Review 03-03-16

I hereby want to give an overview of the current situation in the work Contracted to Luxury Outdoor and Robert Coggins for building a pool at my residence.

1. Diamond Brite: This had to be installed more than four times so that it had an acceptable finish. For this, we had to drain the pool four times to reapplying the diamond brite . We had to covered all the cost associated with filling with water and treating the pool for at least 90 days
2. Electrical Rough In for future BBQ Island – this was part of the Contract and was never provided by Luxury. We requested Luxury to provide reimburse for this item as it was never executed without any luck.
3. Stainless Steel Water Fountains – Since April 2014 we have been notifying Luxury Outdoor that the water fountain provided and installed were getting rusted. The fountains got rusted not even six month after they were installed. Luxury Outdoor didn’t realize that our pool has a salt water system. The fountains provided are not commercial grade, therefore they got rusted. For the last six months we have tried to work on warranty agreement with no luck – see photo attached.
4. Removable Fence – Luxury promised to install a removable fence as part of our Contract. This work was never done. We requested Luxury to provide reimburse for this item as it was never executed without any luck.
5. Damaged Fence and Gates – July 2, 2105 Luxury advised via email that they ordered the fence material and that their intent was to remove the whole fence and install a new one in the back of the yard, due to the fact that the current fence was scratched, installed improperly – not plumbed, and damaged with white paint by Luxury. This work was never executed. We requested Luxury to provide reimburse for this item as it was never executed without any luck.
6. Mosquito Mist System – Contract included the installation of a mosquito mist system. The system was installed incorrectly and the chemical used was also mix incorrectly. We have to contact the manufacturer directly. The manufacturer sent an certified technician in my area and they reinstalled the system and give us the correct chemical for our use.

There are other issues such as deck material, drain installed on the deck (Luxury installed a shower drain – see photos attached), deck settlements, etc.; that got addressed by Luxury not after numerous emails and phone calls.

As of today, we don’t know or haven’t met Mr. Robert Anastassi, Owner of Luxury Outdoor, even though we have requested his presence in our house in numerous times. Note that Luxury Outdoor is not even a member of FSPA.

Please be very careful with this Company.

Review 1-7-15
The Contractor doesn’t performed the way he promised on the day of the Contract. We signed a Contract on June 2014, permit was approved September 2014 and 16 weeks later the Contract is not completed. Contractor promised to have this pool ready in 14 weeks. They come to work twice a week and sometimes nobody showed up in a week. On December 1st we provided him with a detail punch list of all pending and deficient items and as of today (1/7/15) he have a punch list for more than a month.

I haven’t seen him for more than two weeks, which means that he just abandoned the job. All payments were paid per Contract.

I will not recommend this Contractor. I was advised not to do business with him but I didn’t listening.

Lies, lies, and more lies. After 9 months of working with Robert my pool is still not done. When we put our deposit down in September of 2015 he assured us that we’d be swimming in four months and that his company does not use any sub contractors. However, after paying Robert throughout this process, we have a subcontractor that put a lean on our house because he did not pay them and several other subs showing up at our door demanding payment even though we’ve already paid Robert (the owner) directly. Our pool is still not finished and Robert will not answer our calls.

Please don’t make the mistake I did by hiring them. Luxury outdoor design was hired to build a pool and deck at my residence. It has been over 6 weeks with virtually no progress on my pool. During this time period I have received several messages from Robert Coggins (President) stating that they will be at my house “tomorrow” and they still don’t show up. My yard is destroyed and a complete mess. The concrete was poured while the bottom of the pool was full of water due to a broken and poorly installed drain pump so I am concerned of how long the concrete will last. Robert promised we would be swimming by February 3, 2016 which did not happen. Then on February 18, 2016 he signed an agreement stated we would guaranteed be swimming in 45 days or April 3, 2016. Today April 5, 2016 We are no where near swimming in our pool. I have already paid for plumbing, tile and coping none of which are complete. I have also received notice from the concrete subcontractor stating that Luxury Outdoor Design has not paid them.

