ARY Construction

It went well, we are not only newly wed but first time homeowners and Avi from ARY understood that, he was very cautious with any changes of the original plan. He kept all promises that he made during the initial bids. ARY's crew came in demoed and started right away. Most of the time construction was delayed due to us having to make decisions as first time homeowners. We had windows changed, paint, plumbing, flooring even some light concrete work. All in all we are very happy with the work. Everything was within budget and was completed correctly. We had a few little bumps in the road but that's normal in a project of this size. We are happy and living in a beautiful home.

Great service, price was reasonable

They were okay. On a scale of 1-10, I'd give them a 6. They did a good job; it's just they didn't supervise the work very closely so they had to fix things, which they did readily. Also, there wasn't a lot of respect given to working in the house. I would use them again on a limited basis but nothing this large.

We've used Ary Construction on a prior job for a bathroom remodel that couldn't have gone smoother or went better. I've written a glowing review already. When we decided to replace our old wrought iron banister and put new stairs on, I didn't even shop around. Avi, the owner of Ary Construction, is easy to deal with, honest, and best of all, he's creative and has such pride in his work. The banister job went even better. We replaced the old wrought iron with a modern looking iron and steel, rounded corners that fits our house perfectly. Avi went out of his way to procure 2" thick solid walnut treads and stain them to match our hardwood floor. They are sturdy and look awesome. He even suggested a paint on the banister with metal flecks in it that would give the stairway a pizzazz that I wouldn't get with a normal color. My guess is that the money we spent on the banister will come back 4 to 5 times more when we sell this house in a year or so. I enthusiastically recommend Ary Construction. Unparalleled.

How did it go?  It went smooth.  It went fast.  It went without haggling.  It went without complaints from me, my wife, or from Avi...the owner of Ary Construction.  In short, we could not be happier in how our bathroom turned out and in our selection of contractor.  Bless Angie's List for leading us to Avi....we'd have never known about him or his company without it.  Now for our details.

We live in a house in Westlake Village that has a wonderful view of the Conejo Valley.  It was custom built in 1970 in what I can only describe as Palm Springs Modern.  Large floor to ceiling windows front the house and look out toward the swimming pool and large lawn area.  The master bathroom is off the master bedroom on the ground floor.  We purchased from the child of the original owner so I have the original plans and know the history somewhat.  When the house was built they took advantage of the view but when furnishing/decorating the house they forgot all about the modern look of the house and went for a shabby chic look.  The bathroom had a soffit over a ornate white double sink vanity that was only tall enough for elves.  I'm told that was the mid-century style by some people, but I've toured homes all over Palm Springs and none are built like this.  The vanity was topped in a solid slab of white marble and a extra large step-up Roman tub is also topped with matching marble slabs.  The floor was carpeted with white wool carpet and the shower, which may have been roomy in 1970, was only about 4'x4' with walls that went to the ceiling and a conventional sliding shower door.  We knew that if we were going to enjoy this house, the master bathroom had to be redone.

Last summer (2013) we shopped around for contractors and received 2 bids.  Both were in the same range.  After choosing a contractor that has a nice storefront in Newbury Park we began working with his "designer."  We were excited at first because she said she would lead us through the process and help us pick out material, etc...  She turned out to be less a designer and more of an engineer, but the only words in her vocabulary seemed to be, "it can't be done!"  If we suggested a medicine cabinet, it couldn't be done.  If we suggested a real wood vanity, it was going to increase the price significantly.  If we wanted flat facing on the vanity with no reveal...it couldn't be done.  We were getting frustrated and getting nowhere.  Then, out of the blue, after 2 months of working with her, she informs us that the price to do the job had gone up from $16,500 to $24,000.  All of this, and we really hadn't changed anything from our original estimate.  We felt ripped off, even if it was only our time.  We wanted to have the job completed by the end of summer...and this company had wasted our entire summer. 

That's when I began my search on Angie's List.  Ary Construction came with rave ratings and reviews, so I called Avi and asked him to give us an estimate.  Avi showed up on time, as he has consistently done throughout our entire remodel.  My wife and I were immediately drawn to him because he is what we all know as a happy person.  He looks like a nice guy, no sneer, no frown, just smiles and all very sincere.  If you're thinking that is because he is a salesman, you're thinking the same as me when we first met.  But after 6 weeks of working with him and seeing him 4-5 times a week, that smile and warmth has never faded.  Even the contractor that he brought in to install the glass shower enclosure commented to me, "I like working with your contractor (Avi).  He is a happy man."  Avi's estimate was completely in line with the other estimates I'd received so I knew that he'd thought it through.  He also showed my wife and me all his insurance and workmen's comp papers and contractor's license.  He promised that there would be no surprises, like upping the cost of the job by 70% and that he doesn't nickel and dime on minor changes like adding a fixture here or there.  After he began the job he even suggested adding electrical outlets or upgrading the lighting, all at about 25% of the cost an electrician would have charged.  And some things he did for free just because he wanted it to look better. 

