Our Dixie HomeCrafters Experience

If you are considering Dixie HomeCrafters for any work on your home, please do yourself a favor and take the time to read this post.  If you know any family or friends who are considering them, pass this along.

The following post conveys the experience and opinions of the author alone.  What follows should not be construed to represent the experience and opinions of any person, business, or organization that the author may or may not be affiliated with.

It began with a box at Goody's.  The box had a big sign on it enticing us to fill out a card and enter it into a drawing for new gutters on our house.  This caught our eye because we own a house in the south where builders do not seem to understand the need for gutters on a house.  We filled out the card, and soon thereafter, got a call from an appointment setter.

Last evening (Wednesday, January 30th, 2008) the representative showed up at our house.  I was expecting a construction professional.  He was a salesman. Within moments of shaking his hand I could feel the "salesman slime" creeping up my arm on it's way to attempt a takeover of my brain.  The tone of his voice, the phony smile, all betrayed that this guy would say whatever was necessary to get my money.

He handed us a list of references and told us that if we would call the references he could give us a discount.  We thought that was great, until he said that the calls would have to be made right that minute while he was measuring the house.  Although reluctant to call a stranger right at dinner time, I succumbed and made a couple of calls.  The first was a wrong number.  The second reference stated that the gutter work they did was fine, but they royall screwed up subsequent window work, resulting in the customer having to purchase a whole new security system for the house.

Within a few moments he finished measuring the house and was ready to make his pitch.  He pulled out a binder with what looked to contain 15 or 20 presentation pages.  After taking 15 minutes to get through the first one, I asked if he was going to go through the whole binder.  He said, "Would that bother you?"  I looked him sternly in the eye and let my facial expression and body language convey that his time was running out quick.  He packed up the binder and pulled out of his big salesman case several different samples of guttering.

For the next 15 minutes or so demonstrated all of the weaknesses of other guttering compared to his superior product.  And I will say, that their product did look superior to the other samples he brought.  Kind of the same way that a Lexus would look sitting next to a 1972 Chevy Chevelle.

We finally got to the estimate.  He went over all of the details of the work and gave us the figure of $3,103.00.  Remember that number.  He then said he could give me a coupon for $350.00.  He then said he could give me a 10% credit for calling the reference.  So finally, we ended up with an estimate for $2,443.00 and he asked if we would be using a check, credit card, or financing.  I said, "Well, first we'll decide if we're going to give you our business and THEN we'll talk about how to pay.  We'll do some comparison, take a look at our budget, and get back with you."

Here is where the coup against our brains began to crescendo.

He said that the $2,443.00 quote was only good if we signed a contract right that minute.  If he left the house, and we called him later, the price would back to $3,103.  Somehow, our coupon discount and discount for calling a reference mysteriously disappeared.  I said something like, "Well, we're smart enough consumers to know not to commit to a purchase of that size without doing comparison and deciding what would work best for us."

He then began talking about the necessity of taking care of our house.  I was insulted by his preaching to me for the sake of getting my business.

Finally, he said, "Okay, give me a call when you're ready.  I just need to call my boss and let him know that I'm finished here."  Here is where the "salesman slime" kicked into overdrive and the attempted takeover of our brain climaxed.  He didn't call his boss from his vehicle while pulling out of our driveway, he stayed seated at our dining room table while making the call, with the phone speaker up loud enough for us to hear his boss on the other end.  The scripted conversation began.

Salesman:  "Hey Boss, I'm finishing up here.  Just met with Bill and Lynn and they love the product, but they're just not ready to make the decision tonight."

Boss:  "What zip code are they in?"

Salesman:  "What zip code are you in?"

Me:  "36870"

Salesman:  "36870"

Boss:  "Would they be willing to put a sign in their yard while we do the work?"

Salesman:  "Would you be willing to put a sign in your yard?"

Me:  "Sure."

Salesman:  "Yes, they woud."

Boss:  "Would they be willing to go on the reference list?"

Salesman:  "Would you be willing to go on the reference list?"

Me:  "Sure."

Salesman:  "Yes, they would."

Boss:  "Okay, I think we could do $1,800."

Me:  "Okay, sounds good.  Let us take a few days to make sure this is the best deal for us and we'll get back to you."

Salesman:  "This price is only good if you sign the contract right now."

