We worked with Tom Durhan to renovate our new home based on our realtors referral. Mr. Durhan charged us approximately $30,000 but did not finish the job and many of the renovations were subpar and/or created more problems that we had to pay additional money to have repaired. When paying the final agreed-upon installation I had concerns regarding whether he would complete the job as we had not had a good experience with his work, however, as to not breach our agreement, I rendered the agreed-upon payment. I expected that he would complete the job as we had agreed but he did not.
It was clear our house was not a priority for them as there was very little supervision to ensure their employees were doing things correctly. I often had to tell their employees which walls we were keeping, telling them they put a door or window in the wrong spot, etc. The electrician was flighty (not being able to keep track of what was going where) and rude, though, Tom apologized for that. Most mistakes I was able to catch while it was being completed, however, the two things I didn't catch that had to be redone Tom wanted to charge me for even though they were in the wrong place to begin with.
Tom only came to the home during one of the weeks of renovation after I expressed a concern and again towards the end to receive payment in full (for a job he never finished). He noted the drywall work in the bathroom looked "sloppy" and much of the work around the rest of the house was consistent with that; bad drywall patching, cracks in the drywall, leaky faucets, wrong size quarter round used, holes visible in the sconces, no insulation used when patching exterior walls, etc. They left open drain lines under the house which we had to have an outside plumber repair. We incurred additional costs because of his subcontractor's mistake yet he refused to reimburse us because he said he was not paying "retail prices." Every plumber we've had in the house since have noted more potential problems because the materials used are flimsy and not commonly used by professionals in order to meet code. I'm the one who cleaned up all the construction debris, all the wood, drywall, remnants, bags of trash, the ram board all over the whole house, loose screws, the area around the dumpster for them to be able to close it up and take it, etc. I was charged for items I had to go back and correct and for items that were already included in the initial quote. Line items on the bill weren't consistent, for example, the same size exposure of brick was a different price in one room vs another. Mr. Durhan would often explain the charges away when I'd ask him about them, for example, he charged us for installing the thermostat by saying it was completed just because the wires were relocated, so with the loose wires sticking out of the wall and nothing hooked up to it, the legitimacy of that charge and many others are in question.
I should have taken heed of another review I read from his old company name, Mid-South Property Solutions, but we were in a hurry to start the project since were moving from another state having to live in a hotel with a toddler during the pandemic and Mr. Durhan was quick to agree to the job and seemed professional and reliable, our realtor referred him, and everything seemed up front but that wound up being a farce. Don't waste your money. At the end of the day you're going to be acting as the project manager and you'd ultimately be able to bring in workers who will be more reliable, have better craftsmanship, and actually complete the job. read more
