Sussel Builders

They were $750 more than the company we went with. The other company gave me more for my money.

They came out and built me a two car garage. They took down the old garage, and poured a pad. They did the electrical on it, as well as the roofing and siding of it. They installed a window. They have great service. They are very nice people, and they do quality work.

They did a good job but I would have brought in an architect to straighten out some of the details that were overlooked or missed but that is probably the only problem I had with them, but then again it is not their fault, it is my own fault for being short sighted. We didn’t know what we were doing anyway, does anyone?! We haven’t done an addition on the house before and we have been in this space for thirty-five years. We put in a lot of windows in it and it looks like a three-season porch but it isn’t, it is actually a four-season porch and the guy really knocked himself out getting it designed but when it came down to building it , not so much. I ordered a Chalet look to windows on the east side of the house where the addition is, and it didn’t occur. I asked him if there was any way to change that and he said no, so I let it go but it turned out be a favor because the ferns will now get watered better from the rains. I wanted that European feel but that is my own quirk, I can't fault him for it at all but I wish I had known because we could have put it in the design easy enough and got it done, had we known ahead of time what they were going to do. They put the footing down in May 2012 and they weren’t done until the end of July 2012 but it was not their fault because we had a lot of rain then. The original quote was around a $100000 and even with the overruns, it came about $25000 under than the other bid we got, which is fair enough. They subcontract the work and the workers that they bring in are excellent and have been with the company for fifteen to twenty years and are so happy to have the job that they knock themselves out to do the job right, that you will not get disappointment, which is my advertisement for Sussel.

The sales rep, Mike, was friendly, knowledgeable and professional. He provided detailed information about the project, answered questions and provided good input in terms of design. The various work crews (subcontractors) - demolition, concrete, carpenters, electrician, siding, and roofing - were all professional, friendly, answered our questions, and cleaned up after themselves. There were a few instances in which crews did not show up at time planned, which delayed completion. The reasons for not showing up were unrelated to construction of our garage. In each instance, we were notified that the crew would not be there as planned. Otherwise there no major problems. The Sussel project manager was friendly and responsive, but at times communication between project manager and the sales rep regarding what had been agreed on was lacking. That said, when this happened the project manager checked with the sales rep, who always backed what he had told us and the original agreement was honored. The only complaint we have is that we were told that the project would take 6 to 8 weeks start to finish. It actually took at least twice that time to complete - we signed the contract on 8/20, the permit was not pulled until 9/20, and the garage was not completed until the end of December.

Professional, very thorough, and knowledgeable.

We had a hard time getting everything in place to build this garage. Mike from Sussel Builders was extremely patient as 3 years of life's bumps kept getting in the way. They quoted prices each year without any pressure whatsoever as we tried to get things going. Their quoted price was 2nd lowest (of 5) but we selected them because of how they stuck with us through the 3 years and because of two other fine garages they built in our neighborhood. Finally this summer the stars aligned and we were able to get our garage built. From the time we signed the accepted contract proposal to the completion on the project was 5.5 weeks. Final inspection from the city took another week. We were very happy with the timeline. Each crew that came in was courteous, professional and hard working. Two people In particular stood out: 1.) Lyn, the project coordinator, was fantastic at keeping us informed every step of the way. 2.) Brian, the electrician, worked hard & late to finish his part of the job. Many neighbors also commented at how hard the crews worked and what a great job each crew did. We are very happy with our new garage, especially as the temps drop and snow flies.

I have lived in my house for over 14 years. During this time, I have hired a number of contractors for various projects and repairs. My experience with Sussel Builders was by far the worst that I have ever experienced with any service provider The sales process was easy but the problems, some minor and some less so, began shortly thereafter. Examples: Debris from the demolition was not completely removed from the site after demolition. The garage windows were not removed prior to demolition so shards of glass continue to litter my yard. An outside water faucet was available during the process. However, the crew did not turn off completely the faucet after using so I had to check it each night to prevent leaking and wasting water. When the building materials were delivered, the garbage can (which must be accessible from the alley for garbage pick up) was pushed into the yard and building materials placed in front of it. Since I could not move the garbage can due the curing of the garage floor and the placement of building materials, I did not have garbage pick up until after the framing commenced and enough of the building materials had been used so that I could move the garbage can to the alley. As of July 13, 2011, the roof was shingled except for the ridge formed by the north and east sides of the roof. It rained heavily on July 15, 16, and 17, 2011, with water leaking into the unshingled part of the roof. The shingling of the roof was completed on July 19, 2011. When I contact Sussel Builders I was told that the shingling was not completed on July 13, 2011 because "they were short shingles". During the framing of the garage, damaged (e.g. gouges, splits, etc.) materials were used. I notified Sussel Builders about these damaged materials. Some were replaced and some were not. Damaged materials were used also for the fireproof wall and were fixed only after I raised the issue. Currently, the panels are unevenly cut and are of different colors. Although I raised some of these issues as they occured and others in a detailed letter with my final payment, I did not receive any response from Sussel Builders until I contacted the City of Saint Paul inspections department. Since Sussel Builders was not responsive to me, the city inspector contacted them on my behalf which resulted in additional repairs. Since the project was completed (final building inspection was on September 12, 2011 with additional repairs on April 18, 2012), I have noticed stucco flaking off of the garage and warping in areas of the soffit/fascia. As of this writing I have not contacted Sussel Builders regarding these issues. Based on my experience, I would neither hire nor recommend Sussel Builders.

