WINDWARD CONTRACTING

I was impressed from the start when James, who was on leave at the time, returned my call quickly and promised to call me back the following week. After he called me back, he came over and did the estimate. At that time, he gave some good advice about the vanity area (which we followed) and promptly delivered the quote within a week. When the job commenced, all the sub-contractors were courteous and polite. There were a few existing issues with our plumbing and ventilation (such as ventilation problems which had existed since the house was built), as is the case with most remodeling projects, but they were solved quickly. Every time I sent e-mail or called him, I received a response fairly rapidly. There were a couple of miscommunications regarding starting times, but these were resolved with a few phone calls. The finished bathroom looks and functions great!

We have been more than happy with James and Windward. From the beginning, James was patient and helpful as I tried to figure out what we could do to make our 1929 brick Tudor home more livable for our large family. We talked about many options, from expanding the second floor over the garage (hard to do without distracting from he original look of the house and $$$) to dormering out the small bathroom in the second floor ($$$ when you considered weight bearing walls and old plumbing, and we would still only have 2 bathrooms) to adding something in the basement (I did not like this idea) to ripping off the roof and doing a true second floor (we currently have a converted attic space). James had to have come out at least 4 or 5 times to give me new bids and possibilities as I considered cost and inconvenience. When we finally conceived of the creation of the master bath from the room that was currently being used as an office, it seemed the best compromise, we got a bath separate from our kids (all 7 of us had been sharing 1 bath before!) and a room for our youngest. The downside was that I lost my office, but such is life and now I work from the living room! James' bid was very reasonable compared to the other prices I got and I we chose Windward based upon his responsiveness, price quote, and positive feedback from other Angie reports. During the course of the project development, we had a plumbing situation, and James came through to help us on late notice. Not only had, he made sure that the plumber was not to go into our walls and create more cost in the project (something that the other plumbers tried to make us do). Certainly this "sealed the deal" for us on moving forward with Windward. The project started pretty much right on time, because we asked to delay the start. As to the actual project, all of the people we worked with were polite and respectful. The work proceeded in a very timely way and I was always impressed with how James handled issues as they came up (things always come up in a project this big). He was flexible in adding the kitchen component when our refrigerator died and offered very helpful advice. One thing that was very reassuring for my husband and I was that any time we called James (and we called A LOT), he got back in touch with us right away. We always felt listened to and he never made me feel like I was driving him crazy. The project finished on time and is absolutely beautiful! It has dramatically improved our lives and we will certainly call on Windward again for our next project.

Originally, I was excited about Windward. James was friendly and personable and seemed very much to know what he was doing. Unfortunately, I couldn't have been more disappointed in the end. We wanted to have the nasty popcorn ceilings removed from throughout our new house before we moved in. James said it would take 4-5 days to do the job, which was perfect - we planned to move in right after. At the end of the first day, we stopped by the house to see all the popcorn was gone! It was like magic and we were very excited. It was clear there was much left to be done, but they had been hard at work. Three days later, little more had been done. On the final day, I called James to check on progress, fully thinking he would tell me the work was wrapping up. Instead, he told me the team needed more time. We arranged for them to come back once more (on a Saturday morning) to finish everything up so we could move in later that day. He assured me the work would be done, as I was concerned about a number of (really obvious) trouble areas I noticed in the house. I trusted him to be able to make it happen, but was sorely disappointed when we arrived the following afternoon with a U-haul full of furniture. We were greeted by the same scene we saw days earlier - drop cloths everywhere, pieces of drywall, unfinished ceilings and a huge mess. What we didn't see was anyone working on the house - nothing had been done at all. I called James again, only to find him startlingly unaware of what his team had (or hadn't) been up to. He apologized and convinced me to wait, to see if he could get another crew to come out right away to finish the job. Hours later, the only thing he could do was send a pair of workers to do a final sanding. When they left, the house was still a horrendous, unfinished mess and we had a brand new hole in one of the walls. It was a nightmare. At this point, we took matters into our own hands, rented a shop-vac and started cleaning the place up ourselves just so we could bring things inside. The following Monday, James came to the house to discuss the situation. He walked around and pronounced the job "done." I pointed out the hole in the wall and a bunch of other places where the workmanship was shoddy, not to mention that the ceilings weren't even finished as we agreed. He shrugged it all off and said they couldn't do much now that there was furniture in the house. I told him that was unacceptable and gave him a plan for how we could get the work finished. In the end he agreed. After all that, I still had to babysit the team to be sure they finished the work as we discussed (they even "forgot" to finish an entire room - after all of this!). James chalked it all up to miscommunication between him and his team, but I attribute it to poor management. In the end, the work was fair, but not great... and I was happy to be through dealing with Windward.

