Gates Custom Homes

The project was completed nearly 2-years ago and I am still very happy with the quality of construction, the “fit and finish” of the final result and my relationship with AJ, his contractors and associates. During construction, AJ was “hands-on,” continuously on-site and always available to discuss progress. I found him to be as concerned about the quality of the work being performed as I was and he made me feel like my complete satisfaction was his goal. I have absolutely no regrets about the way this project turned out and, should the need arise, I would not hesitate to engage his services again. I recommend him without reservation.

Outstanding! Entirely satisfied with the work completed by Gates Custom Homes. On occasion there was work being done during the remodel that did not meet our expectations, but the contractor followed up on his guarantee that he would make it right. Mr Gates straight-forward approach regarding cost, time, and the quality of the work being conducted met or exceeded our expectations. When there were issues regarding costs, repairs (plumbing and electrical), replacement (roof), or anything that affected the overall cost or time required to complete the remodel, Mr Gates offered options and was candid about the impact to the bottom line and the time required to finish the project. He advised us that there would be surprises (many), but his forthright approach and proactive engagement with this customer was reassuring and created an open and honest discourse regarding every aspect of the remodel. Gates Custom Homes completed our project on time and on budget. Mr Gates continues to follow up with his clients. We recently contacted him about a small leak in the roof of the addition. Within a week we had the repairs completed and at no cost to us.

The project was completed on time and on budget. We moved a laundry room, which included moving all the plumbing and electrical. We bumped out into existing garage space and added an office. Mr Gates was professional and kept us informed every step of the way. Very easy to work with! He was available 24/7 for advice and questions we had .

My wife and I hired Gates Customs Homes, LLC and AJ Gates in December 2013 for a whole house renovation and addition to a vintage ranch house. Gates had a glowing recommendation on Angies? List, and the Gates Custom Home web site made lots of promises about the quality of their work, customer satisfaction, no surprises, etc. None of that proved to be true in our case. Some of the subcontractors were very good, but other subcontractor work on our job was sloppy, unprofessional and simply not reasonable or workmanlike. When we pointed these defects out to Mr. Gates, who rarely noticed them on his own, he typically was combative, told us that the work was ?quality,? or that we just did not understand construction or this market. Both my wife and I had built custom homes and been involved with extensive remodeling projects prior to working with Gates. We knew the difference between good work and bad. We hired independent experts to review the work. The outside consultants confirmed that work needed to be redone or that it was mediocre in quality. So much rework was required that the project fell far behind schedule. Gates? lack of supervision and poor coordination between subcontractors caused numerous problems, sleepless nights, much friction and delay. Although we paid Gates over $400,000, AJ Gates had the audacity to tell me that he had not charged us enough to give us a decent paint job. Gates bookkeeping was so poor they frequently tried to charge us for work done for other customers, and once they stopped work saying they were out of money. They were not out of money, but rather had charged us $8000, plus a 15% contractor?s fee, twice for the same work. Although Gates said his books were open to us, they were a mess and it took hours to sort out the discrepancies and errors. Mr. Gates never took notes during meetings with us. It seemed that the subcontractors were often simply turned loose to figure things out on their own. One subcontractors even asked us who was supervising this job? Gates also required us to hire an interior decorator, Meagan Tignini, Area Interior Design, who was charged with handling details which we felt should have been handled by the general contractor. We had to pay her $6200 in design fees but like Gates, her oversight was poor and her mistakes cost us more than her fee in rework and delays. Neither general contractor or required interior designer seemed to be supervising the work. We also found that Gates did not build to plan and did not tell us. We feel we were charged for the wasted time and material that resulted from Gates? poor communication with his subcontractors. The quality of the product was poor and many areas needed rework. Gates didn?t ask for the rework. We asked for rework after determination that the work wasn?t quality and was substandard. Gates stood by his work by asking his subcontractors to rework many parts of the job. The subcontractors were being asked to fix mistakes that should have been caught by the interior designer and the general contractor. Some of AJ Gates?s communications, especially to my wife, was rude, unprofessional and offensive. In April of 2015, after fifteen months working on a job he promised to have finished in six months, Gates simply quit and advised us to finish the job ourselves. We fixed the problems with outside contractors and many rounds of rework. Based on our experience we recommend you use a different contractor.

We contacted AJ Gates of Gates Custom homes to do a renovation and addition to our new home. The renovation included adding a master BR and bath addition , opened up walls in the main living area to give us a great room floor plan, added cabinetry to existing kitchen, new wood floors, added a 12 ft wide, 8 ft high slider across the back of the house, installation of new propane fireplace and tank, new AC, converted an existing asphalt roof to tile, changed and updated the front and back elevation and smooth coated and painted the homes interior and exterior AJ was easy to work with, guiding and advising us throughout the entire process, As our general contractor he provided access to excellent subs to complete the work and supervised the job checking every step of the way to insure the best quality of construction. He was accurate and honest in his estimate and exhibited the utmost professionalism keeping us informed every step of the way. He has done many remodels in our area and has a reputation for honesty and integrity. We would recommend his services to anyone interested in doing a remodel or a new build. It's reassuring to know that he stands 100% behind the work he does and responds quickly to any concerns. As everyone knows Remodeling is stressful, having someone you can trust and you know is looking out for your best interests goes a long way in relieving that stress. We thoroughly enjoyed working with him!

This was the 4th job performed for us since 2008 by Gates Custom Homes . We were very pleased with the work provided and the cost of the project. The project included extending and buliding a block wall to enclose an exisitng courtyard and connect it to the backyard, stucco and installation of 2 new wooden gates. Permits were aquired from the city and all work was done to code and a CO was obtained. We couldn't be more pleased with the work that was completed and the service that was provided. This was not the first time we've used Gates Custom Homes for a project in our home. They also did an master bedroom addition, a remodel of our main living area and an installation of a new home office. The quality of work and the honesty and integrity of the owner, AJ Gates keeps us coming back!

I can't say enough good things about the experience and about the general contractor AJ Gates. He is responsive, reliable and above all the most honest contractor I have ever met. He gave us an estimate and stuck to it, he gave us a time table and completed the work within that time frame. He has stood behind his work and he did a great quality job for us. His reputation is so good that almost everyone on our street that has done a remodel or renovation has used him and recommended him. He also works closely with Architect-Terry Stone- Touchstone Designs who actually referred AJ to us. It is so rare these days to find someone that you have complete faith in and that you know will stand 100% behind his work. I highly recommend his services is you are building or remodeling in the Scottsdale/Phoenix area.