Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  01/13/2025

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I met with Daso Custom Cabinetry Owner **** **** & Lead Designer **** ****** on 6/18/23 to discuss cabinets for my investment property. I was considering adding an island in my kitchen. This required removing 2 walls. *** **** also suggested removing a coat closet to create a mudroom. I told *** **** & *** ****** that I WOULD NOT remove the 3 walls to support the island & mudroom if I-beams were required for their removal. *** **** told me they provide Architect services to determine the need for additional support I-beams for wall(s) removal. I informed **** ****** that they would be responsible for pulling the required permits, which she agreed to do. *** **** was apprehensive to pull my construction permits at our following meeting. I informed him that **** law requires general contractors to pull proper permits for construction with wall/ electrical/ plumbing removal & redistribution. On 8/7/23, I gave *** ****** my initial deposit, including $5,000 for Daso Custom Cabinetry to obtain permits. She told me they would begin the process of pulling permits & set up a meeting with their Architect to inspect my attic/walls. 7 weeks passed without any updates. I emailed *** **** & *** ****** on 9/29/23 to inquire about my construction timeline. An Architect inspection had not been scheduled. *** **** responded ‘Products and material have been ordered & your cabinets are in active production in our shop as of 9-18-24.' *** ****** informed me on 12/12/23 that they are no longer responsible for pulling my construction permits despite already paid for this service (I was refunded $5k). She disclosed that they were midway through construction of my $33,047.35 non-refundable cabinets. My $15,189.29 countertops payment for was also non-refundable. The custom cabinets project was completed on 8/16/24. I’m requesting my $8,500 expenditures of the contractor fee, framing, & labor materials for the support I-beams required for the removal of the 3 walls for cabinets installation.

  

  Business response

  01/23/2025

  When this project began, the customer wanted DCC to do a full renovation of her company’s house. However, soon after entering into a contract with DCC, she began to alter her scope of working, removing much of the work she contracted for. Also, at the outset of our relationship, she indicated she may want to remove portion of the kitchen walls to accommodate her island. She informed DCC that she believed the walls were not load bearing; however, DCC informed her that it would have to confirm with their own engineer and architect. Ultimately, this work was part of the scope of work she removed and sourced to other contractors after taking issue with DCC’s pricing.
  

  The customer also mentions the fact DCC did not wish to pull permits for the Project. This is inaccurate. At the outset, DCC informed her permits would be pulled 60 days before the Project began. After, the customer began transferring much of the work to outside contractors. Because she transferred the work, DCC informed her it was not comfortable pulling permits for work other contractors were performing, and that it would help coordinate pulling permits to the extent it could and request its own permits under the ones obtained by the new general contractor.
  

  Because the customer ultimately chose to remove much of the work she originally wanted DCC to perform, the company refunded all amounts related to this work, including charges for engineering, drawing, reporting, and time spent on site for any permits it would have to pull under the original scope. In the end, DCC provided and installed the cabinets and counters, to which the customer has taken no issue with the quality of workmanship.
  

  For a more comprehensive summary, please see the provided Response and Exhibits 1-3. 

  Customer response

  01/25/2025

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  I reject *** ****’s Better Business Bureau response as it contains numerous inaccuracies and false statements. *** **** and *** ****** informed me that they would begin the process of pulling my construction permits immediately after I provided them with my initial deposit of $80,353.41 on August 7, 2023- not ‘60 days before the project began’ as *** **** claims in his response. *** ****, *** ******, and I were collectively in agreement of this during our second meeting on July 13, 2023. The structural, electrical, & plumbing permits for my kitchen needed to be pulled and approved prior to the commencement of construction for my non-refundable custom cabinets to ensure the 3 kitchen walls could be removed without additional support I-beams to support the custom cabinets for the kitchen, island, and *** ****’s proposed mudroom. *** **** informed me during the same meeting on July 13, 2023 that Daso Custom Cabinetry offers Architect and Interior Designer services to thoroughly evaluate and inspect their client's homes to determine the scope of work-including the need for additional support I-beams for wall(s) removal- prior to building custom cabinets. This became a very persuasive selling point for me as it was also highlighted by Daso Custom Cabinetry on its website. I made it very clear to both *** **** and *** ****** that their Architect would provide the required Architect/ Engineer inspection report that would be required by ******** County for Daso Custom Cabinetry to obtain the required structural, electrical, and plumbing permits as my licensed and insured general contractor. *** **** and *** ****** agreed to do so.
  
  As noted in my initial summary, I informed *** **** and *** ****** during our first meeting on June 18, 2023 that a Structural Engineer representing ********** Insurance had been to my home earlier in the year to evaluate my roof for its replacement with ****** Roofing. The Structural Engineer verbally informed me that the main hallway wall was load bearing. However, I told both *** **** and *** ****** that the Structural Engineer's visit was solely for the purpose of inspecting my roof that was being replaced- not to inspect my home for renovation purposes to potentially remove kitchen walls. The ********** Insurance Structural Engineer told me that I would need to work with my future general contractor's Architect and/ or Structural Engineer to determine if support I-beams would be required to remove the kitchen walls, which I disclosed to *** **** and *** ******. Hypothetically- if there was ever any confusion on *** **** or *** ******’s end regarding who would be responsible for providing the Architect/ Engineer report for the kitchen walls removal to obtain the required construction permits- neither *** **** nor *** ****** ever requested to see my ********** Insurance Engineer’s structural report for my roof inspection throughout the six months they served as general contractor for my investment property renovation project prior to commencing construction on my $33,353.41 non-refundable custom cabinets and collecting payment for my $15,189.20 non-refundable Cambria Quartz countertops. This ********** Insurance Structural Report did not have any relevance to support the removal of the 3 walls in the kitchen for Daso Custom Cabinetry’s cabinets, island, and *** ****’s proposed mudroom. However, *** ****** actually suggested I use this report to pull my own structural permits via text on January 10, 2023 after telling me that Daso Custom Cabinetry was no longer responsible for pulling my permits on December 12, 2023 (reference attached text message from *** ******). *** **** and *** ****** were both aware that an Architect/ Structural Engineer report would be required to pull the structural permits for the kitchen walls removal and neglected to have their Architect inspect my attic and walls prior to the commencement of building my $33,353.41 non-refundable custom cabinets (reference *** ****’s email on September 29, 2023) and collecting payment for both my non-refundable custom cabinets and Cambria Quartz countertops.
  
