North East Landscaping Services

We originally contacted Carlos in March, and met with him face-to-face for an estimate on March 17th. At the time of our walk-around, Carlos suggested a few other services he would be able to provide that we had not taken into consideration. Carlos had no problem engaging us in conversation, boasting that he attended UW for agricultural studies, and was licensed as a specialist in the use of industrial strength herbicides not available for consumer use. We were actually growing impatient because he was talking non-stop in perfectly fine English about his credentials ad nauseam (I'll explain why this is relevant later). Carlos gave us a rough estimate of $2,700. He asked us to send him an e-mail reminding him of our conversation because he had allegedly been so busy that day, and so we could receive an "accurate estimate". We figured he had to check prices for materials and that the price might rise slightly. Our yard isn't very large, and the primary work we needed was lawn restoration. The strip along side our garage, where he said he could add gravel, is narrow and only the length of the garage. The rest is lawn. Carlos proudly told us we could check his reviews on Angie's List. Having never used Angie's List prior to meeting Carlos, we subscribed and checked the reviews. The reviews looked great, but what he didn't mention was the 15% discount for first time customers. We contacted Carlos the same night to remind him of our meeting, and to inquire about the 15% discount. The estimate he sent us back suddenly shot up to over $3,019 (it later rose to $3,646.35), and curiously, when we wrote back to ask about the new estimate, Carlos blamed it on a lack of English comprehension, and claimed he didn't always understand conversations between his English speaking customers. We were dubious about his intentions at this point, but we wrote back and explained that he gave us a rough estimate of $2,700, and that we didn't mean to offend him by inquiring about the Angie's List discount. He replied by listing off the services he was going to provide, and said he would honor the original estimate AND the Angie's List discount if we chose to have all of the services done at the same time. Of course we agreed. Carlos sent back the date of April 21st, and explained that he would send someone out two weeks prior to the main job in order to apply the herbicides to the weeds. He didn't set a specific date for the herbicides, merely saying "when we have time and a Sunny Day we will spray all the weeds with herbicide". We agreed, figuring it was difficult for him to set a date for the application of herbicides because we were still in the rainy season. However, the "when we have time" part really worried me. I wrote back, explaining that we had previously hired a non-contracted team to do our yard last year, and they promised to lay down weed barriers, borders, and many other tasks, but neglected to do all of that and hid their lack of work under a thick layer of mulch. I asked for an itemized checklist of tasks that we could check off as services were completed, and to please give us a better time frame for the application of herbicides. He sent back a time frame March 30th to April 3rd, but failed to send us an itemized checklist. April 3rd came and went, and we had a nice weekend of sun, but no one from North East Landscaping ever showed up at our home. We waited until April 8th to write Carlos back, once again asking for an itemized list, and inquiring about the time frame for the herbicides because the two week window between applying herbicides and the lawn restoration was no longer an option, if he was going to honor his April 21st job date. Carlos wrote back on April 9th, final giving us the itemized list we asked for, but the new estimate suddenly jumped to $3,646.35. Not only did he raise the estimate, but he changed to work date as well. The new date was now April 25th, and he said he was going to send someone to apply herbicides April 17th, one week prior to the job date. In our initial meeting, Carlos had explained why it was so important to give the herbicides at least two weeks to work, now he was going against the information he previously gave us. He said he was still going to honor the 15% discount, but according to his new estimate, the price would now be $3,646.35 minus 15%, equaling $3099.40. We were really having a hard time accepting this constant shifting of dates and prices, we had already shifted our schedules to be home for the April 21st date, and we were especially worried about the new time frame for herbicide application, since it was Carlos that explained to us why it was so important to wait two weeks. We cancelled the job due to a severe lack of confidence. I strongly suggest that if you choose to go forward with any job from North East Landscaping, you keep a pen and pad of paper with you, write down everything you agree to with Carlos, write down the specific estimate he gives you verbally upon meeting him face-to-face, and ask for specific dates and hold him to those dates, as well as the estimate. On another note, we also found out that the realtor we used to move into our home has been using Carlos for a number of years, and they told us later that they've been receiving complaints about his most recent work, or lack thereof. So, even though he has a good history here on Angie's List, apparently his work quality has dropped. Just food for thought.

they came a week later in the midst very hectic time when movers were moving big stuff, not coming as have scheduled a week ago! I have a small area of grass in need of light trim (about 400 sf) prior to the treatment to be more effective, asked them to trim since they came later to begin, but they asked me for more money which I ended up paying $20 extra, for the size and the treatment could have been not any more than $100 but I ended up spending $145! It took two guys less than 1/2 hour to complete the service, should have done mowing as complimentary!!

