"I am warning you, the following information I am supplying you may be very lengthy, but definitely worth reading. This can save you thousands of dollars up front and tens of thousands of dollars down the road. For those of you who have already done business with DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS of West Berlin, New Jersey and have had a similar experience, please contact me at JusticeWhereFraudExists@gmail.com.
Before signing a contract with DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS out of West Berlin, New Jersey, or any other window company for that matter, make sure you have in writing the complete terms of the contract. It should include the exact name of the window (actual window manufacturer), in addition to all logos such as Energy Star and Good Housekeeping which should also be included in writing on the contract if that is what you are purchasing, in addition to all specifications of the window (e.g. U-Factor, etc.) The contract should not state that a substitution is allowed. If they do not agree to do this then it is to your advantage not to sign the contract.
DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS did absolutely everything right in appearance and presentation to secure a contract with me. They were so very professional up until the day of installation. They professionally demonstrated the Energy Star window backed by Good Housekeeping in my home and presented me with professionally made brochures with all the right logos imprinted on them to back up what they were stating to me in order to secure a contract. I would never have dreamed that DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS would have fraudulently used licensed logos of a government agency such as Energy Star and the logo of the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval on their printed brochures and on their official website as sales tools. The question remains if they are still using the printed brochures with these logos to date to fraudulently secure contracts from unsuspecting homeowners?
Is the window you agreed to contract for and purchase from DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS, the window they promised to deliver? Did you contract for a window that was backed by Energy Star and Good Housekeeping? Did the window DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS installed have the Energy Star logo on the label that was affixed to the glass pane of the window, and was the company name on the window label Dream House’s name? Did your window label have Dream House’s name, but not the Energy Star logo even though you contracted for an Energy Star window? If your answer to all of the above questions is “YES”, then you may not have received the window you contracted for with DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS.
If all your window labels were removed and disposed of by the installer(s) then it is also very likely that DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS did not want to leave any evidence of their wrong doing behind. DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS should not supply a customer with only one warranty in the Dream House name if the window was supposed to bear an Energy Star logo and Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval. Only the “actual” manufacturer who has been approved by Energy Star and Good Housekeeping can use these licensed trademark logos by written agreement from both Energy Star and Good Housekeeping. DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS can offer any warranty in their company name BUT it is over and above the “ACTUAL MANUFACTURER’S WARRANTY”. If you did not receive the actual manufacturer’s warranty that covers the Energy Star and Good Housekeeping window which DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS promised to deliver to you, then it is very likely that you probably did not receive what you contracted for.
If you do not have any of the window labels, hopefully you have saved the brochure that DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS used as a “sales tool” to secure a contract with you. If the brochure has the Energy Star logo and Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval on it, then you should seek out the “ACTUAL” supplier of the window. The name of the manufacturer is on the back of the brochure. If it says “Earthwise” then you should contact them and inform them of the doubts you may have regarding having even received an Energy Star window, backed by Good Housekeeping in addition to the warranty DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS supplied to you with DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS company name on it. DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS may have performed a “bait and switch” with you as they did with me. I was fortunate enough to find only one window label as my proof of consumer fraud proving that DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS did not deliver the window I contracted for. If DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS is using the Energy Star Logo on their brochures with their company name next to it on a sample window label you should contact Energy Star immediately since the logo is being fraudulently used.
