Home Pros Kitchen & Bath Inc

I hired Home Pro’s to remodel my 38 years old kitchen. Absolutely great experience! The process was very smooth, communication was clear and timely, priorities and budget were respected. The end result is a stunning kitchen that met all of my needs and fit the space like a glove. My experience was so great, I have already booked another project with Home Pro’s due to begin this spring, 2024. Read on for more detailed review. My goals for this remodel were to raise the ceiling height by getting rid of the fluorescent light box, add additional 20-amp circuits for countertop appliances, increase storage and countertop workspace (both linear and height clearance between upper and lower cabinets), and finally give the room an updated look without compromising flow or the original architectural aesthetics. I also specified that the quality of materials (durability and ease of cleaning) was very important to me. I expect this kitchen to last at the minimum 15-20 years. Jim submitted his design plans for my review, made his recommendations for a cabinet line / company that would meet my expectations (replacement parts and doors available). The design was very thoroughly thought out. Attention was given to things that would have never crossed my mind, such as extra space between corner sink and dishwasher to make loading the dishwasher easier; custom built-in over-the-counter microwave; cabinets where there were none before; extended countertop to add a coffee bar; and a custom table made from the same material as the countertop. Once the design was accepted, I received a contract with detailed cost for all work and materials. This full transparency was very beneficial to me. It helped me make informed decisions when deciding between full quartz backsplash or tile (the full quartz was surprisingly less expensive than the tile I would have chosen). Jim is very considerate of finances, often offering options and choices with money saving advantages. He offered simple work-arounds, suggesting rerouting an air duct instead of repositioning a support beam. This simple work-around saved me $2,000. Communication was very clear throughout the project. Employees and specialty contractors were all licensed professionals. They kept the work area clean, answered questions clearly, and most importantly, provided excellent completed work. I went into the project with a 25% buffer for unexpected expenses, as there are always surprises when you open walls. Fortunately, these were minimal and Jim used cost effective approaches when addressing them. He educated me on the options and let me make the final choices. The entire process was very fluid. There were a few slowdowns, but these were due to the City of Fremont missing inspections, not returning calls or emails, and not picking up the phone at times. Unfortunately, Fremont has suffered with these issues even before COVID, so if you live here be aware of possible delays. I have visited many open houses in my neighborhood to see how other neighbors have remodeled their space over the last 30 years. They ranged from simple facelift approaches to full luxury, and even converting to open concept design. Thankfully, I believe mine is the best kitchen remodel for this floor plan in the development. Nothing looks forced or out of place. Jim’s design is impressive and robust. Thoughtful and carefully chosen upgrades made a huge difference. My new kitchen is extremely functional, and has a sophisticated, timeless look.

