Elite Kitchen and Bath/Express Contracting Overcharged for work done, ordered wrong materials, other work done poorly. Manhasset New York

They are not licensed and they failed to provide a written contract, qhich is required in New York State.  They have not refunded mhy money either.  A couple of other people they did work for told me they never got contracts either and they were unaware that it was a requirement. After going through all the invoices I was given, which were not detailed at all, I discovered that I paid over $10,000 for charges from Home Depot, none of them itemized.  This was a total impossibility. I was chanrged $8000.00 for minimal painting of a kitchen, basement and some repaired exterior trim, $2000.00 of which was for "materials".  The only materials which it could have been for was paint, and that owuld have maounted to about forty gallons.  Again, no way.  If a few gallons wer used, it was a lot. I also was charged for lamost three times the number of tiles reauired for my basement floor and at a price michhigher than the retail price at any tile store. NO, I do not have those tiles.  I was left with about two extra tiles. All in all, a total disaster, which gets worse every time I go through the paperwork.

I have learned that Ellite is required by NYS law to provide a written contract with everything spelled out, from cost of labor and materials for the entire job, names of manfacturers of all materials, and  a time frame for the job to be finished.  Not only did I never get a contract but first he said I had signed one and he would give me a copy ( there was never any such thing, so he could not provide it) and then he rebutted my review by stating that I had refused to sign a contract.  Then by law, he was required to turn down the job.  In addition, he was supposed to provide a written two-year warranty on all work and materials and I do not have that either.

He claims he works on the basis of time and materials. By law he is supposed to work by contract listing all of those items and hours. I paid at least two if not three times more for the basement floor tiles than were needed ( and no, I do not have those extra tiles), and for 180 hours of labor, when the job should have taken a few days at the most.  I have pages of invoices from purchases he made from Home Depot ( nothing itemized and none of it actual Home Depot invoices on their own invoices) which total around $10,000.00.  When I asked at one point what all the Home Depot purchases were, he said they were for things like grout, thinset, etc.  There sure as heck was not $10,000.00 worth of grout and thinset.  

I have just discovered that in New York State it is the law that any home improvement contactor must supply a written contract which specifies the cost of the entire job, from materials to labor, and the manufacturer of all materials must be listed.  There must also be a time frame for the job to be completed. I never got a contract, and the people I know you have also had work done by them never got contracts from them either.  They simply kept giving them checks for marials used and time worked.  In addition, I was supposed to receive a two year written warranty on all materials and labor.  I never got that either.  So, they are totally out of compliance with the law.

I hired Elite, and had not even heard of Express until he had me write out checks to them.

2) Express may be licensed, but Elite is not.  I also wrote out over $11,000 to his father, Yeheskel. Those checks should have been written out to the business. I have grave concerns about that as well.

3) I was never given a contract.  Some weeks ago he insisted he had a contract signed by me and that he would bring me a copy.  Obviously he could not produce one since it never existed.  Now he claims I refused to sign one.

4) I was never given a detailed price for any of the materials and labor incolved in any particular job.  I just kept getting invoices for the number of hours worked each week or every two weeks, with no explanation of which jobs those hours were applied to. Initially he gave me a verbal "ballpark" amount for everything here. What I paid (over $70,000 without the appliances) has gone way beyond that.

5) He doesn't know what he needs to be listed with the BBB?  Give me a break.

6) I never "hired" Express, nor was I told there was an option to use anyone other than the guys he sent here to work. I assumed at the time these were the people who always did their work for them, and I wound up paying Express as well.

7) I never said I bought the appliances "from" them. They ordered them for me, and I paid the supplier directly.

8) I was never given a "budget" for the basement floor.

9) I never asked for, nor was I given a "break" from the work. There were one or two days where I needed to go to the dentist and said I could not have anyone working here those days.

10) The storm door was manufactured and installed improperly, leaving no air, causing a vacuum.  No closer can remedy that problem. Two contractors have attested to that.

11) The entrance door is not supposed to drag and need force to open and close because of weatherstripping.  I have had weatherstipping on doors for many years. The result is that now it has all ripped away from the door from opening and closing it, and I no longer have weatherstripping.

