Castle Building & Remodeling

unknown

.

unknown

unknown

.

.

unknown

I chose this firm for the process (concept, design, line item estimate), reputation, and being local. I really liked the designer's approach to problem solving, and my knowing exactly what I was getting and paying for. They worked with my tight time schedule for planning and starting the job. My budget shrank with the declines in home equity, and they worked with me to get a quality product for a price I was comfortable with. I elected to do painting and staining, and they accommodated that in the schedule. One minor surprise expense occurred once the demo was complete (expected for an old home), but otherwise no unexpected expenses. They were incredibly tidy and respectful of working in a home that was being lived in. Any questions and concerns were acknowledged immediately and addressed. I knew what and whom to expect as the job progressed. They fixed things I hadn't even noticed, to obtain a result up to their standards. There were one or two transient flubs with a sub-contractor, but these were handled with minimal inconvenience to me. The completion did take longer than originally projected, due to my change orders, and a few instances of supply/sub-contractor backlogs. The end result was fabulous, achieved at a fair price and with far less inconvenience than others I know have experienced.

What a great store! We loved the fact that everything in the store, from the carpet to the toilets, was eco-friendly. The staff was knowledgeable and very helpful. The carpet needed to be ordered and then installed but it was pretty quick and it looks wonderful. Best of all, we had our hardwoods refinished and installed new carpet, and there is no stinky or toxic smell.

I was very happy with their service. The project took four months. They had a lead project manager and some trade partners that helped with the work. They assigned a designer to the job that came up with some really good ideas that I wouldn't have thought of. She was very talented. In addition to the physical construction, the designer helped with picking out tile and cabinetry, flooring, fixtures, etc. so that everything looked nice. They did an excellent job. Their lead carpenter was fantastic with communication and he was a very skilled, detail oriented man. He was watching over the entire project and I didn't feel that I have to worry about anything. Due to an injury, I was unable to view the project for several weeks. I wasn't nervous at all with this, however, because I knew that they would do an excellent job.

We worked with Castle for about 5 months on the design before beginning work. Castle's detailed line item estimate/quote was great which allowed us to pick and choose items that we would do to bring the cost down closer to our budgeted amount; it also provided a tremendous amount of detail so we knew exactly what we were paying for and what effect changes would have on the project. The down side to it is that the detail in the line item didn't always flow to the subcontractors; on a project of this scale it would have better if more of that information had been included on the working drawings. We were very involved during the project and Castle was very good at working with us to rectify differences when they arose. We've been back in our house for a few months now and are thrilled with the results and the quality of work. We've had a few minor warranty issues since then and Castle has been great at fixing them with a minimum of hassle.

The design process was great. My wife and I travel a lot and Castle was able to set up internet meetings where they showed us plans and 3-D views of the project. They actually came up with the final room layout that was 100 times better than our ideas. They also understood that we love older homes so they were able to match details as much as possible. Once the work began is was difficult to say the least but Castle was great in keeping us informed of what was going on and what to expect. One thing that was a big concern was budget. Castle was sensitive to this and helped us cut things out that we could either do without or do later. I had always heard of big projects like this going over budget but Castle in the end came up under budget, (I found a few more things I could do myself), and they were only about a week past the original schedule. That was due to some tile ordering issues. Overall, a great experience.

We called Castle a year before we began the project to get a rough estimate of the cost. Once we decided to go ahead with it, they worked with us to put together a comprehensive plan for the space, including the design of the new floor plan and a line item budget. They were very flexible when it came to items we decided to do ourselves. At the time, we were expecting our second child and Castle worked extra hard to ensure the project was completed in record time before the baby was born. We were nothing but pleased with both the work that was done and the professionalism Castle showed in completing it. The job site was kept clean during construction and all of the workers and subcontractors were courteous, friendly, and hardworking. We especially enjoyed our relationship with Katie Jayden, Castle's designer, who was instrumental in getting everything done on schedule and even a little bit under budget.

They were on time, friendly, had fair prices and were good people to work with. They cleaned up when they were done, and I was very pleased with their work.

When we first contacted Castle our idea was to add an addition to our home. We went through some initial work with them and other contractors only to decide we were going to put that project on hold for several years. Over the many months Castle was the only contractor to keep in touch with us periodically to see where we were at with things or if there were other projects we were considering. Sure enough a number of months later we decided we wanted to remodel our bathroom. Castle was our hands down choice without considering others.

Marty came out to discuss the project, said that it should be fairly easy, explained what would need to be done to correct the structural problems, and that he would send me an estimate in a few days. Two weeks later with no estimate, I contacted Castle again to follow up. I was told that they were working on an estimate and that it shouldn't take that long. It is now six weeks later and I have not received a phone call, e-mail or an estimate. I have since hired another contractor to do the job. Even though I want to support local businesses, I will most likely not be calling Castle for my next project.

A favorable experience. I received good quality workmanship with considerable attention to detail. The cb&r people went about their work as if it was their own property. Commendable.

