HARVARD HEIGHTS CONSTRUCTION

Harvard Heights built our garage apartment in 2012 and we had been in contact with them about coming out to make a few modifications as they have claimed to have improved their building materials and processes. It was a 2 week process to get a call returned and then another week to have Mike out to the house to survey the property and discuss that we have had to have the stairs replaced already due to rot and that there is mold growing inside the unit due to the lack of water proofing measures on the upstairs French doors. We didn't ask for them to warranty any of this, we gladly planned to pay for a partial remodel and replacement of the faulty issues as well as a full Sheetrock inside the garage and raising the garage door. He said he would have a quote to me in 3 business days. It is now 3 weeks later and Mike and his crew have not returned any calls or texts to me and have not even sent me a quote! At first we didn't even have any issues that we had to re-do some of the work they had done and chalked it up to learning process and houston humidity but now I am thinking this is an endemic issue as evidenced by the lack of communication and forthrightness. I have even left messages simply asking them to please just let me know if they don't want to complete the project so I can move on to other vendors, but that has led to radio silence as well. I would not hire these guys if you would like to be able to communicate with someone openly and honestly about the project at hand and set a reliable schedule according to your needs. As of yet, I have called a total of 42 times in the past 2 months and have nothing to show for all the time and effort we spent attempting to give our business to a local provider.

Harvard heights construction built a garage apartment of 26 ft by 24 ft with two baths, storage area and AC for both the garage and apartment. Overall they performed a fantastic job. The result is a very high quality product at a reasonably price. From the start, around April, they have been always clear in concepts and gave good advice to some of the ideas we had about how we wanted the building to be done. The contractor started providing the plans for a popular model that works very well in the area we have for the garage. We customize that plan to address our needs and after the final plan was completed they proceed with all the requirements to obtain permits, then demolition of existing garage and started construction. All the steps during the construction were explained by the contractor before proceeding and they only charged for the activities that were being completed. All my questions were answered and any extras due to additions or changes I wanted at last minute were addressed in a very professional way. I want to highlight that they put a lot of effort to complete the job on time maintaining the quality. I totally recommend this company after the positive experience I had with them.

I have been talking to Mike off and on for about 5 years about my desire to build a garage apartment. I did not end up pulling the trigger on one due to my frequent travel and overseas relocations, but this is something I plan to do eventually. I have seen the negative reviews on this site and am a bit shocked......my experience with Mike has been very positive, although my interaction swith him have been limited to planning phase. I met mike on two occasions in 2007 to look at my properties and assess suitability to construct garage apartments. Mike provided cost estimates and floor plans and met me at two different properties, and on three occasions provided project addresses where I could go and inspect jobs he had that were underway. Mike has always been friendly and engaging and has provided estimates and layouts (even specially-modified layouts) at no charge . I found this impressive, particularly during the 2004-8 building boom in Houston and the Heights, when other architects I talked to wanted $4000 to start drafting up a set of permitting plans. The 4-5 garage apartments I did look at were quite impressive, and I do plan to do one or more garage apartments with Mike once I find myself in Houston long enough to get one scoped out and contracted. I'm sure no job is perfect and I do not have experience with any builders aside from Mike, but I have worked with enough simple remodelling contractors to become comfortable that Mike is the guy I want to use for my garage apartment.

It started off fairly well, The general quality of the work was mediocre. Mike?s helper was unimpressive in his management of the job. Even simple things like protecting the bathtub after installation ended up being done by me. Coordination between contractors was poor. Mike tries to keep multiple jobs going so he can rotate his contractors regularly and keep them busy. This means your job may get slowed intentionally. I was trying to shorten the schedule as much as possible, had the money ready to go and had purchased all materials long before he needed them. I had clearly mentioned this during the initial negotiations. He still ended up sandbagging (slowing the job) in order to manage other jobs. Failures include; piers out of line, no plaster inspection, missed smoke alarm power, horrible A/C installation, mediocre kitchen finish, stairs installed last minute, failed one mechanical inspection for lack of paper work, no plumbing flush resulting in clogged line. He could have done the same job in half the time. He seemed to be constantly trying to find a cheaper solution, costing the job?s performance in the end. At one point my driveway became a storage yard for someone else?s construction materials which were getting in the way of a party. Thank heavens for a good paint job to cover up the poor workmanship which seems the standard for Houston and surrounding areas. If you?re picky about quality, a tidy and efficient job and speed don?t hire Mike. If you don?t care as long as it gets done and think Houston construction standards are great, Harvard Heights may be your answer. Mike talks a lot but doesn't deliver. Either way, the service falls short of the markup charged.

There is not enough space on this report to provide the list of things that went wrong with our project. I can not count the number of times I felt my blood pressure sky rocket while this project was going on.

Called Mike's company to see if he had improved his past record of poor customer service. He has not. He did return my first call, and we had a pleasant conversation. He said he would inspect the garage and call right back with a proposal and price. He never called back.

The job was never started.

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My first few calls were never returned. Finally, I got Mike to call me back and he agreed to come out and give me a bid. He showed up at my house as planned and we discussed my project at length...and then drove to another project he was working on. I was very impressed with his work, pricing of his other projects and what he had to say and anxiously awaited my bid, which he promised to get to me within a week or two. I never heard from him again, despite several more follow up calls.

The experience was really good. Mike came out, looked at we wanted, talked to us about it, showed us some of the things he is working on in the neighborhood and was really clear. He was just really good. The price was about what I expected maybe a little better. Mike's prices reflected the average of what we got from other companies. If you were to talk to my wife she would say he was well under.

Everything was excellent from the concrete to the framing. They completed the job in a timely fashion, due to the fact that it was such a large project. All of the workers were very pleasant to work with. They were also respectful, as my wife didn't feel threatened at all by them, when they came to work.

I wanted to use this contractor based on proximity to my house, and he came recommended by 2 different people I know. I called their answering service, who promised me a call back to arrange a meeting time. After 3-4 days, no response, I called again. Same result. I called a third time. Finally, 3 days after my third call, the contractor called me back. We discussed the work, and he had some ideas. He arranged to meet 3 days later at a time convenient for HIM (not me). I had 2 other parties out in the meantime to give me a quote on the same work. Harvard Heights never came out at the time we arranged, and they never called to tell me why. I gave the work to someone else.

Harvard Heights is very good at what they do. They also build garage apartments. In the future, if I need a shell addition on my home I will have Mike handle it. I did not have them do interior work so I cannot comment on their finish quality although I know he has performed these services for others and can provide references. He was very good about driving me around to other projects and letting me speak to homeowners.