RDM Construction

Rick Miller and his team did an excellent professional job.

Was asked to send email describing my need, but got no response. Cannot really rate this firmf.

We were very pleased with Rick's services and plan to continue using him. He's responsive, pleasant and very knowledgeable. His employees were also a pleasure to have around. We would highly recommend his services.

Job started out as a repair, but the driveway supports were too deteriorated. This resulted in a major change to our plans which worked out smoothly. While the design and permitting process took longer than we had anticipated, the construction process was reasonably timely. Some leaks were discovered last year and the contractor was very responsible in following up to address the issue.

Rick's good at carpentry, but poor at writing contracts, and worse at managing subcontractors and cash flow. The only plumber he could find was otherwise employed full-time, so my job could only happen every other Saturday, for a few hours at a time. I'd found an electrician willing to work for him, but they had a disagreement and parted ways, so he found someone else who could only show up occasionally. In this way, a job that should only have taken a few weeks ended up stretching out over six months. Open trenches cris-crossed our property and even the area outside our house for two months, which our dogs kept falling into - fortunately nobody was seriously hurt. Communications with Rick became increasingly difficult, with him insisting that the finished lighting he'd agreed in our contract to install didn't include actual fixtures, switches and receptacles that worked, and that the rough plumbing that was contracted for in the bathrooms didn't mean that the drains were supposed to be made ready for the tile contractor. He kept asking for more money, supposedly to pay the subcontractors and get the job done, but after I paid him, he confessed that he didn't have enough cash to pay the electrician to show up. As the job passed 4 months after the estimated completion date on our contract I'd had enough - even though the job wasn't finished, I fired RDM Construction and decided to look for someone else to finish the job. I raised his overall grade to "C" because he did a good job on the part of the project he'd done with his own crew. But as he admitted to me, he's poor at managing subcontractors, and really shouldn't tell people he can get things done that he doesn't actually do himself.

The job went smoothly. Rick Miller surveyed the project. He and his crew completed the work in a timely manner. He provided a reasonable estimate and work was completed to my satisfaction. The backyard is not easily accessible from the street. The house is located on a steep Oakland hillside. The old concrete was broken up with jackhammers and the debris removed with wheelbarrows. Thereafter, the ground was graded, leveled and lain with rebar. Finally, concrete was poured with a hose and the finishing touches applied. The actual project was completed in about 10 days. Getting the project under way took several weeks from the time of our first contact in April until work began in mid-June.

I scheduled a quote appointment a week in advance and took the day off so that I could be home for the visit. Received an email 30 minutes after the scheduled appointment letting me know that an inspection issue came up at a job site and that he couldn't make it. I understand that things come up -- but I would have expected notice prior to our scheduled appointment and that the provider make an strong effort to reschedule as soon as possible.

The job went very well. We lost some time to gladly accommodate the El Nino rain storms. There was a great deal of mud, but the crew did a great job of cleaning up each day and at the end of the project. Rick was very professional throughout the contract process and thoroughly documented the additional work asociated with the 2 Change Orders. He was on site everyday and checked the work from the previous day and always discussed the new work for the day with the crew. Rick handled all the coordination with the sub-contractor that poured the cement for the new foundation and the company that ordered and installed the new garage door. Construction is very messy and noisy and Rick went out of his way to accommodate any requests from my neighbors to move the trucks or mitigate the noise in the early house.

Took longer than expected because of permitting issues

Mr. Miller entered into this project for all the right reasons and with integrity and commitment. He was professional, courteous, and willing to go the extra mile when the project became quite difficult. And, as a bonus, his work was flawless and affordable. recommend him without reservation.

I sent them a request for quote thru Angie's List, they responded with a request the same day for more info which i provided, all on 9/9/15. And since then, NADA!!!

I couldn't be more pleased with the results. We had an older aluminum double-paned window whose seal had been compromised, and I didn't care for the pane configuration. I described what I wanted, and Rick ordered the perfect window, in exactly the configuration I desired. He and his crew installed the window in a day, working quickly and professionally. They even framed the window on the outside, and it's now the nicest looking window on that side of the house. Couldn't recommend Rick more, and will be calling him to do more projects.

Quality of work was good. They started late some days, and didn't give me a bill or a receipt. Promised to bring it the next day but never showed up.

A section of the old garage was removed, the main beam, part of the garage floor and driveway were replaced, and the roof of the new extension was customized to blend in with the existing curved roofline of the house. The project also exposed extensive dry rot under the adjacent front porch, which Rick and his crew expertly repaired. Some work was sub-contracted out (e.g. roofing, stucco, garage door installation), and Rick made sure that that work was done to the same level of RDM's professionalism. Rick and his crew are experienced, friendly and courteous. They were always available to answer my questions and consider my suggestions. Proof of the quality of their work is in the ease of inspection approvals. While the overall project took longer than expected (what doesn't ?!), I am more than pleased with the end result.

