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Home improvement contractor facing charges of forgery, fraud

December 20, 2021

by Jerry Schmidt Home Improvement

A Port Vue contractor is facing felony rates following allegedly forging an insurance coverage policy and failing to entire a property renovation venture.Motion Information Investigates: Click the online video participant previously mentioned to enjoy the report.Edwin Pope, 70, was hired to do an addition at the Whitehall residence of Zachary and Haley Childers.The Childerses reported Pope remaining the job unfinished just after they paid him $38,000. They ended up pressured to employ the service of a different contractor to complete the addition.“There definitely has not been an conclusion in sight with the financial influence. It can be pretty terrifying,” Haley Childers stated.According to a felony complaint, prior to signing a contract with Pope, the Childerses requested him for evidence of insurance policies.Pope confirmed them a policy less than a various organization title and reported he was working with that company. But that firm’s operator told police he in no way signed an settlement to do any projects with Pope.Pope admitted to police that he altered the insurance plan policy that he got from the other corporation, in accordance to the prison criticism.The Childerses claimed they imagined they had been on sound floor when Pope confirmed them his insurance coverage coverage.“When you happen to be provided a signed agreement with insurance policies, what more do you feel you will need to do?” Zachary Childers reported.No one answered the doorway at Pope’s Port Vue household. He did not reply to numerous calls and textual content messages.The Childerses said they have to invest hundreds extra to complete the job and they have to put on N95 masks for the reason that of mildew fears.“It’s a substantial economic load. It really is a large emotional stress, stress filled to say the least with a younger household,” Zachary Childers said.Pope is struggling with a number of felony charges including forgery and household improvement fraud. He has a preliminary listening to scheduled for Jan. 25.

WHITEHALL, Pa. —

A Port Vue contractor is dealing with prison charges soon after allegedly forging an insurance policy and failing to finish a home renovation undertaking.

Motion Information Investigates: Simply click the video participant above to observe the report.

Edwin Pope, 70, was hired to do an addition at the Whitehall property of Zachary and Haley Childers.

The Childerses reported Pope still left the career unfinished just after they paid him $38,000. They were being compelled to employ a different contractor to end the addition.

“There actually has not been an conclude in sight with the economical impact. It truly is extremely scary,” Haley Childers explained.

In accordance to a criminal complaint, in advance of signing a contract with Pope, the Childerses asked him for evidence of insurance policy.

Pope confirmed them a policy underneath a different company title and said he was doing work with that business. But that company’s owner advised law enforcement he hardly ever signed an settlement to do any assignments with Pope.

Pope admitted to law enforcement that he altered the insurance policy plan that he obtained from the other enterprise, according to the legal grievance.

The Childerses mentioned they believed they had been on stable ground when Pope confirmed them his insurance coverage policy.

“When you happen to be offered a signed agreement with coverage, what a lot more do you consider you will need to do?” Zachary Childers reported.

No a person answered the door at Pope’s Port Vue house. He did not reply to numerous phone calls and textual content messages.

The Childerses explained they have to commit hundreds additional to finish the challenge and they have to use N95 masks since of mould worries.

“It’s a significant money burden. It’s a big psychological burden, annoying to say the minimum with a younger family members,” Zachary Childers claimed.

Pope is facing many felony prices such as forgery and house improvement fraud. He has a preliminary listening to scheduled for Jan. 25.

3 INVESTIGATES: Home improvement contractor arrested for fraud | 3 Investigates

December 18, 2021

by Jerry Schmidt Home Improvement

BOSSIER Metropolis, La. – A area household contractor that KTBS has featured in two investigative experiences this week is in jail.

Bossier Metropolis law enforcement issued an arrest warrant for Richard Paul, 66, and he surrendered to authorities Thursday. He was booked into Bossier Most Safety Facility and is held on a $45,000 bond.

Bossier home improvement fraud — South Bossier Parish household that stays unfinished by Richard Paul’s company.

KTBS 3 Investigates reporter T.W. Starr has been looking into Paul and his enterprise, People’s Choice Flooring and Transforming, for the past number of months. The investigation was sparked by complaints termed in by viewers about Paul’s enterprise procedures.

Owners scattered in the course of the ArkLaTex say Paul and a person of his contractors, Todd Coleman, ended up paid out to do home repairs but did not follow by. A Shreveport woman mentioned she paid out the firm $74,000 in July 2020. And a Coushatta girl reported she missing $30,000, whilst a plumber explained Paul owes him $7,000.

