United Granite Countertops

During the week we were discussing prices with other fabricators. We had scheduled a measure date with United Granite and Marble that was supposed to occur at 8 am. There was an error in the number they called the night before so we did not receive any confirmation. In addition, the measure did not get scheduled at 8 am as we were assured by the sales rep, Tim Donovan. The measure happened shortly after 9 am (after my husband called the business to find out what happened) and took about 30 minutes, making my husband incredibly late for work. During the week I had email correspondences with Tim about other quotes I had received. At no time, did he tell us that the deposit was non-refundable. Tim also stated that he would send us the information on the measure. We never received this information. We decided to go with another business due to many factors (e.g. it took several calls before Tim would return a call, the experience with the measure etc.). I left a message for Tim cancelling our layout. I followed this up with an email to Tim letting him know we were cancelling the layout because we decided to go with someone else. I asked him to refund the deposit. He told me he would forward the request to accounting. Again, he did not say anything about the deposit being non-refundable. Recently, I received an email from accounting stating that because the measure had been done my deposit was non-refundable. I never signed a contract with this business nor was I notified that my deposit was non-refundable at any time. I also did not receive any actual information from the measure that was done. As far as I can tell, Tim Donovan is the only sales rep for this company located in Elkridge, MD. As a result, this business cannot be trusted since its representative is not providing accurate or true information to it's customers. I'm disputing the deposit issue through my credit card. Tim was pushing for us to pay cash. In fact he gave us three different prices, the lowest one for cash, the next highest for Visa/MC and the highest (by about $300) for American Express. I'm thankful that I did not give him cash for the deposit. There are many other reputable choices out there for granite and marble. I do not recommend this business to anyone.

Tricia helped me pick out the granite from several slabs that I liked. She also made helpful suggestions about edge type. The gentleman who came out to measure was professional and knowledgeable. He was extremely precise about getting the measurements right. The three installers came on time and did a very careful job installing the granite.

I just had my kitchen countertops installed today, I was hoping I would get them before my 10th wedding anniversary, where we were having a huge party at my residence which was roughly three weeks away, so it was crunch time, Every place I went to gave me at best 6 weeks before I could get them installed, that wasn?t going to work for me, So I thought I would try once last place in Crofton called United Granite, so before I even decided to look at their slabs I asked how long it would take for installationI was told that they have a turnaround time of 8 to 10 days, that was a relief, so my next issue was hoping that they had the granite that I liked at the other places. I visited, I was told that they did but as soon as I walked into the showroom it was liked the gates of paradise opened, I?ve never seen such a huge selection of granite in my life, so now I had a new problem, I was seeing slabs I didn?t see at any of the other places and I Liked so many of them, it was hard to make up my mind, But the salesman Chris spent the next two hours with me and my samples going over which granite looks the best with my samples, So I ended up choosing granite named Fusion, then we sat down to look at the calendar, we scheduled up the measure , my layout and installation, the whole process from start to finish was 7 days, when the installers came , they answered all our questions and left the work area very clean, I couldn?t be happier with my granite and the service that United Granite providedThanks to Chris Presley, for all his help and the rest of the staff at United Granite, I couldn?t be happier. when it comes time this spring we are planning on doing the basement bar. I highly recommend for anyone not to waste their time going anyplace else, Trust me United Granite will take care of you

This is a difficult review to write because we generally like the appearance of the counter tops, but experienced several issues throughout the process that influenced us to not recommend United Granite. About four months before installation, we visited the United Granite warehouse to get an estimate based on measured kitchen drawings and selected two matching granite slabs. We paid a deposit and the slabs were tagged with our name. Once the cabinets we installed, United Granite sent a representative to digitally measure the kitchen. A few days later, we returned to the warehouse to go over the layout of the counter top pieces on the actual slabs. Unfortunately, they had sold one of our two slabs and the closest match we could find to the remaining slab was a remnant from another job. No one apologized for the the error. After the layout was complete, we got the final total that was approximately 20% higher than the estimate. The explanation that the sales representative gave is that the industry standard is to charge based on the area of the smallest rectangle that contains a piece and not the area of piece itself. Because we had some odd shapes, there was waste. They did not have an explanation why these rectangles were not used for the initial estimate. During installation, the workers split one of the cabinet face frames. Instead of stopping and telling us about the problem when it could have been easily fixed, they continued installation and used drywall joint compound to try covering the crack in the wood. Because the cabinets are painted off white, it wasn't immediately obvious but was discovered a few days later. Eventually, United Granite gave us $300 in compensation. Because the counter installation was finished, it would now be very expensive to replace the cabinet frame and so we live with the crack. There were two other installation issues. First, the edge of the back splash next to the wall was left jagged. Our general contractor used caulking to improve the appearance, but he said the granite fabricators usually smooth the edge. There are still a few spots where the jagged edge is visible. The other installation issue concerned a hole the granite desktop. The intent was to have a way to run cords below the desk and we purchased a grommet and informed United Granite about the size. The installers were supposed to bring the proper sized drill bit. Instead, they used a smaller bit and cut multiple holes. This left a jagged hole and created a large amount of granite dust that clogged the desk draw glides.