12) Anyone who hires a painter knows that a professional is supposed to spackle, sand and then paint, in order to remove imperfections, nicks, and cracks.  Otherwise, why paint?  If I wanted someone to simply run a paint brush over damaged wood, I would do it myself.  This cost me $6000.00, and I have to hire a new painter!

13) No, the sheetrock with the mold was never removed.  The painter simply painted right over it, and it is starting to show through the thin layer of paint already.  I have to now get someone in here to cut out the piece and replace it, and then paint all over again.

14) No, I did not get a detailed description of everything purchased for the work here.  I have  several invoices from Elite with entries marked "Home Depot" totalling over $10,000.00 Nothing is itemized.  There is no way anywhere near that amount of materials was used in this house.

15) They sure did damage the car, and David saw it and wanted to try to fix the scratches himself by compunding them out.  There was no way I would allow that and I took it to a body shop.  One of them could not be compounded because it went all the way through the paint and they would have had to paint the whole side of the car, so that scratch is still there. 

16) No, I did not pick out a sample of countertop material and then refuse it when it came in because it looked different. I have emails from David stating exactly what he was supposed to get for me, which was white with a sprinkling of gray threading, to match the marble which was coming off the countertops.  What I got was a charcoal gray and black mottled color which I would not have ordered even if there was no other choice! He ordered the wrong material but can't manage to own up to it.

17) Yes, I paid $3500.00 deposit on the countertop which he is still holding.  Although he agreed in writing to return it, he has changed his mind on his "offer".  I hardly think money which is owed to me is an "offer".

18) I most certainly was charged for work which was not done.  I paid $2000.00 for the countertops to be removed and the new ones installed.  Obviously the news ones were never installed. I also paid for a new electric power strip to be installed to replace the one which was there previously.  That didn't happen either.  He owes me around $1200.00 for that work which was never done and the power strip not supplied.

19.  The only way he would agree to a return of the money for the materials not provided and work not done was if I agreed to sign a release against all other claims.  I said "no" and that's when they decided not to return my money.

20) I was never hostile to his workers, although I did have to yell at them when they started sawing wood and mixing grout near my car, which still did not prevent the damage which took place..  I find it interesting that he has to mention that his workers are legal immigrants.  That never came up in conversation.  Methinks he doth protest too much?  Mmmm. Something to look into.

21) I did not slander anyone.  I simply put forth an honest and accurate description of everything which went wrong here. None of what I am writing here is slander.  The word "slander" usually infers blaming someone with no cause.

22) There was never a discussion about contractors I used in the past, so I sure never said they were all horrible.  However, just so everyone here knows, one of them died, and two retired years ago.

23) Yes, he has great reviews on Houzz, and interestingly enough, they all sound very similar.  He also advertises on Houzz, and Houzz refused to publish my review.  Research on the internet shows that Houzz is legend for refusing negative reviews and removing others on a regular basis. There are some reviews elsewhere on the internet which are not quite as glowing.

24) I still maintain that if I were not a widowed senior center, his behavior and way of handling things would not have been so cavalier. He basically implied that I was becoming senile when he insisted I ordered the countertop material "incorrectly".  He even stated he came here a second time just to confirm that he was ordering the correct color.  Never happened. He knows he goofed.

Had he simply admitted his mitake, despite the fact that I was very unhappy with a good bit of what he did here and six months of having things drag on, with my constantly having to call to get things taken care of, none of this would have happened. I would have let him finish anwould have considered it a lesson learned. Instead he lambasted me and said he would do it over if he was paid all over again.  That was not going to happen.  He is now not only keeping my money, but is trying to sue me for the balances of the countertops and the labor which would have been done involving those countertops. Bad News!
 

