JLS Land Services

James and his group were professional and did a beautiful job. They also listened to our suggestions and desires. He also continues to be responsive after the project to make sure we are happy with the work. But the thing that set them apart the most is their responsiveness. James is highly responsive both over email and phone and showed up on time as scheduled - a rarity in the world of contracting!

I knew nothing about JLS Land services except what I saw on Angie's list, Facebook and his website. I liked what I saw and took a chance. I was very happy with the work James and his crew did on my paver patio and fire pit. They worked full days arriving at 8:30am and leaving at 6:00pm on the three days it took them to create my 17' x 16' patio with low retaining wall, walkway and fire pit. James was on site two out of the three days and when he was not available it was easy to communicate with his workers. He was flexible with the design and listened to my ideas. James was always available by phone, text or email. I would hire James again.

Exceptionally. At the time of the quote he made suggestions to improve the end result and also save money by using some existing materials. He sent the estimate on a timely basis, and when the the day came for the work to be done the crew arrived first thing in the morning and completed the job by nightfall just as promised. I have had some nightmare experiences with other contractors that failed to live up to commitments, overcharged, cut corners, or in some cases simply stopped showing up entirely before the job was finished. Not JLS. I cannot think of a single thing they could have done better. They were punctual, professional, and thorough every step of the way. The end result was even better than I'd expected. I would unhesitatingly recommend them and will certainly be using them again myself.

This is the 2nd hardscape project we had JLS Land Services do. It turned out great and James and his crew were kept us informed about the project and finished fast. The walkway and front step came out beautiful!

We have used JLS Landservices on four separate occasions over approximately three years. Every time has been a wonderful experience and the outcome has at the very least met our expectations and normally exceeded them. James is a very conscientious owner and has always gone the extra mile to make certain that we are pleased with the service and the final product. I can recommend this business without reservation.

JLS Land Services is always my "go to" company for anything needed in my 4.5 acre yard that I can't do myself, and after our first job, I've been using them for several years now. James is always extremely responsive, including coming within 24 hours to fix a problem that building contractor created with our neighbor's property. His crew members are hard working and respectful and skilled at what they do. Highly recommend!!

JLS poured our concrete patio and replaced our steps twice and both times the work was terrible. We paid them a deposit of $2,325 to get the work started. The first time they allowed the patio concrete to harden and it could not be smoothed. They put the pipe that formed the bull nose on the steps in backwards so that when they removed the form, it was concave rather than convex. We talked to Bill at JLS and agreed to his request to allow them to do the work again and make it right--he called it "Concrete 101". He said they would work on Friday to tear out the work and be back on Monday to reset the forms. On July 3, JLS completely tore out the patio and steps. They did not come Monday. On Tuesday, July 7, my husband called Bill and he said to expect them on Thursday, July 9. They came on Wednesday, July 8. My husband called Bill again Thursday or Friday and he said to expect the concrete delivery on Tuesday, July 14. Tuesday, Bill called to reschedule due to to bad weather and on Friday, July 17, they poured the new concrete. Monday, July 20, they took off the forms. My husband said he complained to the workers that patio was not smooth and the lines were uneven and they told him that's the way it looks. On the steps, they told him they were working out air bubbles and they tried adding more concrete to even them out. Also, on the steps, when they removed the first job, they chipped the sidewalk and I told my husband I wanted them to fill that in. JLS told him it needed to be chipped for "expansion" for snow and ice. I wasn't talking about an expansion line; I was talking about chips in the adjacent sidewalk but they filled in everything and now we don't know if we have room for expansion or not. Even though he was unhappy with the work, my husband gave the foreman a $4,538 check for the balance of the contract. When I got home that night and saw the work, I felt sick. It didn't look any better that the previous job and in some ways -- uneven color and texture -- it looked worse! I was very angry with my husband for giving them the check. We decided to try to calm down and wait a day to see if the color at least blended or if the concrete somehow settled. It did not. On Tuesday, July 21, we sent the owner (James) and Bill pictures of the job and a text saying we were unhappy with the work and asking someone to come and see the work. No one replied. On Wednesday, July 22, my husband called and left messages on Bill's cell, the owner's cell and the company phone. No one called him back. At this point, we cancelled the check. We feel this company has taken advantage of us. They can't tell us that this is the way concrete is supposed to look because we've seen other concrete jobs and the lines on those jobs are straight and the color is even. The JLS concrete work is already chipping, cracking and flaking; the color is splotchy and uneven; the texture is uneven and rough-looking; the patio slab lines are crooked, chipped and they fade in and out; and there's a hole at the bottom side of the step where stones are coming out and it looks like it's falling apart. We actually had a hard time limiting ourselves to ten pictures...we took so many and each one looks worse than the one next to it. Update 7/28: It's no longer a question of the steps looking like they're falling apart. They are crumbling and falling apart. On Monday, July 27th, it rained and my husband looked at the work and sent Amanda at Angie's List an email saying the work looked even worse after the rain. On Tuesday, July 28th, before I went to work in the morning, I looked a little closer at the steps. I found the hole on the bottom side continued to crumble and I measured it. It went from a small hole to one 2 1/2 inches in height and it's wider too. This is exactly why we needed the job done in the first place. After the hard winter, once the steps started crumbling, they kept on crumbling. I cannot overemphasize how unhappy we are with the work. We have no faith in the integrity of the concrete and believe they won't last a year. We are determined not to pay another penny for this work.

