H&M Landscaping — Local services in Newbury Township

the BBB. H & M Landscaping | Complaints | Better Business Bureau® Profile 2023 Complaint Type: Problems with Product/Service Status: Answered More info July 26 we signed a contract to put a covered patio addition and use composite on the floor. The price came to about $80,000 when we signed the contract they wanted a deposit of $14,000. I don’t usually do that but I knew H&M landscaping and they have been in the area as long as we have and we have some family connection to his brothers. After much going back-and-forth with our HOA as we live in a condo they finally denied us the addition and we have a letter from Carlisle management saying that they denied us. When we signed the contract. I made sure to have in the contract, a statement that said if we did not get approval from the HOA, he would give us our deposit back. So when we sent the letter over in the contract to H&M the letter being the one we got from the HOA denying us. They sent us a letter saying that they usually take a 45% cancellation fee and they’re being real nice because they’re only going to keep her 14,000 and we have till April 1 to sign back up again if they kept the 14,000 would go to charge the job and if we don’t tell them by April 1 then we lose the money. But the contract clearly states that if the Hoa denied us then, we get our money back he’s trying to say that it was our decision not to go forward which is not true. I contacted him early this week I believe Tuesday which was October 3 and told him that we need our deposit back and I did talk to him. He was trying to put words in my mouth that we were the ones that didn’t wanna go forward which would mean that I don’t get my deposit back and I told him repeatedly that the HOA didn’t approve us after much going back-and-forth and then we have a letter. And we have a contract that says will get our money back if the HOA doesn’t approve us, it’s pretty simple

Business response 10/16/2023 The customer that filed the complaint doesn’t Mark M* keeps trying to put words in my mouth so that he can get away without giving us our refund. His work was substandard. His drawings were substandard and that’s why we couldn’t get anything approved from the Hoa. You’ll see in the attachment that he’s trying to charge us four times for drawings that should’ve been done properly the first time the total for the drawings that he’s trying to charge us is $2350. The drawings were too small, he used drawings from another job that he thought he could get past here, and the other two were not correct either and it was supposed to be on scale paper. We have a letter from the HOA saying that they denied us, we have a contract that said he would give us the money back. His charges on the bill are absolutely bogus. They’re actually funny as they’re such made up charges. His person did not come out here six times. And when he did come out, it was a cost of doing business because we needed more details before we could go forward with the project. I wish we had checked further, because if you look at his reviews, he’s got many negative reviews and lawsuits in all counties Cuyahoga, Geauga, and Lake County’s. They are about contracts and money being returned. He’s been in court many many times open this, Has to hire an attorney, you would think he would learn. Other contractors that we have talked to since then, say that this is what he does, and they looked at the charges that she was charging us, and agreed that it was bogus, made up charges. With the bogus charges that he’s giving us on the attachment, he’s really just stealing our money. This seems to be a way of how he does business. Very unfortunate. It cost us 3000$ for nothing as he would not give us back our full depends. Stay away. Very unprofessional.. He wants a huge deposit, then once another big chunk of money before he even starts the job. Deposits are...

This is the complaint from the BBB. H & M Landscaping | Complaints | Better Business Bureau® Profile 2023 Complaint Type: Problems with Product/Service Status: Answered More info July 26 we signed a contract to put a covered patio addition and use composite on the floor. The price came to about $80,000 when we signed the contract they wanted a deposit of $14,000. I don’t usually do that but I knew H&M landscaping and they have been in the area as long as we have and we have some family connection to his brothers. After much going back-and-forth with our HOA as we live in a condo they finally denied us the addition and we have a letter from Carlisle management saying that they denied us. When we signed the contract. I made sure to have in the contract, a statement that said if we did not get approval from the HOA, he would give us our deposit back. So when we sent the letter over in the contract to H&M the letter being the one we got from the HOA denying us. They sent us a letter saying that they usually take a 45% cancellation fee and they’re being real nice because they’re only going to keep her 14,000 and we have till April 1 to sign back up again if they kept the 14,000 would go to charge the job and if we don’t tell them by April 1 then we lose the money. But the contract clearly states that if the Hoa denied us then, we get our money back he’s trying to say that it was our decision not to go forward which is not true. I contacted him early this week I believe Tuesday which was October 3 and told him that we need our deposit back and I did talk to him. He was trying to put words in my mouth that we were the ones that didn’t wanna go forward which would mean that I don’t get my deposit back and I told him repeatedly that the HOA didn’t approve us after much going back-and-forth and then we have a letter. And we have a contract that says will get our money back if the HOA doesn’t approve us, it’s pretty simple