Beautiful granite at a great price! Tim was exceptional to work with, and I later referred a friend to them and he did a great job with her too. The installers were 3 hours late, but stayed late to finish. Price of granite and install was very competitive, cheaper than the others I had looked at, and the quality of the install was great. The installers didn't bring protective blankets to put down on the floor, but I called and the company sent some out. I didn't have them reinstall the plumbing because it was a $350 add on, and I had prior plumbing experience, so I saved money by doing it myself, but that may not work for everyone.

For as nice and friendly as they seem when you walk in the door, know that they are salesmen and their ultimate goal is to get you to spend as much money as they can. They are also liars and will tell you anything to get their way as you will come to see as you read of our experience. Initially we requested a quote for one "Group B" slab and also one "Group D" slab. The next day when the e-mail arrived with our quote all of our personal information was correct, but the quote was for a "Group E" slab that my wife and I had admired, but never requested a quote for. So only after asking again for the original "B & "D" slab estimates were they provided. We decided to get a couple other quotes and used the exact same specs to ensure we were comparing apples-to-apples so to speak. We ended up getting a quote that was about $300 less than United Granite, but the firm was located further from our home and we noticed that United Granite had a coupon on their website that said they would "meet or beat any competitor's written estimate," so we figured that would be the way to go. The coupon specifies in small print that the competitor must be licensed and insured in VA, MD, and NJ and that the written estimate needed to be presented at the time of purchase. So we made sure this other firm was indeed licensed and insured in VA, MD, and NJ -- they WERE & ARE -- and took the written estimate to United Granite, expecting them to gladly match the offer and proceed with our installation. Our salesperson, Kat or Katherine, refused to match their offer. She speculated wildly and without basis that this firm might be using painted stone or imports from China (upon further investigation on our part, neither of these were true). She said that, even though the other firm had been in the counter top business for many years, they had only been dealing in Granite counter tops for a little over a year. This seemed an odd criticism since United Granite in Crofton is relatively new (IIRC less than 2 years at the time this occurred). She also claimed that they didn't qualify for the matching offer because they aren't of the same ilk as United Granite, stating that on the coupon it says the competitor must be "comparable." However, the word "comparable" does not appear anywhere on the coupon, nor is such a stipulation even implied beyond the license/insurance requirement which, again, were met by this other firm. We weren't pleased with this, but they did offer to reduce their price a bit and we figured that the money we would save by using the other firm would be a wash when including the lost-time and travel expense since United Granite-Crofton was much closer to home. Though we had lost some confidence in them due to their dishonesty and unwillingness to honor their own coupon, we had received good reports from neighbors and friends about their installation. Though I will also note that these same neighbors and friends mentioned that United Granite's prices were high and that their sales tactics were off-putting. Once we had come to grips with the price, we at least felt optimistic that they would do a good job with the installation. When we went to sign the agreement and make the deposit I had a couple of questions about their installation techniques, since these were not outlined in their multi-page contract nor on their website. I began to ask Kat about the types of rods they use, if they reinforce & level the cabinets, how they ensure a perfect-polish on the edges, and to what extent they would polish the exposed portion of the slab underside (i.e. 400 grit hone/800 grit hone/penetrating epoxy). She seemed very taken aback by my questions. I own a contracting business myself and we have a service division that caters to homeowners and property managers, so I came into this very prepared knowing best practices and what type of details we should expect. Despite 1st hand knowledge that all of the things I was asking about were merely best-practices, Kat claimed that they were all upgrades and would require additional charges (sans the use of steel rods, which was included, as well as some minor shimming). When I politely pointed out that other firms provide these best-practices without additional cost and that I was already paying a premium to deal with United Granite (obviously referencing their refusal to honor the coupon to beat or match their competitor's written offer), they very unprofessionally suggested that I take my business elsewhere. A few days later we decided that we really wanted to get this done before guests came into town, so we would drop our "best-practice" requests and accept their offer "as-is." We communicated this to Kat via e-mail and she responded saying, "I wish I could hold the price [for you] but that deal is over, the only way to get that price would be if you did your own removal and disposal or pay [an additional $296]. The stone you are choosing, (black pearl, builder?s grade) you need to be aware that the seams are going to be noticeable that is the nature of that stone being so dark." The black pearl slab she referenced was the "Group B" that we had originally requested pricing on. A few days earlier, when she was trying to convince us to pay more and use her firm rather than the competitor who's pricing she refused to match, she said, "We pay more for our black pearl because it?s not painted, we do quality and this is a huge difference that you should consider when making a such a large purchase." So which one is it? Do you have "quality" stone that we should pay a premium for, or did we select a crappy "builders grade" slab that is of such poor quality that even United Granite's top-notch installers won't be able to hide the seams? Also worthy of note regarding their shifty practices, the proposal for the black pearl that we decided to accept was less than a month old. There was no mention of any special "deal" on the proposal that would expire within a certain amount of time, nor was there any expiration date at all. One last thing -- their contract requires a 50% deposit. United Granite has a MD Home Improvement License, and according to the law professionals who advise my firm, MD law states that contractors are not permitted to require more than 1/3 as an upfront deposit. I'm not going to tell you not to use them. Obviously many others have and are happy (per the reviews here), but I would encourage everyone to try and hold their feet to the fire regarding their matching offer (coupon is unchanged on their website as of today 24 June 2015) and also the best-practices I mention above.

