Ritz Design Build Budge It Home Remodeling INC

A big project like that is stressful - but the team really worked to complete it professionally. On time and on budget - we did add on a few upgrades, and snags got addressed in an agreeable way. Good results!!

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Our experience with Ritz was one of the most professionally satisfying experiences we've ever had.  After designing and building no less than four homes as we traversed the country, first in the Navy and then in civilian life, we like to think we learned something about good design, permitting and construction practices.  The professionals at Ritz have, in our mind, re-defined the standard of excellence for us.
Many know, at least intuitively if not by experience, that the most important part of any construction project is the foundation.  If it isn't plumb and square then nothing else that follows will be either.  Sure, a good framing crew can cover up foundation mistakes, but that wasn't the case here.  The foundation was perfect (I had it independently checked).  And the framing crew?  Absolutely the very best I've ever had the pleasure of working on any of my aforementioned four homes.  I can say the same for the electrician, mason, painter and on and on.  I learned long ago you can tell a lot about a company and in this case a construction team by how clean they keep the construction 'zone' during the day and how they leave it at the end of the day.  Not only is it a sign of pride they have in their work, but it is an indicator of how the workers think about their own safety and that of the homeowner.  On our last home project, I had to 'get after' the company owner several times for the project not meeting my safety and cleanliness standards.  For our Ritz project, I never had to make that call.
As I told the owner of Ritz, his subcontractors, many of whom have been with him for several years (which is almost unheard of in this business) are his competitive advantage over all the other build/design firms in SD.  Truth be told, we don't refer to the team that worked on our project as subcontractors; to us they were no less than expert craftsmen.  
Did the project go perfectly, without flaws?  Of course not.  I've never had a home build go perfectly, but this one was closer than all the others. The owner was active, engaged and committed to making it right.  One of the mistakes was, admittedly ours.  In trying to save some money we insisted on a cheaper shower product installation only to have to agree late in the project we were wrong.  He had every right to charge us for not only the demolition of the old plastic shower, but then to 'stick it to us' for the new tile installation, especially since our 'change order' delayed the overall project schedule.  He surprised us with his generosity and desire to make sure we were satisfied. 
We are big fans of Ritz and the people behind the logo.  We've told the team at Ritz to use us as references.  We can provide no better recommendation than that.

Ritz Design Build built our dream dining room.  We live in an HOA in the Tierrasanta area of San Diego CA and have a small back yard with not much room for expansion, so we were thinking a rectangular room large enough for a table for twelve.  John at Ritz designed a gorgeous, perfectly sized dining room with a vaulted ceiling and two push-out windows.  In addition to the dining room, Ritz also added two arches to our existing living area, built beautiful cabinets in our original small dining area, replaced our flooring and redesigned our fireplace.  The result is an updated living space with character!

Every member of the Ritz team - designers, demolition crew, framers, carpenters, painters, etc. - was professional, personable, polite and patient.  Having heard stories about the earthiness of construction crews we were especially pleased that we never heard a "bad" word.  It was apparent that each worker believe in a job well done.  Project manager Tom kept the process moving along and updated us daily, usually in person, so we knew what to expect next.  Laura, a new member of the team, helped us pull our material selections together so they all "work together".  We are 100% pleased with our new living space!  When we are ready for additional home improvement we will be calling Ritz Design Build.

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Their clever design helped maximize limited space and integrated the new addition to our existing structure.  Their workers were skilled and experienced and obviously took pride in the quality of their work.  Our interaction with all members of the team was pleasant and helpful.  Communication was excellent and we received a quick response to any questions.  There was careful scheduling of all the trades and we were always informed if workers would be present on our property. We could not be happier with the result and would recommend Ritz Design Build to anyone interested in a high quality result.

You won't be disappointed with Ed's team. We have worked with Budge-It and Ed Ritter twice now. We remodeled in 2004 and again in 2010. The house looks great and it's a perfect place for our family as our kids get older. You will enjoy working with the team. Keep a good stock of Diet Coke on hand for Ed :)   Thanks guys.

Our experience started with the bid process, and we were immediately impressed by the responsiveness and courtesy we received.  The project manager (Edward) and the design architect (Eddie) arrived on time, and had already gone to the City to obtain information about our property lines, set backs, and provided us with a professional folder with their company information, their current certificate of insurance, and our property information.  Very professional.  We interviewed 2 other contractors and decided Budge-It was best for our budget and needs.  I checked their references, (2 past customers and one current - after all, you want to see how they are doing DURING construction), and all three were extremely pleased.  So away we went.  Another huge factor in our decision was the fact that their design team is in-house.  Their architect, Eddie, was extremely helpful, patient, offered wonderful suggestions, incorporated our wishes into a design plan we were very happy with.  We even changed our minds on a few details and not once did they complain about having to change the plans.  The customer service was set at a very high bar from the get go.  He would even come to my office to review changes and finalize the plans, which was very convenient.  They provided a construction schedule which let us know which trades would be coming in during the process so we could plan ahead.  Our particular contract allowed us to purchase all the fixtures (flooring, lighting, bath vanities, toilets, bath fixtures, tile, paint colors, etc.) and they would always let us know when we had to have certain items ahead of time, which helped with our budget as well.  The demolition crew was quick, efficient and very neat.  They parked a dumpster in our driveway and a portapotty as well for the contractors to use.  There were no issues whatsoever with either.  At the end of the day you couldn't tell they had been there except for what they had demo'd.  Then came the concrete guys with prepping the foundation, and pouring the footings and new foundation - it was a beautifully smooth finished product.  Even the neighbors were impressed.  Then came the framers, who did a super job, always confirming any questions they might have, always making sure to leave the house broom swept, and always very considerate.  They even built our custom fireplace and installed a great skylight in our walk-in closet.  The plumbers and electricians followed and they were extremely professional and knowledgeable as well.  When we changed our minds about anything in particular, they too would offer suggestions and their work was first class.  They even put up with my husband's tinkering with installing a custom steam shower and they just worked around him and offered suggestions for him as well.  The roofer was able to locate our exact concrete roof tiles, even though they had been discontinued and we were facing the possibility of a different color new roof.  Again, we were very impressed.  The drywall and stucco crews came through and did a great job, all walls beautifully straight and the taping and texture matched our existing house such that you cannot tell where the old house and new house started and stopped.  Now THAT's good.  Their tile guy (Miguel) and finished carpenter (Mark), did a superb job with our bath tile and custom walk-in shower, bath tile flooring, hard wood flooring and all our trim and casing work around our windows and doors.  They were meticulous - really beautiful work.  Don, their foreman, was there almost every day taking care of all the details, finished painting, installation of all the hardware, mirrors, towel bars, touch-up paint, picking up flooring and tile for us, working around us and being as polite and professional as could be.  We are extremely pleased with how the remodel turned out and would recommend Budge-it in a heart beat.  They communicated very well with us during the process and made the payment plan very efficient and seamless.  Our friends and neighbors couldn't believe how quickly the job went, how minimaly disruptive the project was, how nice the remodel turned out, how courteous the crews were, and how clean they kept the construction area and yard area.  Do yourself a favor and call these guys, you won't be disappointed.