I wanted to make sure that the public is aware of this company's business practices, and I fully acknowledge what I am going to write is based on my perception and experience, and it may not be the experience of other potential clients, which is why I left 3 stars. I have a lot of experience managing public works projects so I have some experience with contractors, creating detailed and clear scopes of work, and reviewing/improving contracts. It's my experience, if you try and hold this company to acceptable industry standards, they will say we don't think we are a good fit for your project. It seems that they MAY work best with people that will allow them to cut corners, and who may not know any better. From reading some of the reviews, this seems to be a common tactic. I also want to stress that I was completely professional in all my communication with Billy and his team and was not the typical "I want it all but I don't want to pay for it" type of customer. I initially met with Billy in mid-August and he agreed to provide me with a quote for my front yard project. I received his quote, along with the quotes from several other companies. Since the price on his quote was lowest, I wanted to pursue finalizing a scope of work and the details of the project, but that's when everything went downhill. A company can put on a quote "install 500 sq ft of pavers" or whatever you are asking them to do, but that doesn't cover how they will accomplish that task. Are they going to scrape the dirt and put in some pavers? They could, and there is not a darn thing you can do to not live up to your end of the contract if they do. I asked Billy to include the points from the scope of work I drafted so that both his company, and myself, are protected; that there will be no ambiguity in what needed to be done; and there will be no change orders when the job is in progress (some contractors LOVE change orders, which can be a pretty expensive problem that you will have no choice in accepting) because I didn't specify exactly what I was expecting. I also told Billy to let me know if there would be any pricing changes since I wanted to add drainage and sealant on the walls and pavers I wanted installed, which shouldn't be that much since he, as a licensed contractor, would of course bid the job knowing he had to use acceptable industry practices to complete each task. For example, for installation of the pavers since the pavers were being installed in a driveway I wanted to be sure that the appropriate base material was used and what depth that material would be. Without that spec, he could put in 1-2", but industry spec says it should be a MINIMUM of 4-6" of acceptable base material. I also wanted him to specify the bedding material he would use, and the thickness. For the walls I wanted installed, I wanted Billy to include drainage and waterproofing on the backside since these are retaining walls. These requests should not have been an issue for a professional, licensed contractor. If I am paying someone a fair price of thousands of dollars, I should expect to be completely protected from the potential of a shoddy job and costly change orders down the line.
On 9/9/20, I followed up with Billy's employee Gilbert. I asked if he had received the scope of work notes I sent on 9/4 and when I could expect an updated quote. He said that I would get it as soon as Billy is ready. I perceived that there were no issues at that time. I waited until today to follow-up again. Billy replied to me a few hours later that he sent me a message a few weeks back (that he said he couldn't find) that he didn't want the job. It's pretty frustrating when someone doesn't follow through and wastes your time. He later wrote that he didn't think the job was a good fit. Amazing that I don't find that out until today. Pretty unprofessional. So, yes, this is not a review of this company's work. it really is just a warning (and not only for this contractor) that no matter what contractor you select to do business with, you should ALWAYS get a detailed scope of work from them telling you exactly how the work will be done. Not getting this can potentially put you in a really uncomfortable (and super expensive) spot later on. I always like to give the benefit of the doubt, but in this case I think its clear (to me...maybe not you) that Aloha didn't want the job because they were hoping to do a bare minimum job that would maximize their profit. I definitely hope that Aloha changes its business practices, and that everyone they do business with has a great experience. Being very upfront with potential clients would be GREAT for their business! Why not provide a really detailed scope of work up front, so clients see that and be more at ease about the professionalism of the company they are dealing with. My hope is that people will see this review and always ask for the details before agreeing to proceed, no matter the contractor they select. read more