We liked their work and talked to them about doing some work in our kitchen. The fellow said he would give us an estimate but he never got back to us at all..

Rick came to the house and we talked about the project. We also discussed the possibility of another project, installing a french drain, in the future. I was impressed by his knowledge and he seemed very professional. He left after promising to send me a bid for the driveway work. Unfortunately, that was the last I heard from Rick. A week later I emailed him asking for the driveway bid and an estimate for the drainage work, and then I left him a voicemail, but I never heard anything. I liked him better than the contractor I ended up hiring, and I do need a french drain, so it's really too bad. Beforehand, there were a couple of snafus with the appointment, which were my fault, so perhaps I came across to Rick as flaky. But he did take the trouble to meet with me, and we had a good meeting, so it was mystifying not to hear anything afterward.

RDM never responded to my email requesting an estimate.

Rick was responsive and polite. If his company doesn't work in parts of Alameda County, the site should be updated to state "portions of Alameda and Contra Costa Counties". I rate him an A for his responsiveness (excellent) but a B overall due to the coverage area issue.

I spoke with Rick about a somewhat complicated issue with the city and a tree on my property. He said he could help, and that he knew a bunch of people at city hall, but our communications fizzled out and he ended up not being able to do the work. It was a big waste of time, and I don't think he was qualified to do the work he at first said he could do.

I do believe Rick Miller to be a man who takes pride in a job well done. I do not know what went wrong on my remodel. After 4 months in a rented apartment and another with no kitchen, the remodel completed ? well sort of. The water and gas plumbing would not pass city inspection. There was a leak in the wall of the shower, the shower door leaked and the driveway is cracking in several places. The kitchen flooring buckled, the transition bathroom thresholds did not match the existing hardwood flooring, some finishing were left undone and the kitchen electrical also had a few issues. Rick had been paid $133,000.00 and was unwilling to fix and complete the work. His conversations became rude, bullying, manipulative, filled with accusations, and refused to take any responsibility for the poor workmanship of his subs. I was frustrated, disappointed and angry my remodel project was not completed a year and a half after it began. After 6 months of grief and strife, I hired a project manager to communicate with Rick. Under his direction, Rick did return and fixed many issues. For the rest I hired professionals to complete the work to my acceptance, ( I withheld those costs from final payment). The remodel finally passed all the final permit inspections. Due to poor communication, vague contracts and the lack of drawings; I paid for and got things I did not want and I didn?t get some things I did want. A hard lesson learned.

We were very pleased with every aspect of our dealings with RDM Construction. We got a couple of bids for replacing sidewalk and patching the driveway and chose Rick because of both his reasonable price and his helpful suggestions regarding details which had not occurred to us. It was clear that he knew what he was doing. We decided to increase the scope of the job to include a greater section of sidewalk and the entire driveway. In the end, our sidewalk matches in color and texture the existing sidewalk, and we have a beautiful driveway with an added porch step. Rick had great workers and sub-contractors. He was able to muster skilled crews of 2 to 20 depending on the day's task. Along the way, Rick discovered some dry rot, made repairs, and identified the moisture source. He networked with others to see that some of the "urbanite" could be reused. He was easy to get in touch with and responded promptly to every concern. I would definitely recommend RDM Construction.

We initially hired RDM to repair the support structure and pour a new concrete slab for our driveway. After tearing out the driveway, it became obvious that the entire supporting structure needed to be replaced. This resulted in a major change order that was managed very well by RDM. The additional work quoted was necessary and reasonable. Although this resulted in a significant delay to complete the job, this was not unreasonable given the additional work and inspections required. RDM was very responsive to any issues that arose. Now, eight months after the completion of the job, the quality of the work that RDM did is evident in the integrity of the seals on the edges, the joint between the new concrete and the old, the integrity of the decorative fencing that had to be removed and replaced, and in the effectiveness of the drain. We are very pleased with the work done by RDM.

We hired rick after interviewing several other contractors. They all looked at the job and suggested either that it was impossible or would require a major renovation. Rick was the only one to talk through all the options, discuss cost versus ideal outcomes and finally, to provide a creative solution. He was responsive all through the process, even as unexpected problems cropped up. He controlled costs and yet provided a spectacular outcome. He and his workers (except for one subcontractor) were punctual, polite, efficient and clean. He obviously trusted his skilled workers but he was also a very on-the site manager. He even worked with me to leave some projects for me to complete (I have delusions of being handy). He stayed entirely within budget and his price was very reasonable for the work. He would be my go-to guy for any home renovation project in the future.

Everything was wonderful... from the quick response to provide a quote to the finishing of the job. Rick was professional and went above & beyond to help me get the pieces I needed to complete the job. His crew provided services in a timely manner and kept the rest of the house clean while they worked. We are very pleased not only with the price, but the results as well.

He arrived the scheduled time, received further information about the project and completed it. I'm pleased with the results.