Good efficient clean work by one worker for sprinklers and two workers for landscaping.

We have used NE Landscaping Service before for a full yard clean up. Our house is on a 6000 sq. ft. lot with bad soil. We have found this firm to be easy to deal with. They do what they say they will do, when they say they will do it. The staff who have come to our house have and continue to do a great job. Our neighbors have mentioned how nice our yard looks after each visit. We have hired them to come and mow our lawn through October which includes grass care. We are happy to recommend the company and staff for any type of lawn care services. Mary Vollert

They arrived 45 minutes late and it was supposed to be a three person job for eight hours. I had previously sent a message to the owner via Angie's list asking them the details about the type of work I needed to ensure that they get the correct equipments and i did not receive any reply from them. Finally three people showed up but the third person left as had to go and get additional tools for trimming the trees as the details of my email and the type of work needed to be performed was not communicated to them by the owner. The two people mentioned they may have to come another day if the tools didn't arrive on time, but the third person managed to get them. Finally only two people ended up working for around 4 hours. They also mentioned that they don't trim trees which are above 15 feet in height and thus many of my trees didn't get trimmed. They did a satisfactory job cleaning my yard. The workers worked hard and seemed pretty honest but there was lot of confusion with the appointment, timing and communication. i would not hire them again.

Great in terms of work. They discovered that the drain tile from our downspout on the north side of the house was probably filled with tree roots and blocked. Last fall we had a huge willow tree cut down that was laying on the neighbor house and ours. Our lawn was a soggy mess since the water could not escape. They rerouted and dug a new trench and put in two boxes and drain tile out to the street and filled it with rock. They did the other work we wanted done plus cleaned up the whole side of the house, pruned back shrubs, reseeded lawn, etc. All within the deal. The only extra we paid for was the rock and supplies they used and a trip to the dump. We feel like we really got our money's worth and a huge amount of work done.

they were punctual and did the work regarding of the rain and cold weather. Was happy with them

The gardening staff were excellent workers. They arrived on time and spent 10 hours working. They worked steadily, were polite and helpful. The only glitch was a misunderstanding with the owner about the day the service was to be provided. Tho he wasn't able to come that day, his gardeners did come the next day. They asked me several times if there was more I wanted them to do and took the initiative to do some things I hadn't asked. We were very pleased and would hire them again. .

They were thorough and they were clean and worked with me to get it done. They did it in the time that they said they would do it.

They showed up right on time and did a great job. I would hire them again.

The work was excellent. I only had one surprise. I had purchased a deal through Angie's List and prepaid. At beginning of appointment, the crew said that there would be an additional fee to haul clippings away. I agreed that that stated amount sounded reasonable. When the work was done, I got my checkbook ready to write a check for the additional amount. The crew then informed me that it would now be an additional amount, 5x's more than originally quotef and cash would be preferred.

The dump fees cost almost as much as the whole service. The company charged me over $400 for dumping. They also took almost an hour between runs because of the area THEY chose to dump at. I went to another dump site that was far closer who stated that they would have charged at most $150. The dump fees and the way they are presented to the consumer are somewhat underhanded as they do not tell you up front an estimate of the costs. The two workers did work hard and I have no issues with the service they provider just the dump fees and how they are presented to consumers.

All in all, they did a great job. Very responsive, good work, I really couldn't ask for more. Highly recommend.

It went very well. Carlos was very accommodating, patient and professional. His crew was excellent. I would recommend.

The provider arrived early and worked very quickly. I gave them a list of things I would like done, and thought that they'd get through maybe 3/4ths of it before time was up. They actually finished a half-hour early.