ientJosh is always pleasnt and accomodating. Did the job quicklyand efficiently. cleans up and you would never now he was there.

Based on their unresponsiveness, I would not use this company.

Another useless contractor on Angie's List

We were hoping to get on schedule to clear snow for Thursday March 5 snow. Due to the provider's very busy schedule, he could not fit me in the schedule. The provider was very responsive. Therefore, I would like to try their services for the coming winter.

Dealing with JLS Land Service's Bill Bayler was nothing short of magnificent. He was very patient with us throughout the process which did go on for some time since we were not sure about his vision and we were struggling with our own as well. Very happy that we listened to his design ideas since we could not be happier with the appearance of the new entrance. Bill was literally available by email almost immediately, sometimes well after working hours. That's what I call responsive service! I have no reservation recommending this company whatsoever. We will follow-up if we can since we are waiting for Bill to repair/replace some mushroom fixtures that were bad shortly after install (no fault of JLS Land Services; manufacturing issue with lights). We are also anxious to see how the new plantings fair the winter so that we can see how they respond if needed. Again, though, if the initial experience is any sign of how potential future experiences will go, I expect nothing short of amazing.

This was not an easy project. Our pool was set low for the grading, so JLS had to some in and correct the issue, provide drainage while still making everything look great. Mission accomplished. What a great job. They came in, worked everyday until it was finished, and are still following up to make sure everything is satisfactory. Everyone seeing the pool ignores the pool and compliments the hardscaping and plantings.

They did plant them all in one day. They have excellent customer service. He did exactly what he said when he said he would. The workmanship itself was excellent.

I can't say enough about the good experience we had with JLS Land Services. They went the extra mile and knew what they were doing and were always fair and honest. We got so much more than we expected. I have already recommended them to my Mom.

James estimated my job within 24 hours and was very competitive. He saved me money by using his experience and not taking advantage of the lack of mine. I would use James any time for any type of landscaping, he is the man! He knows what he's doing, he's honest and a hard-working person. Thank you James!

We were not very satisfied with the end result. He just sketched out something on a piece of graphing paper which I feel like we could have done ourselves.

I contacted JLS in mid March and was promptly able to schedule a consultation for landscaping (front and rear of my home) for 3/21/2014. The gentleman that came to my house (don't remember his name) on that date was on time and seemed to be knowledgable about suggestions and drafting a proposal to re do the existing landscaping at our home (just purchased late last summer and wanted to make updates). He stated he would have a proposal within about a week as it was spring and they were busy with proposals (completely understood and other firms were also quoting 1 week for proposals). 2 1/2 weeks later I had not heard back so I sent an email just asking for an update so that I could compare JLS proposal to others received. I received an email back that same day that I would have the proposal the next day. Sounded good.... Well, here we are 2 weeks after that email (over 4 weeks since the original meeting) and I have yet to hear a word back on any proposal or estimate. While my job might not have been the biggest that they had lined up (gave a rough estimate that I was looking to spend around 5K) they could at least respond that my job was too small if that was the case.

