MICHIGAN — Two West Michigan women say a local mason took thousands of dollars from them for jobs he never finished.
“It's been embarrassing to tell people what came out of all of this [and] how much I really paid him,” said Julie Cox, who lives in Grand Rapids. “I know I shouldn't have done that. That money could have gone to a lot of other places.”
Last June, Cox and her husband hired Christian Stoneham to put in a patio. Over the course of a month, they paid him $4,600 for the work.
According to Cox, Stoneham removed an old step and walkway and laid out forms, but she says the progress stopped once he received the full amount for the patio.
“He came up with excuse after excuse,” said Cox. “A lot of rescheduling happened, and things that, looking back, were more, like, a red flag.”
Messages provided to the FOX 17 Problem Solvers show Stoneham blamed the project’s delay on slashed tires, stolen tools and his day job. He also claimed his company underbid the project.
When Cox contacted him a week and a half later, Stoneham said he needed mental health help but promised to reimburse her $1,060.
Cox says eventually Stoneham signed an agreement that stipulated he would pay her $3,060 by the end of August; however, according to Cox, Stoneham never did that.
“It is stressful knowing that he took our money and that [the] outside of our house looks horrible,” said Florance Martinez.
Martinez lives in Belding, next door to her son’s family, and tells a similar story to Cox.
In May 2023, Martinez contracted Stoneham to expand their driveways, install two patios and build a sidewalk that connects the houses together. They paid him $3,993 for the job.
Stoneham finished the driveway expansions but Martinez describes the quality as poor. The color does not match their existing one and it’s uneven throughout.
In texts Martinez gave to FOX 17, Stoneham acknowledged an issue with the work but said he needed an extra $500 to fix it.
Martinez replied that her family wanted the rest of the project completed before they gave additional funds. Due to concerns over whether that would happen though, she says a few days later, her family began to try and get a refund.
In messages with Martinez’s daughter-in-law, Stoneham appears to say he would give back upwards of $3,800; however, she notes that never happened either.
Martinez eventually hired someone to complete her patio but her son’s patio and the sidewalk between their houses remain unfinished and their driveways have not been fixed.
Cox hired another company to finish her patio too.
“I don't feel that we should have to pay it twice to get it torn out and then reinstalled,” said Martinez.
Both women say the loss of that money creates an impact and they want it back.
Stoneham did not pick up when FOX 17 called him last week, although in texts sent afterwards, he declined the Problem Solvers’ interview request and said he would let his conversations between Cox and Martinez “stand for themselves.”
A search of state records found Stoneham does not possess a "residential maintenance and alteration contractor's license," which masons in Michigan need in order to perform work.
Both women hope to raise awareness with their stories.
“It’s not like I'm rolling in the dough, so to be taken advantage of like that was was a bummer,” said Cox.