Me:  "Then I guess we're finished."

Salesman:  "Boss, they want to think about it for a few days."

Boss:  "What's going to change in a few days?"

By this time I'm getting pissed.

Boss:  "Can they keep this offer confidential?"

Salesman:  "Can you keep this offer confidential?  We can't offer it to anyone else"

Me:  "Sure."

Boss:  "Tell them I'll give them 0% financing, no payment for a year."

Me:  "Sounds great, let us take a couple of days to think about it."

Salesman:  "Boss, I guess we're done here."

Boss:  "Have they ever owned a home before?"

Salesman:  "Have you...

Me:  "Yes."

Salesman:  "Do you understand what 0% financing with no payment for a year means?"

Me (resisting the urge to jump the table and throttle him):  "I'm smart enough to know exactly what that means and I'm also smart enough not to give in to high pressure tactics to commit to that amount of money without comparison and thinking it through.

Boss:  "Tell him that someone just today agreed to a $20,000.00 contract during our first visit."

Salesman:  "Someone just tod....

Me:  "I don't give a rip...I'm smart enough to know to never do that."

Salesman:  "Boss, looks like we're done here."

Boss:  "Yep, sounds like we are."

After this nonsense, the salesman sank to another level:

Salesman:  "So, why can you not make a decision tonight?"

Me:  "Because I'm intelligent enough to know that you never commit to that amount of money because someone is pressuring you to do it right that minute.  If the price can be $1,800 right now, in can be $1,800 in 24-hours.  I know the game you're playing and I'm not that gullible."

Salesman:  "So you've never bought anything without taking time to think about it first?"

Me:  "Yes, when we were young and stupid."

Salesman:  "Oh, come on now.  Surely you make purchases on the same day."

Me:  "Nope."

Salesman:  "So you don't go to the grocery store and buy groceries on the same visit?"

Me (restraining fury):  "Oh come on!"

slimy salesman laugh

Salesman:  "Okay, what if I can get the price down to $1,400?"

Me:  "Sounds good, we'll do some comparison and let you know."

Saleman:  "Okay, I'm outta here."

Okay boys and girls, remember where we began?  The quote began at $3,103.00.  By the end of the conversation we were down to $1,400.  What does this tell you?  It tells me that the job can be done for $1,400 and his first pitch is designed to take advantage of and screw over those who aren't savvy enough to sniff out salesman slime.  How about the fact that the "discount" price is only good if you sign that minute?  What does that tell you?  It tells me that they don't want you to compare their pricing to anyone else, afraid that you may discover the snow job that they're trying to pull on you.

If you are considering Dixie HomeCrafters for any work on your home, consider these things.  Never take the first price.  Never give in to the pressure to "sign now."  And let the salesman know up front that you read this post, know his tricks, and won't be taken advantage of.  If you would like the name of my particular salesman, drop me an e-mail and I'll let you know.

Aw, heck.  I'll just tell you now.  His name is Chad Fisher and he was working out of the office at 4454 Warm Springs Road in Columbus, GA.

UPDATE:  I just came across this link to the "Rip-off Report."  Be sure to visit here and read this guy's experiences.

UPDATE 2: August 19, 2008

Okay, so I got my economic stimulus check from President Bush and decided it was time to take care of this gutter thing once and for all.  Here's the story:

I called a local home improvement company just down the road from me and asked them to come give me an estimate.  The time was set for 5:30 PM on Tuesday afternoon.  At precisely 5:30 PM the owner of the business pulled into the driveway (Dixie Homecrafters was over 30 minutes late).  We all shook hands and the process began.

He was very polite as he asked what we wanted and then spent a few minutes takig all of the measurements.  Within about 15 minutes we were sitting at the same dining room table where I nearly throttled the Dixie Homecrafters Guy in January.  He did some quick math and told me that his price, for the same job Dixie Homecrafters had quoted me, would be $749.00.  Remember, Dixie Homecrafters gave me an initial quote of $3,103 and progressively dropped it to $1,400 in an attempt to get me to sign the contract.  The quote for the job that will now be done next week by a very polite, very professional company who's been in business locally for over 20 years is almost half the lowest quote from Dixie Homecrafters.  Here's the part that made my wife and me chuckle. After he showed us the price he said, "Is this in the ballpark?  Or do you want to take some time to think about it and call me back later?"  Remember, Dixie Homecrafters pressured us to sign the contract right then and there and told us that all discounts would be void and the price would be back up to $3,103 if we didn't sign the contract before the salesman left.

