Very soon after leaving the other lawncare company (see my review of that also on Homestars) I received an attractive offer to go with Hometurf Lawn Care. I did not know at that time it was no coincidence.
You see what I did not know at that time is the owner of record of the first company is L. Van H*******t. And when very shortly I reported Hometurf to the BBB ( case ID 1147017) I learned that the owner of record of Hometurf is D. Van H********t (what an AMAZING coincidence!)
They also operate in a very similar manner. For example they encourage you to prepay for the year by large discounts. But their are NO REFUNDS WHATSOEVER for any reason including not fulfilling their service agreement. They advertise 6 visits the first one in April. After you have paid in full on April 17th this first visit changes to a prediction of May 22.
This of course allows the high school students ( they call technicians ) to finish their school year and take the one half day training course on how to get in and out of each property in less than 10 minutes and how to mix the chemicals one teaspoon to a thousand gallons or so for your lawn (which you are paying 50 to 70 dollars for per 10 minute visit.)
I recommend you avoid both these companies (at least technically they are two companies but are they?) and do your own lawn. It will save you money and my lawn looks better now than it ever did with either of them.
I first wrote this review in June 2010 but in March 2012 Homestars tightened up their criteria and I had to redit and resubmit. I have now been maintaining my own lawn for over 5 years and I still maintain it is both better maintained and at much less cost than using any lawncare service - in comparison to most of my neighbours lawns which I see every year,
- Approximate cost of services:
- $275.00
- What could this company do to improve their services?
- Stop being dishonest to people and give honest service.
- Any advice to offer fellow homeowners facing a similar project?
- Avoid both these companies and any other lawn care companies run by the Van Haastrecht clan.
- Company Response
Hi Eaudesnob, I am sorry that you were not happy with the service that you received. I will say however that we are in NO way whatsoever affiliated with any other lawn care companies nor are we owned by the same people that own another lawn care company. We have been independently owned and operated since 1988. Secondly, we DO NOT employ high school students, nor have we ever employed high school students. Also, high school students are not out of school until June/July so it is impossible for us to hire high school students in May when you received your application shortly after signing up for the program. All of our technicians also receive thorough training as well as licensing from the Ministry of the Environment. There is no half day training course that you speak of. Our applications are all applied at the appropriate label rate for optimal effectiveness, safety and environmental care. I am sorry that you were not happy with the service and wish you all the best at taking care of the lawn yourself.