RenovateMeNow BGP Properties BGP Properties Brian Pauley fraud, misrepresentation, deception, inexperience, ineptitude, does not follow through with promises Olmsted Falls, Ohio Olmsted Falls, Ohio

The History: 
 
My wife and I bought our Broadview Heights (turn of the century) farmhouse in 1999. We were fortunate. The house was old, needed a ton of work, and was on auction due to lack of interest. We wanted to start a family, and this was a good neighborhood with a fabulous school district. Had the home not been on the auction block, and without the push of our parents, we would have never been able to leave the city and get to this desirable community.

We knew it was small, but it would house the two of us, and new child nicely. Within a year, we were parents of healthy baby boy! Over the next six years we managed to fix windows, fix the roof, dry up the basement, and get a furnace that worked along with air conditioning. We were managing nicely. By year seven, we decided two children would complete our family. Knowing our home was too small, we moved forward none the less and created a wonderful baby girl.

We often spoke of putting an addition on the home. We knew that over time, the boy would not be happy sharing a room with his little sister. The problem at this juncture was that the economy had gone down the tubes, renovation loans were nearly impossible to obtain, and we had saved little over the years. I for one was very reluctant to pull the trigger on the addition, but inevitably, we knew it had to happen. Selling our house was not an option; we would have lost so much equity.

We were fortunate to find a bank willing to refinance us, and give us almost enough extra from our equity to fund the addition. My wife and I would dig deep for the remainder. We would add 700 square feet for a new bedroom, expand the tiny kitchen, build an updated mudroom, and bring the heating and cooling up to code to handle the new space.

Not a big project, but initial estimates had us around $60,000.
 
The Debacle:
We spoke with several builders. My wife knew a fellow from high school that had a renovation company based in Olmsted Falls, Ohio. They had been friends for years. She trusted him, and knew his family as well. We will call him Brian, in lieu of the many other fine words we now have for him. His company was called BGP Renovations.  He came off as a very professional businessman. Toting a website with claims of professionalism and craftsmanship with years of experience, and all the wonderful work and feedback he had acquired over the years. I had no reason to not believe him. We drew up an agreement, and the build started in the spring of 2010.

There was trouble from the start, but many things were hidden from us from the very beginning, and many others just did not turn on the red light in my head. At the time I was working 10 to 12 hours a day to make extra money, and my wife worked all day as well. We just were not able to keep a close eye on the daily activities at the house. But again, why would I? Brian presented himself as a professional.

Unbenounced to us, he falsified the building permits from the very beginning. He, nor his two helpers were licensed to perform certain trades within the State of Ohio. He listed Electrical and HVAC subcontractors that NEVER performed work in our home. One of which never registered, and we later learned were unaware Brian had ever listed them on our permit. He and his two helpers did all of the electrical work themselves, and never called for inspections. The wiring and connections do not come close to industry standard for safety, nor aesthetics. We found romex with nails shot through it in our crawl space. We found bare wires at nearly every connection, missing grounds, and buried junction boxes. The HVAC contractor turned out to be a family related friend of Brians that illegally used another fellows license to register with the city. Much of our HVAC work including nearly all of the ductwork needs replaced and or re-worked.