From the sales person (Kat), measure peson, warehouse foreman, installers, plumber, and owner (Eddie), all were very nice and extremely professional. We asked for an accelerated delivery and the entire project was completed perfectly in under Two weeks.

This was an amazing experience. All the personnel were extremely helpful, especially Kat Bradshaw and Mustafa. They were very attentive and provided their expertise while we were moving through the selection process. Nether final product looks amazing! Will definitely go back for more granite.

We had the granite installed on 3/21 and were told that the plumber would be there afterwards to hook up the sink. When they finished the granite, which they cracked a wall while installing, my husband then called the showroom to see when the plumber was suppose to show up. The first time he called Tim, our project manager, was not available so when he called the second time we were told he was to show up between 5 & 7PM - so we waited, and waited until almost 8! No Show! We were lucky because this was my mom's house under renovation so no one was living there but it wasn't until Monday morning that someone showed up. They did compensate us for the plumber fee but I had to fight for it! Then I wasn't happy with the grouting and wanted someone to come out to add more and that was set up for 11 AM on 3/24 - at 11:15 I called from previous experience and was told that they had sent the guy to PA so he wasn't going to make it - so I wasted another trip. Overall I'm happy with the look but they were not good to work with. I would not recommend them to a friend.

There was a problem with the kitchen granite not being installed according to the manner agreed upon during the templating session. United Granite did compensate for the error by installing a granite countertop and two sinks in the master bathroom at no charge.

Tim, the sales rep. was fantastic and very helpful every step of the way. After the installation, there was a problem with the seal. I made a call to Tim and he sent installers out the next business day to repair the problem. Everyone I have worked with at United Granite has been courteous, professional, and very customer focused!

I cannot praise United Granite and Ms. Katherine Bradshaw high enough. I had been shopping for this job from several other companies, who sent only an email quote (at different levels of pricing depending on what stone I picked, but no assistance in determining what stone to pick). When I called United. Ms. Bradshaw became my contact with the company and performed in a stellar fashion. She volunteered to come by my houseto see where the granite would go so she could make a stronger recommendation on the slab to pick, and provided several decorating tips (she is a certified interior decorator). Then, she arranged for me to visit the showroom the next day to pick out the slab, and was prepared with several recommendations. Once I selected the slab,she ensured a complete invoice with all details in place, and then was kind enough to determine for me (at my request - I know an expert when I see one) how to cut the slab to highlight best the veins for my countertop, island top, and desk top, and ensured a timely installation. The final installation went perfectly, and I am very pleased to write this review and recommend United Granite to anyone - and to ask for Ms. Bradshaw to assist you. Her telephone and email communication following each meeting and decision was a great service, and when all was done, she called the next day to check that I was satisfied. Bottom line - if you are looking for excellent granite selection and installation, pick United. If you are looking for excellent customer service, ask for Katherine Bradshaw. You will not be disappointed in either, no matter how high your standards.

