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• By Derdivanis K.

  November 15, 2016

  house remodel

  60 days

  I truly hope you’ve had or will have a good experience with Modern Group Arizona.

  Unfortunately, ours was anything but.

  I’ve remodeled homes in Arcadia and Equestrian Manor and have never had so many issues with a single contractor. Without acceptable resolution, I have no choice but to file an official complaint with the Arizona Registrar of Contractors and the Better Business Bureau.

  With some notable exceptions, I will acknowledge that we were generally pleased with the end result. We enjoyed working with Mike Olson but no homeowner should have to deal with these issues in an attempt to complete a project. Attached below are a few photos.

  * jewelry theft from a worker’s son

  * poor cleanup, paint staining landscape, killing ocotillo plant

  * new but defective windows that required replacement

  * worker bringing child and wife on the premises

  * puncturing skin due to protruding carpet nails

  * tradespeople working weekends and weeknights, without advance notice

  * flickering lights - 4 attempts to fix but still not resolved

  * plumbing issues

  * replacing tiles because quickset was not evenly applied

  * paint splatters and flashing, wrong texture applied

  * wrong carpet ordered, poor installation with buckling

  * over charged on carpet, resolved five months later and had to be initiated by us

  * request to order carpet from a vendor ignored, no on-site support

  * loose thresholds, gaps on light plates, plaster texture uneven

  * dis-colored shelving that required 2nd installation

  There were numerous other issues and to their credit, Modern Group did resolve most of them. But do it right the first time and 2nd, 3rd, and 4th visits aren’t necessary. Modern Group was still working on issues four months after the project was to be completed in 2015.

  The carpet snafu was particularly troublesome. Our decorator at Wiseman & Gale specified in an email what to buy and where to buy. Modern Group picked up a different sample, despite our request they failed to confirm with their own records, then purchased from a different party without passing on the savings.

  Modern Group’s sub-standard installation led to raised tacks, buckling, and uneven transition to tile. Nearly a year and half ago I requested Modern Group bring the carpet manufacturer to the house, which never occurred. By this past summer, two carpet professionals told me repeatedly they felt the carpet was defective, wearing poorly in spots, and not cleaning/performing properly.

  The delays and stonewalling from Modern Group’s principal, Shawn Falconbridge since July have been particularly disappointing. Voicemails, written messages, and emails are often not returned. After reaching him in July, he said he'd get back to me. Patiently, I waited six weeks before contacting him again. After five personal invitations over three months to drive eight minutes to see for himself, he finally visited on September 29th.

  More than a month later and nearly two years after we spent well more than $100,000 with his firm, he offers $2,000 for our inconveniences, which we declined. Our expense on a new carpet alone is $6500. This is to replace the mistakenly ordered carpet, one that is purportedly defective, doesn’t clean easily, and most certainly was poorly installed.

  Last week I pointed it out to Mr. Falconbridge, through all of this not once has he expressed any regret, apology, or even acknowledgement of the myriad of issues.

  I sincerely hope our experience with Modern Group was an anomaly and that this contractor will treat you fairly and value you as a client, vendor, or partner.

  If you’ve had similar issues or would like more specific information regarding our problems with Modern Group, please let me know.

  Kent Derdivanis

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