  During the same meeting on July 13, 2023, *** **** reiterated that he would offer generous Daso Custom Cabinetry discounts for using his subcontractors for the additional subcontractor work including flooring installation, painting walls throughout the home (1836 sq ft), and tile and shower replacement/ installation in the master bathroom. This proposed ‘discounted pricing’ by *** **** was to keep his pricing competitive and aligned with the pricing I would receive by working directly with flooring, painting, and shower installation home improvement companies such as **** **** ****** **** ***** and ****** ****. I told *** **** and *** ****** to remove their proposed $10,900 trim work charge. I planned to keep all of these items ‘as is’. *** ****** and *** **** both agreed to remove this project and charge of $10,900 from my proposal invoice.
  
  Shortly after our meeting on July 13, 2023, I began to question *** ****’s promises of his proposed ‘generous discounts’ to encourage me to use Daso Custom Cabinetry’s subcontractors for my flooring installation, painting of the walls throughout the home, and master bath shower replacement and tile installation. I received much lower estimated quotes and competitive pricing from **** **** ***** ********* ****** **** ***** and ****** **** for these projects. For example- *** ****’s quoted price for flooring installation-only was $6.50 per sq ft. The average installation price I received from **** *** and ***** was between $3-$5 per sq ft. In addition, Daso Custom Cabinetry proposed charging me $13,500 to prime and paint over the visibly peeling wallpaper all throughout my 1836 sq ft investment property (reference invoice). The wallpaper was applied in the 1970s and was in dire need of removal. *** **** and *** ******’s suggestion of charging me $13,500 to prime and paint over this wallpaper without removing it first was completely preposterous. They would charge additional fees to remove the wallpaper.
  
       On August 4, 2023, I texted *** ****** and asked her not to schedule their painters for my investment property as I was concerned about their pricing and suggestion to prime and paint over visibly peeling wallpaper that had been applied in the 1970s throughout my home. I informed *** ****** that I planned to use my own painters. *** ****** responded on August 5, 2023 with, ‘That’s totally fine about the painting.’ During a meeting on August 5, 2023, *** ****** said that she would allow me to remove the painting, flooring installation, and shower replacement subcontractor projects from my invoice without penalty as it was still very early into my project. Nothing had been scheduled with their Field Manager or subcontractors to begin project work for my renovation. I told *** ****** that their $10,900 proposed trim work project for my investment property was still reflected on my invoice. *** ****** assured me that she would remove all four proposed projects and email my revised invoice. *** ****** informed me that she would begin the process of gathering information to pull my permits, which she never did.
  
  On September 14, 2023, I emailed *** **** and *** ****** requesting the removal of the flooring installation, painting, and master bath shower replacement projects and charges from my invoice due to their highly inflated subcontractor pricing. *** **** agreed to remove the scope of work (reference email). I want to reiterate that I was not looking for heavily discounted, ‘K-Mart Blue Light Special’ project pricing for my investment property home renovation. If this were the case, I never would have agreed to purchase *** ****’s $33,047.35 custom cabinets and $15,189.20 Cambria Quartz countertops, along with many additional high end upgrades I added throughout my home including paying $40,000 out of pocket for a very high quality ****** Roofing roof in 2023. I did expect to receive fair market pricing for *** ****’s subcontractor projects as he promised. A picture is worth a thousand words. I encourage you to thoroughly review the subcontractor pricing on *** ****’s invoice to form your own individual conclusion on his proposed subcontractor pricing (reference attached invoice). This is my subjective opinion based on my personal research of competitor pricing.
  
  On September 29, 2023, I reached out to *** **** and *** ****** via email to inquire about my construction timeline, prompted by concerns that Daso Custom Cabinetry’s Architect had not inspected my attic and walls to determine if the three kitchen walls could be removed to support the custom cabinets, 10 ft kitchen island and *** ****’s proposed mudroom without addition support I-beams. *** ****’s response was, ‘Products and material have been ordered and your cabinets are in active production in our shop as of 9-18-24. We base the renovation on the delivery/completion of the cabinets on our production lead times.’ (reference email). Despite assurances from *** **** and *** ****** that the necessary permits were being obtained, along with their Daso Custom Cabinetry’s Architect inspection, it later became clear that this was not the case.
  
  *** ****** emailed me on September 29, 2023 to schedule my project handoff meeting with their Field Manager on November 7, 2023. I received a text from *** ****** one month later on October 27, 2023 to inform me that their Field Manager had broken his foot. She would have to reschedule our project handoff meeting from November 7, 2023 to December 12, 2023 (reference attached text). This caused significant delays to my renovation project by pushing it back an additional five weeks. When I asked Daso Custom Cabinetry’s Field Manager how his foot injury was healing during our meeting on December 12, 2023, he was surprised by my answer as he had never broken his foot. Not only did *** ****** provide various excuses throughout the span of four months, including why their Daso Custom Cabinetry’s Architect had not inspected my attic/ walls or the required ******** County permits had not been pulled, she also made a false claim about their Field Manager’s foot injury to delay my project handoff meeting by five weeks.
  