Associated Studies

Bossier City law enforcement spokesman Lt. Bart Cavanaugh said Paul’s arrest stems from function not carried out for a property owner on Radbrook in south Bossier Town. The property owner experienced storm damage and Paul believed repairs at $112,000. The home-owner paid out Paul $60,000 up entrance.

Paul is alleged to have brought on additional injury whilst operating on the house by slipping by means of the ceiling numerous situations. The dwelling then experienced additional destruction when yet another storm rolled by way of.

Following numerous months of making an attempt to get Paul to comprehensive the task, the home owner submitted a criticism with Bossier City law enforcement. The property owner advised investigators Paul admitted to not having income to shell out her again or to entire the career, Cavanaugh explained.

Paul is not even permitted to do that form of operate, Cavanaugh explained. Paul is only permitted by the state to do non-household work up to $70,000 in value.

KTBS talked with Paul two times on the cell phone. He canceled a scheduled on-digital camera job interview on the early morning it was to consider location. Starr made a number of excursions to Paul’s place of work on Youree Drive but no 1 was there.

Tommy Wimbley, one of the house owners who explained he paid Paul’s contractor, Coleman, $11,000 for work that was never carried out, recorded his dialogue with Paul on his cell telephone. Paul is recorded as saying he was going to get treatment of the undone function on Wimbley’s residence. Wimbley’s reaction: “You been telling me that for the previous five months.”

Wimbley blames Coleman as currently being the “mastermind” guiding the troubles with the organization and describes Paul as a “contractor with a license to steal.”

As KTBS documented Thursday, Coleman is a convicted felon, getting been two times convicted of house improvement fraud. He’s been requested to spend restitution of in excess of $36,000 to two victims.

——

Bossier Town police say any other property owners in the metropolis who have unfinished work through contracts with Paul or his corporation need to make contact with them and file studies.

Home improvement projects turn into nightmares with local contractor | 3 Investigates

December 17, 2021

by Jerry Schmidt Home Improvement

BOSSIER CITY, La. – Imagine paying $60,000 to have some work done on your house and months later the only thing you have to show for it is a house with parts of the roof ripped off and your home exposed to the elements.

“This spot right here in the living room area is due to them falling through the ceiling,” said a south Bossier resident, who asked not to be identified. “This is water damage. Also, they fell in and as you can see they didn’t even cover the entire thing back up. … They fell through this area right here. Where this area is cut out, that entire area is due to water damage.”

But it’s not only the inside of her house that looks bad. The outside still looks like a construction zone.

“I gave this company, which is called Peoples Choice Flooring and Remodeling, I gave them the money on Aug. 31, 2021. I gave them $60,000 up front,” said the south Bossier homeowner.

That was supposed to be payment for a couple of second floor room additions.

The workers came out for two days in August and basically tore off huge portions of her roof, exposing the inside of her house. The job was supposed to be done by Nov. 15.

Then the company told her she needed to buy the materials to get the job done. That was an additional $3,100. Those materials are still sitting in her front yard.

And now, “One of the workers there at Peoples Choice said we will not be able to finish your job because we no longer have any money. The guy Todd, he was like, ‘I’ve been to jail for this and I don’t want to go back to jail and I just wanted you to know what was going on,'” said the homeowner.

KTBS confirmed local contractor Todd Coleman has been convicted of home improvement fraud twice. The first time was in February 2019. Judge Parker Self gave him three years of probation.

But, that didn’t slow him down. About two and half years later, Coleman pleaded guilty to home improvement fraud again. Self once again gave him probation.

“Todd Coleman is the mastermind behind everything. He’s the one that’s calling the shots,” said Shreveport resident Tommy Wimbley, adding he and his wife Linda are living a nightmare of their own.

“I hired People’s Choice May 1 to finish up a building. The project manager, Todd Coleman, after writing up the contract, said he needed a deposit of $11,000. I paid him by check,” said Wimbley.

And, this is what they got: “Holes in the roof, water leaking. All the wiring will have to be ripped out and redone, everything,” said Wimbley

The owner of People’s Choice Flooring and Remodeling, also known as Rick’s People’s Choice Flooring and Remodeling, is Rick Paul.

Here’s what Paul said to Wimbley in his office” “It’s $21,000 for the total job. You put $10,000 down.”