They were on time and made this process appear easier than it appeared. The installation team was professional and personable. There were some on-site adjustments that had to be made however it appeared not to be a problem as this team was prepared for such incidentals and cleaned up well behind themselves, leaving no evidence that they were there with the exception of the new counter tops.

The installers arrived within the time frame indicated. They were friendly and professional. Explained much of what they were doing and how to care for the countertops, which are beautiful.

We needed an extra piece of granite/quartz to finish our kitchen remodel. We kept the old countertops and just needed an extra piece for a side counter. Katie was able to help us find a piece that matched closely and get us a good price as it was a remnant.

Kathy at United Granite's Crofton location was great; very helpful in working with us to understand different options and features for our new kitchen countertop--and very flexible to our indecisiveness at the beginning! When we needed a rapid install prior to moving in, they were incredibly flexible and worked quick to go from stone selection to install in less than 10 days--we never could've done that with a big box store. The install process was incredibly professional, the installers were very friendly and took the time to explain the process of installation, providing options on the spot regarding how we wanted to cooktop cut, the backsplash to go on, etc. Overall, we were very satisfied with United Granite, and would definitely recommend them as a good local company with great quality and professionalism.

AWESOME!! I love it! The beautiful granite top completed my restored piece of furniture. Kathy at United Granite in Crofton, MD was great to work with...very knowledgeable and professional. I would highly recommend Kathy and United Granite.

This is our second experience with United Granite. The selection was excellent. The service was excellent and the final result is beautiful. After picking out the piece a measurement was scheduled. The mechanic arrived on time and we returned to the shop two days later for a layout. At that time the piece was outlined on the granite slab to our specification to include the nicest looking part of the slab win reason. A week later the top was installed as scheduled and the installer made some suggestions to make the piece look better in the space and did so right there on sight.

Although some of the pricing is not straight forward when it comes to seaming and disposal fees, overall the design consultant we worked with, Warren, was very patient in trying to explain everything. He also went above and beyond to schedule the measuring and installation into our tight time-frame. Everyone from the sales consultant, to the person who measured, and the team that installed was extremely nice and very customer service orientated. The lead worker who installed the counter-top was by far the best, I only wish I could remember his name. He was on time, professional, and asked my husband and I at every step if it was the way wanted it and if there was anything he could change for us. He was extremely concerned with our satisfaction and it was deeply appreciated. He even came back two weeks later to bring us two matching cutting boards out of some scrap granite that matched our new counters.

We searched a number of granite shops. United was, by far, the most customer friendly. Throughout the process,Katie was very responsive to our needs and provided a refreshing, professional service. The install team was prompt, courteous, clean and efficient. Thanks to all those we had the pleasure to meet from United Granite

they had some difficulty meeting all of our needs.

Kathy, who was the contact person for us, really helped facilitate a very quick delivery of the product and ensure I got exactly the table and section of the granite slab that I wanted. She provided excellent service and I was very impressed by both her and her team who helped me not only select the perfect piece of granite but actually gave me suggestions with the design of the table that made it even more elegant than I could've ever imagined it to be. I went to a lot of granite stores nearby before finally deciding on selecting United Granite. The United Granite store was the only one I went to that actually helped me think up design plans for the table top and seemed as excited about my idea for a custom coffee table top as I was. So I was beyond impressed with them and would definitely recommend them to friends and family.

I noticed a slight mark/scratch on the countertop and pointed it out to them and they addressed it in a satisfactory manner.

Based on the great reviews by Angie's list members. I decided on United Granite to do my kitchen countertops. I definitely agree with the other reviewer Katie made a huge difference. She is very, very professional with great interpersonal skills. She knows how to listen to her clients. Qualities that must be present at all times when dealing with customers instead of just giving clip boards and spending time in the computer. Measurements was a problem on first try due to lack of communication but the second time went well. It will be very nice if call to confirm appointment is part of the business. Otherwise..installation and plumbing were excellent.

Very pleased with our experience. We selected our granite at the warehouse in Crofton, and they also have a wide variety of slabs in Elkridge. Plan on two visits-one to select slabs and one for red -taping/outlining the location of your sink, seams etc. Sam and his staff are very helpful and will work to accomodate your schedule.