Ho Bee

[vowsh 1]

No thks!

I also got quotation fm ho bee. But turn down as I find price abit expensive.

Already got my id liao. Good low price, of course thru referral.

Noticed. Classic design...hee

Better get reno fast else the cost increases together with the housing price.

Will confirm my ID this weekend , oso by referral as well. Surprising cheaper than HO Bee, a contractor

Save my time & effort to coordinate. Hopefully is a blessing in disguise.

I have seen one of the HO Bee renovated units at the East side. Will compare his against my new ID when reno starts.

[MaCe 3]

Noticed. Classic design...hee

Better get reno fast else the cost increases together with the housing price.

Will confirm my ID this weekend , oso by referral as well. Surprising cheaper than HO Bee, a contractor

Save my time & effort to coordinate. Hopefully is a blessing in disguise.

I have seen one of the HO Bee renovated units at the East side. Will compare his against my new ID when reno starts.

wah...guess hobee really busy up to their neck. good luck to your new search.

[YKRL 0]

He should at least has the courtesy to return the call despite calling him 2-3/week.

Put it another way. If there's a problem after handover say 1 mth , do you think you can find him?

I doubt you can find him. Indeed his business is good but customer focus not there.

I rather get someone that response to your needs and followup promptly.

Btw, he dun provide 3-D drawing & schedule coz he is a contractor. U must have in mind what you want to do if u want to engage him. My time & energy are exhausted...u can give a try.

actually Ho Bee is 1 of the contractor i have shortlisted...

after hearing all this, maybe i should re-consider....

[MaCe 3]

Confirmed & Engaged Ho Bee in early Dec after gotten the quote from Patrick. He claimed can start any time but deliver after CNY. I am fine with that. ( Did not pay or sign any contract with them)

Since then that was the 1st and last time i talked to him. Called him a number of times to ask for a date as I have work/wedding plan. His call always diverts to Mrs Quek who dun know the status at all. She said will get back to me but no news. I told her i need a date as i cannot plan my personal stuff. Radio silence till i give up last weekend. No energy to keep chasing liao.

Simply dun understand why is it so diffcult to return my call, at least let me know his plan. I understand he is bz and i can try to accomodate him.

I wasted >1 mth waiting & waiting. Nothing was done, not even selection of tiles or capentry discussion.

Really really have diffculty to contact him for discussion. I believe all have this problem trying to find him.

Last week, informed Ho Bee that I had decided not to engage them for reno, telling them my problems. Sad to say that they did not even apologize.

Maybe i am the unlucky one. Anyway, move on to find any ID/contractor lor.

hmm... upon reading this for the second time.

1) i dont think you confirmed or hobee confirmed the reno. or else a original copy of final quotation will be given, stamp and sign. a startwork and completion date will be given also.

2) Are you paying your reno in CASH or bank loan?

for cash they will ask for some deposit, bank loan no deposit.

3) Mrs quek took charge of all the scheduling of works, quite impossible that there is a confirmed reno job and she doesnt know anything about it.

4) hobee may be extremely busy during this period - but not getting back to a CONFIRMED reno project sounds impossible.

btw, i am not related to hobee in any way hor. me just one of their many happy customers.

[vowsh 1]

hmm... upon reading this for the second time.

1) i dont think you confirmed or hobee confirmed the reno. or else a original copy of final quotation will be given, stamp and sign. a startwork and completion date will be given also.

2) Are you paying your reno in CASH or bank loan?

for cash they will ask for some deposit, bank loan no deposit.

3) Mrs quek took charge of all the scheduling of works, quite impossible that there is a confirmed reno job and she doesnt know anything about it.

4) hobee may be extremely busy during this period - but not getting back to a CONFIRMED reno project sounds impossible.

btw, i am not related to hobee in any way hor. me just one of their many happy customers.

Bro, u reno your house a yr ago with Ho Bee. Things & business had changed. The problem is that they confirmed with me verbally. In fact. I like to place a deposit but Mrs Quek said is ok, no worry. Settle in the next appt with Patrick. Do you know that Mrs Quek asked me to buy basin and oven 1st. End up bought already but no followup.

You may be out of touch already unless u r in contractor line. New guys like us may not get the same service like u or the rest done yrs ago.

Anyway, no point arguing over HO BEE. I want to move on to get my new ID asap.

For the rest of the new owners, judge by yourself the service you pay for.

[MaCe 3]

Bro, u reno your house a yr ago with Ho Bee. Things & business had changed. The problem is that they confirmed with me verbally. In fact. I like to place a deposit but Mrs Quek said is ok, no worry. Settle in the next appt with Patrick. Do you know that Mrs Quek asked me to buy basin and oven 1st. End up bought already but no followup.

You may be out of touch already unless u r in contractor line. New guys like us may not get the same service like u or the rest done yrs ago.

