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| Now, we are aware that this may sound like profiteering on our part but please be assured that these cases are real, the works that are described below have been undertaken by a mixture of English speaking companies who advertise that they can renovate your house for you and that the clients have now had their houses restored correctly, for much less money and in some cases are trying to recover money from the company used before they came to us. |
| Case 1
A couple who bought a small house in the historic town of the Cote d'Or.
The company they used had explained that they can obtain the planning permission, organise all of the artisans, collect the quotes and project manage the works while they were busy working elsewhere in Europe.
No plans were produced by the company and the first quotes arrived even though many discisions had not been made on the final layout or appearance of the house. These quotes were emailed to the client, still in French and they were asked to sign them. When asked by the client to translate the quotes they were told that the French was very complicated and that they were too busy to go through them!
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| After many hours on translation with help from the internet, the client had removed many items, lowered the price and then signed the quotes. On seeing these quotes we very soon realised that they were very expensive, had missed many parts of work that will need to be added to the bill later. They were charging for work that missed loads of potential within the house, the client had missed some items that should have been removed and some items were being charged at TWICE the price they should be! Now this English company, with a french name, were charging this client a 15% commision (plus VAT) , that's 18% in total, on the total cost of the renovations. That is higher than a fully qualified French Architect and explains why the quotes were over priced: the higher the costs, the higher their earnings. However, worse was to follow after we had removed this company and their artisans from the renovation. On looking through the quotes and emails from the company we realised that an entire 'Plafond a la Françasie' had been removed by the builder and not replaced after repairs. That ceiling had been in that house for around 300 years! This company had had it removed during an additional quote from the builder that earned them more money! Under no circumstances can that be called Renovation, it is profiteering. This house is only 40m² on its footprint and cost 50,000€'s to buy yet the clients were being charged in excess of 150,000€'s to renovate it!--> |
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Case 2
This English client was advised by the English speaking Estate Agent to use a UK builder living in Burgundy to renovate his small house. The work was started to add a bathroom but the builder ofetn did not arrive when he said, seemed to workfor very short periods and eventually did finish the bathroom.
Before starting the next section of work with him, the client called us to ask for a quote. Wearrived on site and saw the previous work done and had to inform the client that it was notdone to French regulations and would very likely not last the year as a useable bathroom. He decided to instruct us to re-work around half of the problems to make the room good enough to last better. |
| Other problems have been found with the work undertaken by this builder and A Piece of Burgundy are now finishing the house correctly with the correct artisans and materials. This client has found that our prices are the same, or sometimes cheaper, than the previous quotes fromthat builder. Unfortunately he has had to pay twice for the bathroom. |
| Case 3
This client, in the Yonne has been trying to renovate her house for several years. She has used several French artisans during the renovations but to help simplify her job she found a builder that also undertook plumbing and electricity. This always rings alarmbells with us. Over the course of several years, several other artisans and even some UK builders and friends she has been left with an unfinished house, some very large bills and now a dispute with the builder, caused mainly by the lack of language understanding between them. |
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| A Piece of Burgundy where called in when a leak was found and no obvious reason could be seen. We have looked through the long history of works, which have cost her very much more than normal and are now causing problems that should be there. We have called in just two of our atisans to correct the problems causing the leak and will be able to correct the damage that has caused then easily finish the renovation at the correct price. The client shouldhave moved in years ago but we should have her in very soon. |
| Conclusion Renovation is not just a Business or a profit making operation; it is a passion for these old buildings. It is our part in the long history of these properties, saving them for a long future ahead. If you have any concerns about the renovations at your property, please contact us. We are completely independant of our artisans and would rather offer you our Free, impartial advice to help you, your budget and save the buildings from damage or bad renovations.
Contact Us even if it just to compare notes on what you are having undertaken at your Burgundy Home so far. |
