Gail Bockley
5/5
I was blown away by the negative review. My experiences were so very different. I hired Jeff and company to do a major remodel on my house. (They just finished.) I could not be happier. Sure, he suggested other projects that needed to be done at some other time (like my basement - which - he's right) but he didn't try to coerce me into any unnecessary expenses. And I will definitely be rehiring them when I am ready for more remodeling. Jeff does have a strong personality but he knows his stuff, came in under budget WITH a few upgrades, and was honest with me from start to finish.
My experience: I would hire these guys again in a heartbeat. We needed a major (and expensive) remodel. Ugly attic needed to become a bedroom and bath. Small bedroom needed to become a laundry room, storage room and larger than average stairs to the attic (removing completely the pull-down access in the corridor). On top of that, I wanted the unheated porch upgraded to a heated, insulated office space with direct access to the now-master suite. As part of the process, we needed to make modifications to the second bedroom and bathroom to accommodate plumbing for the former attic. The formerly ugly attic is a master suite with a full bath, two walk in closets, and some cold storage space.
I was nervous about such a large project. Jeff assured me that the increase in the house value and home comfort would be well worth it. He was right. He and Lenny (who is a master craftsman) either did the work themselves, or hired the right subcontractors to complete the work not only IN budget, but ON time, and with amazing skill and consideration. That included needing to unexpectedly replace the front door, adding insulation to unexpected places, and shifting an existing heat source to the now-office.
Lenny and Jeff worked with me to create a layout that worked well for us as well as economizing and maximizing project effectiveness. As problems arose (as they always will), they worked with me to solve them and move quickly to the next step. I initially gave them a chance because my neighbor across the street told me that they had done an excellent job on her basement. As time goes by, I will definitely be calling on these guys first. With so many “contractor horror stories” out there, I am really happy to honestly say that I trusted them with my house and I would recommend them without reservation to friends, family, coworkers or the guy down the street. All in - 10 weeks/about 70k. Very happy with the results.
(PS - As a single mom with a limited budget, big hopes, and no prior construction knowledge, this was a lot of trust.)
Update: 11/21/20. I've since hired CMB&C to do two more jobs. One was fixing the roof around a dormer that had been put in many years ago. The second was an insulation job. The dormer was about $2k and the insulation less than $600. Great jobs on both. In addition, they later came back when I had a "drip" coming in and found and fixed the problem, which was not a part of the earlier leak. It was a quick fix. Side note: the neighbor across the street has ALSO brought them back to do more jobs. The earlier remodeling has held up and there have been no problems. I'm grateful to have found them. Next year: the stairs need to be redone!
