Tom Southern - Carpenter

This was the second job Tom has completed for us and I'm just as happy with his work as the first time. My schedule kept me out of town for a couple of months and while I was away, I was able to leave a key with Tom and have the (messy) work done while I was gone. Tom kept me posted on the progress with emailed photos and phone calls. The job was finished by the time we returned and the house was cleaner than I left it. Tom's work was, as always, perfect. In fact, the walls are so smooth and straight now that I feel bad about putting up a backsplash over them.

I liked the work they did for me. Their responsiveness was good and their professionalism was okay. It was somewhat difficult to work with from time to time. But they did a good job.

Tom is not completely done yet, but his restoration of the table and the mirror are just beautiful. Tom is very detail oriented and very transparent on what he is doing step by step. He sends me pictures of what he is doing and discusses with me the options he is considering. I have even learned more about antiques since he started this work. He is wonderful.

Tom is a master carpenter and general contractor. He is the perfect guy for renovation projects, especially small or difficult ones that scare other contractors away. He is able to figure out clever solutions to complicated problems because he is an unusually smart, educated and experienced guy in this business. He is also a bit of a perfectionist which is almost impossible to find at any price in the Miami area. He might be more expensive than some of the cut rate contractors you can pick up in Miami but he'll finish the job twice as fast and it will be done right the first time. Trust me on this one thing: in the end he will save you money over the bargain basement guy. The repairs that Tom made were tight, correct and solid. A floor and wall that you can be proud of that will last 100 years. He went above and beyond to make sure that it's all solid as a rock and will never go anywhere. Passed inspection with flying colors. He is now working on some other projects for me that require hand made and installed wooden doors and they're spot on beautiful. Excellent communication for owners who like to have input as the job progresses. He likes to work on a time plus material basis which is actually super fair and flexible but don't expect his hourly rate to be in the same ballpark as your unlicensed cousin or those guys that you can hire that stand out in front of The Home Depot...(-; He will save you money and aggravation in the long run though!

You couldn't ask for a better builder than Tom. He recently saved us from a badly sagging kitchen floor and his work was perfect. Tom is the kind of old world craftsman that you simply can't find anymore at any price. He's easy going yet passionate about what he does and he doesn't take shortcuts. His prices were also great and came in under what we expected. I'm definitely going to be using Tom again in the future.

Once we explained what we wanted Tom was able to price out different materials and construction techniques and explained the pros/cons of materials. Once we decided on the type of lumber and construction Tom got us a price and confirmed all the information regarding the Specs we wanted to ensure job was done right. he was working other jobs and I was in Queue which he explained from the start and he stayed in communication regarding when he expected to get the materials start job and finish. Tom was able to start and complete my by the promised dates. He also provided us with information on the construction and materials used along with a tutorial on how best to Paint these items so they will look there best. Once we received the and quot;cubesand quot; we realized that they where built to Last, Materials where better then what I would find in the Local and quot;big Box Lumber Storeand quot; and construction was top Notch. Over all Quality was great, Communication was excellent (Via email mainly after initial phone conversations which was my preferred form of communication) Will use again next time I need any wood work done

It went very well. I replaced a refrigerator with a smaller unit, which left an opening in the cabinetry above. Tom installed a single unit cabinet along with the existing units. It went very well. The new unit looks like it has always been there.

He is still in the middle of the job. Tom is a perfectionist. His work product is very good....more to come

I cannot give enough praise for Tom. I needed someone to make some minor wood repairs before I move out of my rental and Tom went above and beyond to make the experience easy and affordable. Rather than take advantage of my inexperience by making the project more complicated (and expensive) than necessary, Tom actually offered to give me step by step DIY instructions free of charge on the first phone call. After determining that the repair needed to be done in layers, we ultimately agreed that Tom would come out to handle the first session and teach me how to do it on my own so that I could finish the project and reduce labor costs. This type of honesty and kindness is a rare find these days and earned Tom my highest praise. Seeing my interest in the project, he even extended a genuine offer to call him for carpentry and construction advice whenever I may need it down the road. I plan to take him up on this not only for the practical benefit but also for the pleasure of working with someone as warm and kind as Tom.

Mr. Southern is an expert carpenter. He did a delicate countertop removal near a large kitchen window that I had trouble getting other carpenters to do. It required a special, expensive cutting tool that many carpenters apparently do not buy. It also required expert craftsmanship and experience that Tom Southern had. My wife sent him pictures of the area by email and so he came well prepared to do the job. He was very punctual and courteous. His price was very reasonable, and he was finished in a few hours. I am very pleased with his work and will call upon him for any future carpentry work I need done. I recommend him highly to anyone needing carpentry work. I also plan to use him as a builder and general contractor on a project I hope to complete next year. I wish I had known about him sooner; if I had, I would have used him as a general contractor for our present kitchen remodeling that has taken too long. (Unfortunately, I did not use Angie's list on that project).

