Throckmorton Contractors

My experience with Throckmorton Contractors began almost a year ago in January of If you don't want to read the long version, know this, our promised schedules were never held, the GC couldn't afford to pay his people, didn't pay for our cabinets after they were installed, oversaw an install that led to a terribly cracked floor, wasn't able to fully warranty the floor work unless we had the same guy who messed up the floor follow the same messed up process he had done in the past, and numerous time sent nasty text messages in response to our discontentment with his terrible work, oh and he argued with us on scope of work details which were clearly written out and agreed to by him on a few occasions He treated us like he was the customer and we shouldn't expect him to do his job, be timely or truthful
The owner bid a job to demo a room, address floor level issues, tile the floor, install a wet bar, replace an exterior door and move an interior door with some minor electrical work Our customer-contractor relationship began with a promise to get some of his guys working ASAP who needed the work that week and a timeline that was under months We paid our down payment in January and then literally waited weeks for the demo to complete Clearly we had been given information about his ability to start our work early and I guess it was so he could get our down payment as financial problems seemed to persist throughout the project We would later learn that he often needed us to make payments directly to his subs, since he could not pay them, but I'm getting ahead of myself
Extensively Throckmorton contractors failed to schedule work in a timely manner Often when they did schedule work they no-showed The list of excuses included a parent in the hospital, a daughter in the hospital, a truck with failed bearings or more often simply no call or notice at all Often the sub-contractors were calling me directly with excuses, which was annoying considered I was paying a GC to manage the subs
The planning was non-existent I personally feel a GC's main job is to plan the work and execute to the schedule There were no less than times when I had to at the last minute leave work, to go home to meet a sub that I wasn't aware was coming to my house Things like cabinets weren't coordinated and showed up late, delaying the work
After demo, Throckmorton GC basically told me they couldn't do anything for the floor level issues and wanted to leave 20+ year old sub-floor in rather than replacing with new I did talk them into laying a second level of sub-floor over the old and they replaced some of the worst sub-floor pieces In total we had two layers and .75" of sub-floor with one having some old pieces (I now know that tile requires at least 1.25" of total sub-floor, to ensure a rigid substrate, more on that later)
Next the tile contractor came in who laid down .25" duroc and then applied a thin layer of self-leveler on partial parts of the floor with some areas being quite thin (self-leveler typically needs to be a at least 1/to 1/2" inches thick to properly set, which I now know, more on that later) Most good tile installers will tell you that you either use self-leveler or Duroc, but not both Next we again had a hold up where the tile guy didn't come out claiming we hadn't paid him/check hadn't cleared (first off, we paid on-time, every time and I work for a bank, I know how check clearing works, know I had funds and I know they cleared when he cashed the check - some people might ask why I had agreed to pay the sub-contractor and looking back that was stupid, but again, this was the GC not doing his job and asking me to do what he should have been doing Finally the tile went down and to the installer's credit he did a decent job of laying the tile flat At this point
Then came time to install the cabinets, which wasn't too terrible, except that the granite slab for the cabinet top wasn't ordered on time, came in late, and didn't have decorative edging we had ordered, but we accepted it so we could move on with the project and hope to close it out The hole cut for the sink was also not centered over the cabinet and the installer literally had to cut parts of the inside of the cabinet away so we could install the granite with sink and center the granite on the cabinets Also the first person to install the cabinets didn't cut the plumbing holes correctly and so couldn't center the cabinet on the wall We had to get them to recut the holes and center the cabinets
