JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville roofing company is going out of business and customers are getting hit with liens from the suppliers who’ve gone unpaid.
But the owner of Golden Hammer Roofing has vowed to pay his debts before going out of business.
The promise from owner Ed Calloway is that customers “will be made whole.”
Calloway told News4JAX he no longer has enough jobs to keep running a profitable company, which is why it’s going out of business.
“I don’t trust it, because that’s gonna be a lot of money he has to pay back,” homeowner Judy Whitters said.
Whitters had a new roof installed by Golden Hammer earlier this year. After getting a $7,500 lien, she said a promise is not enough.
“He shouldn’t have been taking people’s money if he wasn’t paying his bills,” Whitters said.
Her son, Tim, shares the same feelings. He said he’s worried about his mother’s livelihood if the lien is not paid.
“Highly aggravating. I mean, she’s 75 years old on fixed income,” Tim said. “It’s bad business.”
The Whitters’ roof has been paid for in full. But Golden Hammer has yet to pay the supplier for the material they used to build the roof. That’s what led the supplier to file a lien on the property.
News4JAX searched local court records and found more than a dozen liens that a supplier has filed in the last few days, for the supplies on Golden Hammer Roofing jobs, adding up to more than $107,000.
Calloway said he was in the process of contacting all his customers who could have liens filed on their properties.
He didn’t want to talk on camera, but he said he intends to file for bankruptcy.
He laid off his employees two weeks ago to ensure he had enough revenue to pay off his debts before filing bankruptcy. He said customers with liens on their property will be taken care of in the next 30 to 60 days.
Golden Hammer is working with another local company that intends to take care of any unfinished jobs. Customers should contact Golden Hammer directly with any concerns.