Jasmin Cage

**SCAMMERS** I called these guys a few weeks back when my house flooded- I needed all new hardwood throughout as well as other repairs . When I called and asked to schedule an estimate, the lady told me that typically they charge SIX HUNDRED DOLLARS for an estimate (the 3 companies I finally contacted didn’t charge a dime to come out, which is pretty standard if it’s not a huge drive or a massive job). I live in Petaluma, so pretty central. When I balked at that, she offered that for the low, low price of only 200 dollars I could take a bunch of pictures of the damaged areas and one of the guys would cook up an estimate; as long as I didn’t really hold them to it- seeing as they couldn’t possibly know the extent of the damage without coming out. Folks, I was speechless. Perhaps it’s because I’m a woman that the woman on the phone wouldn’t have thought to guess that I’m a carpenter myself, as well as having worked as a superintendent and project manager for several years. I installed the floors were removing, and the only reason I’m not re-doing them is that I’m running a large project elsewhere and it’s monopolizing my time. A GENERAL WORD OF WARNING TO EVERYONE: anybody in the trades offering to bid a job solely off of cell phone should be laughed at and promptly hung up on. Anybody wanting to CHARGE YOU 200 DOLLARS FOR AN ESTIMATE BASED OFF OF CELL PHONE PHOTOS should maybe have their licenses pulled. I’ve never heard such a thing in my life, how irresponsible and greedy can you be? You already do have an apparently thriving business (with not so stellar reviews, I’m now seeing :/), enough to employ a couple generations of you people, you really need to be stealing several hundred MORE dollars from some poor lady who just got her beloved house wrecked by some OTHER crooked subcontractor who didn’t know how to install a dishwasher correctly?? I really hope they are suckering too many trusting people into this deplorable practice. Shame on you all. B (Bonus: if I had a crystal ball and looked into it vis-à-vis what would have happened had I paid for their estimate and hired them, I’m guessing it would be something along the lines of: - project running over budget and past projected timelines - when I protest, I’m reminded that I was well aware that the estimate I paid for would likely be inaccurate, since I was too much of a cheapskate to spring for a REAL estimate. - at which point, of course, you’re already half done and it would make more sense just to let you squeeze me and take your time. How ‘bout it, Thompsons? That little ditty and dance sound familiar?