The electrical work was sub-par, I have a dimmer that to this day is wired incorrectly where the slider turns the lights on full power when in the down position (electrician must have reversed some connections) They were unable/unwilling to move an outlet to a desired location citing 2x4s that were butted up against another
The exterior door that was replaced was actually done fairly well and the interior door was moved inches or so and looks pretty good I was happy with that work, so I should call that out
Throckmorton tried to reuse as much trim material as possible which stinks IMO, if you are going to redo a room, buy new trim It's little things like and the numerous big things that which tell me quality isn't his focus
But finally the room was done and it looked pretty nice to be fair We were happy with the end product This was maybe 3-months later
week later we started to notice micro-cracks in the tile which he tried to fix, but they continued and we got more cracks After about a month it got to a point where probably 1/of all the tiles in the room were cracked Throckmorton Contractors initially tried to blame the tile itself, so we went back to the tile store and complained, they then told us that if the substrate/sub-floor were laid down properly no tile would crack that terribly that quickly On top of that we had some stone decorative tile in the floor which was also cracking, so clearly if two tile types are cracking it's not the tile, but what's under it The tile store showed us how self-leveler needs to be put down and recommended some installers I called in quotes from installers, b/c I didn't want to work with Throckmorton Contractors anymore, I just wanted the nightmare project to end All three of the tile installers felt our sub-floor thickness was insufficient and questioned why someone would use duroc and self-leveler We knew we were going to have to suck it up and redo the room, but wanted to pay someone else to do the work
We requested rather than Throckmorton Contractors fix the floor, they pay us partial payment in lieu of warranty Throckmorton refused, wanting instead to "Make it right", just as long as I paid for the tile We knew making it right would take many months and we didn't have patience for that We were also concerned the poor install techniques for the tile would be repeated and even though we bought super hard tile we didn't want to have a future problem Throckmorton Contractors (to be called TC from here on out) refused to make any sort of payment citing that they had no cash on hand to pay So after much reluctance and written agreement on the Tile laying strategy to use only self-leveler and no duroc we finally caved and allowed them back into our home
Once again the no shows started They came in, tore up our floor leaving my house open to anyone that went into the crawl space for weeks TC was adamant on reinforcing the joists with a girder which would have been fine with sufficient sub-floor, but we said OK After a few weeks of lackluster demo, the new carpenter did good work and put down a sturdy 1.25" sub-floor
Once it was getting time for install TC insisted the original Tile Installer do the work (b/c he couldn't afford anyone else) I was OK with this as long as they followed the agreed to underlayment strategy It took a couple weeks to progress from carpentry to tile install (there is a theme of long delays) but day before starting we received an email that TC would not be following the agreed to substrate strategy and instead going with Duroc That was the last straw, we told them the doors would not be unlocked and asked them not to stop by ever again
I then hired a tile install pro who informed me that while the floor did have level issues it wasn't that big of deal and could be worked around In and a half days my new tile guy, put down the substrate, our angled tiles and our decorative tile and did so beautifully It didn't take weeks which was AMAZING I gladly paid him in full and love the floor I then reinstalled the cabinets and paid granite installers to put the granite back on
From start to finish our ordeal was months months to redo a small-medium florida room The continual hassle, shenanigans have terrified me from ever renovating something in my home again I can't recommend Throckmorton to anyone and I hope if you are reading this, you choose to pay a higher bidder who can deliver better quality
"If you pay for quality, you only cry once..."

