initially.Regarding the water meters, the county authorities specifically told me that the builder was given a "Laundry List" of things that needed to be corrected before they install the water meter and that they suggest that the builder tell us the TRUTH about why the meter was not installed! I received a totally different account from the site foreman as to why the water meter was not installed. I asked if I could contact the water authorities and he informed me that I could, but also stated "it wont' do any good". The [redacted] meters were not installed due to the ground not being safe. The site foreman told me that [redacted] showed up on the site, "but didn't want to get their shoes muddy!"We are not rude, obnoxious people. In fact, we are very patient, understanding people! I totally resent the accusations and the defamation of our character by this builder, who by the way has NEVER met us. We in no way interfered with any build process, but did check on the progress of the build and noted things that were of concern to us such as the crack in the foundation wall, the feces and urine, wrong selections being installed, and the grossly over due move in date per the contract.
Regards,
[redacted]

Recently built a home w/ Thomas Builders in the Forest area. Many say building a new home is stressful & most builders are tough to work with. I can honestly say Tom Bell made the process easier than anyone could of thought & he had some great ideas of his own that we incorporated into the home. His work ethic & attention to detail & character are 2nd to no one in the area. His sub-contractors were also pleasant & worked w/ us on many aspects throughout the process to make sure received what we wanted. We actually had fun building our home & enjoyed all that went into it. Never imagined it would be this easy, but Tom was exactly what we were looking for. He came highly recommended from others around town, & he met or exceeded every expectation we had. If we ever decided to build again, w/out a doubt we would choose Thomas Builders. Thank you again for building our home, we couldn't be any happier & the end product is absolutely amazing!!!

Review: Unmet deadlines on build completion and closing date on new construction. Multiple delays and random dates given that caused buyers to incur moving and storage fees.

Documented structural damage on new construction. Was advised to be professionally corrected. Site Supervisor stated that he had never repaired cracked concrete before so he watched You Tube to learn how to repair the crack.

Installing wrong granite per incorrect selection sheet used by Site Supervisor.

Early Occupancy signed and dated December 11, 2015 not met due to No Electric Meter installed, No Water Meter Installed, Flooring not laid, No paint, No Refrigerator (per contract). Information given to buyers regarding the reason for not having installed water meter was not true. Buyer asked if they could contact County Water Authorities to help get meter installed and was told that we could but it wouldn't make much difference. County contacted and buyer was informed that there's a "laundry list" of things that they were given to fix before a water meter could be installed.

Animal Feces and Urine multiple times within townhome. Buyer questioned this multiple times, even took pictures and submitted. Buyer found water bowl and some type of animal food in basement floor. Addressed with Site Supervisor and a joke made about it.

Miscommunication, Lack of communication regarding questions from Buyers.

Defaming character of the buyers by stating things that were not true.

Deceiving, Rude, Poor Customer Service, Poor workmanship, Poor quality of the build unit.

Totally dissatisfied with entire experience from the time the structural damage was discovered to the end of the signing of the release contract.Desired Settlement: We wish we had done our homework on the builder prior to signing the contract. Would have made a huge difference in our selection for a home. As a result of this experience, we spent Christmas and New Years living with a relative, sleeping on an air mattress in their living room. Now we start the process of looking for another townhome to buy and start over. We do have lighting that we purchased and had installed in the builders townhome that we would like to either be compensated for or returned to us undamaged.