I asked the guy about his product.  He told me all about the gutters that they would be installing and (without me mentioning Dixie Homecrafters) told me how they use the same materials that Dixie Homecrafters tries to get people to pay thousands of dollars for.  He told me about various things that he could do that would cost us more but then very honestly told us that he didn't think we really needed those things.

I asked him about guarantees and warranties on his work.  He told me the length of their guarantee, but then said, "Listen, we're just down the road.  You know where to find us if you ever have problems.  We'll make it right.  We've been in business over 20 years and reputation is everything.  We haven't had a complaint against us yet and I won't let you be the first."

As the conversation came to a close, I asked if he needed any money up front.  Nope, not a dime.  No contract to sign.  He'll see us next week.

Learn the lesson here boys and girls.  Shop around.  Do your homework.  Use a well-respected locally owned company when possible.  And don't ever, ever let a salesman talk you into kissing on the first date!

If you're in the Columbus, GA/Phenix City, AL area, drop me an e-mail and I'll tell you who will be doing my work.  I'd post their name publicly here, but something tells me that the Dixie Homecrafters people who monitor this thread would begin a negative campaign against them if they knew who it is.

Comments

[SH]

I am SO glad I came across this. We got the same sales pitch, but our salesman wasn't rude, so we bought it. Thank goodness I can cancel now! I feel so stupid for falling for this crap! NEVER AGAIN!

[Ken Haynes]

I work for DHC. I have to say, it's rare that I am in a home more than two hours tops! I DO NOT lie to my customers. If I have to lie, I'll quit. I have morals and values. Yes, it is expensive. You get what you pay for. I wonder how many of these sites are actually competitors? When you're on top everyone wants to cut you. I love my job, and I sleep very well at night. People aggravate me sometimes with the "I want to think about it" line, which is total BS by the way, but I move on. It's usually the price. Why do you need to think about it? Why? Why? You will never think about it more than when the sales rep is there. If you want it, you need it, you can afford it, you like it, buy it. I'm an easy sale though, I buy what I want and I never "think about it" any more than I have to. I make a decision and follow through. Meanwhile most Americans sit around and let their house rot to the ground. Anyhow, no harm meant.

[Chuck Blanston]

Wow...I just came across this website when my wife and I were looking for Dixie Homecrafters to see about their bath products. We currently have their windows and the guardiangutter system. After reading (for over an hour now)this website, I can't believe what I am seeing. Our gutters were the first project...the job was, and still is, perfect!!! The installers were great, courteous and cleaned up. The experience was so pleasant that my when my wife wanted windows she MADE me call Dixie Homecrafters. I wanted to shop around, but she reminded me of the experience we had with the gutters. I shopped around anyway, all the window companies wanted the same thing, both of us home, a set time for the meeting, and so on. This makes sense to me due to gas prices etc. After seeing the same sales rep that sold us the guardiangutter, we bought their windows....same experience, same result, WITH energy savings that exceed what they promised...So, from our perspective, we are going allow them to earn our business once again. Folks, look up your grocery chain, gas station Home Depot, Lowes....just about every compant has bad reviews...this was intended to be the opposite...a positive review of a company that my wife and I have FULL confidence in.

[Cigarettes]

A seriously convicting song for the Western church, especially. We're focused on our own self preservation when we are called to be salt to the earth. When will we wake up?

[Mark Mitchell]

I also purchased their "Gutter Guardian" product and am extremely unhappy with it. The product does live up to their guarantee... that they will come out and clean them out if they ever get clogged. They never will get clogged, but these gutters are NO GOOD at doing what gutters are actually supposed to do. Their "Surface Tension" technology just doesn't work. It probably would work fine IF all we had here in Atlanta consisted of light rain and drizzle. But most of the rain we get here cones in the form of thunderstorms, and you could choose any thunderstorm to walk around my house and water will be pouring off my roof EVERYWHERE. It's like I have no gutters at all. Just a really poor product and not even worth installing. Also, while you don't ever have to clean the INSIDE of the gutter, you will have to clean them, and doing so is actually HARDER to do than cleaning out a regular gutter. Over time, GUNK will deposit along the lip of the gutterguard which will require you to either pressure-wash to remove from a ladder, or you can lay down close to the edge of your roof top and reach over the edge with one hand and clean it like that. For me, that's MORE dangerous than just cleaning out leaves and such from regular type gutters.