The contractor Brian used to set our foundation removed material from our property without permission. We were only able to recover a small portion of the material, and believe the remainder was sold for profit. The foundation was set incorrectly. It is out of plumb by 5-1/2 inches. This issue subsequently carried throughout the build up to the roof. Brian knew of this discrepancy from the beginning, but hid it from us and made no effort to correct it. By the time we discovered it, the framing was built entirely. We do not have one square room in the entire addition. We later learned from City Inspectors that he failed to correctly tie the new addition floor joists to the existing portion of the home as a result of the foundation error as well. We were made aware of those changes far after the fact. Brian was also unable to make a smooth transition with the new walls tying in to the existing walls. The new finished walls are out nearly an inch and a half creating a massive transition where it should be flat.
Brian was unable to build the roof trusses as agreed in our contract, and therefore chose to order pre-built trusses. There was a lead time of over three weeks. During this time, it rained on all the framing and sub floors to the point of warping all of the interior wood before a roof went up. The stick walls were terribly warped and twisted. The 2x4s for the framing were never tweaked and re-aligned before the drywall went up. Now we have walls that look wavy throughout the addition. The drywall wasnt properly screwed to the framing in any roof or ceiling, and now there are hundreds of drywall screws popping out through the finished walls. New ones appear daily. If we push on a wall, we can make more! The original build design called for 16 on center trusses to carry the snow load on the new roof over the addition. Likely to save money, he chose to order 24 on center trusses. However, he never made changes to the building design to accommodate such a span. The roofing boards began to sag between the joists over time. Some as much as a half inch. It was later found that no roofing clips were installed between the roofing boards, and no bracing was installed beneath. During the subsequent roof removal, it was also found that not all of the roofing boards were installed in the same direction, and not all of the material was of the same thickness.
Brian ordered, and installed the wrong shingles. We presented him with the proper information and part numbers for the shingle that had been installed on the original portion of the home only five years prior. He first claimed that the shingles were correct, and the color just needed to fade to match the older roof. I peeled one back and proved that wasn't the case. The manufacturer name and color code were indeed wrong. He later placed blame on his supplier, claiming they ordered the wrong shingles. (An entirely different manufacturer and entirely different color). We later learned Brian had another job elsewhere in process and was attempting to use the same material on both jobs. As a quick fix, Brian re-shingled our home one afternoon after several complaints by us and put a second layer of shingle over miss-matches. This is a major code violation on a new build. Brian later tried to appeal to the City Inspector by claiming we as the home owner authorized that installation. The roof drawings also made it very clear the roof was to be a 12-2 pitch and engineered roofing would be required in all flat areas. The shed roof over our new mudroom is nearly flat. He shingled EVERYTHING! He also failed to use flashing, using cases of caulk in lieu of proper flashing techniques.  We were not sure of the extent of his roofing fail until it was torn off entirely this last fall. As a result of Brian not calling for one single inspection during this process, the City Inspectors demanded we have the roof entirely removed. During the removal, it was discovered how poorly it had been installed, and many mistakes and violations were uncovered such as the turned sheeting, different sized sheeting, incorrect type of nails used (smooth shank in lieu of the required ring shank), lack of ice guard, little or no flashing, and gaping holes under the roofing material that were never closed.

Brian had trouble reading the architectural drawings as well. The recessed lighting in the kitchen was installed entirely random, and in no way represented the electrical drawing on the prints. Doorways were put in wrong locations and had to be moved. This was partially a result stemming back to the foundation pins originally laid out for the new mudroom being misplaced by nearly 5 feet. The big, big fail was the roof. Brian was unable to make field verifications as described in the roof design drawings. He deliberately left out two very important field saddles to direct water away from some precarious spots where old met new. These areas leaked water from the beginning, and he bandaged the area for many weeks using roofing cement and caulk. The roof would continue to leak randomly over the next year and a half in many areas, some seen, and others hidden.

All of the new gutters needed repaired in some way. They all leaked from every connection. Some have fallen away from the house already.

He installed a used sump pump. We later found the old box that appeared to have been sitting in a barn or shed for years. The serial number indicated it was over two years old.

He spray painted exterior vents to match the new sidingsubsequently getting paint all over the siding as well.

Much of siding was cut too short and is now coming away from the end connections. The entire flashing wrap around the windows and eaves has already buckled due to poor bends, and being cut too short allowing water to penetrate the siding and gain entry to the walls. It has ALL been subsequently replaced at our cost.

As a result of the roof being incorrectly built, over the 2010-2011 winter, we took ice melt into our new addition and portions of the existing home daily. The kitchen ceiling, all 28x15 of it needed torn down and replaced. The insulation above it was black with mold. All of the paneling and insulation in the mudroom had be removed and discarded due to mold from water damage. Over the winter, I had to climb out onto the roof and shovel it off every time it snowed to slow the water penetration. I dumped over 1000 pounds of salt on that roof to keep the ice off the flat roofs over four months.