During the conversation, an unidentified woman said, “He put $11,000 down. In the file it says $11,000.”

“I put $11,000 down,” Wimbley said.

KTBS talked with Paul twice on the phone. An on-camera interview was scheduled, but he canceled the morning it was supposed to happen. Paul said he couldn’t do it on the advice of his attorney.

Wimbley’s repeated attempts to get his money back or get the job done right have been unsuccessful as well.

Including this conversation Mr. Wimbley recorded with his phone: “The plumbing hasn’t been finished! The electrical hasn’t been finished! The job is sub-standard, guys got wire running across metal pieces.”

Paul said: “You addressed that to me Friday and what did I say? We’re gonna take care of it. Did I say that?”

Wimbley responds: “You been telling me that for the last five months.”

Lowe’s says pandemic-fueled home improvement demand could cool in 2022

December 16, 2021

by Jerry Schmidt Home Improvement

An employee organizes buckets for sale inside a Lowe’s Cos. store in Burbank, California.

Patrick T. Fallon | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Lowe’s sales outlook disappointed investors on Wednesday and raised concerns the pandemic-fueled boom in do-it-yourself and decorating projects is cooling.

The company’s shares dropped by as much as 4{d4d1dfc03659490934346f23c59135b993ced5bc8cc26281e129c43fe68630c9} in premarket trading. Then, the stock rose later Wednesday as new data from homebuilders showed a huge appetite for housing — even during a typically slow season and a period of inflation. That backdrop coupled with Lowe’s executive comments about the possibility for market share gains, help the stock bounce back.

Shares rose 2{d4d1dfc03659490934346f23c59135b993ced5bc8cc26281e129c43fe68630c9} to close at $257.54 on Wednesday. The company’s stock is up about 60{d4d1dfc03659490934346f23c59135b993ced5bc8cc26281e129c43fe68630c9} this year, bringing its market value to $173.52 billion.

During an analyst meeting, Chief Financial Officer Dave Denton said the retailer anticipates its sales will outpace competitors and it will win more business from home professionals. Still, he acknowledged that Lowe’s is preparing for a “modest sector pullback in 2022” when compared with a year of such high demand and sales fueled by government stimulus.

Lowe’s sales have gotten a lift from Americans who fixed up their yards, tackled DIY projects and redecorated rooms during the Covid pandemic. Even as some of those “nesting trends” recede, however, its sales have been buoyed by the strong real estate market.

The company projected that same-store sales could drop by as much as 3{d4d1dfc03659490934346f23c59135b993ced5bc8cc26281e129c43fe68630c9} or be roughly flat in fiscal 2022 compared with this fiscal year. Total same-store sales will range from $94 billion to $97 billion in its upcoming year. That fell below analysts’ estimates of $97.64 billion, according to Refinitiv.

Lowe’s is estimating overall sales of about $95 billion for this fiscal year, which is one week shorter than next fiscal year.

For fiscal 2022, Lowe’s expects to earn between $12.25 and $13.00 per share. On average, analysts were expecting Lowe’s to earn $12.93 per share, according to Refinitiv.

CEO Marvin Ellison said the company can keep driving growth by launching new private labels, expanding its e-commerce business and becoming a one-stop shop for supplies to help older adults age in their own homes. For example, he said it is debuting a modern decor brand called Origin 21. He said it is speeding up deliveries of big and bulky purchases, such as appliances, with a new pilot in Florida and Ohio. That more efficient process is boosting profits and customer satisfaction, he said.

Together, he said, those efforts will “expand our share of wallet with both the DIY and pro customers.”

Ellison said the retailer will benefit from a favorable backdrop, too, including more money in consumers’ savings accounts, historically low interest rates, rising home values and an aging inventory of U.S. homes. About two-thirds of the company’s sales are driven by repairs and maintenance, he said.

Plus, Ellison said the pandemic has inspired people to invest more in their homes, from millennials who are buying first homes to baby boomers who are adapting an older home.

“There’s been a longer-term shift in the consumer mindset about the importance of the home,” he said. “Our view of the home is a sanctuary that may need to serve several multiple purposes: residence, office, school, gym, and a gathering place for indoor and outdoor entertainment. And given the extension of remote work, we’re expecting a permanent step up in repair and maintenance cycle.”

Separately, the company said it plans to buy back about $12 billion in shares both this year and next year.

