Complaint Review: Fernandez Construction LLC - Albuquerque New Mexico

In August 2016, I was referred to Fernandez Construction by a co-worker. I spoke with Hugo Arturo Fernandez Medina about replacing the approach to my drive way and a small 5’ x 6’ concrete slab. He wanted to know what else I had for him. So we agreed on the approach to my drive way, the small slab and scraping up the old xeriscape rock on my front yard. We agreed to $2500 for all the work. I gave him $1000 as a deposit and waited for the work to be completed.

After a week, he showed up with his crew and a small tractor ready to work. They proceeded to scrape up the old xeriscape rocks and prepare the area for the small slab. I was skeptical because they had no dump truck or trailer to put the unwanted material. Fortunately, I needed some rock in my back yard and was able to utilize this rock. While this work was in progress, Arturo, talked with my wife and me about replacing our drive way that was cracked and had spalling throughout. He sold it to us by stating that while the approach was being done, now is the time for the rest of the drive way. He also mentioned doing our stucco and giving us a deal if we agreed to both. We agreed to do both for $20,000 but told Arturo to add the installation of seven windows and framing off three sliding doors to be included. All materials and labor was included in the price except for the price of the windows.

We wrote up the contract for the drive way and stucco work and he stated that he wanted cash only. He wanted a deposit and I agreed to give him $5000 to start. We were trying to be as cautious as possible when giving him this money. Besides, his crew was still out working on my front yard. That’s when he tells us he wants $7500 as a deposit. I reluctantly agreed and made sure to note it on our copy of the contract which I had him sign as well. We left for the bank with him following us there. In my anxiety of giving this much money to a stranger, I failed to get my copy of the contract. When we returned home his crew was gone and only half of the front yard was done but Arturo was there and wanted to be paid the $1500 balance for the initial job, instead we gave him $500 to make sure he comes back.  We were so upset that his crew was gone and the work had not been completed. He stated the concrete work would be done when the drive way was poured.

After a couple of weeks or so of trying to get him back out to our house to finish what he started and start the new work, he comes out and requests more money. We get in an argument over the fact that he has done nothing and left a half assed job unfinished. He states that he has to pay his guys and won’t start until he has more money. He attempts to leave with his feelings hurt because I road talked him but I don’t let him go. I insist on knowing when he will be back. He states that he can’t come back until we give him more money. I told him, “His guys haven’t done anything to warrant be paid!” He refuses to have his crew come back to work unless we give him more money. At that point I thought about minimizing my losses and letting it go but I gave in. I told him the first thing I wanted was my copy of the contract and I would give him more money.

Fortunately, we had to follow him to his house to get my copy of the contract so I would see where he lived. Unfortunately, I got to go inside his mobile home and see that he was in the middle of installing new cabinets and remodeling his kitchen and I couldn’t help but feel like a sucker. I felt like there was my hard earned money sitting in his kitchen in the form of new appliances and cabinets. He wanted another $7000 but I gave him $2500 instead and had him sign the contract and made it clear that he now had half of the total agreed upon amount ($10,000) and it was up to him to get moving.

Weeks went by with nothing happening but it wasn’t too discouraging because we were waiting on our windows to be delivered. After we received our windows, we started trying to contact Arturo again. When we finally got ahold of him, after 2 months, he said his schedule was busy and we would have to wait ‘til he could fit us in.

October 2016, Arturo shows up with a guy who will be doing our stucco. He walks the guy around our house to show him what needs to be done. The next week his guy and his crew come out and start repairing cracks in our current stucco in preparation for the brown coat. They do some patching and leave.

November 2016, after many calls to Arturo, he shows up with a guy who will be installing our windows. Replacing existing windows are a piece of cake but cutting and framing three new windows are done so poorly we had to complain to Arturo. They also removed and framed walls for three sliding glass doors we had removed. The work was sub-standard but we were just happy to get it done. Arturo calls and tells us he would be out to start the drive way. We are incredibly happy to hear this. He and his crew come out and complete the drive way which also takes care of the approach and small slab that we had originally hired Arturo to do. In the middle of doing the drive way Arturo tells me he wants more money. He wants $7000 so I reluctantly give it to him thinking he’s on a roll and will keep going. Not to mention another $550 to the concrete company for the forms. This was all coming out of the total amount we agreed on. Also, we had him get somebody out to fix the poor window job his guy did and that work wasn’t much better.

Weeks go by and we are unable to get ahold of Arturo. I finally talk to him to see when he will be out to complete the rest of the work. A few days later a couple of his guys come out and remove the forms from the driveway. They just toss the forms in my front yard and leave. That’s all!

February 2017, after many unreturned calls and a few excuses later, Arturo shows up to with two guys who he says are the new stucco guys. Those two guys do a great job in patching cracks and prepping the newly installed windows and framed walls for stucco. He tells me they will be out to start the stucco the next week and he needed more money. I give him $2000 in hopes that he will keep his word. While he is there, I tell him we need the front yard job finished so he agrees to do it after we agree to let him xeriscape it for another fee ($2000).

It is then that I give him $2500 to complete the front yard landscaping and the balance on our contract for concrete and stucco. I have him sign the contract “Paid in Full”. His guys complete the front yard and he tells us they will be back out the next week to do stucco.

Only after calling and bugging him that he calls us on Friday May 26^th and asks if we want to just paint our stucco. He says he will give us the same warranty as the stucco job. I tell him no we want the stucco completed. He tells me he will come over and discuss it with me. He never shows up. I call him the next day and he tells me he is in Las Vegas and will talk to me when he gets back. I ask why he never showed up when he said he would. He tells me he never said he was coming over and he then tells me he is not going to do the parapet work on the roof because it will cost too much money to do them. I tell him he will do what we agreed and he said, “No Sir.” Upset, I then state that I will take him to court and hang up.

He calls us back on May 29^th and says he will be out the following Monday to start the stucco. It isn’t until June 5^th that we see Arturo again. He comes out with an all new stucco guy and is showing him around our house. He tells me this stucco guy will be doing the work and starting the next day. He hung around outside with the new stucco guy and they left and haven’t come back.

My wife called him a few weeks later and he tells her he is going to finish the job. He is going to buy the materials and be out to work. We never see or hear from him after that. June 29^th I send Arturo a text stating that he is in breach of our contract and I am giving him 14 days to complete the work or I will be taking action against him to protect my rights under our contract. No reply. He's not even a Contractor His Contractor License doesn't exist Lic#FA0119172. In BBB he's a total SCAMMER.

Utilizing all photos and documents regarding this matter, I have no choice but to seek action against this person including his immigration permissions, if any.