  I requested an updated invoice from *** ****** to review prior to our project handoff meeting on December 12, 2023. The $10,9000 charge for their proposed subcontractor trim work project that I requested to be removed during our second sales presentation meeting on July 13, 2023 was still included on my invoice. In addition, the $11,500 charge for flooring installation-only and $13,500 charge to prime and paint over visibly peeling wallpaper that was applied in the  1970s throughout my 1836 sq ft investment property had not been removed from my invoice. As noted, *** **** approved the removal of these Daso Custom Cabinetry subcontractor projects from my invoice via email on September,14,2023. This is why I scratched these items off my invoice and emailed back to *** **** and *** ******. I also questioned why they were charging $5,000 for permits as *** **** and *** ****** had not made any efforts to pull the required ******** County structural, electrical, and plumbing permits since I gave them my initial deposit of $80,353.41 on August 7, 2023 (nearly 4 months prior). The pricing seemed excessively high without their Architect inspection. I did not ask them to remove the permit fee or reduce the permit pricing. I had already paid their $5,000 permit fee on August 7, 2023. I did not request a full or partial refund. I simply wanted *** **** and *** ****** to explain their permit pricing. For the record, I ended up paying the same amount- $5,000- for my new general contractor to obtain the required construction permits without questioning any of his fees. He did his due diligence as my licensed and insured general contractor to thoroughly and effectively manage the entire scope of every aspect of my renovation project by code, all while maintaining constant communication with me and meeting all of his and his subcontractors project deadlines. I trust him and his team wholeheartedly as true industry professionals and never questioned any of their project pricing. My new general contractor was able to obtain my required ******** County construction permits in less than 2 months- a task that *** **** could not complete during the 5 months I had hired Daso Custom Cabinetry as my general contractor. In addition, my new general contractor and his team would not attempt to start work on any project in my home until they received all of my approved ******** County construction permits in hand.
  
  Despite my clear instructions to secure the proper ******** County structural, electrical, plumbing permits and attic/ walls inspection by their Architect prior to commencing construction on my custom cabinets, Daso Custom Cabinetry failed to do so. This failure came to light during our project handoff meeting with *** ****** and their Field Manager (who had not broken his foot as *** ****** claimed as a reason to delay this meeting by five weeks) on December 12, 2023. I was informed by *** ****** that Daso Custom Cabinetry would no longer be responsible for pulling the required construction permits to support the installation of their custom cabinets and Cambria Quartz countertops. *** ****** told me that I would need to obtain these construction permits myself, despite having already paid for this $5,000 service on August 7, 2023. *** ****** disclosed that Daso Custom Cabinetry had already commenced building and were midway through construction of my $33,047.35 custom cabinets, which were non-refundable. She also informed me that my payment of $15,189.20 for the Cambria Quartz countertops was non-refundable.
  
  This was the point when I was forced to consider engaging a new general contractor for the construction of my investment property due to Daso Custom Cabinetry’s failure to pull the required permits and secure an Architect inspection prior to their construction of the $33,047.35 non-refundable custom cabinets and collection of $15,189.20 for their non-refundable Cambria Quartz countertops, excessive construction delays, multiple errors reflected on my invoice, overall lack of communication, and *** ******’s blatant fabrication of their Field Manager’s ‘foot injury’ as an excuse to continue to delay construction of my project by an additional 5 weeks.
  
  *** **** and *** ****** had not set up a date for construction to begin at my investment property, nor had they scheduled Daso Custom Cabinetry’s Architect, electrician, or plumber to inspect my attic, walls, and home, as of January 11, 2024- more than 5 months after I provided them with my initial deposit of $80,353.41 (including $5,000 to pull permits) on August 7, 2023. The removal of their subcontractor projects for the flooring installation, painting, master bath shower replacement, and trim work had ZERO impact on Daso Custom Cabinetry’s construction delays. I never made any changes to their cabinet drawings for the kitchen, mudroom, or guest bath and agreed to have their electrical, plumbing, demo, and installation team complete the project work as displayed on my initial invoice for my investment property renovations.
  
  I have no complaints regarding the quality of Daso Custom Cabinetry’s cabinets. However, their installation of the cabinets is subpar. The cabinets do not align with the ceiling. I had to hire my new general contractor and his team to seal these separations with grout to fix *** ****’s cabinet installer’s (in my personal opinion) shoddy cabinet installation work as I do not want *** ****, or anyone representing Daso Custom Cabinetry, stepping foot in my investment property ever again (reference attached pictures). The purpose of my complaint is regarding *** **** and *** ******’s failure to obtain their Architect’s inspection report and failure to obtain the required ******** County construction permits- despite collecting $5,000 from me for these services on August 7, 2023- prior to the commencement of building of my non-refundable custom cabinets in September 2023. I specifically told *** **** and *** ****** during our first meeting on June 18, 2023, second meeting on July 13, 2023, and throughout the duration of my project that I would not move forward with removing the 3 walls in the kitchen to support their custom cabinets for the kitchen island and *** ****’s proposed mudroom if it was determined by DASO CUSTOM CABINETRY’S ARCHTECT INSPECTION REPORT that additional support I-beams were required to support the custom cabinets for the kitchen, kitchen island, and *** ****’s proposed mudroom addition. As I noted previously, my new general contractor and his team would not attempt to start work on any project in my home until they received all of my approved ******** County construction permits in hand. However, *** **** appeared to have no reservations to commence the construction of my $33,047.35 non-refundable custom cabinets and collecting payment for my $15,189.20 non-refundable Cambria Quartz countertops prior to their Architect inspect and obtaining the approved ******** Country construction permits. I was left with no other choice than to not only agree to keep Daso Custom Cabinetry’s $48,236.55 custom cabinets and countertops, I was also required to add support I-beams in the attic to remove the 3 kitchen walls to support their installation totaling $8,500.
  
