Privacy Policy
This policy explains how Hodous Construction Inc. ("Hodous Construction", "we", "us"), a residential remodeling contractor in Cleveland, Ohio (www.hodousconstruction.com), handles information in Hodous Tools, our business application. Hodous Tools is used by our own staff, and by our clients and subcontractors only through their project portal and the text messages we send them. It is not offered to the public.
Bank data we receive through Plaid
Our authorized finance staff may connect Hodous Construction's own business bank and credit card accounts through Plaid, in read-only mode. For those accounts we receive the account name, the last four digits of the account number, balances, and transaction details (date, amount, description and check number). We never receive or store bank usernames or passwords; those are entered only into Plaid's own secure window.
Consent
Accounts are connected only by our own authorized staff, for accounts owned by Hodous Construction, through Plaid Link, which shows Plaid's consent and privacy disclosures before any data is shared. An account can be disconnected at any time, which stops data collection and deletes the stored data.
How we use it
Only to match payments we make to the vendor bills in our accounting system and to show our own balances and recent activity. We do not use this data for advertising, profiling or any other purpose.
Who can see it
Access requires a company Google Workspace account with 2-Step Verification, and bank data is limited to staff who have been given the finance role.
Sharing
We do not sell, rent, license or share bank data or text-message data. It is processed by our service providers only to operate the application:
- Plaid: bank data connection (Plaid End User Privacy Policy)
- Google Cloud / Firebase: hosting and encrypted storage in the United States
- Intuit QuickBooks Online: our accounting records
- Twilio: delivering the text messages described below (Twilio Privacy Notice)
Text messages (SMS)
We send text messages to our own clients and subcontractors about their projects (schedules, crew arrival times, change orders, documents, and replies to their questions). We do not send marketing texts. The full program terms are in our Text Messaging Terms.
- Consent. We text a client or subcontractor only after they tell us it is OK. One of our staff asks in person or by phone, using the wording in our Text Messaging Terms, and we record the answer in Hodous Tools. The first text confirms that they are signed up. Agreeing to texts is not required to work with us.
- Opting out. Reply STOP to any message to stop receiving texts, and START to receive them again. Reply HELP for help, call 216-321-8477, or email finance@hodousconstruction.com.
- Frequency and cost. Message frequency varies with your project. Message and data rates may apply.
- What we keep. Your mobile number, your consent and opt-out status, and the messages we exchange, so our team can see the conversation about your project.
- No sharing. We do not sell or share your SMS opt-in data or personal information with third parties for marketing purposes. No mobile information will be shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. Text messaging opt-in data and consent are never shared with any third party. Your number is used only by Hodous Construction and the service provider that delivers our texts (Twilio).
Security
All data is encrypted in transit (TLS 1.2 or better) and at rest (AES-256). Bank access tokens are stored only on our servers and are never exposed to a browser.
Retention and deletion
| Data | Kept for |
|---|---|
| Bank transactions and balances received from Plaid | Up to 24 months, then deleted. Disconnecting an account deletes its data immediately and revokes access. |
| Plaid access tokens | Only while an account is connected |
| Text messages and texting consent | Up to 24 months after your project ends, then deleted. Opt-out records are kept so we never text you again after STOP. |
| Accounting records in QuickBooks | As required for tax and legal purposes (generally 7 years) |
Contact
Questions or requests about your data, including texts: finance@hodousconstruction.com