BEWARE!! BEFORE YOU HIRE HIM, PLEASE PLEASE READ THIS.. Before you hire this guy please take a note of below points and read through my experience, especially if you are doing a large remodel for the first time. 1) He is a single person company so he sub contracts everything. He won't tell you if you don't ask the right questions 2) If you really are planing to hire him, please get his contract reviewed by an attorney *before* signing anything. 3) Don't let him start work without finalizing everything related to contract and the scope of work, make sure payments are not weekly but upon completion of work, hold a large retainer. Get everything in writing approved and signed by him. 4) Don't let him include finished materials in his project cost. Pay for your own material , you can get from the same place he gets, but just keep it separate, you can also get contractor's discount, he should do it for you. 5) Get a list of all sub-contractors, pay the sub contractors directly with check. I clearly didnt follow any of the above and learnt after going through a very bad experience with him. Above guidelines might help you save your self from a big trouble that am dealing with. Here is the gist of my experience Initially Jim was very professional and nice, Things started well and we thought we had found the perfect guy. We were completely inexperienced with construction, didn't know about state laws, construction contracts, etc. The contract that we signed is structured to his advantage to the extend that if there are dis-agreements and you terminate, then he would potentially go after you demanding large sums of money ( you will see this later). He made sure to start demolition as soon as possible even before we both signed the contract, this way you as a customer are locked in, but I don't blame him for that since as a customer you can prevent it, though this does reflect on his character. I would just advice you to not start anything before agreeing on the terms and conditions and scope of project Demolition went well, crew was good (nice people) , Things were moving at good pace. kitchen was on studs, beam was being replaced. However, no approval was taken from city , Jim was going through the process . BIG NO NO !!!. Later I learnt this is a big red flag, no experienced contractor in his right mind would ever touch a load bearing wall without first getting the approval from city to start the work. His plumber cut open a line that was connected to my water softner outlet ,my crawl space got flooded with water due to water -softner cleaning cycle, I was clueless, asked him what happened and he told me that the pipe was just loosely hanging in there so must have fallen off , CLEAR LIE!!! later I found out his guy cut it open and they never admitted. I am now paying $3500 for cleaning that crawl space. Jim never admitted. Here is the big kicker!!! We told him to move a non- load bearing wall by 6 inches, he charges us $6600, told me that your structural guy added too many posts because of that change, after a long back and forth with my structural guy and learning how to read structural drawings, I learnt that Jim most likely had not seen the drawings which I originally gave him before he scoped the project since those posts were in the first drawing that I gave him. He probably was looking at it on the 10th day because he had to submit to city and realized this was more than he had scoped, he took the opportunity of this minor change of moving non-load bearing and charged us with a large dollar amount. He never admitted and obviously gave lots of excuses. Note that the new beam was already installed. His framer had never seen structural drawings, neither was approval to start work from city issued. We had to let him go after an ugly argument related to above dis agreement. *** NOTE THIS *** Now he has filed a MECHANICS LIEN on my house for the full project amount of $65,000 (Please read more about Mechanics Lien, you might need that info if you work with this guy). You can gauge his character since he filed a Lien asking for $65000 for the kitchen which is no where close to be done. Look at the current state of this kitchen in attached pic. ***************************** I had paid him $11000 for 1 week of work and he is now asking for more money. Demolition was the only completed work. I had asked him to show proof of where the $11000 has been used so I can review and if it feels right then would be willing to pay any extra money for the work done even though its not completed. No response from Jim about that break down. His next step could be to file a case to foreclose my home which I am going to fight in court. I will keep updating this post with all the developments. To summarize, I don't see this guy to be on your side as a customer, I feel his intentions about doing business are also not right. Hopefully this review can help you make the right decision.

Home Pros did a tremendous job in reworking a poorly designed kitchen and adding a huge island with bonus cabinetry. They then designed a fabulous MBR bath and did work in several other rooms, too. The more work they did for us, the more we wanted them to do. They were great from start to finish! Professional, punctual, friendly, problem solvers with expertise secind to none.

Home pros did a fantastic job! They were professional, reliable, and paid attention to detail. We are enjoying our luxurious bathroom.

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It was very good. They worked hard, polite, professional and courteous and I would recommend them.

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After the window arrived and was installed, there were numerous delays due to other parts arriving late or wrong. The follow up and finish were spotty as these items were installed only when a workman became available. In hindsight it would have turned out better to wait to start the remodel when parts were all in.
Bottom line is my wife and I are very pleased with our beautiful new master bath. And also even more pleased that Jim replaced our toilets with the most water efficient toilet available, timely due to the drought.

We hired Jim Dawkins for our master bathroom remodel project in April 2014.  Jim's prices were good and he came across as a very friendly man who knew his business.  The project went well until there was a problem with noticable color variations with the grout used.  Jim insisted the problem was with the grout itself and not how the grout was mixed.  Regardless, fixing the problem delayed the completion of the project.  What should've been done in one month dragged out to 3 months.  Once the project went beyond it's target end date, it became increasingly difficult to get ahold of Jim.  He wouldn't respond for days, he wouldn't show up for appointments, and he wouldn't bother to call.  

Almost a year later and two of the electrical outlets he installed no longer work.  He was notified of the problem and promised to send electricians to fix it.  It took over a month for him to tell me when they would be out, then when he finally returned my call he gave me less than 24 hours notice of their arrival.  Problem is they never showed up.  I called Jim repeatedly and he never answered or returned any of my calls.