We were working on a budget and told Avi we wanted to keep our old vanity and just reface it.  He knew that we'd never be happy with a reface.  The drawers were sticky and old, the cabinets felt flimsy and didn't hang right and it was short!  He convinced us that for less than $1000 more we could get a brand new 8 foot custom made vanity made from maple and stained to match the wood in the rest of the house.  It would have self closing drawers and slide outs in the cabinets.  We wanted him to save the 8' x 2' slab of marble because it matched the marble on the roman tub that we weren't touching.  He was able to get it off in one piece and fit it to the new vanity....and it looks spectacular.  He broke the two sinks getting it out but promptly went out and bought brand new ones at no charge and with no complaints.  His crew installed the shower and it's so much more roomy than the old shower and the light pours in through the glass enclosure.  Everything in our bathroom is perfect...the shower tile is marble with a 1" tile white marble strip and built in shower caddy that he suggested.  The lights are all on dimmers and the bathroom is like something out of an architectural book. 

Avi and his crew always showed up on time or called if they were going to be late.  They stayed with the job until completed and were clean and mindful of our pets. 

We would hire Avi again in a heartbeat...in fact we already have.  He is redoing our stairs and stair rail.  After that we may figure out something else for him to do....so if you can't reach him it's because we've got him and we might not let him go.

Ary Construction did a great job.  They started fast, finished early and the finished product looks great.

A pipe broke in our upstairs bathroom one morning, pouring water into the kitchen below through the ceiling. I called Avi of ARY Construction and one other highly rated contractor, and left voicemails for both at 7:30 am. Avi called me back promptly at 8 am (the other contractor never did return my call). Avi came out later that morning and looked at the damage, and gave me a fair estimate to repair it and remodel the bathroom, which we had planned to do anyway. He pulled one of his guys off of another job and took out the wet drywall from the kitchen ceiling, but they couldn't access the source of the leak (which by then wasn't actively leaking anymore because it turned out to be the shower drain). They came back next day and got right to work.
Avi originally estimated 3 weeks to finish (the bathroom was torn down to the studs and rebuilt). He said he may be able to get it done in 2 weeks, but would not commit to something he wasn't 100% sure he could accomplish, which I appreciated. Since this is our only bathroom for a family of 4, our insurance company moved us into a hotel while the bathroom was remodeled/repaired. Avi knew we wanted to get home as soon as possible, and his crew was so efficient and hard working. Despite some unforeseen events (bathtub delivered with a flaw so Avi sent it back for a new one; they discovered another leak and major subfloor damage), Avi and his crew managed to finish in under two weeks! We were thrilled to get back into our home even sooner than anticipated, and with a gorgeous new bathroom!
Avi's crew was consistent; the same guys were there every day except for a couple times when specialists came in for certain tasks. His crew were always on time, polite, and accomodating when I kept nit-picking and wanting to change little things. They just keep going until everything was perfect!
Avi is absolutely wonderful! He is very punctual, and super easy to get ahold of. I could always get in touch with him no problem, and he called me to keep me updated on progress very consistently. He is the sweetest guy; he even installed a new kitchen light fixture for us for free. He throws things in here and there for us, without nickel and diming everything. We did end up paying slightly more than the estimate, but only because they found a slow leak in the plumbing in the outer portion of the bathroom (dressing area), and they had to remove and reinstall a vanity and built-in cabinet and replace the subfloor and plumbing in there. But Avi charged a very fair price for that, considering it added materials and labor to the project.
We've been very happy with Avi and ARY Construction, and look forward to working with him again on our new house.

Avi arrived on time for the estimate, offered good suggestions and gave us an estimated price for the project we felt was very good.  His crew started work a couple of weeks later and I was very impressed with the professional way they worked the project, always arriving on time, working hard through the day and cleaning up at the end of each day. Avi was on hand every day to be sure everything was being done on schedule and to my satisfaction. Avi had originally quoted a 3 week completion but with some great planning and extra effort was able to finish in 2 weeks. We are extremely happy with the overall results of the remodel and would highly recommend ARY Construction for your remodeling needs.

After getting several quotes and reviewing several companies, I decided to go with ARY construction for the work I was contemplating.  I was not disappointed.  The advice I received on this project was excellent, and Avi, from ARY Construction was very responsive, knowledgeable,  and easy to work with.  The crew was efficient and professional.  Although I added several more lights than I originally contemplated, I'm glad I did it right as the look and feel of the place has totally transformed.  During and after the job, Avi was very responsive in a timely manner to all of my questions. Based on my experience, I would highly recommend ARY construction for your next project.

Avi was great to work with.  He completed the job in the time he estimated and his guys did a good job of prepping and cleaning up afterwards. I have had some real nightmare experiences with construction jobs in the past and I mentioned my concerns to Avi and he immediately allayed them. He knows what he is doing, he has excellent skills. He is realistic and very honest -- the guy who you can work with, because you know the unexpected problem always happens with a construction job, the key is how the problem gets resolved. His attitude is great and he has such an upbeat, can-do outlook, it is very inspiring. He seems to hold a karmic view that if he does right by people, then they will do right by him. I trust him, I would recommend him and I would definitely use him again.    