Does the DIY home improvement boom have staying power?

December 15, 2021

by Jerry Schmidt Home Improvement

In a workshop at the Station North Tool Library near downtown Baltimore, half a dozen students gathered for a lesson in tools for home renovation — from a basic power drill to a miter saw and a jigsaw.

Several of the students were new homeowners. Jacqueline Wood, 31, is a medical resident who bought a 100-year-old row house in April.

Jacqueline Wood bought a century-old rowhouse in April and wants to learn how to take care of it. — Jacqueline Wood bought a century-old row house in April and wants to learn how to take care of it. (Amy Scott/Marketplace)

“I’ve done a couple of projects by myself with the help of the internet but wanted a little more guidance on how to do slightly more difficult things so that I don’t have to get a handyman every time I need to do something,” she said.

Nate Hetzler, also 31 and also a new homeowner, had a very specific project in mind. His grandfather died last year and left Hetzler a mirror.

“I’ve just had this mirror just sitting around and haven’t been able to hang it, because I don’t know how to drill into a brick wall between my house and my neighbor’s house,” he said.

The tool library opened in 2013 as a place where people could pay a small membership fee and borrow anything from rakes and garden shears to grinders, sanders and welders. Co-director Jessa Wais said that pretty early on, the founders noticed something.

“People would go to borrow their tools and get extension cords, and then run the cords out into the alley and work on their projects in our alley,” Wais said. “That told us maybe there is a need in the city for affordable space to work on your project, too.”

So they added a couple of workshops and a host of classes, including joinery, knife-making, tiling and plumbing. Wais said the home-repair classes are among the most popular. Everything shut down for a while early in the pandemic, they said, “and since bringing those classes back, almost every single one has filled within a week of posting it.”

It’s well known that do-it-yourself home improvement took off during the pandemic, when lockdowns forced many people to stay home and many of them adapted their spaces for work and school. But what’s surprising is how it’s kept up.

“A lot of us thought that, you know, ‘Gosh, by the time everyone gets vaccines and everyone’s done their DIY projects in 2020, it’s going to come to a crashing halt.’ And we haven’t seen that,” said Grant Farnsworth, who tracks the home improvement industry with the Farnsworth Group, a market research firm.

A chart from the Home Improvement Research Institute shows an increase in planned DIY projects during the pandemic. (Courtesy Grant Farnsworth)

One reason, he said, may be inflation. “We are seeing price as one of those areas, causing homeowners to do it themselves,” he said. “Those that have not hired, a large chunk of them said either, ‘I couldn’t get ahold of the contractor, or I can do it cheaper myself.’”

The question is how long the DIY boom will last. Before the pandemic, Americans were growing less interested in doing it ourselves. Abbe Will follows home improvement trends at Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.

In 1999, she said, more than 41{d4d1dfc03659490934346f23c59135b993ced5bc8cc26281e129c43fe68630c9} of improvement projects were DIY; by 2019, that had fallen to 37{d4d1dfc03659490934346f23c59135b993ced5bc8cc26281e129c43fe68630c9}. When it comes to home improvement spending, “the share for DIY projects had been declining steadily before the pandemic,” she said, from about 24{d4d1dfc03659490934346f23c59135b993ced5bc8cc26281e129c43fe68630c9} in 2005 to just 17{d4d1dfc03659490934346f23c59135b993ced5bc8cc26281e129c43fe68630c9} in 2019.

There are several reasons for the decline, Will said. One is that homeowners, overall, are older and may be less inclined to swing a sledgehammer or climb a ladder. Rising prices have kept a lot of younger people from becoming homeowners. Our houses are older too and need bigger repairs that require professionals, like new roofs or foundation work.

“I think all of those factors will continue to pull on the DIY share of home improvement spending and potentially revert back to these longer-term trends,” Will said.

But at the tool library in Baltimore, the DIY urge was strong.

Maria Bahn Tigaoan, 68, had never held a drill before this class. — Maria Bahn Tigaoan had never held a drill before taking a class at the tool library. (Amy Scott/Marketplace)

Maria Bahn Tigaoan, 68, moved to Baltimore from California in hopes of finally affording her own house.

“When I was in school, girls did home economics,” she said. “We didn’t know anything about power tools. You know, you pay a workman to put up your curtains. It’s like, ‘I could do that myself if I only knew how to use a drill.’”