JLS Land Services, was by far one of the best hires we have had service our house. Our home had been flooded by the freak rain storm in August, which stemmed from a previously, poorly designed drainage directly into a window well. JLS Land Services, main point of contact, Bill Bayler, was response and prompt on his initial visit. After surveying the work that needed to be done, he provided us with some recommendations, as well as his over all thoughts on the job. We explained to Bill, that we were looking for a quick turnaround time, since we had exposure to more water coming into the house. After considering other possible options, we called Bill and told him we would like to use JLS. Bill took time out of his Saturday, understanding our desire to have this completed quickly. JLS did not give the lowest price on face value, but after reviewing other costs, that would have been associated with the job from other prospective service providers, JLS provided the most value for the cost (to be clear, it was very competitive in cost, but the services, made the difference). After much dealings with the township to gain a permit, the JLS team went to work. The owner, James was an integral part of the work being done. The work was done on time, and we are extremely pleased with the results. A couple of points, we would like to make. - JLS (both Bill and James) - were always very responsive, to every call we had (no matter what the question was <even a couple of months after the work has been complete>). This is something that we had not previously experienced. We were extremely impressed by this. - Both Bill and James, listened to our concerns and what we wanted. They allowed this to be a collaborative effort, and always made us feel included. Even when the job was completed, if we had additional questions, the team came out to review our concerns, and either fixed the issue, or assured us that it was okay. - The entire team who worked on the patio, were extremely professional, took time to explain what was being done, and were always respectful of our property. - Lastly, the work that was completed exceeded our expectations. Including a re-designing of some of the shrubbery, plants and trees. The work that was done, was excellent. The bottom line is we have no doubt that we made the correct decision in hiring JLS, and we plan to use them for future landscaping needs, as well as other things that we may want in the future. We would highly recommend using JLS Land Services for any of patio designs and work that people may want; as well as the landscaping for the home.

I called an set up an appointment to meet their designer. He arrived promptly. Very pleasant and nice to work with. We walked the property and discussed three specific areas for attention. I asked for an itemized estimate because we might choose to do the work a piece at a time, dependent upon cost. He said he would get back to me in a week with the estimate. After three weeks, I called him to see if he had an estimate prepared. He had the estimate but had lost my contact information and was unable to call me (though we are listed in the telephone directory). We agreed on an appointment and he came and presented his proposal. His was not the only proposal under consideration, so I asked for a day or two to review the information with my husband. I presented all the proposals, without the cost information, to my husband and we assessed each one from an aesthetic point of view. Another provider came out on top. The cost for this particular proposal, however, was more than twice the cost of the plan we selected and did not include anything considerably different.

?WOW? is the only word that my wife and I can think of that best describes our walkway that JLS Land Services created for us. We found James Schmidt (JLS) and his crew through Angie?s list. We had just become Angie members because we had requested three other estimates from non-Angie contractors and were not happy at all with their responsiveness. When we called James for an estimate, he was back to us within the hour. I can?t remember if it was that day or the next that he stopped by to look at our project. All I know is that he was here promptly and emailed us the estimate shortly thereafter. We thought that his estimate was very fair for the amount of work that needed to be done. I can honestly say that every call and email that I subsequently made to James Schmidt was responded to almost immediately. As for the crew at JLS, they couldn?t have been nicer. We wanted our paver walkway to be somewhat ?curvy?; consequently, the guys would ask us if we approved or disapproved of the way they were anticipating laying out the pavers before they actually set the stone. It doesn?t get better than that! Our project turned out more beautiful then we ever anticipated. We look upon James?s crew as true artists. Upon completion of our project, which took about five days, the grounds and the driveway were cleaned beautifully. Everyone that comes to visit us now, can?t help but to complement us on our wonderful walkway. It has given us curb appeal that we were sorely missing and as a result, we can honestly say that we think that we have the most beautiful walkway in our entire development. Thank you, thank you, thank you, JLS Land Services. Roz and Alan Kravitz 111 Commonwealth Dr. Newtown, PA 18940

The man came out and was very nice. He did the design, but it was for the wrong type of house. The landscaping did not fit our house and we didn’t end up pursuing the work.