Bottom line, Jim offers okay work at a fair price, however his customer service is the worst I've ever experienced.  I get that contractors are busy and that things happen, however to simply not show up for appointments and to not give your customer the courtesy of a call when running late is just plain rude, disrespectful and unprofessional.

Future clients beware.

UPDATE...

We had to hire another contractor to fix the electrical problems.  He found that Home Pros had installed two junction boxes, one on top of the other.  Only the top box was visible.  The bottom box was installed without a cover and hidden behind the bathroom cabinet.  According to our new contractor, this practice is a dangerous fire hazard and is illegal.

I was frustrated by the lack or customer service but I am FURIOUS that they put my family's safety in jeopardy.

Very well, however there were some hiccups in scheduling the various stages of work

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Jim came by and listened to what we wanted for our Kitchen, and made some recommendations for us. He was easy to talk to. He went back to work on the design and floor plan. He returned with an initial floor plan that required some tweaking to get right. At the time he worked with us he was between secretaries and that affected his turn-around time, but we don't fault him for that.

We hired Home Pros Kitchen and Bath for a full bathroom remodel.  This was our first experience with Home Pros and to be honest we were a little unsure if we had hired the right company for the job.  Everyday their team members were  timely, courteous and true professionals at their craft easing all of our concerns.  The final product was a beautiful bathroom remodel performed on time and on budget.  We are very happy Home Pros customers and plan on using them again in the future.

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They ended up designing & remodeling my kitchen. They did everything I wanted them to.

The initial contact and appointment went well.  The provider (whose name I don't remember anymore) looked at my kitchen, took measurements, answered my questions, and gave me an estimate for the job.  He didn't have any granite samples with him but offered to drop some by for me to see later.  It took a couple of phone calls to remind him to bring by the samples, but he did end up dropping off a nice selection.  I looked at the samples, consulted with friends and family, and made my choice.  I was excited to have the work done, though I did mention that I might need to wait a month or so when we spoke to arrange him getting his stuff back.  And that's when things got weird.  We set up a day for me to leave the samples out on my porch for him to come by, and he didn't.  I called.  I e-mailed.  I got no response.  I hauled two heavy boxes inside and outside because I didn't want them to get stolen.  I finally gave up and left them outside.  It was several weeks before the samples were picked up.  I understand that the response from the Angie's Deal was probably overwhelming, but I don't want to hire anyone to work in my home who doesn't return phone calls or e-mails promptly.  I do appreciate the initial appointment because it showed me that I could afford to have the work done.  I just hired someone else to do it.

Remodeled kitchen. Opened up and moved wall, installed new cabinets and appliances. Reversed location of sink and stove. Positioned sink so we are able to look outside with wall moved. Converted to gas stove from electric. They had no problem at all if I asked if they would do little extras. Totally changed the look of the kitchen.

They came out and took the measurements and he was very personable.  He had a lot of good ideas. They emailed me and said they sent the plans out in April. I responded and let him know I had not received them. On June 25th he said he would get the plans to me in a few days. I never did get them.

They were friendly. They were a little bit scattered and I got the impression that they had too many people by the deal that was offered; they were too overwhelmed. They just seemed flustered by all the remodeling and were trying to keep a track of it. I had some specific ideas and wanted to talk to him about the kitchen; they clearly had a lot of experience. They knew what they were doing and talking about. They took their time with me and discussed some ideas on paper. They informed us that they would come back with a quote when they left and the most important part is that I was waiting for it. The quote came back and was not exactly what I was talking about and not really very imaginative; it seemed like it was just phoned it in which was understandable because they had too many of them. They were nice people but I am not going to hire him because it was both a high quote and it was thrown in together. I did not want to peruse it together.

OK for the limited exposure/work done.

The job went fine overall. The pricing was very fair. We are pleased with the job performed. We will use Jim again to remodel our kitchen. Showed our neighbors the work that was done to our small bath. Now they are going use Jim"s company to remodel their kitchen.