Closed Business

I found Greg on Thumbtack. At that time, he was serving parts of Virginia under the name Royal Grounds. We were preparing our house in the DC suburbs for renting before our tour overseas. First off, he was never timely and was full of excuses. He lived in closer to Richmond but served Northern Virginia. I know he did it because there is more opportunity for work in DC but he needs to leave two hours earlier if he is going to say he can be there on time. He would also say "his guys" weren't available on some days. Eventually, he stopped saying this but it seems that after the fact he was just trying to feign that her was in charge of some big operation, but the reality is it's just him. Which would be fine, if he were 1. fully capable and 2. honest. But, he's not. Second, he is a liar. He said he was licensed and insured, and offered a 100% customer-satisfaction guarantee, but the former is not true and the latter he does not honor. Third, he scrubs the internet of bad reviews, removing his profiles so you can't leave an honest review of his work. So it's easy to see how people get conned by him. I think he also uses stock images as purported examples of his work. Fourth, he will change company names to further his lies and cover up past misdeeds. He will file bankruptcy and reinvent himself under a new guise so you can't connect the dots. Fifth, when the going gets tough, he will ghost a client when he knows he's done wrong. In my case, he didn't finish the work, did a sloppy paint job, and never returned to properly redo the drywall seam-mudding nor the flooring, which buckled after just a couple of months. It seems like he doesn't even own a saw capable of cutting marble/porcelain, so he always recommends vinyl planks, even if they're not suitable for the space. In my case, the room where he suggested them got too hot and they all popped off not long after installation. He then blamed me for it and ultimately ghosted me. Once we returned from overseas, I discovered he filed for bankruptcy and then took his show on the road and is now conning people in Texas (I presume he chose there at least in part because general contractor licensure is not required). Several on Nextdoor complained about him starting projects and never finishing, taking off with their money. Or not repairing insufficient work, just like he did with me. Once a few bad reviews popped up there, he deleted his profile just like he had before on Thumbtack. He also had an LLC in Texas, but then apparently failed to pay taxes, thus forfeiting the existence of said LLC. I mean, hire whomever you want, but I'm making it my mission to ensure people know what they're getting into with Greg. He'll con you by trying to upsell himself. He'll tell you everything to make him not appear to be a con on the lam, like he told me he was going to attend the University of Virginia for a master's degree in architecture. Spoiler alert: this never happened. Bottom line: He has marginal handyman skills at best, but wants to think of himself as a "luxury" contractor, capable of much more than his rudimentary and faulty craftsmanship suggest is the actual truth. He could probably work at a home-improvement store but he instead thinks he is some business mogul capable of high-end projects. He has two failed business ventures to show for it, so I'd say save yourself the time and find a BBB-accredited contractor.

Greg was the worst communicator. I have the entire record of text message history to prove I had to continuously hound him and request updates. That went on almost a year! Not until I posted complaints about him did he produce material floor replacement. I just hired a new contractor to fix the issues and all 3 bids and this new contractor I hired all unanimously agree the floor buckling was due to installing it incorrectly. The very moment my new contractor relieved the pressure around the edges, the floor buckling went away. We cared for the flooring exactly as instructions on the box and from manufacturing company stated. Used only approved products. We don't even own a mop! We've only ever had carpet previously. There was zero water used and zero damage due to misuse. Greg's claims (currenlty) of misuse are grossly overstated and incorrect. He himself was here soon after installation where he admitted in person that expansion was likely the cause. The flooring company manufacturer/distributor came and did a 3rd party inspection. They awarded several boxes of material. So you really think they'd do that if they found water damage and misuse? No! Did Greg's team install it correctly, no. Did he install appropriate vapor barrier and leveling agent, no. Did he communicate in a professional and timely matter, no. The last time he sent a crew member out, he never communicated to me to confirm a date. Therefore no one was home. When I spoke to his crew member via video doorbell, he himself admitted Greg does not communicate well. But I have on record the countless days of work I missed when told he would be here but never showed and cancelled due to every excuse in the book. I've got the proof Greg, you're in the wrong. By the way, what's your license number and insurance information? Does the license and insurance cover flooring installation? Or just fencing? If any even exist. By the way, your previous customer, Amy, from Virginia is looking for that information as well. Sounds like you treated her just as bad or worse.