Doublezero in the Junction

I hired Mark from House Depot to upgrade my 100A panel to 200A. This required a service upgrade on the power coming into the house from the street. There was some paperwork and hoops to jump through. Mark explained the hoops to me and offered suggestions on how to meet the requirements. He was flexible. The work was ultimately performed by his friend, Farhan, and Farhan's assistant. These two took their time, 2 days, to do an excellent job of disconnecting the old service, connecting the new service, dealing with Toronto Hydro and the ESA, getting the new service into the house, and installing the new panel, which I had already purchased, and the breakers which I purchased as well. Most electricians refuse to consider using anything but the supplies they bring themselves. House Depot agreed to use my supplies and I was able to negotiate a discount on the job. They worked all day and late into the evening on the first day. Then they came back and finished it after half a day the next day. The cables were run into the panel professionally and neatly. The Electrical Safety Authority gave me a pass on the inspection. These guys seemed like they were unprepared for certain aspects, such as attaching the panel to the wall - the wall isn't finished; they lacked various tools, they were even extremely confused on how to get power for their tools and lights, which is strange for electricians. I had to solve their problem by asking a neighbor if they could run extension cords from his house - and this was for 2 days. Many neighbors wouldn't agree to this. But they completed the work anyways, and I'm happy with the results and the price. Unfortunately, the experience was not completely positive because Farhan refused to acknowledge the $100 deposit I had initally given to Mark. He wouldn't listen and I couldn't find the receipt and my bank doesn't send me cancelled cheques. So I stupidly let him trick me into giving him an extra $100. So overall, the work was completed well enough to satisfy the inspector, who didn't even enter the house - so that's not really much of an indicator. And, I paid less than the quoted rate most others were giving me. But the way the job was handled leads me to think I can't recommend these guys to any but the most hard-nosed, patient, and cheap homeowners.

Ken inspected my purchase and determined which areas would cause me the most problems. Without ripping down any walls, he correctly estimated the amount of aluminum and knob & tube wiring in the house. He also did a thorough inspection of the roof and told me what to expect in terms of interior + exterior damage and cost of repairs. Again, his estimates were correct. Ken's advice has helped me, as a new homeowner, to more fully understand the major problem areas of my house. This has helped me to negotiate better with the roofers and the insurance company. I feel confident that the binder with his report in it will help me to effectively deal with future renovation issues.

I wasn't happy with Appraisal 2000's business tactics, their product, or price. I am not going to blame the actual appraiser, Steve Panparotto, because he is probably just a pawn. To his credit, he fully refunded the fee I paid when I explained my concerns to him. Why was I unhappy with this company? Because first of all, they waited until the last minute to contact me, then the appraiser got confused and started panicking and phoning my agent and the bogus mortgage broker I was dealing with (that's another story), then the bogus broker called and started screaming at me and my agent, accusing us of holding things up, then the appraiser called back and demanded payment, even before he had even seen the house, and everything was rush, rush, it was very stressful. Finally, my agent, the appraiser and myself met at the house. He performed a cursory inspection and demanded payment. I asked for a copy of the appraisal. He refused. I repeated myself, he did likewise. I didn't know what my rights were because this all happened so fast. I paid him, even though I did not get a copy of the appraisal. Later, I spoke to my lawyer who was unhappy with events. He told me I shouldn't have paid him. I should at least get a copy of the appraisal. So I called Panparotto and asked for a copy. I said he could keep the money, just send me a copy of the appraisal I paid for. He refused. I started getting suspicious. What is he trying to hide from me? Who owns this appraisal? (see below for rest of story). Postscript: Why am I not allowed to see it? If my lawyer smells a rat, so do I. I demanded one or the other, my appraisal, or my money. Panparotto promptly refunded my credit card, which was the only part of the transaction which gave me any satisfaction at all.