Michael Barrea

He was prompt, the materials he used and suggested to us were in good taste and value. He was responsive to our requests. His part of the work was done in a timely manner as he promised. His work was professional and he cleaned up well too. I would use him again in the future and recommened him to others.

Since I live in Palm Beach, Florida...and the house in question is in Connecticut, I was unable to oversee the work, personally. But many months after the job was supposed to have been completed...there were still large segments of the work that remained unfinished. It was only after repeated phone calls to Mr. Berrea and my issuing a deadline for completion of the job (that coincided with my return to Connecticut for a three month stay)...that the job was actually completed. Upon my arrival in Connecticut, an inspection of the property (and the remodeling work) revealed that the tile work that had been done was done in a slipshod manner, and NOT in the design and layout that I had discussed in person with Mr. Berrea months earlier...and that I had authorized. The painting work was sloppy, and in my opinion unfinished...since I can still clearly see drywall tape marks and surface putty that SHOULD have been sanded smooth before being painted (but were not). I had also authorized and paid for two coats of paint, and it is obvious I only got one coat based on the results. The new toilets were not firmly bolted to the floors as they should have been...and as a result they wobbled when used. The "new" glazing on all three of the three bathtubs was so poorly done that much of it has already "peeled" off...(much like latex paint would) and having them redone correctly will require me to hire another contractor...which is an expense I should never have after only a year. I have tried calling Mr. Berrea countless times over the past 18 months (I estimate a minimum of 25 calls) and I have yet to have had the courtesy or professional integrity from Mr Berrea to have received even one single return phone call from him. It's as if he is going out of his way to make sure that we have absolutely no contact of any kind...and I believe it is because he knows EXACTLY why I am trying to reach him...and he keeps dodging my calls. This is true case of "Take the money and run"....and I believe that Mr. Berrea feels that because I normally live over 1500 miles away from this property, then that insulates him from having to answer any questions about his terrible quality of work. I have given up any hope of Mr. Berrea having any professional pride in his work, or integrity as a human being to stand behind his work and to FIX the problems that his own sub-contractors created (most likely as a result of Mr. Berrea himself not being there to supervise the job personally)...and so I have had no recourse other than to come here to Angie's List to warn potential future victims of this man...by informing then what they can most likely expect, if they make the same mistake I did, of hiring him. I would never recommend him to anyone, I would NEVER hire him again...and I would warn anyone considering using him as a home remodeling contractor to steer clear of this guy... because once he's been paid, he's "in the wind." I should also state that Ithis guy was paid in advance and in full...so there was never any problems in that area from me. This man has no professional standards, ethics, integrity, customer service, or follow through. Use him at you own peril.