  I stand by my word and assure the Better Business Bureau that all of my statements are true and factual. I welcome any evidence *** **** and his attorney have to present to dispute and/ or discredit any of my statements, claims, or overall character. This is my first Better Business Bureau complaint filing. I also have never written a negative online review of a company. I have every legal right as an LLC and consumer to file my complaint with the Better Business Bureau against Daso Custom Cabinetry due to their gross negligence during their mis-management of my renovation project as my licensed and insured general contractor if I am able to substantiate my claims, which I am able to do so.
  
  
  
  
  
  

  Customer response

  01/27/2025

  I meant to include the engineer report I received for my roof replacement from ********** Insurance on 10/7/2022. This Engineer inspection was solely for the purpose of assessing the water damage in my roof to determine if a roof replacement would be covered by ********** Insurance (it was not covered). The Engineer inspection WAS NOT for the purpose of the construction of my home renovation to determine if kitchen walls could be removed to support Daso Custom Cabinetry's custom cabinets, kitchen island, and *** ****'s proposed mudroom addition. This Engineer report was completed 9 prior to my first meeting with *** **** and *** ******. As mentioned in my original complaint response rejection, I asked the Engineer if the main hallway wall was loadbearing. He verbally confirmed it was loadbearing. However, if I planned to ever remove any walls in the kitchen, I would need to work with my future general contractor's Architect and/ or Engineer to determine if additional support I-beams would be required to remove the walls. I disclosed this to *** **** and *** ****** multiple times. *** **** promoted Daso Custom Cabinetry as a 'one stop shop' that provides Architect services to assist his clients determine the scope of their home renovation projects. He referred me to his website to confirm these Architect services. *** **** and *** ****** never asked to see a copy of this Engineer report throughout their 6 months. as my licensed and insured general contractor after collecting my initial deposit of $80,353.41 (including $5,000 for permit fee allowance) to pull my construction permits and commence construction on my $$33,047.35 non-refundable custom cabinets, in addition to collecting payment for my $15,189.20 non-refundable Cambria Quartz countertops

  Customer response

  01/27/2025

  I included this in my complaint, but it was combined with several additional documents. See attached Architect report and expense breakdown from my new general contractor showing the support I-beams that were required for the removal of the 3 kitchen walls to support the custom cabinets for the kitchen, island, and *** ****'s proposed mudroom addition.

  Customer response

  01/28/2025

  This is my notice to the Better Business Bureau that *** ****’s attorney, *** ******* ***** with the *** *** **** in *********, severed me with a cease and desist notice on 1/27/2025 on behalf of his client, *** ****, with threats of a defamation of character lawsuit to attempt to persuade me to withdrawal my BBB complaint against *** **** by this Friday, 1/31/2025. *** ******* cease and desist lawsuit states that I have made multiple ‘false narratives’ regarding his client in my complaint against *** **** and Daso Custom Cabinetry. I assure you that all of the statements I have made are 100% accurate and truthful, and in no way defamatory towards *** ****. In addition, I have over 70 pages of invoices, emails, text messages, and engineer reports to validate all of my statements. I have every legal right as a consumer and LLC to file a Better Business Bureau complaint against *** **** and Daso Custom Cabinetry without threats of legal action.  I will not be bullied and threatened by *** ****, Attorney *** ******* ***** and the *** *** **** with legal action to withdrawal my complaint. I spent thousands of dollars on a construction litigation attorney in 2024 attempting to settle this dispute out of court and in private without filing public complaints with the Better Business Bureau and **** Attorney General’s Office. I am currently representing myself, which is why I am notifying the Better Business Bureau of my communication with *** ****’s Attorney, *** ******* *****.
  

  As I mentioned, *** **** and Mr. ******* ***** stated that I’ve made ‘multiple false narratives’ in my complaint, and that my statements are ‘purely defamatory’. Below my responses to the statements listed on the cease and desist letter. Many of these statements contain false and inaccurate information.
  

  ‘The fact DCC never confirmed the subject kitchen wall was load bearing when ******** represented to DCC that it was not, and subsequently removed the work from DCC’s scope, which included DCC’s necessity to confirm the same’
  I specifically stated in both my BBB complaint and the attached BBB complaint summary that I disclosed to *** **** and *** ****** during our first meeting on 6/18/2023 that the ********** Insurance Engineer assigned to inspect my roof for water damage to determine roof replacement coverage in October 2022 verbally confirmed that the main kitchen wall was loadbearing. Daso Custom Cabinetry would be responsible for the demo of the 3 kitchen walls if their Architect determined that additional support I-beams would be required for the removal of the 3 walls. *** ****** informed me that Daso Custom Cabinetry would no longer be responsible for pulling the required construction permits to remove the 3 kitchen walls required to support the installation of the custom kitchen cabinets, kitchen island, and *** ****’s proposed mudroom addition- 4 months after collecting my $5,000 payment for permit allowance with my initial $80,353.41 deposit, and midway through production of my custom cabinets. Both *** **** and *** ****** confirmed that my $33,047.41 custom cabinets payment and $15,189.20 Cambria Quartz countertops payments were both non-refundable. I was left with no other choice than to terminate my contract with Daso Custom Cabinetry and engage a new contractor due to their failure to perform their contract binding duties as my licensed and insured general contractor to pull my required ******** County construction permits.
  