They said they’d come out for a free estimate, but they wanted to do the work all in one day with a crew. I was hoping to use the 20 hours over several occasions. It wasn’t clear in the coupon description. They were nice, though.

Juan's crew completed the significant amount of work I had laid out within the contracted time parameters. They had the tools and the strength to clear out the overgrown beds. I then had a clean slate to recover with landscape fabric and mulched bark chips. They filled my entire 35 gallon yard waste container and I paid an additional $60 for the 1.5 cubic yards of weeds and waste remaining to be carried off the premises. The only downside was a mix-up on the time the crew was to arrive. The appointment was for the afternoon and I was unavailable when the crew arrived in the morning. A quick call took care of that and the crew was able to return in the afternoon to do the job.

The team showed up exactly on time, were quiet and efficient. They did everything I wanted and took extra care to ensure the debris was contained to one location neatly until the second time they returned and removed the debris. The team was very polite and Carlos was very responsive. At the end of the second trip, we walked around the yard and talked about some problem areas. With his education and certification, we have plans to bring the team back for some additional work. He clearly takes pride in his work and has a team of long term personnel that work for him. He was prompt and scheduling wasn't a challenge at all, as it has been for other landscapers. I was very pleased with the results and hope to use them again in the near future.

Jose and his helper were extremely courteous and professional. They worked consistently and very hard throughout the amount of time we paid for and got the job done. They even sprayed the beds with weed killer to deter weeds from returning, and used their blower to clear away all the residuals plus even cleared our walks and driveway from when we mowed the day before. Carlos was a pleasure to talk to on the phone when scheduling the work. We will definitely use them again.

They were very responsive and on-time. They did their magic while we were at work. We were so impressed when we got home. We will definitely hire them again.

My yard has been neglected for the last several months and was way overdue for a solid cleanup. I purchased the 8 hour promotion (2 people for 4 hours) in hopes that a dent could be made in my yard. I met with the two man crew and gave some general directions on what I wanted and then left to go back to work. When I came home I was absolutely blown away. They did a meticulous job pruning some very overgrown shrubs and bushes. The ivy was tamed back to highlight the pathways in the yard. My yard was spotless and weed free. I would highly recommend Carlos and his team. Great job!

We purchased the forty hours coupon. They showed up on time and were very polite. Planted trees and shrubs. Then weeded and did a major yard clean up and pruning. Then they spread 20 yards of beauty bark. Let me put my fertilizer in the holes they dug. Did a terrific job of cleaning up and cleaning the driveway and sidewalks. Were very polite and very nice people. VERY hard working and never complained about anything. We have almost half an acre and this was no easy task. Matter of fact they were running with wheelbarrows of beauty bark from the front yard to the backyard. Highly recommend them to anyone. Great attitudes and very helpful. Asked if there was anything else they could do. Feel like our yard is a park now. Gave suggestions and very gracious.

It went fairly well, except that their English wasn't very good. I asked if they could prune apple trees, and after much discussion one man said the other one could. He worked very hard but it is obvious he doesn't know how to prune apple trees. I had to go out and try to pick off some of the upward branches, which should have been removed, but he just used a chain saw and cut the top off straight across, and across the bottom, leaving a center full of branches that sunlight will not reach. I cannot reach them. They did not offer to remove the branches they cut off, or tell me a price, so I have a huge pile of branches to remove. The compost over the yard was to be only 1/2 inch thick, but in some places it is 2 - 3 inches thick and the grass can't grow up through it. I will have to try to rake it when it dries out again. They were very polite, and worked very hard. But please tell them if they don't know how to prune certain trees, then just say so, as I had plenty of other work for them. The rest of the work was done very well. They even removed a stump that a tree remover told me he had removed, but he just placed rocks over the top of it. So these two new guys cut it out for me. I liked the owner and two workers very much. There was just a little miscommunication with the workers because of the language barrier. But they worked very hard.

The provider didn't do anything. They failed to show up twice! Terrible communication, I had to reach out to them several times through email, text, and phone calls just to get appointments scheduled and rescheduled. They failed to even book our initial appt. Very disappointing. Will never use or recommend this company.

I have communicated through e-mails with North East Landscaping Services but I decided to go a different way with my project and no longer needed the Big Deal.