My husband and I hired a contractor in September of 2021 to build and complete a 16x18 deck with under deck drain system and roof. He sent an estimate and told us it would be a 4-week project. We agreed to the price and were told to send a deposit of $4000+ which we did. The start date given was Oct 11, and instead, nothing was done until late Dec, which was four post holes being dug because of scheduling issues between him and his wife about their children's pick-up schedule, sick days for his children, him complaining about a lack of reliable workers and flat out not showing up on days promised. He never returned until late March/early April to begin building, promising us it would be done before our son's birthday (it wasn't), and asked for the 2nd installment (which was a total of $4000+ that we paid). He finished the upper deck at the end of April and received another $3000+ to order the new materials. He then told us he'd be back the 2nd week of May with the roof material for the underdeck roof and never showed. After multiple phone calls, he finally responded and told us that the material he received wasn't of good quality and he'd have the store reorder what he needed. June comes, and we hear nothing. In July, we made more calls to him, and when we finally received an answer. He says the quality of the material is still poor, and he can't get what we need. After a brief conversation on July 28, he informed us through voicemail that he would not be completing our deck for the agreed-upon price because material costs had increased. Why should we be forced to pay more when all delays were his fault? August first we disputed the $3000 payment for unfinished work and now he's threatening a mechanics lein. It has been ten months for a 4-week project. We never signed a contract as one waa never provided. There is only an estimate that shows the type of build, the total and our deposit if we agreed. We recently found out that his license/ registration with the state has been expired aince March. Is this legal?