  'The fact DCC quoted her to prime and paint the entire house, business that she ultimately transferred to another contractor.'
  *** **** DID quote his subcontractor project to prime and paint the WHOLE HOUSE of my investment property. Reference the attached invoice. *** ****’s quote actually suggested priming and painting over the wallpaper of the walls throughout my 1836 sq ft home. This wallpaper had been applied by my family in the 1970s. The wallpaper was visibly peeling from the walls and in dire need of removal. *** ****’s total proposed cost was $13,500 (including an attached sunroom, trim, and doors). The (highly) recommended and experienced painters I used to paint my home told me they would NEVER suggest priming and painting over any wallpaper under any circumstances to any of their clients- regardless of when it was applied or its current condition- as it would ultimately peel off as a result of the primer and paint that was applied. My painters would not agree to paint the walls in my investment property until all of the wallpaper was removed, which I did myself.
  
  'DCC’s quote to obtain all permitting for the initial, complete renovation scope, including fees for engineering, drawing, and inspections; and'
  *** **** collected a $5,000 permit allowance fee from me with my initial deposit of $81,353.41 on 8/7/2023. We agreed that this permit allowance was to be used to pull the electrical, plumbing, and structural permits needed for my home renovations- in addition to any additional costs required for the permits including Architect fees, Engineer reports, inspections, etc. The actual cost to pull electrical, plumbing, and structural permits in ******** County is around $250-$300 each. General contractors often collect a larger ‘permit fee allowance’ between $2,500-$5,000 from clients for these additional costs that are required by the counties. The total cost to pull the permits-only for my electrical, plumbing, and structural permits did not exceed $1,000. If *** **** is stating that my $5,000 permit allowance fee he collected from me did not include his Architect inspection as he promised, in addition to engineer reports and inspections for my required permits, I will need for *** **** to give me a detailed list of exactly how he planned to allocate and spend the remaining $4,000 permit fee allowance funds for my renovation project. My new general contractor gave me a detailed list breaking down exactly how he allocated my $5,000 permit fee allowance (Architect, Engineer report, drawings, permits, inspections) and the amount he spent on each service.
  
  'Alleged DCC delays, which were ultimately caused by her numerous alterations and transferring work to outside contractors; and'
  I spent thousands of dollars working with a construction litigation attorney in 2024 in attempts to settle multiple construction delays and permit disputes with *** **** outside of court and without filing public complaints with the BBB and **** Attorney General’s Office. Despite my attorney’s attempt to reach a settlement, *** **** vehemently rejected any of our requests. *** **** in turned blamed me and my new general contractor for *** ****’s excessive cabinet installation delays. Attorney ******* ***** is literally contradicting his statement above as a basis for filing a lawsuit against me for defamation of character against *** **** of ‘Alleged DCC delays, which were ultimately caused by her numerous altercations and transferring work to outside contractors;’ Note Attorney ******* *****’s rejection response to my attorney’s demand letter on my behalf. *** ******* letter was dated 10/1/2024. I’ve attached images of his paragraphs.
  
  ******** Delayed the Project
  ‘Since ******** wanted to complete the Project in what she believed was the most effective, cost efficient manner, she delegated many responsibilities away from DCC to other subcontractors, which in turn hampered the rate at which tasks would be finished. Thus, if ******** is dissatisfied with the timeliness of the Project, she should direct her complaints to those she delegated general contracting responsibilities to.’
  ‘Litigation at this time would be unnecessarily costly and unproductive, given the nature of ********’s complaints. Her grievances are misguided and appear to be directed toward the contractors she hired as part of her cost-cutting measures or due to self-induced delays.’
  
  'DCC’s overall pricing.'
  I never made any comments in my complaint regarding issues with the pricing of Daso Custom Cabinetry’s custom cabinets and Cambria Quartz countertops. I stand by my statement that the cabinets are high quality and beautiful. However, the installation of my cabinets was well below average. As I stated in my rejection response, there are large gaps between the cabinets and the ceiling in the kitchen and mudroom. My general contractor was able to fill in the gaps in the kitchen. Unfortunately, there’s nothing he and his team can do about the poor cabinet installation in the mudroom.
  *** **** assured me that I would receive discounts for using his subcontractors if I agreed hire Daso Custom Cabinetry as my licensed and insured general contractor for the full renovation of my investment property. *** ****’s proposed ‘discounts’ would keep his subcontractor pricing aligned with direct supplier pricing such as *****, **** *****, ****, ***, ****** ****, etc. I expected to receive fair market pricing for his subcontractor pricing. In my personal opinion, *** ****’s proposed painting, flooring installation, master shower replacement (the master bath is very small), and kitchen/ bath tile installation pricing far exceeded the pricing I received from direct suppliers based on my own personal research. For example- *** ****’s quoted price for flooring installation was $6.50 per sq ft (installation-only). The average installation-only pricing I received from **** *** and ***** in 2023 was between $3-$5 per sq ft. As I mentioned, Daso Custom Cabinetry proposed charging me $13,500 to prime and paint over the walls of the visibly peeling wallpaper throughout my 1836 sq ft investment property. The wallpaper was applied by my family the 1970s and in dire need of removal. I attached a copy of *** ****’s initial invoice in my complains and suggested the BBB review the pricing to come to their own conclusion.
  I’M NOT A LICENSED ATTORNEY. HOWEVER, I FIND IT DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE THAT MY PERSONAL, SUBJECTIVE OPINION ABOUT A GENERAL CONTRACTOR’S SUBCONTRACTOR PRICING- INCLUDING PROVIDING COPIES OF INVOICES AND EXAMPLES OF COMPETITOR PRICING- WOULD JUSTIFY A DEFAMATION OF CHARACTER CONVICTION IN A COURT OF LAW.
  