We first met them at the Home and Garden show while looking over potential contractors for our project. We initially had a favorable impression and they called within a week to set up an appointment to look over the project and speak with us. We had a great first meeting with Michael Russell and felt that they had the expertise and experience we were looking for. He clearly knew the codes as well as having great design ideas for us in terms of our vision of the project. Michael spent a good amount of time with us and contacted us again about a week later as promised to look over his proposal and other specifics. That meeting also went very well and we asked for some examples of their work we could look at, especially regarding the Hardy Board they were recommending as we were not familiar with the product. Within a day Mike gave us several projects in Minneapolis and the metro to go look at which we did. At one location we met an owner and he had great things to say about their project, which had been done several years earlier. A neighbor of ours also had a garage built several years earlier by Sussel and they were quite pleased as well. At that point we gave them the go-ahead for the project. Shortly after that we were contacted by the lead project engineer, John. The remainder of the communication about the project was done through him. John was easy to work with and gave us heads up as the the steps in the project and when both workers and materials would be arriving. All of that went pretty smoothly and things and crews showed up as expected. Everyone was easy to speak with and answered our many questions in a very friendly way without any type of attitude or off-putting manner, That was especially refreshing as I like to know what people are doing just for my own sake of knowledge. The project moved along very smoothly and the various trades showed up in an organized order, on time and ready to work. A maintenance specialist named Zac from Sussel visited the project when we were underway and he was a great help in regard to painting, concrete sealing and general maintenance information for us to be aware of for the new building. We did run into one major problem on the project regarding staining on the sides of the garage. Before the gutters were put up we had a huge all day rain event and the sides of the garage, which we had already painted, and the concrete apron in front of the roll-up door ended up with some extensive brown staining. I called John and he was there that day to look at what had happened and started immediately to figure out how to resolve this. Sussel stepped up and took responsibility on this issue. They provided some new stain blocking paint and reimbursed us very fairly for the additional painting time and materials it took to repaint the stained sides of the garage. They had Zac come by and he cleaned the concrete as part of this as well. Once all that was resolved the project was complete. We then noticed a small drip from one of the new downspouts on the house and again John looked into that and took care of it right away. We are very pleased with the project and the work done by Sussel. They are real pros who we realized we could trust to do quality work and depend upon. We would use them again without question.

My general experience was positive. Dennis quoted us the price and his estimate was clear and orderly, though he was abit crabby during the building process with our questions. The general contractor was easy to reach, quick to respond to questions and concerns, and professional though out the process. Their subs were uneven in quality. The framers and siders were fantastics. the roofer was O.K. the concrete was of poor quality- my biggest complaint being they didn't compact the ground so now we have cracks forming in several spots on the floor. You have to watch the work closely as we caught several minor mistakes. They can do as much or a little as you want them to do which is a good option to have if you are handy. I would recommend them but- put in writing that the concrete will be compacted ( with a tamper and not by driving the bobcat back and forth), that the concrete will be wheelbarrowed inside the forms (do not have the ready mix truck drive in the formed area) and have them use anchor bolts long enough to tie the block to the slab.

I had a very good experience, and I would very likely hire them for future work.

