CHICAGOLAND REMODELERS INC

They referred us to someone else without our knowledge. I had a guy calling to meet me at my house when it was supposed to be Chicagoland but it was actually another company and I was not aware of. My husband actually met them at the house. I did get there and met with Wally briefly for maybe 5 minutes. I really didn't have a conversation with him about what he had reviewed with my husband except that he would give us a couple days and then get back to us with a quote. I called Isabella who does Wally’s customer service. I asked her about this company and she said Wally’s doesn’t do that kind of work so he referred me to someone else. The professional thing that he should have done was to call me and let me know that he was going to refer me to someone else because he does not do renovation work.

We have done work with Bryan Rupprecht in the past, all small jobs under the category of handyman. He lists himself as a "Remodeler specializing in kitchen and baths", so he was first on our list when it came time to remodel. We decided to do each job individually, as our satisfaction would determine if we would continue with him. Also, I wanted to do the kitchen last as this for me was the most important job. The basement bathroom turned out great, and we thought he did a fine job (more on that later however). Bryan Rupprecht also remodeled our family room and 1st floor bathroom. All of these jobs were to be tear downs, complete remodeling. We thought the work was great, even though price wise Bryan isn't the cheapest. We felt we were getting quality work from an "expert" as he lists himself. Then came time for the kitchen. Our original contract was for a tear down, just like the other rooms. We were to get new walls, new lighting, flooring etc, as well as Bryan Rupprecht installing our cabinets, painting, installing the backsplash and hooking up all our new appliances. The counter tops were being done by another company. This was to be done for a total of $14,777. Before handing over our down payment of $7388.00, Bryan told us he would be going on vacation in a couple of weeks. My husband and I then wanted to postpone the job, but Bryan assured us that he "wouldn't leave us hanging, and that two of his men would be there to finish the job". The project started shortly after that, with Bryan Rupprecht showing up with another man to start the demo. That day the old appliances were removed, and all of the cabinets removed as well. The following day they were left alone to work, and I was shocked when I saw what was done in the 6 hours. The soffit was removed and Bryan was patching up our existing walls! His worker was removing the remnants of old wallpaper on the other walls. He then told me that we had "some sort of pipe" that he couldn't figure out what it was. After a while he told me he figured out it was an air chamber for the sink. My husband was off of work the next day, and it was decided that he would confront Bryan about the walls. Also, we had been undecided on the type of lighting we wanted, and my husband wanted to discuss the can lights with him. The following morning my husband went to Bryan, contract in hand, and asked about the walls. Bryan's response was that "there was nothing wrong" with the old ones. My husband then told him we decided on the can lights. I was in the other room, but was shocked to hear Bryan telling my husband that can lights would be "a lot of work". When my husband told him we didn't care, he started to tell my husband about this mysterious pipe and how it was in his way. My husband and I went into another room to talk, and we were sick to our stomachs. He had told me the pipe was an air chamber, but was now telling my husband he didn't know what it was and that it prevented him from putting in lighting. My husband went back to him with the contract and he told us he would "adjust it". At this point he had over $7300 of our money. I only have so many characters to use, so I will quickly fill you in on the other "problems". Our kitchen was at the point where the flooring was to be installed. The flooring must be installed before the appliances come in. However, Bryan was leaving on vacation, and he didn't make sure he had two men to "finish up". I informed him that I had over $5000 of new appliances coming in next week, and he told me to have them put in the garage. This was unacceptable to us, so we scrambled and got another contractor in install our floor. One of his workers did what he could in those two weeks, but Bryan Rupprecht did not buy the trim or electrical materials so there was only so much he could do. Bryan came back two weeks later and the job was finished in about another two weeks. He installed my stove hood with the protective seal still on the hood. When I started to remove it, I noticed the hood was damaged. ABT came to change the hood, and advised me that it should not have been installed with the seal in place. It cost me an additional $89.00 to have a new hood installed. After the job was completed, Bryan Rupprecht gave us our "new" invoice. None of the prices on the new invoice were discussed with us, and we felt that his request for a total of $10,710 was excessive. I called and questioned several items listed. For example, I questioned his request for $800 in misc. materials. The electrical devices, paint, trim, stain was listed separately. Also, we supplied the grout so what was left? I asked if he had a receipt. He got angry and said he didn't have receipts since it was stuff he had on his truck like the copper pipes. I have two used copper pipes under my sink which are each about 12 inches long. He also came with a bag from Home Depot to hook up my dishwasher. What else was this much? He then told me nails and putty and the wallboard he used to replace the soffit. Keep in mind that he charged $500 for materials in the bathroom and he even replaced the framing! Also, the electric in the family room included 15 switches and outlets as well as a bar light, and the installation of 3 new can lights at $975. In the kitchen he wanted $900 for 11 outlets and switches, installation of a line for the built in microwave, and no new lighting. There wasn't consistancy in the pricing. We finally both agreed to $9500 total for the job. We felt it was high, he thought it too low, but we wanted to settle this amicably. We had been happy with the quality of his work, but we did not agree with paying over $10,000 for a kitchen without new walls, lighting, and Bryan not installing the floor. A couple of weeks ago, we discovered that the bathroom in the basement family room has a leak. We called Bryan Rupprecht and have left several messages. He has not returned any of our calls. For that reason we have to give him a D in professionalism. Should you decide to work with Bryan Rupprecht, my suggestion would be to get everything in writing, no matter how miniscule. He claims to guarantee his work, but we checked and it doesn't say that on our estimates.

Bryan came over and gave me an estimate, which was very reasonable, however, it did not include material. I wound up getting a company that the price was all inclusive. It meant that I did not have to review all the laminates on the market and carry it over to my house. I looked at some prior to getting estimates, but it became overwhelming. Also, this was for a 140 sq ft family room, so fancy choices were not an issue. I have used this company in the past for ceramic tile installation, and he was great. I would use him again.

He do a lot of things other than that , but this is how I know him. He is excellent. He is very knowledgeable about all task within the home.