Can I just say "wow"?  Here are the top reasons why you should hire Avi.
1) Avi has good taste.  He gave me many great ideas, including bamboo cabinets.  He suggested a money-saving idea for my problematic stairway ceiling that could not be drywalled--- and the result ended up looking great.  And he suggested terrific tile patterns for the master shower.  On the other hand, when I had a strong preference for certain things, he supported my design decisions.
2) Avi has great people working for him.  I liked everyone that I met, from the electrician to the tile guy to the cabinet designer.
3) Avi's bid was very competitive.  It was not the lowest of the 8 contractors that I interviewed, but I wanted quality and I got it.  What is more, I might have ended up with the best price, because Avi threw in things that weren't in other people's bids, such as the kitchen sink (literally), bathroom sinks and bathroom fans.  With the other bids I got, I would have had to pay for these separately.
4) Avi doesn't nickel and dime.  In every remodel, you'll end up paying a little more than you expected because you'll change your mind about what you want.  Or, in my case, you'll end up doing more than you think you will because you like what's been done so far.  Avi didn't charge me for every additional thing I added.  He makes a just profit but doesn't try to squeeze you dry.  This is a kind of person you can trust.
5) Avi will take care of details.  When something wasn't done right, he would make sure it got re-done without me having to ask.  For instance, the crown molding in one place looked funny, and it was corrected.  When all the walls got painted, he noticed the stairwell railing needed paint too, so he had it painted without an additional charge.  When I was traveling for work for several weeks this summer, I found I could trust him to take care of things while I was away.
6) Avi got things done in the time frame he projected.  I was remodeling a rental, and wanted to rent it out quickly.  Avi appreciated this fact, and pushed his crews to get things done.  All in all, the complete remodel took only 6 weeks.
7) You will enjoy Avi as a person.  He is jovial, has a great sense of humor, and is a lot of fun to talk to.  Like your favorite uncle.  He's also wise.  At one point, when I thought I had made a wrong design decision, he reassured me from experience that when everything was in, it would look fine.  And it did.
I would easily hire Avi again (after I give my pocketbook a rest).

We've been slowly but surely re-finishing and modernizing our 1980s 3,200 square foot home.  We've had a lot of work done over the last year and I wanted to let everyone know what a tremendous success it all was and well well worth the perpetual construction zone.  Work was done on pretty much every part of the house, but I wanted to single some contractors out who we had worked with that were exemplary.  All in all, we got lucky, I think, and we engaged some really good people on these projects, with a handful of average contractors sprinkled in here and there.  The good news was, we didn't have a single bad experience all year.  Some of the work could have been better, but was still acceptable and some of the work was exceptional.  This is a review is about an exceptional job done on our kitchen by ARY Construction in June 2011.  This was a full-blown remodel.  We went from a 200-square-foot kitchen to a 300-square-foot kitchen, claiming some of the space being wasted by an awkward breakfast nook.  We put in new tile floors, new paint, new cabinets (not just refinishing, but all new cabinets), new lighting all around and a new countertop. (We also replaced the appliances but we dealt with the appliance dealer direct).  I must say, the kitchen turned out beautifully.  And I mean that in every way.  The most stunning change was probably the least obvious, but the lighting changed the soul of this kitchen.  The positioning, the kind of recessed lights, the can locations and the incredible under-cabinet lighting that ARY put in was genius!  Just the lights alone made such a huge difference.  But, we had plans to redo everything.  So up came the old tile and in went the new tile.  These guys at that ARY brought out were like a couple of old Italian craftsmen - they were precise, they were fast, and they were funny!  But, man could they tile.  I have been through many tiling projects in my lifetime, and I have to say these guys were some of the best I have ever seen.  There was so little wasteage on the tile, that I had several cases to return (awesome!).  And the floor came out great.  My wife and I had been thinking pretty straightforward on the floor, but Avy, who led the crew, convinced us a pattern would open the space up even more and would make it visually more entertaining.  When he showed us what he had in mind, I knew he was right and when they actually did it on the whole kitchen, not just a little sample area, the overall effect was crazy.  Our friends and neighbors pretty well can't believe the huge difference something that simple makes.  Kudos to Avy for knowing just the right thing for the situation.The cabinets themselves were incredibly dated in our home and although we had considered going the cheaper route and just refinishing them, we felt like we might as well take this opportunity and do it all the way we really wanted it.  So, we kept some old cabinets in place and replaced the doors, other cabinets we eliminated and yet others we added.  Again, ARY Construction guys didn't miss a beat.  They got everything right.  They asked questions when they weren't sure.  Let me repeat that - they ASKED when they weren't sure.  That's rare and that's why our kitchen is this incredible showpiece.The final touch really, was the new granite countertop, which they put in and they cut and they bullnosed etc.  It was the perfect color and well... we couldn't be happier.  And we carried that into the new island - which by the way, ARY designed for us.  We weren't even thinking along those lines.  Glad we went with it, because now it is the place we all kind of congregate around in the middle of this big, beautiful kitchen!Thank you to ARY Construction for making our dreams come true so affordably.