This project has been completed and has passed all inspections to code. As well as an inspection from a private inspector provided by the homeowner.

My experience with Throckmorton Contractors began almost a year ago in January of 2014. If you don't want to read the long version, know this, our promised schedules were never held, the GC couldn't afford to pay his people, didn't pay for our cabinets after they were installed, oversaw an install that led to a terribly cracked floor, wasn't able to fully warranty the floor work unless we had the same guy who messed up the floor follow the same messed up process he had done in the past, and numerous time sent nasty text messages in response to our discontentment with his terrible work, oh and he argued with us on scope of work details which were clearly written out and agreed to by him on a few occasions. He treated us like he was the customer and we shouldn't expect him to do his job, be timely or truthful.

The owner bid a job to demo a room, address floor level issues, tile the floor, install a wet bar, replace an exterior door and move an interior door with some minor electrical work. Our customer-contractor relationship began with a promise to get some of his guys working ASAP who needed the work that week and a timeline that was under 2 months. We paid our down payment in January and then literally waited weeks for the demo to complete. Clearly we had been given false information about his ability to start our work early and I guess it was so he could get our down payment as financial problems seemed to persist throughout the project. We would later learn that he often needed us to make payments directly to his subs, since he could not pay them, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Extensively Throckmorton contractors failed to schedule work in a timely manner. Often when they did schedule work they no-showed. The list of excuses included a parent in the hospital, a daughter in the hospital, a truck with failed bearings or more often simply no call or notice at all. Often the sub-contractors were calling me directly with excuses, which was annoying considered I was paying a GC to manage the subs.

The planning was non-existent. I personally feel a GC's main job is to plan the work and execute to the schedule. There were no less than 5 times when I had to at the last minute leave work, to go home to meet a sub that I wasn't aware was coming to my house. Things like cabinets weren't coordinated and showed up late, delaying the work.

After demo, Throckmorton GC basically told me they couldn't do anything for the floor level issues and wanted to leave 20+ year old sub-floor in rather than replacing with new. I did talk them into laying a second level of sub-floor over the old and they replaced some of the worst sub-floor pieces. In total we had two layers and .75" of sub-floor with one having some old pieces. (I now know that tile requires at least 1.25" of total sub-floor, to ensure a rigid substrate, more on that later).

Next the tile contractor came in who laid down .25" duroc and then applied a thin layer of self-leveler on partial parts of the floor with some areas being quite thin (self-leveler typically needs to be a at least 1/4 to 1/2" inches thick to properly set, which I now know, more on that later). Most good tile installers will tell you that you either use self-leveler or Duroc, but not both. Next we again had a hold up where the tile guy didn't come out claiming we hadn't paid him/check hadn't cleared (first off, we paid on-time, every time and I work for a bank, I know how check clearing works, know I had funds and I know they cleared when he cashed the check - some people might ask why I had agreed to pay the sub-contractor and looking back that was stupid, but again, this was the GC not doing his job and asking me to do what he should have been doing. Finally the tile went down and to the installer's credit he did a decent job of laying the tile flat. At this point

Then came time to install the cabinets, which wasn't too terrible, except that the granite slab for the cabinet top wasn't ordered on time, came in late, and didn't have decorative edging we had ordered, but we accepted it so we could move on with the project and hope to close it out. The hole cut for the sink was also not centered over the cabinet and the installer literally had to cut parts of the inside of the cabinet away so we could install the granite with sink and center the granite on the cabinets. Also the first person to install the cabinets didn't cut the plumbing holes correctly and so couldn't center the cabinet on the wall. We had to get them to recut the holes and center the cabinets.

The electrical work was sub-par, I have a dimmer that to this day is wired incorrectly where the slider turns the lights on full power when in the down position (electrician must have reversed some connections). They were unable/unwilling to move an outlet to a desired location citing 2x4s that were butted up against another.

The exterior door that was replaced was actually done fairly well and the interior door was moved 12 inches or so and looks pretty good. I was happy with that work, so I should call that out.

Throckmorton tried to reuse as much trim material as possible which stinks IMO, if you are going to redo a room, buy new trim. It's little things like and the numerous big things that which tell me quality isn't his focus.

But finally the room was done and it looked pretty nice to be fair. We were happy with the end product. This was maybe 3-4 months later.

1 week later we started to notice micro-cracks in the tile which he tried to fix, but they continued and we got more cracks. After about a month it got to a point where probably 1/4 of all the tiles in the room were cracked. Throckmorton Contractors initially tried to blame the tile itself, so we went back to the tile store and complained, they then told us that if the substrate/sub-floor were laid down properly no tile would crack that terribly that quickly. On top of that we had some stone decorative tile in the floor which was also cracking, so clearly if two tile types are cracking it's not the tile, but what's under it. The tile store showed us how self-leveler needs to be put down and recommended some installers. I called in quotes from 3 installers, b/c I didn't want to work with Throckmorton Contractors anymore, I just wanted the nightmare project to end. All three of the tile installers felt our sub-floor thickness was insufficient and questioned why someone would use duroc and self-leveler. We knew we were going to have to suck it up and redo the room, but wanted to pay someone else to do the work.