My suggestion to everyone who may be purchasing windows from this company, or any other company is to EXAMINE all windows and labels BEFORE allowing the installer(s) to remove even one window in your home. On the day of delivery request to see the warranty from the manufacturer of the Energy Star window that is supposed to be backed by Good Housekeeping. If they do not provide one or attempt to tell you that it is covered under the DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS warranty, do not proceed with the installation. They are telling you a lie. If you have any doubts or hesitation to the window they have delivered, do NOT proceed with the installation, no matter what they may tell you or pressure you into, and attempt to convince you in order for you to move forward with the installation. If you refuse delivery and installation you should take pictures of the window and more specifically the window labels. If they only present you with a warranty from DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS, you should also take a picture of the warranty. If they say that they will mail you the manufacturer’s warranty do not believe them. You will need all of this as documented proof that you have not breached your contract with DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS. DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS stated to me that it was their window because of the smaller address label affixed to the inside header of the window and therefore covered only under their warranty, even though a different manufacturer’s name was on the glass pane of each window and did not include the Energy Star logo. Through extensive research since this entire experience occurred I have confirmed that it was a lie. The information on the small label affixed to the insider header of each window is only to identify each window if there is ever a problem with it. Each window has specific information that applies only to that window. If you allow DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS or any company to install the window(s) with questions you may encounter regarding the validity of the window(s) and/or warranty, you will encounter a serious battle afterwards as was and is my experience.
In addition to all of the above, if you had windows installed by DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS you should examine very closely the caulking with the DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS name on it and which DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS uses to caulk the windows. The caulking may look fine to the naked eye, but it may actually not be fine. You need to ensure that their caulking is adhered to the outside sash around the entire window and ensure that their caulking is adhered to the vinyl of the window itself. If you can lift the caulking at the edges even a little then it is not adhered properly. If there are gaps or tiny pinholes in the caulking you will have serious problems. You also need to ask yourself and examine if DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS properly caulked the underside sash of the window sill(s) on the outside? If you find that you can easily lift the window sash on the bottom, outside of the window and you can see the wood frame of the structural opening of the house, then the entire installation of their caulking has NOT been installed properly to safely secure the structure of your home from water seeping between the siding of your home and the wood sheeting of the structure of your home. There have been and there are lawsuits with DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS from homeowners who thought a good job was done at installation, only to discover a few years down the road that these homeowners now have serious structural damage and mold due to improper installation and/or faulty caulking that DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS used with their company name on it. If you were lucky enough to keep an empty tube of their caulking you may be able to use it as proof that it was their caulking and/or installation method. Unfortunately is may take several years for a homeowner to discover the damage when it is already too late and the damage has already occurred.
As a consumer I believe I did what I needed to do to ensure I was dealing with a reputable and professional company. My only mistake was not stopping the removal of all the windows in my home at one time BEFORE examining each window that hadn’t even been unloaded from their truck. I should not have been so trusting. I should have examined each window label that was affixed to the glass pane of the windows. I would have discovered that it was not a Dream House window, nor did it bare the Energy Star logo. Do not let DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS or any other window company remove one window of your home without your thorough examination of all of the above.
I assumed DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS contacted me because I submitted my request for replacement windows on the official site of HomeAdvisor. I submitted my zip code and search criteria. With the information I supplied to HomeAdvisor, HomeAdvisor then forwards my information on to a number of window companies. Once the job was completed I received an email from HomeAdvisor requesting me to rate the company I did business with. I was a bit confused since I did business with DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS, but HomeAdvisor wanted me to rate a company by the name of Majestic Home Remodeling. With all the lies that have been stated to me by DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS, I decided to check this company out on the BBB site and what I discovered are two facts:
… Majestic Home Remodeling operates out of the same town as DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS, West Berlin, New Jersey; and
… The owner of Majestic Home Remodeling is a person with the same exact last name of the owner of DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS, but has a different first name. Humm…
What does this all mean? In addition to the above, I decided to check the HomeAdvisor site to see if a search for Dream House Windows would come up so I can view their rating, and guess what? Their company name does not even appear on their site, but do you know whose company name does appear? Majestic Home Remodeling. Another Humm… What does this mean? I contacted HomeAdvisor directly to ensure that I did not do anything incorrect in my search for Dream House Windows on their site. A representative of HomeAdvisor verified that Dream House Windows is not on their site, but Majestic Home Remodeling in fact is. The HomeAdvisor representative stated to me that my personal information was outsourched to Dream House Windows by Majestic Home Remodeling. Another lesson to be learned…. You cannot protect yourself from fraudulent misuse by companies with sites that you are supposed to feel confident in using to find reputable, ethical companies. The lesson learned is to only use a referral of someone you know who has had work done and is happy with the results. You cannot rely on sites, including the BBB for ratings. It is truly unfortunate for the reputable and ethical companies that are relying on these sites for referrals. You should also attempt to deal with a LOCAL company in case you wind up having a dispute with them regarding consumer fraud or anything else. If the company is out of your area you will likely have to travel a great distance to the consumer affairs agency that falls within the jurisdiction of the company you did business with. Another bit of information I was unaware of and I bet Dream House was counting on.