Just say NO to gutterguards.

[valerie garner]

Just submittted an application with them.Ihave been looking for work for 3 months.I am going to have to research some more before I make a decision.Built homes for 20 years and customer service and quality are a must for me....This news does not reflect how devastated the housing industry is.Is this all there is left for a quality minded construction person to do?

[Former Dixie Sales Rep]

I used to work for Dixie, and although the person who wrote this blog is technically correct in the aspect of the sales pitch, he either hasn't ever worked outside sales, or a commission job, or he's not looking at it in the right frame of mind.
Yes, you are encouraged to make a decision immediately. This isn't because DH doesn't want you to do your homework, by law you have 3 days to cancel any contract signed in your home. The reason is as a salesman, I drove approximately 1000 miles every week in my personal vehicle. I paid gas out of my own pocket. Most appointments I went to were anywhere from 50 to 200 miles one way from my point of origin. If I'm going to give you a discounted price, and take money off of my commission to give you a better deal, there's no way I'm going to drive to your house again and spend more time and money out of my pocket to give you the best price. Its simple economics. When I did this job, gas was under $2/gallon. With it nearly twice as much, I can completely understand a rep, and the company, not wanting to give you the same deal if you want to take your time to "think it over". Most people either want it, or they don't. If they don't want it, they want to be "nice" and say they need to think it over. If you don't want it, just say NO! It's an easy, two syllable word. Most of the time, when the home owner says they need to think it over, they're really saying "It's too much money". Which is why we all have to do the little song and dance. When our manager is on the phone, cutting the price even further, the commission has just dropped to $50 for me. Most times that doesn't even pay my gas to and from your home. Also, most people are smart enough to know they can get the price down. Just like in any haggling business, we have to start high, so that when we all agree on a price, everyone wins.
As for the local guy who agreed to do your gutters for half the price, I can guarantee you a couple of things. #1, the aluminum wasn't nearly as thick as the aluminum DH uses. #2, yeah, he tells you he's been in business for 20 years, and that may be the case, but how much longer will he be there? What happens when he retires? Your guarantee just retired with him. I don't know about the offices where these others posted, but I can assure you that the guys I worked with were great about maintenance calls for customers, and most of the gutter repairs were done within 48 business hours. #3, DH runs the gutters in a single piece. Most independants order 10ft pieces they caulk together. They also use pre-made corners that area perfect 90 degrees. DH custom makes theirs to fit the corners on your home. #4, You were correct about comparing a Lexus to a Chevelle. You forgot though, that a Lexus would run you about twice as much as a Chevelle. You get what you pay for.
As a sales rep, it never ceased to amaze me that people would spend $30K-$50K for a vehicle that depreciates every day, but would balk at investing $1500 to $3000 to protect the single largest purchase most of us will ever make!
Look, I understand that you felt like you were smarter than the "slimy" salesman, and didn't like someone in your home pitching a product. But please keep this in mind, YOU agreed to have him come out. YOU agreed to the appointment, and should have been informed the demonstration would last about 90 minutes. YOU picked the best time for the rep to come. If you didn't want to be bothered, the correct response would have been to say, "No thank you. I'm not interested."
I will give you credit for one thing though, at least you were home for the appointment! I hated people too ashamed to say NO, who would make an appointment, have me drive a hundred miles to BFE, and then either hide in their home, or go somewhere else so they wouldn't have to answer the door!

[Cheri]

Wow, even today there are still complaints about DHC!

First off, I have to say that I was impressed by the product (the gutters). However, I can smell a rat when the offer is contingent solely upon my making an immediate purchase. That is trapping the customer, and it is dead wrong.

Chad Fisher is the name of the manager of the salesman who came to our house. The salesman's name is Matt.