Business

Response:

During the construction of the townhome for the [redacted] family we had issues that we have never had to deal with before. Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] showed up on the jobsite repeatedly and unannounced and sometimes more than once a day. They interfered with the subcontractors and the building process repeatedly. They were suppose to talk with their realtor if there were concerns or changes. Their trips to the jobsite not only angered the subcontractors and caused confusion but They were at times rude to the workers as well.I will address each of their concerns below.1. The complaint about structural damage was a small hairline crack in the concrete. This crack was observed by the county inspector who was not concerned with it. The crack was repaired using a very expensive compound that we have used before with great success and no problems.2. Regarding the water and electric meters. During the building process we had a lot of rain delaying the outside ground work making it impossible to put machines there to dig lines, thus, delaying the installation of water meters by [redacted] and electric meters by [redacted].3. To the animal feces concern. Yes, during the building process a door was left open and a raccoon entered the building. We immediately caught the animal in a live trap and released it to the wild. The water dish and food was part of the trap. If you talk with companies that trap these animals you will find that this happens occasionally. Most home buyers would never know this with the exception home buyer that is continually on the job site.4. As far as flooring not laid, no paint, or refrigerator everything has a process. The flooring on the first floor was installed but the carpet was not due to waiting on their change in granite. We install the carpet after all the subcontractors are done to protect it. Also, the final paint is done after the carpet because of possible scratches on the wall caused from installing the carpet The refrigerator was in the building and can be confirmed by [redacted].During the building process the buyers fill out a selection sheet of paint colors, granite colors, carpet colors, etc. Mr. and Mrs. [redacted]' selection sheet stated the granite colors they wanted. The granite was installed according to their picks. Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] showed up on the jobsite the day the granite was installed. They immediately became irate and began yelling about the wrong granite. We immediately began removing the granite adding labor and expense to our project. The granite was correct according to their selection sheet but according to Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] they had changed their colors a few days earlier and we were not notified of the changes. We immediately began removing the granite but Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] were very hard to deal with and to say the least ignorant to our workers.I just made a call to our realtor. Again, this was all happening just before I left on vacation and it was being discussed about whether they wanted lights or money. I am being told I was suppose to send them a check which I am doing today in the amount of $300.00. Before closing there were addendums that needed to be signed by all parties which Mr. and Mr. [redacted] refused to sign. Even though we had a contract we allowed Mr. and Mrs. [redacted] terminate their contract with no penalties.We have sold 30 of the 40 townhomes built in [redacted] without incident.Copies are the contract and addendums are available upon request. Thank you [redacted]Thomas Builders of Virginia, Inc

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

First and foremost I am appalled at the accusations made by this builder. We harassed NO ONE. We spoke only to the site foreman (builders father-in-law or so he stated). We were told to follow the build process closely! We were very visible as we are the buyers, but never once had any conversations with the sub contractors other than to say hello in passing. We have pictures of what they are calling a "hairline" crack! I will be happy to provide them if needed. This crack was from the top of the wall to the bottom exhibiting an "X". Nevertheless, we have a separate engineer report that specifically states structural damage that would require professional repairs. (Not someone watching YouTube to figure out how to repair it as was stated by the site foreman). The animal feces was more than once or twice. I also have pics of that.We were provided with a selection sheet to review and sign off on which we clarified what was written on it and returned. This selection sheet was not what was used by the site foreman to install granite. He was using an outdated selection sheet as we had completed an original sheet initially and then I received by email another sheet that had errors which upon review, made the CORRECTIONS. That never made it to the site foreman. So we did not make last minute granite changes. We only wanted what we selected initially.Regarding the water meters, the county authorities specifically told me that the builder was given a "Laundry List" of things that needed to be corrected before they install the water meter and that they suggest that the builder tell us the TRUTH about why the meter was not installed! I received a totally different account from the site foreman as to why the water meter was not installed. I asked if I could contact the water authorities and he informed me that I could, but also stated "it wont' do any good". The [redacted] meters were not installed due to the ground not being safe. The site foreman told me that [redacted] showed up on the site, "but didn't want to get their shoes muddy!"We are not rude, obnoxious people. In fact, we are very patient, understanding people! I totally resent the accusations and the defamation of our character by this builder, who by the way has NEVER met us. We in no way interfered with any build process, but did check on the progress of the build and noted things that were of concern to us such as the crack in the foundation wall, the feces and urine, wrong selections being installed, and the grossly over due move in date per the contract.

Regards,