We requested rather than Throckmorton Contractors fix the floor, they pay us partial payment in lieu of warranty. Throckmorton refused, wanting instead to "Make it right", just as long as I paid for the tile. We knew making it right would take many months and we didn't have patience for that. We were also concerned the poor install techniques for the tile would be repeated and even though we bought super hard tile we didn't want to have a future problem. Throckmorton Contractors (to be called TC from here on out) refused to make any sort of payment citing that they had no cash on hand to pay. So after much reluctance and written agreement on the Tile laying strategy to use only self-leveler and no duroc we finally caved and allowed them back into our home.

Once again the no shows started. They came in, tore up our floor leaving my house open to anyone that went into the crawl space for weeks. TC was adamant on reinforcing the joists with a girder which would have been fine with sufficient sub-floor, but we said OK. After a few weeks of lackluster demo, the new carpenter did good work and put down a sturdy 1.25" sub-floor.

Once it was getting time for install TC insisted the original Tile Installer do the work (b/c he couldn't afford anyone else). I was OK with this as long as they followed the agreed to underlayment strategy. It took a couple weeks to progress from carpentry to tile install (there is a theme of long delays) but 1 day before starting we received an email that TC would not be following the agreed to substrate strategy and instead going with Duroc. That was the last straw, we told them the doors would not be unlocked and asked them not to stop by ever again.

I then hired a tile install pro who informed me that while the floor did have level issues it wasn't that big of deal and could be worked around. In 2 and a half days my new tile guy, put down the substrate, our angled tiles and our decorative tile and did so beautifully. It didn't take weeks which was AMAZING. I gladly paid him in full and love the floor. I then reinstalled the cabinets and paid granite installers to put the granite back on.

From start to finish our ordeal was 8 months. 8 months to redo a small-medium florida room. The continual hassle, shenanigans have terrified me from ever renovating something in my home again. I can't recommend Throckmorton to anyone and I hope if you are reading this, you choose to pay a higher bidder who can deliver better quality.

"If you pay for quality, you only cry once..."

Review: [redacted] and employee [redacted] signed a contract with home owner to remodel multiple bathrooms. After receiving substantial deposits, Throckmorton contractor failed to honor contract commitment, did not oversee the job or supervise sub-contractors, poor workmanship, lied about ordering material and scheduling work, walked out of the job without notice, did not return any of the deposit, and never completed the project.Desired Settlement: [redacted] is obligated to return the difference in money that has already cost us over and above the contract, and pay all subcontractors to finish the remainder of the project.

Business

Response:

I am responding to the complaint from [redacted]. To start I would like to point that since our inception in 1987 we have had only two complaints which were both a result of an overload from a [redacted] for pressure washing (which we took care if within days and the customers apologized for jumping the gun and filing a complaint).

In regards to [redacted]. I have been doing many projects for him since 2008 without incident. I have come back to fix isssues that have occured well beyond warranty and have had a great working relationship.

With our latest project I had a saleperson who I have come to find out has been underselling several projects and my homeowner's and I have been stuck with the over budget projects and an unpleasant situation. I have worked them all out except this particular one. ( He no longer works for me. )

This particular project to renovate 5 bathrooms and a couple other areas in the basement. It was originally priced myself at $[redacted]. After several negotiations between the salesperson amd [redacted] the salesperson informed me that the tile and vanity prices were lowered to meet their budget of $[redacted]. I reminded the salesperson of the ** percent that my company needs to make on each project to proceed. He assured me that it was and promptly signed the contract as I was on summer vacation.