Response to Complaint authored by Leslie of Great Neck (Also known as Laurie W. on Yelp) 
After you review our response, please check the rest of Leslie's (Laurie W.) reviews on Yelp.
1. We own (2) businesses - Elite Kitchen & Bath and Express Contracting.  Mrs. Weinberg hired Express Contracting to do her work, not Elite K&B.  In 34 years, we have never had a complaint filed. All checks received are recorded on our company books properly. 
2. Express has been, and still is licensed for 34 years. 
3. We give every client a contract.  We gave Mrs. Weinberg a quote and she failed to sign our contract.  We did not push her to sign it and we regret this.
4. We work on time & material basis as explained to Mrs. Weinberg. She received detailed bills for both labor and materials purchased on a consistent basis.  
5. We did not exceed the quotes we gave her. 
6. We are not listed under the BBB.  We don't know what you need to be listed
7. She hired Express to do the contracting work. 
8. The kitchen island and countertop were  purchased through Elite
9. We do not sell appliances so we are not sure why she said she purchased a new wall oven, microwave, and dishwasher and cook top from us.  We did sell her a sink
10. Basement floor was completed according to budget that client was supplied
11. Floor tiles - Client never asked us for manufacture, warranty, or any other details.  Material name and color was listed on invoice
12. Express Contracting worked on and off at residence over the last 6 months.  We started with basement work, then she wanted a break from work, then painting was done approx. a month later.  Cabinets were ordered at the beginning of job, and there was a 12 week lead time to receive, which client was informed about
13. Storm Door - Was a custom mahogany door that we manufactured and installed.  The door closing mechanism needed to be replaced with a heavier duty mechanism.  It was dropped off at residence, but client refused to let us install.
14. Entrance Door - Weather stripping was replaced since worn, and door needed more force now to close since weather stripping is new.
15. Painter - Was hired to paint kitchen, eat-in area, powder room, laundry, hallway, and exterior garage door, and front door and exterior trims.  He was hired to paint, not to repair existing dents. 
16. Sheetrock with mold - Sheetrock was removed and replaced.  
17. Purchases - Client never requested copies of all individual material invoices.  All material was used for clients home, and was within provided budget.
18. We never leave a client's house with black or any marks as she claims.  We are careful not to drag equipment.  We put down cloths and respect every client's home -inside and out. 

19. We did not damage her car, when client went to look to show me damage she could not even find a scratch
20. Mrs. Weinberg chose a new quartz counter-top based on a 12" x 12" sample.  When she saw the top in its full size, she claimed it was not the material she had chosen.  She was furnished with invoice that indicated this material as well as copy of email with material selection that was emailed from her home. Mrs. Weinberg only paid a 50% deposit on the countertop.  
21. Since we work on time & material, we did not charge her for work we did not do as she claims.
22. She did pay for the sink drain and grid which were on back order.  We credited her for these two items. 
23. If you review the over 150 emails she sent in a 2 week period (Including Thanksgiving and when I had to rush to Florida when my Mom got sick), you can see that since she kept up a hostile, harassing and threatening tone, we were willing to "eat" the countertop cost just to make this situation end.  We told her time & time again we wanted to resolve this.  As you can see, she declined the monetary offer.  As she said, she wants to "get even". We have now rescinded our offer to pay for the countertop she did not like.  
24. Mrs. Weinberg was also hostile and nasty to our workers.  These workers are legal immigrants on salary & insured.  My Dad and I continue to suffer many sleepless nights due to her constant threats and harassment.  She is slandering us on line and to our vendors. This defamation of character is unwarranted.
25. Before she hired us, she did say she worked with contractors all her life.  She also said every single one of them was terrible.  That should have been a clue.  Why would she hire us if she has such vast experience with contractors for over 50 years? 
26. She is correct - we are highly recommended because of our great workmanship. 
27. My father is a senior citizen, 80 years old.  We both run the businesses & have a great respect for all people, including senior citizens. Another slander on her part to accuse us of conning a senior citizen. We are a reputable firm and have been for 34 years. 
28. Client mentioned appliances which were purchased from another company - Hampton Appliance in Garden City

This  guy is now suing me for the balance I would have owed him had he completed the work. Not only does he owe me about $5000 for the materials and work not done but he wants to hold onto that and collect the balance of the countertop material and labor he would have received if the job were finished.  Stay as far away from this guy as you can.  Another reviewer on another site said that when he held back money for work not done, Elite threatened her coop board with a lien on the building if it was not paid. I am waiting for responses from the Department of Consumer Affairs and the Better Business Bureau before I go after hiim in court.