Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/25/2025

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  We reached out to *** ****** with Big Mountain Construction and Contracting LLC (BMCC) in March 2024, about building our barn on our property in ********, *******. We also asked him for a proposal / bid to build our home, on the same property. We signed a contract to construct the barn on June 10, 2024, for a contract amount of $103,000. We verbally all agreed on project taking no more than a month to complete. Building our home in late summer 2024, after barn build.They insisted we pay the full balance of $103,000 up front. They did not want a contract, but we insisted that we have a contract with ***************** to move forward. We paid the 50% upfront to start and within a VERY short time and little progress, we got a change order for a $30,000 cost increase on the foundation work. We had paid for materials however they were not on the job site. We asked for receipts of purchase, *** and **** ******* said they didn't need to show this to us, we just needed to trust them in good faith. Told Barn build to completion would be less than a month. However, in late October, framing was still in progress and with winter coming, we were worried with the significant amount of work left to do. Asked about the project status with updates on progress of completion. **** ******* demanded "prepayment" even though we had exhausted our progress payment schedule. We always paid when asked and in good faith, even when we doubted the company's ability to complete the project, the barn. The engagement with **** became hostile on 10/14/2024, with threatening emails and texts. At this point we asked them to leave our project with a stop work notice.We have hired someone else to complete our project and have endured additional costs to complete, repair, and fix work done by ****. As of January 18, **** ******* has placed a mechanic's lien on our property for non-payment to wages, claiming she hasn't paid her employees since May - October, for 720 hours of labor at $70.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/08/2025

  As you can clearly see in these emails, we had a contract and documented every step of the project, and the customer was aware of the additional cost of the foundation that he ordered from our subcontractor directly.

  We made a requested change order and contract update, which included a new request for payment based on what had been paid and the need to pay our suppliers. The customer argued about what needed to be done with roofing and excavation, but those were not part of our contract. In September, the customers came to see the property and were very happy with progress and structural quality. We passed all of our inspections, including structural and foundation. The barn looked awesome and any changes they made once we left were personal choice, not deficiencies of any kind, the inspections are on file. 

  To date, the customer owes us a balance for labor that has been forwarded to our attorney. They reviewed the entire contract file and a lien has been placed on the property and will be removed when we have been paid, per Montana law. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/16/2025

   
  Complaint: 22990214
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  **** is in breach of contract and uses bully tactics to extract money for work that is NOT completed.  They took or did not purchase materials with the money I paid them.   I have photos of the incomplete work for and lack of materials I paid for missing from the site.  The invoice information provided is not the contract, just an invoice that cannot be trusted.   **** frequently updates the same invoice # with new information after it is sent out.

  We have paid more than what we have received in services/materials based on our agreement with supporting documentation.  I have paid them all but the final progress payment of the contract already.  According to the contact they are demanding final payment which is not due until the work is complete.   Exhibit B is the payment plan with services that are expected to be completed at each phase.  Because I am living out of State, I travel in periodically to reconcile work.   Each payment phase had some problems, but I continued in good faith trusting the builder.

  Here is a list of the work that was incomplete.   Each phase had excuses and promises in it that never got fulfilled when there was a problem.

  - Foundation Complete (NO)   
          - BMCC put a Human-Entry door in a Horse stall and has not fixed it.
          - I was charged for a footer for the stairs to the upper loft the concrete is work is not done. 
          - Gravel floor base missing and lots of excuses why.  Backfilled with dirt from site and that needs to be fixed now.
  - Framing complete (NO)
          - There were missing supports and re-enforcements that had to be corrected that cost me. 
          - no stairs installed, just excuses why the concrete work was not completed above.
          - The structure was missing blocking in rafters, Outlooks, consistent hurricane clips
  - Dry-in Complete (NO)
          - Windows not installed, no doors.
  - Roofing Complete (NO)
          - Cupola not built.
          - Roof wood not covered in titanium underlayment.
  - Siding, Soffit, Facia Started (NO)
          - I paid for siding, soffit, and facia materials.  They are missing.
  - Insulation (NO)

  I do not know how the inspection was passed and there was no proof of that, because the work was not complete.  It cost me money to fix what was not done correctly by a different reputable contractor.

  Every attempt I made to understand where my money when got returned with silence, mis-direction and extortion/bully tactics.   They resorted to name calling and hostile tactics to prevent me from asking questions about where my money went and what I paid for.  I spent close to a week trying to understand what was done and what was left with no luck.   The hostility got to a point that I asked them to leave the site and leave any materials I have purchased.

  Sincerely,
  **** *****

   

  Business Response

  Date: 03/20/2025

  Well, I could say the same about the customer when it comes to name calling, but as a General Contractor out here working in the *****, we don't pretend we've never heard those words. In fact, **** ***** showed up on our jobsite, in town, just to yell in my husband's face to "F&ck off and give him his money back" because he didn't remember ordering the change for the door until we showed him his text, early in August, just after his excavator had stopped working on the project.

  Look, we did the best we could for these customers. We passed our inspection and would have completed the work. The attachments show we did exactly what they asked. We found them contractors for their needs, as we were hired to do. They signed up for the extra foundation work, they asked for the barn to be turned and the doors to be switched. Then they asked for the roofing to be ordered and installed, before we had even started the siding. That's when I reminded them that was a subcontract and would require additional payment and contractor. They didn't like that, and didn't want to pay, so as I said before, we sent this over to our attorney and you are free to contact them about the lien. 

  All the attachments are here, the contract from us, for the foundation, and the change orders that were sent and accepted by the customers in July of 2024. 

  Thank you.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/21/2025

   
  Complaint: 22990214
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  They are in breach of their contract.  They are making fraudulent claims for work they did not complete.   They had not completed any of the phases on the contract to full completion and all I got was excuses and delays.  The site is missing materials that I paid money for that I never received that should have been on-site in October.  Those materials valued at well over $16,000 that they have not accounted for based on progress payments and the contract.   There where mistakes the builder failed to account for in the foundation that required it be fixed.

  The attached information **** provided is proof BMCC did not finish expected work from the email she provided here.   BMCCEbertEmailsforBBB2.pdf.   The roof work was not completed in Late October as stated by the contract.

  There is still work not complete from the first payment I made.   There is work not complete from the second progress payment I made and again all excuses for why it is not complete.   **** refused to continue without paying the balance in full because we wanted to know why progress was not being made with the money they were given.   

  - Foundation Complete (NO)   

           - BMCC put a Human-Entry door in a Horse stall and has not fixed it.   
          - I was charged for a footer for the stairs to the upper loft the concrete is work is not done.  
          - Gravel floor base missing and lots of excuses.  Backfilled with dirt from site.  That needs to be fixed now.

  - Framing complete (NO)
          - There were missing supports and re-enforcements that had to be corrected that cost me. 
          - no stairs installed, just excuses why the concrete work was not completed above.
          - The structure was missing blocking in rafters, Outlooks, consistent hurricane clips
  - Dry-in Complete (NO)
          - Windows not installed, no doors.
  - Roofing Complete (NO)
          - Cupola not built.
          - Roof wood not covered in titanium underlayment.
  - Siding, Soffit, Facia Started (NO)
          - I paid for siding, soffit, and facia materials.  They are missing.
  - Insulation (NO)

  Sincerely,

  **** *****

  Business Response

  Date: 03/28/2025

  Thank you for reaching out. I see no reply here for me to respond to.