So that night, she drilled — or tried to. Without a trace of judgment, instructor Dre Cortes noticed Bahn Tigaoan had put a screwdriver bit into the drill.

“So this is only when you have a hole ready,” Cortes said, handing her a skinny drill bit. “In order to create a hole, I want you to practice using this one.”

Bahn Tigaoan switched the bit and started out gingerly. “Should I let it rip?” she asked Cortes.

“Go for it,” he said.

She let it rip and drilled a perfect hole in a board. She’ll be hanging curtains in no time.

With Eye Toward Innovation & The Future, Titan Home Improvement Becomes Titan Holdings

December 14, 2021

by Jerry Schmidt Home Improvement

CORAL GABLES, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Titan Holdings (“Titan,” formerly “Titan Home Improvement”) today announced a companywide new operating structure aimed at driving innovation and growth including the launch of a new business vertical and the rebranding of another as part of a broader strategy to revolutionize the end-to-end residential remodeling process.

Titan has split itself into two business verticals: direct-to-consumer home improvement operations and a residential services technology business, as further detailed below. The home improvement operating business will be branded as Renuity and will own Titan’s family of home improvement divisions, including FHIA Remodeling, Mad City Windows & Baths, Statewide Remodeling, Home Smart Industries, and Paradise Home Improvement. Renuity, which will serve as the overarching parent company to those existing regional operating brands, will continue to pursue an aggressive growth strategy through new market expansion and acquisitions. This strategic growth has been the hallmark of Titan since its founding in 2019.

The second business vertical is Bylt, a new technology business that was launched earlier this year. Bylt includes the recent acquisition of LeadPerfection, the home improvement industry-leading CRM platform. Bylt will also serve as an incubator for innovation that will create a best-in-class technology services offering to the residential services industry. The Bylt team is already hard at work significantly enhancing the functionality of the LeadPerfection system, including the near-term roll out a newly developed and proven lead scoring & analytics add-on. Bylt will be led by Bill Baker as the company’s Managing Director. Bill was previously the CIO of Titan, and in his new role will report directly to Daniel Gluck, who is now the CEO of Titan Holdings. Bob Rubertone, the visionary founder of LeadPerfection, will remain with the company and will continue to build on his long-standing relationship with Bylt’s valued customers.

“This is a move guided by innovation, growth and our goal to be the disruptor in this category, and we are not stopping until we get there,” said Gluck, who has been the architect of Titan since its launch in 2019. “Similar to the relationship between other holding companies structured as parents for branded verticals, this new organizational structure splitting our business into home improvement operations and a separate technology business will allow us to aggressively invest in the development of new tools to redefine how residential remodeling is done. We will now be able to bring best-in-class technology we are developing to the rest of the industry, who will benefit from the significant development dollars we are putting behind our new technology vertical.”

“Opportunities like this don’t come around often, and we are ready to take full advantage of it,” said Baker, who has been a key member of Titan’s leadership since its launch. “I am incredibly excited and humbled by the opportunity to lead Bylt and expand upon the great foundation that Bob and his team have laid with the LeadPerfection platform. We are looking forward to rolling out the upgraded LeadPerfection functionality next year along with making our recently developed lead scoring product available to our customers. I am fortunate to have the opportunity to turn LeadPerfection into a truly special piece of technology and to offer the revamped product and our recent investment in customer support resources to the home improvement industry.”

About Titan Holdings

Formerly “Titan Home Improvement,” Titan Holdings features two home-related verticals, including a portfolio of national home improvement operating divisions (“Renuity”) and a technology platform focused on building out a superior managed solution for the home services industry (“Bylt”). The holding company aims to leverage its portfolio of assets to revolutionize the end-to-end residential remodeling process. Titan Holdings is based in Coral Gables, Fla.

About Renuity

Renuity is a portfolio of national home improvement operating divisions owned by Titan Holdings and operating across the United States. These businesses include best-in-class organizations like FHIA Remodeling, Mad City Windows & Baths, Statewide Remodeling, Home Smart Industries, and Paradise Home Improvement. Collectively, these businesses have helped hundreds of thousands of homeowners get quality remodeling services and reliable installation at a competitive price.

About Bylt

Bylt is a technology platform focused on building out a superior managed solution for the direct-to-consumer residential services industry. Bylt’s initial acquisition, LeadPerfection and its associated data analytics arm, represents the customer relationship management software of choice for residential remodeling companies.