Brian R Kates Restoration & Construction

Smooth transaction.

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Brian works hard to be conscientious, professional and thorough. But, in retrospect, it seems that there are repairs he doesn't know how to do (or doesn't do well), and he uses several tactics to conceal this fact. For replacing the attic door with a window, Brian told me the hourly rate was $65 and he estimated it would take a day (8 hours). But he said nothing at all about 2 carpenters (himself and another man, who seemed to be the skilled carpenter). I heard them casually chatting away as they worked - and the cost was going to twice what I was led to believe. I mentioned this to Brian and he lowered the rate to $45 for one of the "carpenters." A previous contractor had replaced most of the exterior window trim and 3 window sills with PVC, delaying the completion of the job (not filling the screw holes, not caulking the gaps) for several weeks before I finally started to look for someone else to finish that work. I asked Brian to remove one of the PVC sills because the previous contractor had left a 1/4" gap below the window (because the side trim was 1/4" too long) and I asked him to replace another wood sill because it faced the same direction (a set of 4 windows, side-by-side). Brian did replace both sills, but he set them at a 90 degree angle - not slightly downward (with the ends parallel to the wall), allowing water to drain away from the window. I suspected he hadn't done this work before. A previous contractor had opened 2 sections of wall to investigate water leaks, one of them under the windows with the replaced sills. I asked Brian to patch these with drywall. Although Brian put insulation under the windows (I had already purchased it), he left a 3/4" gap between the new drywall and old homasote wall. Even with tape and mud, this would have left a nice gap for heat loss. The interior wall patch needed to be shimmed because drywall had been placed over the original homasote. Brian placed 2 sheets of drywall in the opening, not bothering to cut out sections to allow for a cast iron vent pipe, and his patch was a half inch difference (both inward and outward) from the adjacent wall. It was the worst drywall patch I'd ever seen by a "professional" - obviously, the problems were easily avoidable. I believe Brian reduced the cost when I mentioned that I redid the wall myself. I originally asked Brian for an estimate to fill the screw/nail holes in the window trim (left by the previous contractor) and to caulk around the trim, filling all possible water leaks. Because I couldn't afford for him to fill the holes, I asked him to simply caulk the trim. It looks like he spent a lot of time filling the space between the wood shingles and the trim, but he was rather awkward and stingy with the caulk, leaving small gaps. He didn't even attempt to caulk the inside edge of the trim, including 2 large gaps that remain beneath one window (pictures attached), even when I explained that 2 windows had already been caulked properly (as an example of what I hoped for). When I asked him to finish caulking - especially those 2 large, thumb-sized gaps - Brian sent a series of strange emails, insisting that the inside edge of the trim had a bead of transparent caulk, asking if I wanted him to caulk over this bead. When I insisted there was no visible caulk of any type between the trim and the window, he said that he couldn't not do the work that I wanted - not even the large gaps. I suspect that Brian was not proficient at caulking and he was looking for any excuse to back out of the work. I'm satisfied with the window replacement (at least, I'm not aware that there was anything wrong with the work) but I feel like the other work was substandard and, even with partial discounts, was not worth what I paid or worth the time I spent waiting for Brian to do the work, and then the time spent trying to convince him to return to finish it. I think he's essentially conscientious (he was great about putting all details in writing up front - much appreciated) but I wish he hadn't accepted a job doing (pretty simple) work he wasn't capable of doing well and that didn't merit his $65 per hour rate.

He did a wonderful job.

Brian and I spent time discussing the design of the new addition. We both wanted the addition to blend in with the original shed's post-and-beam construction and country barn look. He came up with great ideas on how to do that and how to get the roof line to match with the original shed's very high and steep roof. He also listened to my ideas and concerns. I love the design that he came up with and the final result looks great! He also did a great job dealing with the town about getting a permit which was not an easy task. Brian is great to work with because he is very professional, listens to your questions and concerns, and is always willing to find an answer to any question or problem. He is also very smart and organized which made the project go smoothly. During the construction, he always let me know what would be happening and always cleaned up at the end of the day. His crew was also very professional and considerate. I also liked that Brian always returned my phone calls and emails very quickly. The end result is that I got exactly what I wanted -- it blends in well with the prior shed's post and beam construction, still has that country barn look, fits my car, and has a lot of storage space.

We did not proceed with the work, for reasons unrelated to Brian R Kates Restoration & Construction. It is worth noting that in addition to the helpfulness as described above, Brian went well out his way to assist me wife and me, even staying after our initial meeting to help my wife move some boxes, while I met with another contractor.

A few years ago I retained Brian Kates for some small repairs on my home. I found him to be extremely knowledgeable, reliable and a pleasure to deal with. He noted that there had been serious structural failures in my home such as a collapsing front porch. This major undertaking was accomplished quickly and efficiently. A long overdue house painting was next followed by the installation of a large, paved patio in the back yard. Every task was accomplished flawlessly. I have found Brian to be knowledgeable, extremely intelligent and a pleasure to work with. He is proficient in most major tasks.

He did a decent job overall.

I thought he gave us fair and honest opinion and the price was decent. He contracts with other people and I needed an electrician for the house. He would meet with my husband to be like a middle person for this and he did not show up and he never called my husband.

He is very competent and smart. He is a very nice person and very interesting. I have been very happy with all of the work he as completed for me. When I have a problem I call him to come fix it.

Contractor was a pleasure to work with. He is an honest, caring professional who takes his time and does it right. I would recommend Brian Kates.

He was very good. They are about to put in a patio. I never had any problems and it was just perfect. If there would be a problem, they would fix it. There are not too many people that I would recommend highly but I would recommend him. My house is 110 years old.

Brian came to give a quote and was very friendly and professional. His bid was lower than Pella's and he seemed very trustworthy, so we decided to hire him. Brian was careful in his measurements (even came a second time to remeasure) prior to ordering the Anderson doors. During the work, Brian came to our house a few times each day (and sometimes all day) to oversee his two workers (who were extremely polite and diligent). They were very careful with our furniture, and cleaned up and put away their tools each day. They also worked quickly and efficiently. They were all perfectionists in their work and the end result was excellent. We will be hiring Brian and his team again.

He was really good and took a lot of time with us. He gave us options and ideas. Overall it was terrific. I would definitely use him for the right job.

Brian and his assistants do all types of construction work; he does the work well, quickly and on budget. For us, he repaired a ceiling (excellent job, can't even tell where the problem was), put in replacement windows, replaced shutters, repaired a roof and has done various other other things. He will help you consider various alternatives to solve problems so you can chose one that fits your budget. He is a wonderful person & it's a pleasure to have him around. You can trust Brian's work quality and honesty.