The experience was great. I had a lot of contact with their estimator and sales guy. I've used them in the past and they have a dedicated team of contractors instead of sub contractors so I already knew everyone.

The experience was excellent. James schedule the work quickly and met all date/milestones. The electricians were professional and really sincere people that provided details about the work they were doing. They had a genuine interest in doing a good job and showed concern for doing professional work that they could be proud of.

They were very professional. Their work was very high standard. They kept a really good line of communication with my husband and I. Any problems we had were resolved quickly. They were able to maintain the work within the time they said they would have it done by. They even exceeded our expectations for the remodeling of the basement.

I would definitely has Windward back...in fact I need to call them and have them look at the upstairs bath.

I would characterize Windward's strengths as the following: 1)Very responsive to requests. Followed up on issues and resolved them in a timely manner and with great courtesy. Clearly wanted the customer happy and did extra work, sometimes outside the scope of the contract, to make things right. 2)Stuck well to the time frame and cost predicted. 3)Performed excellent trim, wood, electrical and plumbing work. 4)Picked excellent subs who did very good floor sanding and new hardwood floor installation. 5)The tiler used for the bathroom and kitchen was absolutely outstanding. He paid tremendous attention to detail and was obsessed with getting the job done just perfectly. 6)Made excellent suggestions on job scope and even dissuaded me from doing jobs that would have earned them more but given me less for my money (ie. strongly suggested against a deck plan and moving a stairwell). 7)Willing to adapt to individual preferences and life schedules. 8)Have an excellent electrician, Kamel, who worked tirelessly to make my many changes and requests come to life electronically. 9)The workers are very skilled and able to do an amazing range of work from trim to demo to painting to wall boarding. ********Windward's weaknesses: 1)The cabinetry install went generally well, but many fine details (the wood joint dovetailing without a gap, sliding shelves bumping into sides of the door, glass cabinet doors not fully caulked into their wood recesses) had to be revisited or taken care of by me. They may benefit from having a subcontractor who specializes in cabinetry do the more complex installations. 2)Communication with the workers failed at times despite James and Tony understanding the issues. House fans were left on during painting resulting in dust/paint being spread to other sections of the house, initial plumbing work had valves in the wrong position, etc.) All of this was correctable as long as I regularly checked on the work site to make sure my vision and theirs remained aligned. Corrections were made promptly. 3)Clarifying early on what Windward's scope would be with respect to whose responsibility it was to make sure materials selection happened in a timely fashion, who would make sure components were ready and of the correct type/size, and what advice they were able to offer on building components/materials would have made the project smoother at the beginning. With some discussion, this facet of the relationship developed nicely, but it took some work to get there. 4)Not cheap... but you get what you pay for, so in the long run it's a better product.

The reason why I choose them was based on their commendations on Angie's list. They seemed to be very responsive and open in the contract and I felt like I could work with them well.

The project went extremely well. Windward was working in a finished space and did a great job of carefully opening up the areas they needed to work on; three areas altogether. They proceeded in a very linear fashion with no time lost between steps. They poured the footing, installed the post and beam, then drywalled and painted. The result was perfect - you'd never know the beam wasn't there from the beginning. They also did a great job of not damaging anything as they lifted the beam into place and did work in the space.

Excellent job at a reasonable price. High attention to detail in preparation of the job and cleanup. Very happy with the work performed.

We had a GREAT experience with Windward. We are seasoned remodelers & had been through major renovation projects previously. We were especially concerned about tackling a large project when we would be living in our home for most of the time with our two young children. However, Windward not only did an excellent job overall, they were also a pleasure to have in our home--polite, conscientious & friendly. Things started on the right foot when we had a detailed bid within 48 hrs of our initial meeting. Windward's contract & payment schedule were clear & they addressed budget questions promptly. Work commenced on the agreed upon start date & they stayed on schedule. We had a major snafu with our cabinet supplier--no fault of Windward's-- & they were extremely patient & helpful in making adjustments to keep the project moving forward. The few "surprises" that always come up during a remodel were addressed professionally. Attention to detail was A+. Very pleased!

I called James for an estimate and he never returned my call or set up a date for estimate. Very frustrating.

Everyone on the team was polite and knowledgeable. We had no problem leaving town during the middle of the work and didn't think twice about having them in the house while we were gone. The bathroom looks great, is WAY more functional and we have received many compliments. We will be using James and his team for future projects, including a kitchen remodel. I asked for some pretty specific and non-standard design elements that were difficult to accommodate. The guys did a great job of problem solving and made sure everything was to my standards by the end of the job. James was always available by phone or via email. He was good about checking in with updates and clarifications on my choices. His prices may be slightly higher than some other contractors, but the quality of work and service more than make up for that.