  I look forward to reviewing any type of evidence and/ or documentation that will justify *** **** and Attorney Mr. ******* *****’s claims regarding my ‘multiple’ statements of  ‘false narratives’ that are ‘purely defamatory’ towards *** **** and Daso Custom Cabinetry.
  
  
  
  
  

  
  

  Customer response

  01/29/2025

  I may have interpreted Attorney *** ******* #4 question, "Alleged DCC delays, which were ultimately caused by her numerous alterations and transferring work to outside contractors; and'. Below is my revised response. I included all of the information in my original summary report. I wanted to make sure to address it again as the topic has come up multiple times since last year with *** **** and *** *****. The texts and emails I am referencing are all in my full initial summary complaint.

   

  This is my notice to the Better Business Bureau that *** ****’s attorney, Mr. ******* ***** with the *** *** **** in *********, served me with a cease and desist notice on 1/27/2025 on behalf of his client, *** ****, with threats of a defamation of character lawsuit to attempt to persuade me to withdrawal my BBB complaint against *** **** by this Friday, 1/31/2025. *** ******* cease and desist lawsuit states that I have made multiple ‘false narratives’ regarding his client in my complaint against *** **** and Daso Custom Cabinetry. I assure you that all of the statements I have made are 100% accurate and truthful, and in no way defamatory towards *** ****. In addition, I have over 70 pages of invoices, emails, text messages, and engineer reports to validate all of my statements. I have every legal right as a consumer and LLC to file a Better Business Bureau complaint against *** **** and Daso Custom Cabinetry without threats of legal action.  I will not be threatened by *** ****, Attorney Mr. ******* ***** and the *** *** **** with legal action to withdrawal my complaint. I spent thousands of dollars on a construction litigation attorney in 2024 attempting to settle this dispute out of court and in private without filing public complaints with the Better Business Bureau and **** Attorney General’s Office. I am currently representing myself, which is why I am notifying the Better Business Bureau of my communication with *** ****’s Attorney, Mr. ******* *****.
  

  As I mentioned, *** **** and Mr. ******* ***** stated that I’ve made ‘multiple false narratives’ in my complaint, and that my statements are ‘purely defamatory’. Below my responses to the statements listed on the cease and desist letter. Many of these statements contain false and inaccurate information.
  

  1) ‘The fact DCC never confirmed the subject kitchen wall was load bearing when ******** represented to DCC that it was not, and subsequently removed the work from DCC’s scope, which included DCC’s necessity to confirm the same’
  

  I specifically stated in both my BBB complaint and the attached BBB complaint summary that I disclosed to *** **** and *** ****** during our first meeting on 6/18/2023 that the ********** Insurance Engineer assigned to inspect my roof for water damage to determine roof replacement coverage in October 2022 verbally confirmed that the main kitchen wall was loadbearing. Daso Custom Cabinetry would be responsible for the demo of the 3 kitchen walls if their Architect determined that additional support I-beams would be required for the removal of the 3 walls. *** ****** informed me that Daso Custom Cabinetry would no longer be responsible for pulling the required construction permits to remove the 3 kitchen walls required to support the installation of the custom kitchen cabinets, kitchen island, and *** ****’s proposed mudroom addition- 4 months after collecting my $5,000 payment for permit allowance with my initial $80,353.41 deposit, and midway through production of my custom cabinets. Both *** **** and *** ****** confirmed that my $33,047.41 custom cabinets payment and $15,189.20 Cambria Quartz countertops payments were both non-refundable. I was left with no other choice than to terminate my contract with Daso Custom Cabinetry and engage a new contractor due to their failure to perform their contract binding duties as my licensed and insured general contractor to pull my required ******** County construction permits.
  
  2) The fact DCC quoted her to prime and paint the entire house, business that she ultimately transferred to another contractor.
  

  *** **** DID quote his subcontractor project to prime and paint the WHOLE HOUSE of my investment property. Reference the attached invoice. *** ****’s quote actually suggested priming and painting over the wallpaper of the walls throughout my 1836 sq ft home. This wallpaper had been applied by my family in the 1970s. The wallpaper was visibly peeling from the walls and in dire need of removal. *** ****’s total proposed cost was $13,500 (including an attached sunroom, trim, and doors). The (highly) recommended and experienced painters I used to paint my home told me they would NEVER suggest priming and painting over any wallpaper under any circumstances to any of their clients- regardless of when it was applied or its current condition- as it would ultimately peel off as a result of the primer and paint that was applied. My painters would not agree to paint the walls in my investment property until all of the wallpaper was removed, which I did myself.
  
  3) DCC’s quote to obtain all permitting for the initial, complete renovation scope, including fees for engineering, drawing, and inspections; and
  

  *** **** collected a $5,000 permit allowance fee from me with my initial deposit of $81,353.41 on 8/7/2023. We agreed that this permit allowance was to be used to pull the electrical, plumbing, and structural permits needed for my home renovations- in addition to any additional costs required for the permits including Architect fees, Engineer reports, inspections, etc. The actual cost to pull electrical, plumbing, and structural permits in ******** County is around $250-$300 each. General contractors often collect a larger ‘permit fee allowance’ between $2,500-$5,000 from clients for these additional costs that are required by the counties. The total cost to pull the permits-only for my electrical, plumbing, and structural permits did not exceed $1,000. If *** **** is stating that my $5,000 permit allowance fee he collected from me did not include his Architect inspection as he promised, in addition to engineer reports and inspections for my required permits, I will need for *** **** to give me a detailed list of exactly how he planned to allocate and spend the remaining $4,000 permit fee allowance funds for my renovation project. My new general contractor gave me a detailed list breaking down exactly how he allocated my $5,000 permit fee allowance (Architect, Engineer report, drawings, permits, inspections) and the amount he spent on each service.
  
