Kitchen & 2 Baths Renovation
Kitchen & 2 Baths Renovation
Regardless of the glowing reviews, complete a diligent review of the work on a daily basis.
Establish that Ana is responsible for the replacement of defective material that she provides. Ana told me that if I wanted a cracked and chipped tile in the bath niche replaced, I had to buy an entire slab because she did not have anymore.
Get a detailed breakdown for the work. Ana suggested that I leave all of the floor tiles to save money and time. At the end she only gave me a $900 credit. A quote from another contractor estimated the tile demo & removal at $2725; floor tiles were the bulk of the tiles.
“One glass panel” on top of tub leaves ½ of the tub without glass. After the contractor installed the tile and the glass company was measuring for the glass, Ana asked if I wanted to enclose the whole tub. I did, and she charged me an extra $784.00 for the door panel.
Require a change order describing additional work and the price. I accepted several suggestions from Ana without a quote and I paid more than is standard for that service. For example, she charged me $380 to install two side-by-side dimmers switches that I purchased.
Get a separate painting quote. I added the living /dining walls for painting and Ana charged an additional $2100. This resulted in a payment of $4260 to paint 2 baths, hall, kitchen and the dining / living areas – no bedrooms.
Ana requires 60% upfront and final payment when the company installs the shower doors. After final payment, the remaining work took several months and there were several missed appointments without a call or text to say the contractor was not coming. Ceiling around light fixture not repaired, 5 scheduled visits with 2 missed before the contractor, with my help, completed this.
Some issues I encountered: 1) Refrigerator and stove put back in place with no grout underneath. 2) Dimmer switches installed upside-down. 3) Master bath light switches are backwards; the 1st switch turns on the shower vent and light and the 2nd switch turns on the first light. 4) Contractor installed the shower / tub / handheld directional water flow knob incorrectly. 5) Paint on fixtures, ceiling around light fixture not repaired; 5 scheduled visits with 2 missed before he completed the job. 6) The installer did not check size of the tub faucet before installing accent tile; I would not accept an off-center faucet, so he had to tear out and replace “my” tile to center the faucet with no credit to me. 7) There were several recessed lights with a gap between the ceiling and the fixture. Contractor stated that he could not fix the gap because the ceiling was not level. 8) The shelf in the bathtub niche has unsightly grout on the bottom of the tile. Per Ana, once the grout dries there is no way to remove it.
Price 38,871.00 + additional 7767.50 – 900 (credit) = $45,738.50. I provided tile, grout, shower / bath faucets, drain, dimmer switches, lighting fixtures except for recessed lights.