I'm exhausted by the 3 and 1/2 hour ordeal we went through, which included a "special deal for $6, 497 after coupons only available today." Did I mention that our house is a tiny 2 bedroom 1 bath? We said it couldn't meet our budget, and then it was obvious the guy was getting desperate. He went through the whole "calling the boss" thing, promised us an "uncommon" deal where if we signed a contract, we could keep the discount price for the gutters.

I kept asking questions about whether this committed us to the actual construction, and his answers were so round-about and dodgy and he just wouldn't stop talking. I know there's something fishy going on if someone can't answer a simple question with a simple sentence or two.

My husband finally looked at the contract and said, "I'm sorry, I'm not signing this buddy." Guess what the salesman's response was? "I wish you had told me that 10 minutes ago before I wrote it!" his body language revealed his anger and frustration, and at that point i just wanted to get away from him! I left the room, and after 5 more minutes of his heckling, he finally LEFT our house.

I feel sorry for the guy, that's a sucky, exploited job and I hope he finds a better one that actually pays. No one should ever be bullied to buy, and no one should ever be bullied by their employer to sell that way :(

BTW, as I was looking over my budget on my computer, I looked up this article at the same time the DHC salesman was here. So glad I did. THanks!

[Ex Dixie Homecrafters Closer]

Everything about this person's experience is 100% accurate. I used to be a "closer" for DHC and I did it for 3 long months. (Yes they are called closers, not salesmen because they are expected to close the deal in one visit.) This was the single worst job I have ever had. The pay was commission only so that's why there was so much pressure to buy. The closer probably drove 200 miles to get to your house and needed that money to put in his gas tank. As far as the price is concerned, as a closer we were instructed to pick what we thought we could get as a commission from a job and start the pricing from there. I'll break it down as easily as I can. If it cost the company $1000 to do it (that's materials and labor with no profit included) the closer would want to make a $500 commission. Since the commission is split between the closer and DHC the closer would have to sell the product for $2,000 to get the commission that he wanted. (1,000 for the work and materials, 500 for DHC, and 500 for the closer) What we were told to do to get to that price point was to jack up the price even higher just so we could make it look like we were giving the customer a deal. So, you are probably looking at a $3,000 initial price. (which if you can believe it some people get so wrapped up in the moment and actually buy it at the initial price which would then give the closer a $1,000 commision instead of 500) Bottom line is this is a very sleazy sleazy company that even ripped off their employees. I eventually had to leave because I couldn't afford to work there with the price of gas. Plus people were getting wise to their tactics which I hope all of you do as well from reading this. Any post that you read on here that is positive about the company or product is probably made falsely from a PR representative from Dixie Homecrafters. No one is stupid enough to be proud of their decision to buy right then and there after they have time to think about how much money they just wasted. I'm glad I left that company because my moral compass went haywire every time I was told to lie to close the sale. Be smart and shop around.

[Eric]

STAY AWAY! It starts with their CEO, Hugh Harris. He is the biggest slime ball I have ever met. I interviewed with him as well as talked to several of his employees before I decided to run! Mr. Harris apparently is a bully and belittles his people if they do not ripoff enough families each and every day with their hi-pressure tactis. If you live in Tenn. STAY AWAY!

[kassie]

To Linda Barnette:

The Better Business Bureau took their side when I reported them, because Dixie Homecrafters pays the BBB for their grade.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yo8kfV9kONw

I would file a complaint with your State's Attorney General's office which you can likely file online. Also, you can file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC doesn't investigate individual complaints but does keep a database that is available to law enforcement.

[Linda Barnette]

I'm not a former employee, I am a former customer. I would not recommend their product to anyone. Just run as fast as you can. The product I think would be great, it how they treat their customers, after they get your money, forget get you suckers. The lifetime guanturee just flew out the window. We have been waiting on them to return our phone call or to even show up and fix our gutters. Our wood is rotting where they are letting the water go behind and under the roof from improper installion. The whole sale pitch was to keep the water from rotting you wood. I have called back several times and they just tell me that they will put it on the service person door. They are rips off and will not stand behind their product or how it's installed and they do use sub-contracter that don't know what they are doing either. I am also filing a complant with the better business bureu.

[Ginger]

Dixie Homecrafters do not have much of a "craft" except for shoddy work. We had a bay window installed and the thing almost fell out about a year after they installed it !! When we called about it they insisted that a person would be out right away well that has been three years maybe a missing person report has been filed.......

