Burnstead markets Energy Star & Built Green certified homes. Based on their internet advertising and sales assertions, we bought a home in Snoqualmie from them. After a high number of call-backs because of quality issues, I began checking out the ""BuiltGreen"" certification.
The City of Snoqualmie requires each home built in Edgeview to be constructed to Built Green 3-star level. You cannot have a 3-star home unless it is certified via the submission of a detailed checklist to the Built Green organization itemizing every requirement met.
It turns out that Burnstead falsified the Built Green requirements checklist submitted to Built Green of King County to gain certification. This is after signing a code of ethics with Built Green stating how truthful they were in the submission.
In complaints to the Better Business Bureau and Attorney General's Consumer Protection office, Burnstead lied to each agency and submitted their ""certification"" as proof that nothing was wrong. With allegations of fraud, deceptive business practices and defective product issues, the BBB raised Burnstead's rating to A+, citing Burnstead's efforts to resolve all issues with the customer.
Aside from that, the quality and attention to detail is far less than would be reasonably expected. Their attitude is that anything found wrong must be a mistake on the part of the homeowner. Customer service? Might as well forget it; it doesn't exist. The customer service representative, Sharon, will do everything possible to insult and stonewall you so that they don't have fix anything (you should see all the email threads with her). My garage floor looks like it's one hundred years old with thousands of cracks in it. But according to Leo Suver, it's just cosmetic and the ""warranty"" doesn't cover it. The concrete has continued to degrade.
The number of quality issues is incredible, from several cabinet doors falling off to a natural gas hookup installed with a crack in it; air blowing in through the fireplaces in the winter, windows installed incorrectly, heat loss through exterior studs, and on and on. This is not a company you want to do business with.
In my experience, this company is dishonest, pure and simple. Buy from them at your own risk. Learn from our mistake and steer clear.
If you own a home in Edgeview, obtain a copy of the certification and documentation from Built Green. Make sure your home was actually built to the 3-star certification level by validating everything on that list. Your home's investment value depends on it.
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