I’m a service connected disabled vet, who suffered a spinal injury on active duty. My doctors recommended that I swim to slow/counteract muscle atrophy in my upper body. We met with Robert Coggins of Luxury Outdoor Design [LOD], who sold us a pool with a Badu Jet, Infinity edge and wide steps(it turned out that the plans that were given to the building dept didn’t have an infinity edge nor the proper plumbing for a Badu Jet and the steps were just 12″ wide), there were months of no work being done, big$ upfront, permits not applied for within appropriate time after receiving $. Poor workmanship, property damage, Niether a General Contractor nor a Certified Swimming Pool Contractor, ever set foot on job site as a result, the project was totally mis managed. The list goes on; Fictitious cost, invoicing with no supporting documents, not paying sub contractors, unresponsive to emails, text or phone calls. Heavy equipment left on-site for more than 60days including a broken down bobcat that was abandoned in the pit that was dug for 45days! The list of incompetent, unprofessional and unethical behavior exhibited by Robert Coggins on behalf of Luxury Outdoor Design can be described as egregious. Coggins is not a licensed general contractor, or a certified pool contractor. He knows how to use a 3D design program that makes pretty 3d pictures.Before signing any contract, request to see a GC contractors license with his name on it, he also claimed to be a disabled veteran (he has no shame) BEWARE!BEWARE! We had to hire a construction lawyer to get them off or property, and opened a case with the police, this was the only reason that he paid a sub contractor, who had threatened to put a lien on our property because Coggins hadn’t paid him for our job. After they caused serious damage to our back yard and we haven’t been able to enjoy our back yard for 7 months. We recently had to take our pet to the vet to get his tail amputated because he became trapped and entangled in the dangerous pit they left. I will attach a picture of the mess if this site allows. Coggins the ‘president’ of this company IS NOT a licensed contractor. In fact, if you hire this company, a licensed swimming pool contractor will never step foot on your property.

Robert gave me a resort style backyard, leaving all my friends saying OMG this is gorgeous. He is very talented with stepping outside the box, and doing some that is original. He will not give you your typical ordinary pool that everyone seems to have in their backyard. Robert is an “OUTDOOR DESIGNER, not a “POOL BUILDER. There is a big, big difference between the two classification. I recommend him strongly!!

We have a somewhat complex yard. It is the shape of a slice of pie, so the house divides it into thirds – two yards on either side of the house, and one immediately behind the house. It is also awkwardly hilly, especially for Florida standards. Before meeting with Robert from Luxury Outdoor Design, we visited two other pool companies in the area. One never gave us a proposal (which was frustrating), and the other just drew one up without ever visiting our house, and it was terrible. Robert was the first vendor to actually visit the house, and see that we live on a unique piece of land. He studied our yard as an artist would, really taking his time to take it all in before telling us what he thought. Once that was done, he took the time to learn about my family: what we like, what we don’t like, how we like to spend our free time, what we had in mind for our backyard. A week later Robert came back with an amazing design – inclusive of a pool, decking to connect the side of the house where the pool would be to our “middle” yard, and a door built into the side of the house leading to the pool. He nailed it. He quoted us a price which was far lower than what I would have expected for the project, and we signed up right away.

The building of the pool was difficult, but there were lots of obstacles to address, including an HOA, a slow moving city, an easement, and other miscellaneous items. Nevertheless, they started digging in late October and we were swimming by the end of February. On top of that, we had all of our decking, a new door, and it all looked really really good. They did everything they said they would do. Robert had taken our blank slate of a yard which we had no idea how to address, and made it into a wonderful extension of our home which we use every weekend. More than 2 years later, every time something is not working properly (timer, cracked pavers, dead pool light), I call or text Robert and he has someone over the house within a week to fix whatever is broken, no questions asked.

So, overall, I am a big fan of Robert and this company. They do a great job, their work is always one of a kind, and their pricing is as good as I’ve seen. I have also recommended them to several other families and I’ve only heard good things.

Luxury Outdoor Design is a very creative designer of exterior landscape design. Our company looks forward to working and supplying exterior pool tile and porcelain tile for his projects. Robert Coggins is very creative and responsible.

Sincerely,
Gerard
www.catalfamogallery.com