Anyway, no point arguing over HO BEE. I want to move on to get my new ID asap.

For the rest of the new owners, judge by yourself the service you pay for.

my reno completed in JUNE2007...not that far away...

anyway..good luck to your search.

[BunBun 5]

Reading about your experience is a bit of an surprise given the recommendations by other forumers in here, vowsh

I'd contacted Ho Bee last year for a quotation in september. It is only recently that I'd confirmed and engage Ho Bee as my contractor after much follow up by Patrick or Mrs Quek over items in the quotations which we'd decided we'd did not want or wanted to include. This was done a few times via e-mails and several phone calls later before we'd agreed on a suitable quotation in the end and engaged Ho Bee for the works on the spot.

Believe that the works for Ho Bee is considered a small job and that's probably one of the reasons why Patrick is taking up this job since he mentioned that he is quite busy and will not be able to take up any big jobs before CNY. Right now,the works by Ho Bee have not started yet since HDB will have to rectify some minor defects at the moment.

[simpleguy80 0]

Reading about your experience is a bit of an surprise given the recommendations by other forumers in here, vowsh

I'd contacted Ho Bee last year for a quotation in september. It is only recently that I'd confirmed and engage Ho Bee as my contractor after much follow up by Patrick or Mrs Quek over items in the quotations which we'd decided we'd did not want or wanted to include. This was done a few times via e-mails and several phone calls later before we'd agreed on a suitable quotation in the end and engaged Ho Bee for the works on the spot.

Believe that the works for Ho Bee is considered a small job and that's probably one of the reasons why Patrick is taking up this job since he mentioned that he is quite busy and will not be able to take up any big jobs before CNY. Right now,the works by Ho Bee have not started yet since HDB will have to rectify some minor defects at the moment.

Does Ho Bee give an itemised quotation or as a whole quotation?

[simeiz 0]

Does Ho Bee give an itemised quotation or as a whole quotation?

yup they give an itemised quotation.

[MaCe 3]

Reading about your experience is a bit of an surprise given the recommendations by other forumers in here, vowsh

I'd contacted Ho Bee last year for a quotation in september. It is only recently that I'd confirmed and engage Ho Bee as my contractor after much follow up by Patrick or Mrs Quek over items in the quotations which we'd decided we'd did not want or wanted to include. This was done a few times via e-mails and several phone calls later before we'd agreed on a suitable quotation in the end and engaged Ho Bee for the works on the spot.

Believe that the works for Ho Bee is considered a small job and that's probably one of the reasons why Patrick is taking up this job since he mentioned that he is quite busy and will not be able to take up any big jobs before CNY. Right now,the works by Ho Bee have not started yet since HDB will have to rectify some minor defects at the moment.

ya the saying goes - cant make everyone in the world happy.

[BunBun 5]

ya the saying goes - cant make everyone in the world happy.

Patrick handed over this morning, of all the contractors we have (About 5 to 6) , patrick gave me the least headache. Dealing with others make my blood boil, while Patrick makes all these smooth sailing. Very happy with their tiling works for the kitchen and balcony.

HDB contractors need to learn a thing or two.

[rendy 0]

.

Edited January 28, 2008 by rendy

[MaCe 3]

I've benefited alot from this forum and also found my perfect (yes perfect!) contractor Patrick here ... but so far not given back anything in return. today after reading negative posts about him here, I wish to stand up for him.

Some background: my neighbour's flat was renovated by Imp****21, ID: henry. I oso got a quotation from him before. But in the end cfm with Patrick.

Take this into account, Imp21 guy is a honest guy who is easy to talk with, not a low-life ID who flies your aeroplane... But still based on what I saw and my conversations with my neighbour I know that I got a deal.

1. Price

Yes you could get a sweeter deal with many IDs compared to Ho Bee as their prices have increased. But as many forumers here have vouched ... their prices are FINAL all inclusive. My neighbour got a better price to start with but some things his ID perhaps did not foresee ... the end price if he compared based on item by item, was the same as what I was paying Patrick.

Number wise, Patrick quoted me almost $5k more. But I look at it this way. $5k is my monthly salary, so I worked 25 days harder to pay for a better renovation which I will be using for the next 10 years.

There is no such thing as cheap and good. If there was, the so-called cheaper contractor in this case would be chased after like Ho Bee. But why not ?

2. Supervision

Patrick is very hands-on. While my neighbour was left with dealing with sub-contractors. Dont be misled by IDs who respond very quickly to your quotation. Only 2 reasons, one is they are too new and hardly have any projects, or coz they concentrate more on quotation rather than ongoing jobs. So dont be disheartened if u get your quotes later than other IDs, coz the whole of Singapore is after him & also because he is closely supervising house of his current clients, and will do the same for you (his future client).

Believe me its not trivial dealing with sub-cons, they are a different breed of people. I'm not a snob, but i've seen what my neighbour went through. The details will flood this thread.