  4) Alleged DCC delays, which were ultimately caused by her numerous alterations and transferring work to outside contractors; and
  

  I told *** **** and *** ****** that I did not want to move forward with their proposed $10,900 trim work project on their quote during our second meeting on July/13/2023. They both agreed that this project and charge would be removed from my invoice. These proposed trim work project items remain ‘as is’ to this day.
  On August 7, 2023, I met with *** ****** at their ****** showroom located at ** ** **** ******, ******, ** ***** to drop off my initial deposit of $80,353.4. I expressed my concerns that their subcontractor pricing for the flooring installation, painting, and main bath shower replacement did not reflect the ‘generous’ Daso Custom Cabinetry subcontractor discounts that *** **** had promised during our initial walk-through on June 18, 2023 and sales presentation meeting on July 13, 2023. These discounts would keep his pricing competitive with direct suppliers such as *****, **** *****, and **** ***. Ms. Cloran said that she would allow me to remove these items from my invoice without penalty as it was still very early in my project and no jobs or meetings had been scheduled with their Field Manager or subcontractors to begin project work. I asked *** ****** to please remove the painting and flooring installation projects/ expenses from my invoice, which she agreed to do. In addition, I told *** ****** that their $10,900 proposed trim work project for my investment property was still reflected on my invoice. *** ****** assured me that she would remove all three proposed projects and email my revised invoice.

  On 9/14/2023, I emailed *** **** to request the removal of these items as they were still listed on my invoice. He agreed to my request the same day. I did not remove any items from the scope of my project until my project handoff meeting on December 12, 2023 when *** ****** notified me that Daso Custom Cabinetry would no longer be responsible for pulling the permits for my renovation project, despite being midway through production of my $33,047.35 non-refundable custom cabinets and collecting payment for my $15,189.20 non-refundable Cambria Quartz countertops.

  *** ****** emailed me on September 29, 2023 to schedule my project handoff meeting with their Field Manager on November 7, 2023. I received a text from *** ****** one month later on October 27, 2023 to inform me that their Field Manager had broken his foot. She would have to reschedule our project handoff meeting from November 7, 2023 to December 12, 2023 (reference **** ****** Text Message-Reschedule Project Handoff Meeting attachment). This caused significant delays to my renovation project by pushing it back an additional five weeks. When I asked Daso Custom Cabinetry’s Field Manager how his foot injury was healing during our meeting on December 12, 2023, he was surprised by my answer as he had never broken his foot. *** ****** had made a false claim about their Field Manager’s foot injury to delay my project handoff meeting by five weeks.
  
  I HAD NOT REMOVED ANY ITEMS FROM DASO CUSTOM CABINETRY’S SCOPE OF WORK SINCE THE SUBCONTRACTOR WORK OF FLOORING INSTALLATION, PAINTING, AND MASTER SHOWER REPLACEMENT SEPTEMBER 14, 2023. I NEVER AT ANY POINT IN TIME MADE ANY CHANGES TO THE CUSTOM CABINETS AFTER I SIGNED OFF ON SEPTEMBER 8, 2023. AT THIS TIME, NO CONSTRUCTION TIMELINE HAD BEEN SET BY *** ****. IT WAS AN ADDITIONAL 2 WEEK UNTIL *** ****** SCHEDCULED WITH THEIR FIELD MANAGER ON NOVEMBER 7, 2023, WHICH SHE ENDED UP DELAYING BY 5 WEEK AND RESCHEDULING ON DECEMBER 12, 2023 DUE TO THEIR FIELD MANAGER’S FABRICATED FOOT INJURY. THE REMOVAL OF THEIR SUBCONTRACTOR PROJECTS FOR THE FLOORING INSTALLATION, PAINING, AND MASTER SHOWER REPLACEMENT HAD ZERO IMPACT ON DASO CUSTOM CABINETRY’S CONSTRUCTION DELAYS.
  
  I requested an updated invoice from *** ****** to review prior to our project handoff meeting on December 12, 2023. The $10,9000 charge for their proposed subcontractor trim work project that I requested to be removed during our second sales presentation meeting on July 13, 2023 was still included on my invoice. In addition, the $11,500 charge for flooring installation and $13,500 charge to prime and paint over visibly peeling wallpaper from the 1970s throughout my 1836 sq ft investment property had not been removed from my invoice. As noted, *** **** approved the removal of these Daso Custom Cabinetry subcontractor projects from my invoice via email on September,14,2023. I also questioned why they were charging $5,000 for permits as *** **** and *** ****** had not made any efforts to pull the required ******** County structural, electrical, and plumbing permits since I gave them my initial deposit of $80,353.41 on August 7, 2023 (nearly 4 months prior). In addition- *** **** and *** ****** never scheduled their Daso Custom Cabinetry Architect to inspect the attic and walls in my investment property to determine if they could be removed without additional support I-beams to support the custom cabinets, 10 ft kitchen island, and *** ****’s proposed mudroom. Daso Custom Cabinetry’s pending Architect inspection report would be required to apply for my proposed kitchen renovation structural permit. These items needed to be completed prior to building the non-refundable $33,047.35 custom kitchen cabinets, which lists a delivery and installation date by January 26, 2024 (16-20 of approved cabinets drawings signed by me on September 8, 2023).

