Extremely disappointing and disturbing experience with Daniel O'Keefe…read more
Daniel came to our home for a siding estimate and spent a significant amount of time giving us a sales presentation about what we needed, why his recommendations were the best option, and how he was giving us an exceptional price. He repeatedly emphasized how little profit he would make and shared personal details about his wife, his three children, and his responsibility to provide for his family. The estimate was close to $40,000, with a "promotion" bringing it down to approximately $29,500.
We explained that our basement had recently flooded, which was why we had some belongings and bins temporarily stored in our living and dining areas. We also explained that our daughter is getting married and that wedding decorations and floral arrangements were stored throughout the house.
Daniel brought siding color swatches for us to choose from. I selected a color, and he immediately told me, "That's a great color. It's beautiful." He even showed me a photo of a home in Dorchester they had completed using that color.
He then went outside to inspect the trim around our windows. While he was outside, I was in the restroom and could clearly hear him having an open conversation about us, our family, our home, and the contents of our home.
I heard him tell the person on the phone that we had selected "the most hideous color in all of the swatches."
This was especially disturbing because he had just stood inside our home, looked me in the face, and told me that exact color was beautiful. He also mocked the condition of our home, calling the job "hideous," "a one-off," and "a mess." He made disparaging comments about our family and personal belongings.
Then he discussed how doing the job would be "good publicity" because we live on a main road and could potentially help him get business from the "nicer homes" in the area.
So, inside our home, he was telling us how beautiful our choices were and how much he wanted our business. Outside, when he thought we couldn't hear him, he was insulting our home, criticizing our choices, discussing our belongings and family, and viewing our property as a marketing opportunity.
I heard the conversation and recorded it.
I collected his belongings, put them back in his bag, left them outside, and locked the door. When he returned approximately ten minutes later, he tried to open the door. I told him he was not coming back inside.
When I confronted him about what I had heard, his explanation was that he was simply trying to "sell the job to his boss" and justify why he had given us a discount. He apologized and said he had been "cowardly" and should have handled things differently. He then said that he was jealous that I was willing to help my parents pay for the project.
I told him that if he had simply been honest and said, "I gave you a discount, so I need to explain or over exaggerate the circumstances to my boss," I could have understood that. Instead, he presented himself as someone we could trust while inside our home, then walked outside and ridiculed us and our home.
I told him he had broken the trust relationship, that I no longer felt comfortable with him on our property, and that I wanted him to leave. I told him that he should have been honest from the beginning. Instead, he had chosen to present one version of himself to us while saying something entirely different when he thought we couldn't hear him. He said he doesn't even make a commission, which frankly doesn't concern or justify his behavior
He then asked if I wanted recommendations for other contractors.
I wanted nothing from him except for him to leave my property.
After this experience, I looked more closely at Long Home's reviews and found numerous other customers raising concerns about high-pressure sales tactics, pricing, communication, and customer service.
This was not simply a case of disliking a salesperson. We witnessed firsthand the complete disconnect between what Daniel said to our faces and what he said about us when he thought we weren't listening.
If you cannot trust a salesperson to tell you the truth about something as simple as the color you selected, why would you trust him with a $30,000 home improvement project?
I would strongly caution anyone against allowing this individual or business into their home. Honesty, respect, and integrity should be the bare minimum when asking someone to trust you with tens of thousands of dollars and access to their home.