[David Powley]

Don't use them. I have two sashes that need replaced. The guy dropped them off at the house and told me he would walk me through how to install them. His boss told him to do that because they were backed up. I told him to let his boss know I wasn't going to touch them. Nice warranty.

[kassie]

To address Mr. Gause's comment about being told in his training class not to lie, I'm sure that most people who have had DHC sales people in their home know better. It starts with the lie that the sales person will be in their home only 90 minutes. Also, the scripted telephone conversation between the salesman and the manager is a performance which constitutes a lie. Any form of manipulation constitutes a lie. Even their website, which says that DHC respects you and your time is a lie. Using manipulative sales techniques and staying in a person's home for hours is not respectful, and that seems to be the focus of most complaints. Their Dream Home Giveaway is bogus. It was announced in 2008, and nobody has ever won it. It's just a mechanism for enticing people to enter their contact information. I'm glad that you are happy with them, but don't lecture us about being so quick to bad mouth this company. Most people would not take the time to post such detailed negative comments about a company if their experiences have not been truly bad.

Professional Builder aka DHC contractor, way to promote your products! You say that you don't care about the salesmen. As the customer, I care very much being shown respect in my own home. Most real contractors come, look at the job, give a quote, and are gone within 15 minutes or so. Common sense tells me that a good reputable contractor has work to do, and they don't have time to piddle around in a person's home for 4+ hours. Customers want a quote, not a sales presentation. We don't want to have to eat our dinners at 9:30 PM (rather than 6:30) or miss spending time with our families and friends, our favorite television shows, etc. because a DHC salesman won't leave because his scripted performance, meant to manipulate the consumer, has got to run its course.

[kassie]

DHC loves to flaunt their Better Business Bureau rating, but for the people who do not know this already, BBB sells grades. 20/20 did an investigation of them, and the story aired in November. All a business has to do is pay $395, and their letter grade will jump overnight. It was proven on camera. Many people do not realize that the BBB is not a regulatory agency, and they make their money from the businesses who choose to be members, and they reward those members accordingly. I believe that the BBB began with good intentions, but greed has taken them over. They were a legitimate business at one time, they gained the trust of the American people, and now they use that good reputation from years back, when they were legitimate, to extort money from good businesses and to steer customers towards the businesses who line their pockets.

[Rick Gause]

I started working for Dixie HomeCrafters just recently in Knoxville Tn. I've personally owned my own bussiness for many years and the industry I was in collapsed.I believe myself to be honest and I know word of mouth is the way to create a prosperous business.Crooks don't last long. I know you cannot make everyone happy also. Before I decided to plant my flag with DHC I also checked into them and after meating the sales manager Rob Nine I was convinced & have been being proven correct each day that I made the correct decision. Any company that rely's on sales people are going to get some bad ones. When I was going through training the one thing I heard over and over from Rob was to be honest.Never Lie. They are the most fun loving group of employee's and I am not only proud to work with each of them I am especially proud of the productys we sell. I'm truly sorry for each of your's problems but if you will check BBB's accounting of DHC's bussiness practices you will see what I did. The number that made my decision to work there was not the amount of complaints, which with a nation wide company are not many but how many of those problems where resolved.100%. Dont be so quick to bad mouth a company especially if you've never tried running one yourself.They gave me not only a home but a happy home at a time when I really needed one.

[Professional Builder]

My experience is as follows:
The sales rep showed up right on time. WE had the obligatory get aquainted time and then walked around the home. He was not just a salesman, but eucated us about things he was seeing around the home - and he was also a licensed home inspector. We called the references...we chose to call about 12 while he measured for the job. All of the references described the presenation and all were happy and satisfied with the price and the product. We then sat for the 'presentation' - which was very informative. What caught my attention was how well the Gutter Guardian product is designed and the high quality of the materials. Yes, there was the retail price, the 20% discount (which was actually explained as a coupon discount or 10% off whichever is greater, and a day of demonstratin discount). We held out for the yard sign and reference list and got an even better deal. We purchased the product and are happy with not only the performance of the Gutter Guardian, but of the greatly improved curb appeal produced by the lines of the Gutter Guardian. I am a professional custom builder - for now on my upgrades will include Gutter Guardian. I could care les about the salesman - I look for quality products and Gutter Guardian is the REAL DEAL! I will make and appointment to view the other products like Diamond Barrier, windows, siding and bath fitting as upgrades as well. If the quality is as good as Gutter Guardian - they'll beat the Home Depot cheapo and day of the week and twice on Sunday.