Business response 10/16/2023 The customer that filed the complaint doesn’t Mark M* keeps trying to put words in my mouth so that he can get away without giving us our refund. His work was substandard. His drawings were substandard and that’s why we couldn’t get anything approved from the Hoa. You’ll see in the attachment that he’s trying to charge us four times for drawings that should’ve been done properly the first time the total for the drawings that he’s trying to charge us is $2350. The drawings were too small, he used drawings from another job that he thought he could get past here, and the other two were not correct either and it was supposed to be on scale paper. We have a letter from the HOA saying that they denied us, we have a contract that said he would give us the money back. His charges on the bill are absolutely bogus. They’re actually funny as they’re such made up charges. His person did not come out here six times. And when he did come out, it was a cost of doing business because we needed more details before we could go forward with the project. I wish we had checked further, because if you look at his reviews, he’s got many negative reviews and lawsuits in all counties Cuyahoga, Geauga, and Lake County’s. They are about contracts and money being returned. He’s been in court many many times open this, Has to hire an attorney, you would think he would learn. Other contractors that we have talked to since then, say that this is what he does, and they looked at the charges that she was charging us, and agreed that it was bogus, made up charges. With the bogus charges that he’s giving us on the attachment, he’s really just stealing our money. This seems to be a way of how he does business. Very...

STAY AWAY! Damaged 18 of 48 cement driveway panels, all while we were complaining... They did not take responsibility for the $16k repair. We were advised by owner we didn't read fine print closely enough! :*( They drove machinery off unsupported driveway edges cracking panels. They drove up driveway with large dump trucks and machinery loaded with stone and boulders majorly cracking the driveway. We couldnt replace cement panels without looking like a checkerboard. H&M shorted us 10 ton of 13 ton of stone contracted for in front yard. Brought stone when funds withheld. 85 plants and 3 trees died the 1st year. How does that happen when H&M controls the design, the environment (sun & shade), the soil, the irrigation system installation and set up, plant stock quality & the planting process? Charged us $7k (5X) for repair of carved tree that cost us $1400 to carve, by going WAY beyond scope of labor approved without calling for authorization. Took down 2 stone walls and one blue spruce 3' round plant that were NOT part of the project & packed up our stone to take away, then billed us to later rebuild shorter version of one wall. Two soldier upright stones at the ends of stone walls tipped over because of improper foundation underneath. Nearest part of stone wall started coming apart. We paid $300 for another to come in & fix. H&M put in a dry space system under our deck that failed, requiring $3k for another carpenter to fix. The irrigation system was inadequate for gardens installed requiring me to spend hours watering. We called in another company to fix to save remaining plants. Project Manager lied to us about water falls pump removal... stranding us in -11 degree fall weather risking freezing in our 2 new pumps. We had to call another landscaper in to remove pumps. After design completed in both front and back yard, they had to come back following year and put in french drains because water was now coming at the house. Garage cement block wet because cameras showed they broke the drainage pipe. Cameras also showed that in one case they cut the pipe handling front of house gutters and just buried the pipe in ground. Some fixed by H&M, some by others because no longer trusted work. Then I got earful on how much our job cost them in rework? Some of 5 star reviews below are by H&M employees. And in closing, this year when our project is just 3 yrs old? Our rounded 2.5' elevated retaining wall has cracked apart in 2 places and all 3 pieces are slanting outward... Hiring others again to come in and fix....