3. Delivery

Patrick's date of delivery for me has been like an engraving on stone. His deadline is FINAL. He was even helping the L-box guys until 11pm the night before the painters were to start!! Helping as in really doing the work!! Can you imagine ? I even have the photo of him working with the date and time on it.

While my neighbour had to put up with nonsense, that "if you rush the workers the job will be compromised". Plain rubbish, and when he asked for compensation, he was refused bluntly. Imagine if this was his 2nd flat or something, would his old flat buyer let him stay free for even 1 day more ? So thats why delivery time = $$$ for some of us. Luckily oso his church wedding date not so close.

4. Workmanship

A poorly managed ID with good sub-cons, I think is a small issue. Because ultimately skill of his workers counts. If you have to deal with sub-cons directly and their skill is sub-standard, its a double problem. Because these level of people really cant take criticism professionally.

I saw it myself, some sharp edges for tiles, my neighbour used his own file to file off and apply white cement. I questioned him why he did not pressure the ID ? He jus say forget it.. but he was boiling with anger.

5. Conclusion

If only Patrick can be cloned! Dont be penny wise and pound foolish. Work well done gives me peace of mind. And I place a value on my peace of mind.

agree. some pple who didnt read enough in this forum - fail to understand the quoted PRICE.

hobee's price is FINAL so it's "sounded" a little expensive - whereas others who quoted a few Ks cheaper - has a lot of HIDDEN cost. end up paying a lot more than hobee.

[h4happy 1]

Hello MACE

I know why pple didnt read enough, cos' too many pages and lazy...so they just glance thru. without fully understand the content.

HAPPY

agree. some pple who didnt read enough in this forum - fail to understand the quoted PRICE.

hobee's price is FINAL so it's "sounded" a little expensive - whereas others who quoted a few Ks cheaper - has a lot of HIDDEN cost. end up paying a lot more than hobee.

[vowsh 1]

I've benefited alot from this forum and also found my perfect (yes perfect!) contractor Patrick here ... but so far not given back anything in return. today after reading negative posts about him here, I wish to stand up for him.

Some background: my neighbour's flat was renovated by Imp****21, ID: henry. I oso got a quotation from him before. But in the end cfm with Patrick.

Take this into account, Imp21 guy is a honest guy who is easy to talk with, not a low-life ID who flies your aeroplane... But still based on what I saw and my conversations with my neighbour I know that I got a deal.

1. Price

Yes you could get a sweeter deal with many IDs compared to Ho Bee as their prices have increased. But as many forumers here have vouched ... their prices are FINAL all inclusive. My neighbour got a better price to start with but some things his ID perhaps did not foresee ... the end price if he compared based on item by item, was the same as what I was paying Patrick.

Number wise, Patrick quoted me almost $5k more. But I look at it this way. $5k is my monthly salary, so I worked 25 days harder to pay for a better renovation which I will be using for the next 10 years.

There is no such thing as cheap and good. If there was, the so-called cheaper contractor in this case would be chased after like Ho Bee. But why not ?

2. Supervision

Patrick is very hands-on. While my neighbour was left with dealing with sub-contractors. Dont be misled by IDs who respond very quickly to your quotation. Only 2 reasons, one is they are too new and hardly have any projects, or coz they concentrate more on quotation rather than ongoing jobs. So dont be disheartened if u get your quotes later than other IDs, coz the whole of Singapore is after him & also because he is closely supervising house of his current clients, and will do the same for you (his future client).

Believe me its not trivial dealing with sub-cons, they are a different breed of people. I'm not a snob, but i've seen what my neighbour went through. The details will flood this thread.

3. Delivery

Patrick's date of delivery for me has been like an engraving on stone. His deadline is FINAL. He was even helping the L-box guys until 11pm the night before the painters were to start!! Helping as in really doing the work!! Can you imagine ? I even have the photo of him working with the date and time on it.

While my neighbour had to put up with nonsense, that "if you rush the workers the job will be compromised". Plain rubbish, and when he asked for compensation, he was refused bluntly. Imagine if this was his 2nd flat or something, would his old flat buyer let him stay free for even 1 day more ? So thats why delivery time = $$$ for some of us. Luckily oso his church wedding date not so close.

4. Workmanship

A poorly managed ID with good sub-cons, I think is a small issue. Because ultimately skill of his workers counts. If you have to deal with sub-cons directly and their skill is sub-standard, its a double problem. Because these level of people really cant take criticism professionally.

I saw it myself, some sharp edges for tiles, my neighbour used his own file to file off and apply white cement. I questioned him why he did not pressure the ID ? He jus say forget it.. but he was boiling with anger.

5. Conclusion

If only Patrick can be cloned! Dont be penny wise and pound foolish. Work well done gives me peace of mind. And I place a value on my peace of mind.

U juz joined the renotalk. Interesting piece of advertisment.