In the weeks to come I was informed that that salesperson (who was also in charge of project managing this project) was almost absent or doing minimal work. As a result the [redacted] asked that he be removed from the project. As I did this I had to take over from where he left off. As the project moved forward I was constantly being made aware of inconsistencies with what the salesperson told me and what he was telling the subcontractors and the homeowner. For example the tile contractor said the salesman only contacted him days before the project was suppose to start. I went thru a couple tile subs, several plumbers and pulled guys together to try and finish the job because it was in such disarray. The homeowners were displaying their unhappiness with the workers and it seemed the homeowners were then telling the subs exactly what they wanted and it was working better that way. Several subs conveyed that It would be in my best interest not to come on the job on certain days because it would cause conflict. That seemed to be working.

In regards to the deposit and payments. The company is suppose to make ** percent and was assured that by the saleperson. He recieved his commission 7 percent on each deposit and draw check after that. It wasn't until he was out of the picture that I realized that he underbid the project. We even resigned the contract after the salesman assured me we still had the ** percent in the project and showed me incorrect numbers. Once he was asked to leave the premises. And there were no more third party discussions I realized it wasnt the profit wasnt there on this project. After discussions with [redacted] we came to an agreement that he would purchase the remainding material and pay the tile sub. I was to finish installing lights, paint and finish the plumbing.

Moving forward the working environment became increasingly hostile coming to the end of the project. I was being told that I shouldn't come on the job because the owners were getting aggrevated with me and how they were proceeding. I don't blame them being upset but I tried to reach out to see if I could come and help in anyway but didn't get a response. [redacted] then sent a text telling me of his displeasure and he doesn't want me or my subs on his property. I then receive a letter from the Revdex.com saying he wants me to finish and pay my subs. I have paid or worked out payments with all of my subs and they are willing to finish any unfinished work.

[redacted] has stated the project went over budget. He has stated I took money and didn't finish. As I stated my company on any job is scheduled to make ** percent or I cannot take the job and cover all my expenses. The money that I have recieved from the [redacted] job is roughly $[redacted]. The scheduled proffit is @ $[redacted]. Then deduct my salesperson commission of 7 percent from thar figure. I am suppose to make a profit in business. I did not take money that wasn't figured in the profit margin in the original bid. If the job went over budget like [redacted] stated then that is something else. We had roughly $36,000 left in final payments when he took over.

[redacted] has since texted me in regards to the roof I put on over 2 years ago and I sent my roofer out to seal the leak. I told him to contact me to fix the sheetrock and I haven't heard from him except this letter.

In my opinion we both have worked with each other many times without incident and this project was an unfortunate circumstance on several levels. I feel with this situation I would like to work with them to make things rite. Please let me know what I can do.

Thanks,

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the 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.

[Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.]

Review: On January 3, 2014 we signed contract with Throckmorton Contractors to finish our 3rd floor and paid them down payment of 9,500$. The work started very slow and we had to call and text him all the time asking when is next step will be done. It's already end of May and it's not finish and we only hear promises and nothing more. We paid him 14,500$ according our payment schedule and now we find out that he didn't pay his subcontractors who was performing work on our project. [redacted] has tried to:

to get us to waive the electric permit to save him money

Had us pay $2500 so he could order finishing material, which he did not order

On Tuesday May 22 wanted us to pay for carpet and vanity, which we already put down in item 2 and wanted us to sign a new agreement for the project.

** has not paid the sub contractors. He is telling the sub contractors we have not paid him even though we have proof we have.

The dry wall person threatened my wife with a lien on the house Monday May 21. [redacted] (HVAC) has complained to us they have not been paid. HVAC is not turned on.

Carpet will not be ordered unless money is up front, which ** and his father have not done.

The permit for the work is in [redacted] fathers name, not [redacted]. We have tried to get the father involved but we are getting only promises there also, no further progress has been made.Desired Settlement: We would like our money back or proof all has been paid and the project either finished or abandoned. We will be filing a complaint with DPOR in hopes their license to do business is removed. No one else should have to go thru this.