If you a purchasing a window backed by EnergyStar and/or Good Housekeeping make sure DHWs puts it in writing on the CONTRACT. If they will not do so then I strongly suggest that you do not do business with them. On the day of installation check EVERY window label to ensure that the Energy Star logo appears on each label EVEN BEFORE you allow them to remove one window in your home. If they state that it's comparable it's not the same since your purchase was contingent upon it being an ENERGY STAR APPROVED window which may affect any tax credits to you. Do not allow them to remove one label off the Windows if you have any doubts on what you have received. If you have doubts do NOT proceed with the installation.
For those of you who already purchased and installed Windows from DHW, did you get what you contracted for? One last suggestion is to examine the caulking VERY CLOSELY to ensure that it adhered properly to the sash and window. If it's not adhered to the vinyl you may wind up with serious structural damage a few years down the road from water seepage.
Do you know that a company can file Chapter 11 as many times that the courts will allow them to file. Do you know that there isn't any time period that a company can't file. For a company who does not care about hurting vendors and customers this is a very sad legal loophole in the laws. The only thing I know that is factual is that Dream House filed Chapter 11 in 2010. I do know that there are currently eight complaints with the Department of Consumer Affairs. I do know that there is a newly filed lawsuit with the Superior Court regarding structural damage due to Dream House's very poor installation of Windows and very possibly due to the caulking they use that actually has the Dream House Company name on the tube. I do know that there have been separate past lawsuit filings regarding installation, warranty, fraud, misrepresentation, non-payment for goods and/or services. Need I say more? A consumer should not trust the ratings on BBB. You cannot put full confidence in any referral site since you don't know for sure if your personal information is going to be outsourced. The only sure way to check on a company is to contact the Department of Consumer Affairs and if possible find a company through the old fashioned way... referral from someone you know and trust.
My recommendation for purchasing anything is to use a credit card and not pay by check. It is easier to recover your money from a credit card company proving breach of contract and fraud as long as the windows have not been installed. Since the installers removed every window in my home before I examined the windows that were still on the truck, I had no option to refuse installation. Do you think they knew exactly what they were doing? By allowing them to install the 14 windows the credit card company viewed it as my acceptance of the substitute window and therefore I could not dispute the charge on the basis of breach of contract and fraud. If I had refused installation my home would have been left with 14 very large holes since the installers demolished every window they removed from my home.
Unethical companies are very savvy and knowledgeable in knowing how credit card companies are going to view a dispute. My credit card company also required me to attempt to return the "merchandise" to the merchant. This seemed pretty laughable but very disturbing that they would view the purchase that became a permanent fixture to the structure of my home as a piece of merchandise that can be easily returned. They were treating it as if it were a small appliance that could be easily removed and returned to the merchant! The credit card company stated that the only dispute I could use is regarding poor installation. I had to provide the credit card company with a second opinion from another window company stating specifically what was wrong with the installation and how much it would cost to repair it. I was very fortunate in locating a window company who was willing to do so. To date, I have received all my money back from the credit card company except for $1,000.00 check paid to Dream House Windows which is going to be harder to collect since I will now have to use legal avenues to do so.
My total experience with “Dream” House Windows involves breach of our contract, consumer fraud, total misrepresentation which includes theft by deception and credit card fraud for a second unauthorized charge to my credit card. My experience with DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS has been and is, a total NIGHTMARE. SHAME ON YOU DREAM HOUSE WINDOWS."