They were for the most part quite responsive and relatively easy to get a hold of. They showed up when they said they would. No confusion on when they were going to be there. You as the home owner have to stay on top of every detail. They didn't always raise the questions around something as simple as what type of light fixture was going to be used. Keep an eye on potential variables and be specific in communicating those details to them. Some decisions were almost made for us. I would not hesitate to hire them or recommend them to friends.

The work went well and the overall project was very satisfactory. However, like most remodeling projects, there were a few problems involving poor quality work by sub-contractors and misunderstandings regarding overall fit and finish. In every case, Windward remedied the work promptly and with no complaint. The installation of the custom sink from Restoration Hardward proved especially difficult requiring two men to actually do the work. Unfortunately, their efforts were not well coordinated and the sink was installed unevenly. After some delay the plumbing subcontractor returned and with the aid of a custom built jig installed the sink perfectly on his own. That commitment to get it right is indicative of this contractor's performance and that of his sub-contractors. We recommend Windward very highly but suggest that you make plain at the outset your expectations with respect to fit and finish, quality and overall look and feel of the project you are undertaking.

The company representative never showed up.

I was impressed with how organized and speedy they were - they had a plan for how to spend every day and had the materials they needed for each segment of the project. They didn't waste any time. I also appreciated their input and suggestions for how to make the end product better. They recommended using Hardiplank instead of wood on the front and sides of the garage, and then just covering the back with plywood, since only about 3 feet of the back was visible to our neighbors. This saved us some money in materials. They also strongly recommended putting recycled windows in on 3 sides of the garage instead of just the 2 sides we had envisioned, and we are so glad now that we listened! The natural light inside is so great! They were finished on time, in the two and a half weeks they allotted for the projects.

I got this company through Angie's List. I was very happy with their service. They were extremely professional. They finish the job in the time that they say that the will be finished. The price was very good also. I was very satisfied with the final work.

The work was done professionally with a focus on quality and follow through. All details were completed as planned. They are very pleasant to work with and were always upfront about any implications of changes I requested or discoveries they made. I have already contracted them for more work.

Wow! We are so pleased, both with the outcome of our project and specifically with James and Tony! The work was completed within the time frame they stated in their proposal (5 weeks), their quote was less than the other quotes we got for the same work, and they were true to their quote (except we kept adding in new additions to the original plan that made the overall cost go up). They were very attentive and constantly in contact with us giving updates and making sure things were going as we planned. They were very clean, taped up and sequestered the mess as much as was possible. Their subs were very polite and professional. All in all, working with Windward was a very positive experience and we're very pleased with our new master bedroom and bathroom! We plan to hire them again next Spring to remodel our kitchen and downstairs bathroom.

James came to the house shortly after I contacted him. I explained the job to him as I saw it and he gave me a lot of good ideas that we incorporated into the estimate. He turned around the estimate very quickly and answered all of my questions. James' quote was very competitive and between meeting with him and reviewing other customers' feedback, I was very comfortable in choosing to work with him. James had no problem with my procuring all of the fixtures and tile myself for the job. The quality of the work was outstanding throughout. The few minor issues we encountered were handled quickly and cheerfully. I was almost glad to have one or two minor issues so I could see how they were handled. With previous contractors, I've had difficulty getting things done to my satisfaction. I now know that I will be happy to work with James and his team again. Please note that the project cost I have shown includes both Windward's time and material and the materials that I purchased.

James and Tony made most, if not all, appointments and schedules they said they would keep. The contract they provided included start and ending dates and clauses for both owner and contractor delays. They were accommodating to the schedule that I wanted to keep and subsequently responded well to some extra, related work that I needed to have done. There were some minor cosmetic imperfections on the finished product as a whole, but far from being anything serious to gripe about.

James responded to our initial request for an on-site consult/estimate very promptly. He was always easy to talk to, highly personable, and obviously knowledgeable about what the work we desired would involve. He understood what we wanted right away, so there was never any "vision drift" at any stage. His work crews were always efficient, fast, and friendly. Good cleanup and follow-through. No complaints at any step.

Excellent. I can't say enough about Windward. I had several bad experiences with other contractors and stressed to James and his people that we wanted good work and good communication. They called when they needed to and they were more than happy to have us check on the work as they completed it. They were ahead of schedule and they did it for there estimate. They were early to our meetings and they were very professional. Windward went above and beyond what was required. They finished on a Wednesday and didn't remember to leave our extra key which was no big deal. When they came by on Thursday to drop off the key James noticed that one of the soffit boards had swollen and pushed out of place. He called me and let me know that he would fix it on Friday. By the time I got home Friday it was done. I wouldn't have noticed it for weeks but he was proactive, friendly and great to work with. If I need anymore work done I know who to call.