Cates Building, Inc.

My husband and I recently purchased a new home in SC. We have been very pleased from the beginning with the salespeople, builders, tradesmen, and warranty department. Like any new home there have been a few tweaks, quick fixes, and adjustments that needed to be completed after the initial break-in period. I have always felt that my concerns over warranty issues have been addressed quickly and either fixed or replaced. I have found that all members of the Cates Building team are professional and respectful of my home when visiting. We have received many compliments from our friends and family about the excellent design and craftsmanship inside and out. We look forward to many happy holidays and new memories in our Cates Building home. -Thank You

We have had some issues with our home (every home has issues) and Cates Building was VERY efficient in helping solve them as quickly as possible from when we moved in and even through the process of selling our home. I am very impressed with Andrew Benbow and his response time to our concerns. We are very thankful to have worked with a builder who stands behind their product!

Cates Building, and Andrew Benbow in particular, have gone above and beyond for my clients. They purchased their home new and are in the process of selling it. Through TWO different home inspections, concerns and any necessary builder-type repairs were addressed quickly. The speed was important (due diligence period, etc) but I have been most grateful for the accessibility, communication in such a respectful manner and the true commitment to take care of both my client and the new owners!

Having been in real estate since 2005, I have encountered those who do not handle things in a professional manner. This cannot be said about Andrew and Cates Building! Commitment, Detail and Care - Awesome!

We have been in our new Cates house for a little over 4 years now, so this one is pretty comprehensive. Within the first year we had to have a plumber out to fix a leaking kitchen faucet and reskin the cabinet under the sink, water pressure adjustments, siding not secured properly and coming loose, shingles blown off, more to follow on this issue, closet door and frame replaced because when they reversed the floor plan they didn't alter the door swing, it made the closet unusable, the door blocked closet rods and shelves when open, 13 interior door frames replaced due to sap leaking through the paint. Within the second year, both air handlers for the HVAC had to be replaced, lost more shingles, and the linoleum turns into an air bag every time it is windy. After Florence, we have lost more shingles, not a big surprise. Every time I have contacted Cates in regard to the shingles, they claim wind gusts?!? Even Florence was only rated as a tropical storm...no wind gusts were felt at our house that should have compromised properly installed three tab shingles. They used 3 nails per square on a steep pitched roof while driving the nails directly through the shingle adhesive, but Cates claims the failure was caused by the wind and not their poor installation. I sent a message addressed to the owner, Chris Cates, hoping for some resolution...I have received no response in over 3 weeks. I am not really shocked by this, it speaks to what we have experienced over the last 4 years. The included pictures are of a 4 year old Cates roof. The "wind gusts" caused our issues...the fact that they did not use enough nails, drove them straight through the adhesive, and ran the shingles in a strait line probably have more to do with my roof failure than the winds. But, the home owner is left holding the bill as Cates refuses to stand behind their work. This company is all about the profit and do not care about providing families with a quality house or standing behind their workmanship. Every time I contacted them with an issue, I felt like a lawyer forcing them to do the right thing. Avoid their homes, for you and your families sake...way too much stress and nightmares for what was supposed to be our dream home...

Follow up from the owners response below. Today is Friday, Monday will mark 2 weeks since the owner's response. We have not heard a thing from Cates Building as of yet. More lip service with no action. These guys are bad business...

Update as of 1 Dec 2018. After my previos followup edit, Cates changed their response to have me contact them. So, I did. The Costumer service manager came out and discussed the issues we still had with our home. All communication indicated that they would work to make good on it as an act of good faith with no cost to me. Well, silly me for thinking that would be how things would happen. So far the plumber came out and replaced 2 screws on the outside water faucet. We received a bill today from the plumber (Vance Johnson) for $125 for 5 minutes on site...that's $1500 an hour...I'd like those kind of wages. My insurance company treated me better that Cates. They saw the issues after Florence and replaced my roof. Though it is a little comical to see the Cates rep get all nervous and ask questions if the insurance company said they would be seeking restitution. Cates knows they are liable for a bad roof! Their business culture is so toxic, they have employees (marketing manager) posting 5 star Google reviews with no comments to inflate their Google star rating. Buyer beware...Cates/Caviness & Cates are toxic....

I have been very pleased with the house Caviness and Cates built for us. Our builder Devin was very responsive to questions we had. Any time he saw us, while the house was bring built and for several months after we moved in, he would stop and make sure we were happy with the house. The workmanship is excellent. We only had minor things to report for our one year warranty. Michael responded promptly and made the process of fixing our minor things painless. I would definitely recommend Caviness and Cates for anyone looking for a builder.