Brian had painted everything on the interior of the home. And, when I say everything, I mean EVERYTHING. They actually worked around outlet covers, lighting fixtures, smoke detectors, and new alarm panels and sensors on the walls and ceilings. They not only painted AROUND them, but they mudded and sanded around them as well! The drywall job is atrocious. Every seam can be clearly seen throughout the house. They obviously had no talent in regards to drywall finishing. Simply awful. Taping seams continue to lift in areas we have not re-finished, and drywall screws continue to show up popping through the walls daily.
Every one of the six windows he installed needed to be removed and reinstalled as the casings were not plumb within the walls, and none of them were flashed or sealed around those windows. The large decorative window over our new kitchen sink was installed 6 too low. We are unable to install the back splash as originally designed as a result. Our sliding glass door needed to be removed and re-installed as well. During this process we found the door was merely placed in the opening and never sealed in any way. The Tyvek was cut, stapled, and taped nearly 4 outside the frame. No flashing around, nor at the base of the door was installed. We also found header support 2x4s merely laying in the walls not nailed to anything. One of which fell out during the removal nearly hitting a contractor. This was caught on film.

Within the last month, we made the horrible discovery that none of the exterior wall sheeting had been fully nailed to the framing. While in the attic we found all of the sheeting has started pulling away from the house. Again, smooth nails in lieu of ring shank nails were used, but only two to four on each 4x8 sheet. We believe that this could only have happened as a result of Brian tacking the exterior boards on the walls and forgetting to return to nail them down entirely prior to Tyvek and vinyl siding. In the spring, we now need to have ALL of the siding and Tyvek removed from our home, all walls re-nailed, and all coverings re-installed.

We have also recently discovered that all of the attic insulation was improperly installed with gaps betweens runs and inadequate coverage. Our rooms are terribly cold, and one interior closet surrounded by four walls in the center of the new addition falls to 60 degrees over night if the door is left closed. We were advised to place a second layer of R19 over all existing insulation to cover all gaps and spaces left behind.

We had very specific agreements in regards to our countertops. They were very large, and very expensive. Brian chose to order, and have delivered, our new countertops without having the manufacturer come to our home and laser measure before hand as agreed. Speaking with the supplier after the fact, they indicated this was not a good decision on his part as well. Subsequently, none of the counters come close to fitting as a result of the walls being so out of plumb.

He damaged a very expensive new exterior door while having difficulty installing it. Our new interior door was installed a half inch out of skew and was later removed and reinstalled. He damaged that new interior door as well.

The back porch rails are already coming loose from the deck as a result of not being properly installed and merely nailed to the porch floor. Railings are out of skew as well.

Two damaged ceiling fans. One from water, the other from negligence.

Personal property damage. They dropped something on our stove denting it in two places. They tore several window screens. They killed over 300 square feet of grass longer story.

Simply put, our entire addition is a failure. We personally failed by not keeping up with this guy, continuing to pay him as the build progressed, and believing him as he continued to tell us he would fix and correct things as we found them. It wasnt until the day I came home and caught him trying to install our new, $9000 engineered hardwood flooring over the wavy, water damaged sub-floor with paint tarps and duct tape as moisture barrier that I came to my senses and made them stop. After having a professional flooring company come to our home, it turns out this was a very smart move. The floor would have been ruined. We later paid over $900 to have all of Brians floors floated out, sanded, and covered with heavy felt prior to installation.
We had already forked over nearly $64,000 to Brian. It was too late to recover at this point. Our dream came crashing down around us. He subsequently attempted to claim we breached the contract by making him stop working. He also continues to claim that he offered to fix EVERYTHING all along and to this point.

We hired an attorney to assist with resolving what could be resolved at this point. Brian was not returning our calls, nor was he responding to the City. We ended up spending nearly $5000 in attorney fees JUST to get Brian to respond to the Code Violations HE was responsible to correct.

When the City finally became thoroughly involved, he continued to make these claims. The City Inspectors returned at this point by my request and did a fairly thorough inspection. The Code Violation list was long. They cited Brian for many electrical violations, and violations specifically related to water penetration, i.e., the roof. We had a meeting at our home several weeks after I told Brian to cease work at our home. We video taped the meeting where the Inspectors presented Brian with these violations. They demanded a licensed Electrician to come in the home, and they wanted the roof entirely removed and rebuilt. At that point, he agreed to make corrections and repairs at the Citys request. With the help of a professional roofing company, I prepared a job scope for the roof repair to avoid any further mishaps. I just could not trust Brian to perform proper work at this point judging from all that had transpired over the last year. The City approved the scope, and we presented it to Brian. At this point, the City STILL had not addressed the fact Brian falsified permits, nor failed to call for inspections as required.