Tom Builder was one of several companies we contacted to obtain estimates for 2 bathroom remodels. He arrived on time and was very personable and professional. His estimate came in too high for our budget, although he did explain that since there can be so many variables in any job, he preferred to over estimate and then bill for less. Tom is very likable and went out of his way to help me solve a completely unrelated problem I was having with peeling paint elsewhere in the house.

Tom was extremely nice and professional. He kept in touch with me via e-mail as he was out of the city on another job, but did get a chance to speak to him on the phone. Seems very experienced and knowledgeable and is overall a very nice guy. I did not end up choosing him as I went with someone who was in the area and was able to come in person to scope out the job. I would consider TSB for future jobs, however.

I am very pleased to write this recommendation for Mr. Thomas H. Southern of Tom Southern Builder, LLC – Carpentry and Contracting. I called and talked with two other Angie’s List contractors, before speaking with Mr. Southern, about renovating the refrigerator cubicle in my kitchen to accommodate a newly purchased one. After talking with the other contractors, I decided to wait two weeks for Mr. Southern to do the work, as his schedule was not open until that time. I waited, with the new refrigerator blocking entrance to the kitchen and the old one taking up walking space. I chose Mr. Southern because of his professionalism, his understanding of my dilemma and his overall positive approach to undertaking the fixing my problem. He was not abrasive, impersonal or demanding of me in an already disturbing situation, but he solicited my help to help myself. During my wait, we communicated by telephone and e-mail, with several photograph attachments and discussions on the best way to approach this particular job. In my experience, Mr. Southern is a champion. He focused wholeheartedly on my project, exhibited excellent customer service and formed a client relationship in which I felt valued. Mr. Southern proved himself to be a highly skilled, knowledgeable and exceptionally talented carpenter, with superior client service skills. I will gladly wait until Mr. Southern is available to do any future necessary work at my home. With his fine interpersonal skills he can relate, exceptionally well, with a spectrum of diverse clientele. He personally helped me to experience a much more satisfying customer service occurrence then could have been anticipated. In this day and time, Mr. Southern is an extraordinary craftsman, and he approached my dilemma with a sense of urgency. Mr. Southern’s actions speak louder than words. His hands-on, practical approach moves his service beyond lip service--He walks it, talks it, lives it, and breathes it. Mr. Southern is a refreshing, insightful and pro-active carpenter who exhibited great passion, persistence and commitment to the excellence of his service. He focused on my total client satisfaction. Please convey my gratitude and appreciation to Mr. Southern for his incredible service to me, a Senior, disabled, widow. My overall favorable impression of Angie’s List is Mr. Thomas H. Southern! I find him to be a conscientious, and quot;Client dedicated”, exemplary representative of your business. I look forward to a continued, mutually beneficial relationship with Angie’s List service providers who can meet the stature of Mr. Thomas H. Southern. If any further information is required, please contact me at my home telephone number on file.

In the end we decided to do more that we could afford with Tom by using family members that are in the construction industry. We did more with the same money but in the end it was a real pain and I wished we did it the right way. Call somebody who can take of the project from start to finish with guaranteed results. Tom is that guy.

It was good. I will use them again in the future.

We are replacing a small bathroom pedestal sink with a basin sink and contacted Tom to build a white oak countertop, 34 inches wide by 17 inches deep. He told us his rate was $75 an hour and that the job might take the better part of a week to complete. He did not indicate he meant 40 hours of billable time. We would not have agreed to spend $3000 to install a small bathroom countertop. Tom has a client with a large restoration he has been working on in north Florida and is frequently out of town. We started the project with him at the beginning of Dec 2012. He came and took measurements and we discussed wood selection. After going to the lumber yard and planing and joining, he glued up a board 17.25 inches deep, 34.25 inches wide and 1.25 inches thick. He left for north Florida. On his next trip back he attempted to connect with us, but we were missing brackets that were necessary to mount the top. He asked for a partial payment of $1015, for an unfinished wooden counter. We fould this to be unreasonable and asked for him to account for his time. I quote from his email to me, and quot;Unfortunately, those hours were accumulated in 2012, and are recorded in that year's planning book, which of course, I don't have with me up here on the 'river of wild hogs'. So, I cannot tell you how many hours were worked each day and what the dates were of those days......and I'm not going to do that, Daniel, I work on the basis of trust, and believe me, you can trust me, just as I trust you to pay me.and quot; He explained he had spent, and I quote, and quot;and about $115 in materials [the oak and the tung oil and the citrus solvent tung oil thinner]and quot; He also became quite irritated that we would question his charges and we became distrutful of time reporting, and we decided to end our relationship with him. I negotiated the price of his work down to $565, for which I received the wood slab and about three ounces of tung oil in a jar and one ounce of thinner in a separate container. Upon checking at Shell Lumber where he purchased the wood I found it to be much less than he had indicated he had spent. It appears he had not purchased tung oil or thinner specifically for our job as he had told us earlier. To Tom's credit the countertop in the raw he supplied was of good quality construction. It is solid and heavy, flat and joined well. Tom did not communicate that he wanted to charge us for all his time, including travel time to and from the house, and to and from the lumber yard, and time speaking with us regarding the project. We would not have agreed to that and I believe it is the source of our disagreement.