Business

Response:

This project has been completed and has passed all inspections to code. As well as an inspection from a private inspector provided by the homeowner.

Review: I contracted with Throckmorton Contractors on 8/26, giving them a deposit at the time of $4073 (one-third of the total bill) which they required to get started. The contract was for about two weeks worth of work (6 X 18 foot paver patio, 10 x 3.5 foot center concrete brick landing with four brick steps and a shed roof on top of the landing.) When the project was not even started by 9/19, but I had been informed by Throckmorton that it would be completed by the second week in September, I complained and the [redacted] of the company responded apologizing for his salesman's unfulfilled promises and unresponsiveness to me and said he would take over managing the project himself. We came to a reduced price agreement to compensate for the poor customer service and agreed to move forward on 9/19, but by 10/7 despite my repeated attempts to set up appointments with them, they had not started the job. This was in part because the [redacted] did not take over the project as he said he would on 9/19, but continued to allow his salesman( who I had complained about prior) to be my contact. So I asked for my deposit back. The [redacted] jumped in and reassured me that he'd get the work started the next week, so I agreed to move forward with them again. The [redacted] did get the work started in October, by having my existing steps torn off, but then no one came out again until I had repeatedly called to complain. I remained without any steps from that doorway for over a month! At this point after numerous complaints from me, which the [redacted] only responded to by text message even when I asked him specifically to call me back so we could talk, the project is about 85% complete. It's taken my repeated requests for the [redacted] to send someone out to do the work and his many explanations as to why he can't get his sub-contractors to come out to do it., and then eventually someone shows up to do just a couple days of work and then it's the same thing all over again. Most recently I have waited 9 days since the last worker was here for someone to complete this project. Despite the business [redacted] committing to me that he would be here to meet me "first thing" yesterday to get it done, he did not show up and did not communicate anything to me, nor has he shown up today and it is now 11am.Desired Settlement: At this point, I have paid $5730 towards a $9000 project because the business [redacted] has had me pay the subcontractors directly when they've been working at my home (since he hasn't been here himself to do it) committing that those payments would be taken off my total bill. Now I want to contract someone else to come in and finish off the last bit of this project and have those costs come out of the remainder that I owe Throckmorton Contractors. Additionally Throckmorton Contractors should reimburse me within a week of notification, if the cost of the other contractor is more than $3270 ($9000-$5730).

Business

Response:

Hello. I am responding to the complaint from [redacted]. My company has been in business since 1987 with only two complaints a couple of years ago when I did a groupon and we got overwhelming responses than we thought we were. We took care of those customers and things went back normal. In this instance I have had a bad experience with a salesperson who has almost brought my company to ruins. He has underpriced jobs to get sales commissions and I would be told for example that a sub contractor would do a job for $[redacted] and then the sub said he needed $[redacted] for that job and this seemed to be a common occurrence before I could get a grip on things and fire this salesman it had snowballed and I was losing money on every job. [redacted] has been very kind in helping me out although I should have told her the circumstances I have been dealing with and we probable could have worked this out. I am slowly getting back to normal working conditions. Though she has paid for some materials and some of the labor I did pay the remainder due for the paver. Just so she knows because he is a good guy and he did get his money.

So while I am trying to get things back to normal I am still recovering. I have money for materials and can finish this job within seven days. I propose that if she would let me finish so I dont go in debt any further I will do something extra like paint all of her exterior doors or whatever her and I agree upon. I am a good person who has gotten in a bad situation upon meeting this bad person. She knows the salesperson who I am referring to. If she would google him to understand what I have been going through I hope she gives me one last chance to make this rite with her. I know now to do background checks on all my workers but it doesn't help this situation. Please let [redacted] know that I only need this one last chance to redeem myself.

Sincerely,