[GM]

If you are a window customer of Dixie Homecrafters you should be very concerned. It was a common practice on their triple pane windows to charge customers for krypton gas filled but actually install an argon gas filled window in the home. If you are a previous customer on these you should contact Gorell windows & doors at 724-465-1800. They can tell you by the barcode if you got scammed.

[Used and Abused]

very unscrupulous characters

[Heather]

I just had the same experience last week. It was so good to read this and know Im not alone. This guy was horrible and I was trying to be nice to him. He got here at 4:30pm and I couldnt get him to leave till 12:30am. The only way I got him to leave (without me being totally rude) was I filled out a credit application with the wrong information so it would not go through. Well he called me today and wanted to redo it and I told him no because I wasnt interested in the product at this time. Then he started in trying to make me feel stupid for not doing it and when I told him no again he hung up on me. It was a rediculous experience to say the least. Oh and he put his sign in my yard before he left too so I threw it away. Everyone really needs to think twice before even calling for an estimate.

[James Robertson]

This is so disheartening to read. Having spent the last 28 years as a contractor, I thought I'd seen it all. Well, my wife set an appointment with a representative. Our experience was very positive. First, we had a lady show up and I actually thought it was going to be a big waste of time. Boy was I wrong! This gal knew construction, was pleasant, informative and brought some things to our attention we hadn't considered. It was very cold out, yet she was meticulous in her measurements, went up into our attic to look for potential damage, took the time to answer our questions and showed us the spout "system". I have to say, we were impressed with this product. When you see it, you realize the quality is really top notch. Yes, it was not cheap - and as a DIY'er I could have put something on the gutters - but I hadn't seen ANYTHING that would keep me from having to clean them until we saw this. It would actually keep me off a ladder! You get what you pay for and my wife and I know the value for the dollar was clear - for us. I have to give a person credit for coming to a stranger's home and selling gutters - not a very glamerous job. But we wouldn't have these on our home today but for the well-thought out design which nothing else came close to (which works perfectly!) the professional representative and them doing EVERYTHING they promised. Satisfied!

[kassie]

As far as the Better Business Bureau's reliability goes, it's hard to determine how they rate a company, because their grading system seems to be inconsistent and rather subjective. Some BBB regions' ratings seem to be more reliable than others. What a lot of people do not know is that the BBB is not a government agency and is a non-profit agency. They receive revenue by receiving fee payments from the companies who want to be accredited. From the BBB website, "BBB Accredited Businesses pay a fee for accreditation review/monitoring and for support of BBB services to the public. BBB accreditation does not mean that the business' products or services have been evaluated or endorsed by BBB, or that BBB has made a determination as to the business' product quality or competency in performing services." So, even the BBB is saying that their accreditation doesn't really mean that the company is reliable. In order to compare how other window companies are rated in the Atlanta area, I searched the word, "Window" and found that one BBB accredited window installation company has 108 complaints but still had an A+ rating. Others ratings for BBB accredited companies were as follows: 4 complaints: A+; 18 complaints: A; 7 complaints: A+. For non-accredited companies the scores were: 8 complaints: B; 2 complaints: F. I don't understand their scoring system, but it certainly seems that paying a fee helps out one's grade a lot, while failing to become a member can hurt one's grade. Very strange scoring system. So, the bottom line is that one should never look at the BBB grade but should look at the number of complaints received.

[kassie]

It seems that most of the complaints are coming from customers and people who have endured the 3-5 hour invasion of their homes by DHC salesmen.

[Robert Ervin]

I have heard that the people that posted these websites and the one they have listed later in this website are disgrunted former employees. And that they have a grudge against them. A lot former employees that are mad with their former employer usually do whatever they can to make a company look bad. It is strange that this company has an A+ rating in the BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU. I just looked it up. http://www.bbb.org/nashville/business-reviews/gutters-and-downspouts/dixie-home-crafters-llc-gutter-guardian-llc-gutter-guard-in-lebanon-tn-29002399

BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU does NOT lie :)