Overall NIGHTMARE. (See attached photos.) I believe the old-time reputable company SUSSEL BUILDERS was purchased, or the name was purchased, by the Russell Brothers.. Mike & Patrick Russell, brothers, who currently operate the company, run a very sloppy operation, nothing like their predecessor. The crews who actually do the work are hired outside sub-contractors who do no present themselves in a professional fashion. Sloppy work, delays, corner-cutting, cigarette butts & nails left behind... This is what to expect once signing a contract with SUSSEL. I contracted to have a new screen porch built on the back of my house. First an old smaller deck needed to be removed, then the installation of a large screen porch & deck was to take place. From the start it was a nightmare. the footings were installed sloppy. The lumber arrived all beat up, as if it was left over from another job site or bought from some defective distributor. The first building crew kept messing up, things were not true & square, the stairs were built totally sub-standard & hazardous. When pointing out various unacceptable issues to the construction crew, one of the carpenters threatened me, swearing at me, getting in my face as if ready to get physical. SUSSELL had to remove this crew from the property - Threatening & Unsafe to have at my home. The roofers were an illegal (my assumption) crew of immigrants, who threw the roof on in just a few hours, a roof that was sagging from the start, improperly attached to the existing roof line, and leaking from ice dams within 3 months of installation.. SUSSEL - Mike & Patrick Russell - sicced their brother/cousin, an attorney, on me when I demanded satisfaction. THIS WAS THE WORSE CONTRACTOR EXPERIENCE I'VE HAD IN OVER 20 YRS OF HOME OWNERSHIP & REMODELING...

I expected a great job from Sussel builders and I got it. I had them build a garage a number of years ago and they did a great job then. All the experiences I have had with the company have been great. I would definately use them agin and I would not hesitate to reccommend them to friends and family.

Very well. No complaints, no surprises.

Sussel was top-notch from start to finish. Mike (salesman) did an amazing job of brainstorming ideas for finding a creative way to add a 2 car garage to our property. We had had other companies come out to do estimates, but his ideas were by far the most creative and helpful. The job coordinator (Lyn) did a wonderful job making it all happen. He kept us up-to-date on progress and answered all of our questions along the way. Each piece of the job was extremely well executed--from the concrete people, to the carpenter, to the roofers, to the electricians. I would highly recommend their services!

They were fine and their service is good. We decided not to use them because of the cost.

Requested quote and received a very detailed and professional response. The overall price in comparison to the other quotes received was significantly higher (~20% more) for the same work. They did offer to reduce the scope of work to make their quote fit my budget but I was unwilling to sacrifice the scope. The other concern was the quote was one price. There was no itemization to allow me to a la carte choose the scope items I would do myself without going through the estimate process again.

Sussel was our high bid - we chose not to use them. Zach was very helpful and patient.

The guy came out to give an estimate on time. He took some measurements but he never went on the roof. He mailed a bid after about a week. It was not very detailed and on the high side. I did not follow up with him and neither did he.

Very efficient and quick to get the job done. Went smoothly without any problems. Was very pleased with the end result and I am still loving my new garage.

The guy was very personable but his prices were a little high. We decided to put in money and build a three or four season porch.

Sussel was great every step of the way. Bob was the project manager and he did a great job. Mine is an older house and so there were always unexpected issues arising and Bob handled these very well as the changes I had during the process. Very attentive, meticulous and always considering the best available option. I was very concerned about cost and even more concerned about quality. Bob kept me informed about what materials were used and what my options were. Sussel provided great value for the extensive work that I had done and always provided top quality. I cannot be more pleased with my experience with Sussel. Previously I had them tear down and build my garage and I was very please with that as well.

I was satisfied with the work. The job went pretty well. They were very good with clean-up. If there were any messes, they cleaned up right away. They always called ahead of time to tell me what the schedule was. They were punctual. The job worked out fine. They were pretty professional, and they knew what they were doing. They seemed to be efficient. One guy did the whole job by himself.

Overall the project went very well. The salesman was courteous and took me through the list of things that would be done, products were chosen and ordered. The project coordinator was professional, returned calls and kept me informed of what to expect in regards to what would happen and in what order. There was some minor miscommunications that were easily clarified. The projet took the expected amount of time with the expected amount of mess. The company met my expectations from beginning to end

They quoted me about $1100.00. I've used them in the past and due to my past experience, I've liked their work before and it works.

Overall well. We had been worried as snow unexpectedly came down the day the concrete floor was poured. Blankets were applied. Garage went up fast. There was a snafu with the shingles: the color was correct, but had been ordered from the wrong manufacturer so didn't match our house. Within 3 days they had torn off the mistake and installed the correct shingles. A year later we are very pleased. No cracks in the concrete. We did have the concrete sealed by the subcontractor as a separate cost. I think that was about $200.