Work done is work done.....You'll lose more sleep if they sue for breach. Find a local attorney.

What does the contract say about refunds and deposits?

Sounds like it says when you sign the contract they got 25% even though they did nothing really. I have a feeling you're out the 25%. Post exactly how the contract reads.

TERMINATION: This Agreement may be terminated by Client upon 7 days prior written notice. In the event of termination, NA shall be compensated by Client for all services performed and/or materials purchased and ordered up to an including termination date.

PAYMENT: Client shall pay 25% of the proposed cost upon acceptance of NA proposal and 25% upon submittal of the door order. Client shall pay an additional 25% of the proposed cost on the same day countertops are templated. Client shall pay the remaining contract balance upon job completion.

Note: I did mention taking this out for bid and they mentioned that they keep logs of time spent. We have a very friendly relationship (so far), they have quotes out with 2 of my friends and they want to work with my KD so I don't think they would really fight too hard to keep a lot. But I just don't know. I wish I could trust them to do this job but my gut is telling me otherwise. (They could have done their initial design no problem... I just now have a "magazine kitchen design" as they put it). My biggest thing is that when I signed the proposal I still didn't have a workable design and made that VERY clear and have that documented with all my questions I raised.

What percentage do you think would be fair for their time up till now? I'm sure their number will be higher and hopefully you can settle in the middle. Write them and let them know you wish to terminate and expect to get the majority of your upfront fee back. See what they come up with.

Erica, you sound like a very reasonable person and I think if you approach them in a way that says you are willing to compromise, you might be surprised at their response. Regardless, try not to be too hard on yourself. I have done similar reversals and it has torn me apart at times. It was a horrible feeling and I felt like a @#$% for a long time, but I think I would have felt worse living with something I did not want. Is there a bath or built-ins elsewhere in your home that you plan on renovating? Perhaps you can apply it to that job? Keep us informed. Good luck.

mobuddy89 - that is a great idea (although I kind of need most of that $11k back for this project!). Maybe I can pose it that I would like my deposit refunded but I promise to use them for my bathrooms and laundry rooms. And considering our shower door is almost off the hinge, that project is definitely in the future!

If they keep their 25% they are never going to sue. Fugetaboudit.

Engineers building cabinets. That's funny right there.

Send the flag up the flagpole and see which direction the wind is blowing. You won't get anything back if you don't ask. They might even be quietly pleased that you are going elsewhere with your very involved design but don't dare say anything. Perhaps they are feeling that they're in too deep and will welcome the opportunity to exit without losing face.

I really like the idea to use them on other, less complicated projects. Explore the possibilities of getting services and products from them which might get you more value than asking for a portion of the deposit to be refunded.

You were gonna pay 44K for cabinets from two amateur parts assemblers????? Just because they were engineers?

You may think that they've done ''nothing'', but design time IS work. Even if it's slow and not that competent. That deserves to be compensated. Tell them that, and that you value the time that they spent on your project. NEVER EVER say that they did ''nothing''. First, because that IS NOT TRUE. That is fighting words to get their hackles up and dig in their heels.

$100 an hour, say 40 hours worth. That would be a start. They could keep the whole 11K as a non refundable deposit, and you'd have to console yourself with the tuition of learning to screen better or pay even more for a lawyer to attempt to recoup it.

"...So as of now, besides spending some time on a proposal and design, no real work has been done..."

Education time: The planning, requirements gathering, and designing phases of a project are usually the most time-consuming part of the project. They should be - it's far easier and less expensive to fix issues in these phases than later (ask anyone who's had to pay for a change order after the design is completed & signed off ). This means you should spend most of the time upfront getting it right - which you were doing. But, it was work - even if you didn't like what they did and didn't see what they were doing when you weren't with them.

As Sophie said, never say they haven't done an "real work"!

You are getting good advice. Hopefully you will be able to recoup some of your deposit.

However, during your negotiations with them, I would never promise to let them do anything else in my house, not even a laundry room. Why would you do that? I'd want to be free and clear of them.

I'm not trying to be rude with the "no work" comment but the only thing they've done since I signed the contract was price out my new design. Everything before that was to get me to commit to them. I'll have to post a picture of the initial design (pre contact signing).

I'll keep you all posted on where things go.

Not sure why it won't let me edit... but if the only thing that has been done since I signed the proposal was to price out my KD's design, does that change anyone's opinion? I realize that pricing it out was "work" but does that warrant $11K? In my (albeit maybe naive) opinion, all the work done to get me to sign should not be part of my deposit... had I not signed that would have been "written off".

(Especially since I have documentation of asking for multiple opinions on how to change the layout starting less than 24 hours after signing and not getting anything?)