We had an awesome experience with JLS. From the beginning stages with Jim (landscape architect) to James and his crew who installed the patio, they were very knowledgeable, diligent, conscientious and receptive to any questions we had. The guys who worked on the patio worked extremely hard and had a few very long, hot days. We LOVE how our patio turned out!!! I can't say enough about how comfortable we were with working with JLS... never felt like they were trying to rush through it. They were always straight forward and honest.

Very personable and helpful young man. I liked his ideas, but what I was after was a simpler plan that would be less expensive than what he suggested. The mistake was probably mine. I haven't worked with a landscaper before, and I didn't have any idea what it would cost.

To all interested parties: I have waited several months to write this review in order to let some time pass. This way I could write this review with presumably a more objective perspective. To this end I do believe that my review is as reasonable as possible given the result and with as minimal subjective emotion as can be mustered based on the project outcome and Jim Langenstein (Private contractor, not an emplyee of JLS) and James's (Owner of JLS) work and interactions with me. For some background, JLS's business model is to have Jim (subcontractor to JLS) work directly with the clients and create the proposals and supervise the overall work. At first I thought this was a creative model but in the end, I changed my opinion. If you feel you want my ?end-recommendation" now instead of reading my entire review I will share it with you and you can stop here, ****I would NEVER use or recommend that anyone use JLS for any work, period.***** If you would like to read the details to back up my recommendation, I have bulleted my feedback/Review to make it easier to follow and to be more concise. So here it is. During the contract phase of the project, they proved unable and unwilling to provide me with a detailed, line item estimate of their proposed work. Because of this, we went back and forth many times with both parties getting frustrated. My intent was to cap the overall cost and eliminate secondary priority work. Jim made it a challenge to do this by his insistence that they do not provide this to their clients. Being in the "Capital project contracting" business and previously being a General contractor, I found this to be a problem and the lazy way to conduct business. I should have known better but continued to proceed anyway. They arrived late to the job site the first day. The excuse was James's trailer had taillight issues. Although Jim stated he would be onsite for both days of the work, he told me he had to leave on the second day to take care of family issues. He left the crews to do the work without his direct supervision. And although James (the owner) was onsite he was not the individual I worked with during the planning and contracting process. So his knowledge of the scope was second hand and ultimately proved to be a problem. They rushed through the job, not planning for enough time to do the work properly. 2 days instead of 3. They finished the second day?s work in the dark with only the lights from my backyard house light to finish. As they rushed to complete, James held out his hand and wanted final payment, even though I had no ability to really check their work. I made the mistake of paying him in cash, which is what they demanded. The work was done shoddy when I walked the property the next day. Their final grading was uneven and ended up creating a water basin in an area by my house. Exactly the issue I wanted them to resolve. In the end and even today water collects and pools up in my yard. Even though Jim walked my property several times during the contracting phase, during the job, work they told me they couldn't fully complete the drainage gulley that went to the front of the house because of tree roots of an existing tree. So they said it needed to be removed before they could finish it. So this meant that I ended up having a half dug gulley with roots they had started to cut sticking up for almost six months looking like crap! I ultimately had the tree removed in Feb because water was pooling up and at that time I felt I had to remove it. In retrospect, I removed a 50 year old tree based on their incompetence. They did not come to the job site with the correct materials to connect the drain spouts and sump pump pipe to the drainage tubes. So they "jury-rigged" them and said they would come back to correct them. They used the cheapest drainage covers you can buy for several drain vents/holes into the drainage pipes. They did not put enough backfill into the drainage ditches that they dug so within weeks the soil settled and created impressions. Because Jim was not onsite for most of the second day as promised the work was done poorly. So trying to minimize my losses, I dangled the prospect of more work for them to get them to come back and correct their shoddy work knowing full well that I would have no recourse if they