If I ever need a contractor I just call Castle building. I have used them on at least 4 different occasions.

Do not use extremely poor project management. I don't mind paying a high contractors fee for good service but that was not the case. The siding sub was a true professional, he was Steve from coverall siding. Bill from Castle did good work and was very easy to work with. other castle employees poor work. Electrical was flagged and installed in the wrong location, roofing contractor did poor work.

During the project, communication could have been better. To think of something, per SE, is not necessarily to have communicated the thought. My requirements were met as much as was humanly and structurally practicable.

We have used Castle for a variety of projects over the last 20+ years, including reroofing, kitchen and porch remodeling, and building a two car garage. One thing that has always been impressive about Castle are their incredibly detailed estimates and workplans. You know exactly what you are getting, you can alter steps to fit your budget, or you can pull out tasks to do yourself. The Castle staff and subcontractors are polite and professional so that we don't mind having them in our home. Materials and workmanship are top quality, and the design phase always ensures that the new work fits into the tudor style of our 1932 home. Work has generally followed timelines, and we have never had problems resolving the inevitable glitches or unanticipated events that occur along the way. Castle will never be your lowest-priced bid, but you will be pleased with the results.

Everyone at Castle is very polite, responds in a timely fashion and goes out of their way to provide superior service. We will continue to hire them for all of our home improvement projects.

THEY DID A NICE PRESENTATION OF THEIR SERVICES DURING THE SALES STAGE, BUT THE QUALITY OF SUB CONTRACTOR WORK WAS FAIR. SOME SUBS DID BETTER THAN OTHERS. THE NEW TUB, TILE AND CABINETS ALL HAD CHIPS AND SCRATCHES AFTER THE WORK WAS COMPLETED.

LOREN SCHRIBER WAS GOOD AT RETURNING MY INITIAL CALL AND IN PROVIDING ME INFORMATION PRIOR TO THE SCHEDULED ESTIMATE. WHEN HE ARRIVED FOR THE ESTIMATE, HE WAS MORE INTERESTED IN GIVING ME A PRESENTATION ON THEIR COMPANY THAN IN DISCUSSING MY PROJECT WITH ME. I HAD GIVEN HIM A PRICE RANGE AND WITHOUT ANY EXAMINATION OF MY HOME, HE SAID IT WAS TOO LOW. THE COUPLE OF THINGS I SAID I WANTED DONE, HE INDICATED WERE TOO EXPENSIVE AND SAID HE WOULDN'T EVEN PUT THEM IN THE ESTIMATE. WHEN I DID RECEIVE THE ESTIMATE IT WAS CONSIDERABLY HIGHER THAN ANY OTHER ESTIMATE I RECEIVED. I HAD TWO OTHER COMPANIES GIVE ME ESTIMATES. THEY SPENT 90 MINUTES WITH ME TAKING PICTURES AND HEARING WHAT I WANTED. LOREN SPENT ABOUT 15 MINUTES OF THE 45 MINUTES TALKING ABOUT MY PROJECT. NEEDLESS TO SAY, AFTER THE EXPERIENCE WITH OBTAINING THE ESTIMATE, I WOULD NEVER CONSIDER THEM FOR A PROJECT EVEN IF THE ESTIMATE HAD BEEN REASONABLE.

EVERYTHING IN MY KITCHEN WAS OLD FASHIONED AND I WANTED IT TO BE NEW, CLEAN AND CONTEMPORARY. I DIDN'T CHANGE THE SIZE OR SHAPE OF THE EXISTING KITCHEN, BUT I FEEL THE SPACE IS USED MUCH MORE EFFICIENTLY NOW. I GOT A FABULOUS CERAMIC TILE FLOOR AND MATCHING BACKSPLASH. I AM SO PLEASED WITH THE LOOK AND FEEL OF MY NEW KITCHEN! LOREN MET ME AT MY HOME FOR THE INITIAL MEETING TWO DAYS AFTER I CALLED. HE TOLD ME ABOUT THEIR DESIGN AND PLANNING SYSTEM, WHICH IS VERY DETAILED AND THOROUGH, WHICH IS GREAT BECAUSE I LIKE TO KNOW WHAT I AM PAYING FOR. SINCE, I WASN'T MAKING ANY STRUCTURAL CHANGES, THIS PART OF THE PROJECT WAS PRETTY QUICK. AFTER THAT I HAD TO MAKE CHOICES ABOUT WHICH CABINETS AND COUNTERTOPS I WANTED, WHAT KIND OF FLOOR COVERING, PICK OUT APPLIANCES, CHOOSE COLORS FOR THE WALLS, TRIM, CEILING AND A NEW LIGHT FIXTURE. MARTY, LOREN'S DAD AND THE FOUNDER OF THE COMPANY, WAS SO KNOWLEDGEABLE. HE ANSWERED QUESTIONS AND GAVE GREAT ADVICE WHEN I ASKED FOR IT. CASTLE'S CARPENTERS, DAN