Tom gave me options and he was very professional. He was very honest, honest enough to tell me that he is very expensive. I decided to go on my own way and that is what he recommended too. He helped me with some tips and told me that I could do it myself, so that was really honest of him. I might consider him in the future for other projects.

Unfortunately was too busy to do some of the work, but we may work with him in the future. He responded very quickly to our calls and was very apologetic about his busy schedule.

The job went very well. Tom showed up on time evey day. He worked in my home with no one else present much of the time. The job involved changing plans frequently based on what we found inside the wall. The trick to the job was not destroying the panelling on the other side of the wall and more or less leaving the wall the way he found it (except with a noew cabinet and shelf). It looks perfect now, and Tom could not have worked more neatly. No mess -ever.

I spoke to Mr. Southern on September 24, 2012. He asked me to take pictures of the damage and forward to him via email, which was promptly done. Understandably, Mr. Southern indicated that he could not give me a precise estimate on the cost until he actually got in there and saw the extent of the damage. He explained that he had been working a sizeable project in a northern Florida county and would keep me posted on its progress. I explained to Mr. Southern that I worked from home two days per week and woudl prefer the work be done then. He agreed to this. As months went by, it became apparent to me that this job would not get done. Mr. Southern made several excuses, some seemingly legitimate, some not. He then had the audacity to question whether or not I could actually pay for the service. We agreed to a start date of after Thanksgiving. When he came down with a cold when he was supposed to start, it became obvious to me that he never intended to perform the job. I told him as I am telling you that if a job seems too small for his needs, he should be direct about that (as others I have called have been) and not lead customers to believe he will actually do the job requested. I was especially offended by his accusations, particularly when money was never specifically discussed.

If I could give Tom a rating of 11 on a 10-point scale, I would do it. What a gem of a person. His knowledge of wood and carpentry is outstanding, and he has clearly been in this business for a very long time. The quality of his work was excellent, and I think he did what the job required and no more. He was always happy to talk and to give his frank opinion about the problems that he saw and about possible solutions. He kept me informed throughout the project. Regarding price, I don't think that hiring Tom will be your least cost option, but the quality will be high. In this project, Tom was reluctant to give a fixed-cost estimate for the job because he said that when replacing rotten wood, it is difficult to judge the scope of the project. I decided to take a chance and hire him on a time-and-materials basis. I think he treated me fairly. Would I hire him again? Definitely. I joined Angie's list specifically because I was looking for someone to do this project, and I think the high-quality result that I got is a testimony to the usefulness of this site.

We consulted with Tom as to the advisibility of a 400 sq/ ft. bedroom addition, factoring in the current real estate market in South Florida, and what kind of return we could expect on the investment, as well as our own personal considerations. Tom responded immediately, and impressed us with his frankness, intelligence and knowledge.We are postponing the addition for now, but would definitely contact him again if we decide to go ahead.

I would highly recommend Tom Southern as a contractor for jobs needed. He worked with us to help reduce the cost of the job and kept us informed throughout the process.

I would give Tom an A+ if the ratings went that high. My wife and I couldn't be happier. His price was reasonable for the excellent work he did. He was prompt and friendly. I would use him again, and I would definitely recommend him to my friends.

We've had many estimates for this work. All of them were at the high end of our budget. Apart from his very impressive (from all of the Angie's List reports and his references) skill and building experience, Tom had the most creative approach to making the entire job the most cost efficient for us. All of the other estimates from companies, individual builders and handymen were kind of..... "here's the estimate, you figure out how to pay for it" . Tom had ideas about ways to economize by maximizing our own input. I told him I recognized that our input into the process would inversely affect his own profit margin and this actually didn't seen to phase him. He also had some quite fabulous design ideas. We found this attitude to be both unique and refreshing. Given his superior skill set and exceptional attitude, we are quite positive that when we are (finally) ready to proceed with our kitchen, Tom is the person we would choose for it. Because of these skills , honest evaluations and total professionalism we would confidently recommend him to any of our friends.