Shortly after presenting Brian with the fair and expected scope of work for the roof, he claimed the scope was beyond what he felt was necessary, wasnt able to do the work, nor had the money to make the corrections. Another several months would pass while we now went after Brians bond company to settle for damages and repairs. More attorney fees as well.

The overall sad reality was that the bond company would become liable for Code Defect repairs alone. After several months, we did successfully receive a settlement to repair the electrical and replace the roof. However all of the subsequent water damage repairs, window and door removal, walls, ceilings, insulation, siding, gutter, deck, and repairs related to poor craftsmanship have all come out of our pocket. Brian did not carry insurance for negligence and property damage. Aside from the near $13,000 the bond paid out, we will spend nearly $30,000 making additional repairs. This is money taken from our retirement funds. The repairs continue. And we continue to find major repairs weekly. Soon we will be wiped out of all of our savings, and stuck with a second mortgage as a result of Brians deception, fraud, and lies.

Over the last eight months, we have learned a lot about Brian. He lied about his background and experience. There is a criminal back ground. His website is a fraud, as well as his feedback. The pictures shown on his site were of his own home.

Professionally built. His claims of quality craftsmanship are bogus. He falsified documents. He was sued by our architect for non-payment. There were several small claims suits against him last year alone. He was sued by another homeowner for similar fraud a short time ago. We have recently learned that he is a convicted felon as well! His prior experience was in finance; however he was caught stealing customer funds while under the employment of National City Bank in 2006. His license was revoked by the NASD for life and he was convicted of Class-B felony, serving prison time, and making financial restitution. All of this information is public knowledge and can be found on the internet. His renovation business was not incorporated as suggested. His office address turned out to be a post office box, and his secondary address was a vacant office building. He promised the City to correct the violations, but once he found out the latitude of it all, folded his business and quit answering phone calls. He immediately incorporated a new business under a new name, with the same equipment and two employees. His website remains the same, and his fraudulent activities continue under the guise of RENOVATEMENOW INC.

A week before Christmas 2011, we decided to give Brian one last opportunity to rectify this situation. We provided a condensed list of damages and fees we felt to be more than fair considering what we have had to deal with over the last twenty months. The total being $12,625. There is no council currently involved. We had hopes to settle this matter in a civil manner and put this mess behind us all.

Brian did respond, however he still feels we are asking too much of him, and that he is not responsible for his actions. Strangely however, he made a counter offer of $4000.00. A complete insult in our opinion that does not come close to covering our losses. And our losses mount each day. We declined this offer and reminded him where we stood with our original figure, and the outcome of not settling this matter. He declined to settle with our request.

I advised Brian that we will now be exercising our First and Fourteenth Amendment Rights and get this story out to as many people as possible. I have shared this story with the producers of Disaster House on the DIY Network. A short version of these events aired on January 6, 2012, Episode 307, "Small But Mighty".

I am hoping to get this story on local news at this juncture. This man must be stopped from defrauding further residents in Northeast Ohio, and held accountable publicly for what he has done to us financially and the renovation community as a whole.
I have taken into consideration picketing near his home once I gain the proper permits from Olmsted Falls, Ohio. We are still in the planning stages.

Our hopes are that he will inevitably settle this matter privately. If I were to take this matter to court, I would have no other option but to represent myself. Brian has milked us for nearly all of our savings at this point. What money that does remain is needed to make our house safe and livable for my family. However, I do feel I have a strong case with plenty of documentation and statements to support our case.

We have videos documenting all of the events described on YouTube and DailyMotion. All findings and repairs have been thoroughly documented and filmed. Search CRUZTAKER on YouTube.com and click my CHANNEL link for all videos. A Google search for Brian L. Pauley, BGP Properties, or RENOVATEMENOW will also yield links to many items.