  *** **** agreed to a mutual release of contract work during a phone conversation on January 11, 2024. *** **** emailed a mutual release agreement on January 11, 2024 (reference DASO- Final Invoice-Mutual Release attachment). They were still responsible for the delivery and installation of the cabinets, which were originally supposed to be delivered on January 26, 2024. The mutual release agreed to provide a refund in the amount of $36,096.59 for the previous quoted work to be completed by Daso Custom Cabinetry and their subcontractors- excluding the cost of the custom cabinets, delivery and installation (the Cambria Quartz countertops had a separate invoice). This contract stated ‘The remaining credit of $36,096.59 will be refunded by company check by 1-31-24.’ This initial mutual release agreement still included their $8,000 plumbing fees. I pointed out *** ****’s error and asked him to please revise and resend the mutual release agreement reflecting the deduction of their $8,000 plumbing fees. *** **** acknowledged and apologized for his error. He assured me that he would revise and resend the mutual release agreement the following Monday, January 15, 2024. After multiple emails over the span of a ten-day period without an updated mutual release or any response, *** **** finally emailed me on January 22, 2024 to let me know that he had been traveling. I received my updated mutual release agreement with the $8,000 plumbing deduction on January 24, 2024- twelve days later. This reflected my accurate credit balance of $45,096.59 that I would ‘receive by company check by 1-31-24’.

  I was fortunate to hire a reputable, accomplished, and highly skilled general contractor to oversee the management of my construction project. I stressed the importance to *** **** that I needed my refund check to be cut and mailed no later than January 31, 2024 per our mutual release agreement.
  *** **** assured both me and my new general contractor that the custom cabinets were in production and would be completed, delivered and installed by the end of April 2024 (they should have been completely built and ready for installation no later than January 26, 2024 per our original agreement). *** **** also confirmed that my refund check would be cut and mailed by the listed deadline date of January 31, 2024. However, I did not receive my refund check until February 21, 2024- three weeks past the deadline date of January 31, 2024. I emailed *** **** multiple times during this three-week period asking for updates and tracking numbers for my check delivery (reference Email Exchange- **** **** Regarding Refund Check attachment). *** **** replied that it would be sent in a few days. As I expected due to my previous experiences with *** ****, and *** ******, my check had not been cut and sent. *** **** made many excuses as to why the issuance of my refund check was continuously delayed, including deflecting the blame onto his CFO. I was forced to send an email to *** **** on February 15, 2024 informing him that I would file a billing complaint with the **** Attorney General’s Office if I did not receive my check by February 20, 2024. I received my refund check on February 21, 2024- twenty-one days past the deadline of January 31, 2024 as listed on our mutual release agreement.
  
  *** ****’S THREE WEEK DELAY TO SEND MY REFIND CHECK POSTPONED MY NEW GENERAL CONTRACTOR’S CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULE FOR MY INVESTMENT PROPERTY BY FOUR WEEKS (I WAITED SEVEN DAYS TO MAKE SURE DASO CUSTOM CABINETRY’S CHECK TO CLEAR PRIOR TO SIGNING THE CONTRACT AND PROVIDING AN INITIAL DEPOSIT TO BEGIN CONSTRUCTION.
  
  DCC’s overall pricing.
  I never made any comments in my complaint regarding issues with the pricing of Daso Custom Cabinetry’s custom cabinets and Cambria Quartz countertops. I stand by my statement that the cabinets are high quality and beautiful. However, the installation of my cabinets was well below average. As I stated in my rejection response, there are large gaps between the cabinets and the ceiling in the kitchen and mudroom. My general contractor was able to fill in the gaps in the kitchen. Unfortunately, there’s nothing he and his team can do about the poor cabinet installation in the mudroom.
  *** **** assured me that I would receive discounts for using his subcontractors if I agreed hire Daso Custom Cabinetry as my licensed and insured general contractor for the full renovation of my investment property. *** ****’s proposed ‘discounts’ would keep his subcontractor pricing aligned with direct supplier pricing such as *****, **** *****, ****, ***, ****** ****, etc. I expected to receive fair market pricing for his subcontractor pricing. In my personal opinion, *** ****’s proposed painting, flooring installation, master shower replacement (the master bath is very small), and kitchen/ bath tile installation pricing far exceeded the pricing I received from direct suppliers based on my own personal research. For example- *** ****’s quoted price for flooring installation was $6.50 per sq ft (installation-only). The average installation-only pricing I received from **** *** and ***** in 2023 was between $3-$5 per sq ft. As I mentioned, Daso Custom Cabinetry proposed charging me $13,500 to prime and paint over the walls of the visibly peeling wallpaper throughout my 1836 sq ft investment property. The wallpaper was applied by my family the 1970s and in dire need of removal. I attached a copy of *** ****’s initial invoice in my complains and suggested the BBB review the pricing to come to their own conclusion.
  I’M NOT A LICENSED ATTORNEY. HOWEVER, I FIND IT DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE THAT MY PERSONAL, SUBJECTIVE OPINION ABOUT A GENERAL CONTRACTOR’S SUBCONTRACTOR PRICING- INCLUDING PROVIDING COPIES OF INVOICES AND EXAMPLES OF COMPETITOR PRICING- WOULD JUSTIFY A DEFAMATION OF CHARACTER CONVICTION IN A COURT OF LAW.
  
  I look forward to reviewing any type of evidence and/ or documentation that will justify *** **** and Attorney Mr. ******* *****’s claims regarding my ‘multiple’ statements of  ‘false narratives’ that are ‘purely defamatory’ towards *** **** and Daso Custom Cabinetry.
  
  
  

  
  

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