decided to just walk away. So for months and months we went back and forth until finally getting them to commit to a spring day in early April to come back. I made it clear I was taking a second day off to be home when the work was happening and that they should not be late. Of course they were late and did not show up until late morning (10:30ish). I have forgotten their excuse but I am sure it was a good one. They brought more topsoil in (having to go and get more because of more bad estimating and planning) and did a little better job grading the back area but not much better as conditions now are worse than before I paid them the 6K to help me resolve the issue. Without bringing a backhoe, (which I later realized was probably their plan for that day) they told me a tree root from the removed tree was blocking their way and they couldn't grade the trench/gulley towards the front of the house to drain the water appropriately. No offense but the tree was removed and with a chain saw I could have removed the root in 5 minutes. This even after we begged the tree service contractor to come back that day and dig the stump out even farther because of James's insistence. The fact that they didn't bring their backhoe only dawned on me after they had left. They in fact had no intention of making much effort to do the right thing. Thier excuse? It was not in their scope to remove a root. Really? You couldn't do that for a customer? A 10 minute effort? Hmmmm (okay some subjective opinion thrown in here!) During the second "go-round", I ended up having to explain to James the owner, what the original scope of the work was as he was placing the topsoil in a completely different location than Jim L. and I had agreed. More incompetence and lack of focus on quality. I ended up calling Jim L. on the phone after this incident and insisting that he come to the job site. Before the day commenced I tried to insist to Jim that he be onsite for the day. He told me he couldn't and that it was unreasonable for me to expect him to be onsite for the day. I told him that since he was not onsite as promised in the fall that he in essence owed me a day. He came in the afternoon after I caught James putting topsoil in the wrong place and I called him in frustration. During the walkthrough towards the end of the day, I asked them to sweep off excess dirt around my shed foundation perimeter because there was caked on dirt, especially on one corner. They never did this. Why, I wondered. Than after I cleaned it off after they left, the answer was apparent. They had crushed two "J" bolts I had set into the foundation to be used for the wood shed I am going to build. They had bent them over during their ?work? and instead of just telling me about them and possibly correcting the issue, they tried to hide them from me by covering them with dirt. ultimately three "J" bolts were bent by them. They ended up fixing the drain connections to my expectations. (positive!) They ended up again, not putting enough dirt over the depressions of the original drain pipe trenches they dug so there is still depressed soil long the route from my downspouts to the sidewalk popup drain. Which of course, is sunk into the grade too deep and creates a small pool of water when it rains! The re-grading in the back area "looked" a little better but not good enough to drain the water away, towards the front of the house and up to my expectations. Not that it would have done any good because the tree root prevented them from grading it past that point anyway. So in the end, I spent over 7K on the job. (1,200 on the tree removal on their insistence) and my backyard is a friggen mess. It is worse than before. Instead of a wet area 15 feet from the back of my house, I have a small pond about 8 feet from my house, 6 feet in diameter when it rains. I have line depressions on my front side lawn where the drainage pipe was installed. I have an ugly gulley/trench along the side of my shed foundations. Now instead of much of the water running on my neighbor?s property from the wooded hill behind our homes it now runs almost all into my yard. So instead of resolving my water issue, JLS actually made it worse. Their only redeeming quality that I can see is that they actually showed up in the spring and made a lazy attempt to get me to NOT Write this negative review. The work was of poor quality and truly half-assed but they showed up which is better than likely 50% or more of the other so-called contractors out there in the world today. I believe Jim Langenstein is a decent individual and given the right situation would likely do well and perform but James (Owner) of JLS has a poor attititude (likely why he has hired Jim to be the client facing rep for JLS) and the aulity of his work is poor. I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND JLS FOR ANY WORK ON YOUR HOME. Stay away and don?t waste your money. If you do hire them, you may as well open your window and throw it onto the street. Thank you for your patience reading this. i hope it saves you the time, money and frustration that i went through. Jim