Renaissance Development LLC

Our experience with Renaissance and Christina Wilson couldn t have been worse. Don't waste your time or money for terrible customer service. I called Ms. Wilson after reading several glowing reviews here. Like others, we were willing to pay a premium to have the best job done on our walkway because we wanted to try out the chosen contractor for a large renovation that we are planning for early next year. The good news is we eventually found what we were looking for; the bad news is it isn't Renaissance. I originally called Christina in August and left a message requesting an estimate to replace our front walkway and stairs. After hearing nothing for a week, I called and left another message. Christina called back a few days later, apologized profusely, and said my message had been "lost in the shuffle" of an office move. I said that I understood but needed an estimate quickly because the stairs were in pretty bad shape. She said she was very busy and couldn't give us an estimate for 10 days. I scheduled the estimate for her next opening, which required me to postpone a prior commitment at work. As it turns out, there was no need as Christina cancelled 20 minutes before our meeting to work on a permit for another customer. Since I was already at home, I offered to delay our meeting until later that day, but she would only reschedule for a week later. To her credit, when Ms. Wilson finally gave us the estimate at the rescheduled time, she was friendly and seemed competent. However, after discussing the work we wanted, she repeatedly pressured us to add an aesthetic 1 ft tall retaining wall that we weren't interested in. Due to her persistence, I asked her to email me one estimate for just the walkway and one for the walkway and retaining wall together. We checked our calendars and agreed they would begin working the third week of Sept. I told her I would sign the estimate to lock this in as soon as she sent it to me. But she never did. After hearing nothing for a month, I again called Christina and left a message asking for the estimate. She called back on 10/3, again apologized, but this time blamed it on her assistant who she was training to write estimates and evidently ours was never written. She emailed an estimate that afternoon, but it aggregated the price for the walkway and retaining wall, so I asked for the other estimate breaking out the 2 jobs. The following Monday I spoke to Christina's assistant and told her we wanted to go forward with only the walkway work. She said she would have Christina call to discuss the exact details and schedule the work. Once again, she never did. After another week, I d finally had it. I called another mason, who quickly gave us an estimate and completed the job w/in 5 days for 20% less. We couldn t be happier with the other mason s work and are glad that we dodged a bullet with Renaissance. I can t imagine the nightmare that using them for our renovation would have been!

Ms. Wilson came to my home to give an estimate for brick repointing. She was very knowledgeable on the subject and explained everything to me very clearly. She gave me a verbal estimate on the spot and followed up about a week later with a written estimate. Ultimately I chose to use another mason I found on Angie's list for this project because I liked his approach a little better. Her estimated price seemed very reasonable based on square footage that she wanted to repoint.

The construction was excellent. The attention to detail was excellent. The work was done in the time period that was given and they were on time every day. They did a great job. Christina Wilson, the representative that came out to meet with me was very easy to work with and responsive. She was helpful with options and knowledgeable. I would use them again.

Christina was knowledgeable and fantastic; she knows a lot about old houses and was able to explain the work they would be doing and why it would help our various problems. She was also honest that the work they would do could not be guaranteed to stop the leak that we were having. Her team was professional, on time, and neater and more responsible than any other contractor we have ever had. The tuckpointing made a difference in draftiness which was great.

They did an outstanding job. The workers were good, it took them about a week. They were on time every day and showed up and were consistent.

Very happy with all of the work done by Renaissance Development. It was a big project, but started and completed on time, even with weather delays. The crew was especially professional and neat. It was expensive, but no surprises. They were very willing to immediately address issues I wasn't completed happy with.

Super professional and gave me a quote right away. Their crew was awesome. They worked in a timely manner and cleaned up after themselves. They did a good job and I would recommend them to others.

They were terrific! They were quick, and they were paid by the hour. The price was excellent. They ended up being much cheaper than the two other contractors that we had estimates from.

Overall the result was very good (excellent) getting there somewhat problematic. The owner wanted to get started very quickly but it was difficult to get clear how the design was going to get done( many different ways yo be done). Couldn't sign contract just yet until I knew who and what would be done. Didn't have much time to know what it would look like. The work crew supervisor showed me how the bricks would be layed. Once they got started they were efficient and it was attractive. Once they were done with walkway they prepared to leave and I had to tell them that the retainer wall was also part of the contract so they came back the next day to do the retainer wall. They weren't very respectful about the boss behind her back it was loosy gossy, the work is beautiful but communication is between different levels it's very poor and they didn't have enough supervision.

I was impressed at first with the enthusiasm and knowledge evident in the person who answered the phone, and in the website. Dr. Wilson came by, gave us an estimate for work. We wanted a brick landing repointed, stone work fixed, and a flagstone patio and walkway put in. When we changed the scope of the job, realizing that a nice stone patio wouldn't be used enough in our mosquito-ridden neighborhood, we suddenly became invisible. I followed up more than once. When Dr. Wilson called back, she apologized for a computer glitch, promised a new quote, then we never heard back again. That was over a month ago. I am really disappointed, because we were willing to pay more for a really good company to do the job. If our decision to not do the patio, and to ask for a new quote was a problem, then at least would have liked to know as much.

The team arrived promptly each day. They completed the project within a week.

Although they didn't perform any work, Dr. Wilson and the staff at Renaissance was a pleasure to deal with. They came out, for free, to inspect the brick of my home because of a couple leaks I'm having around windows and doors. Dr. Wilson inspected the brick and windows, and determined my leaks are not brick issues. Yet she stayed, on her own time, to inspect my leaks and give me her advice and opinion on what the problem was, and how I should fix it. She even gave me a recommendation of someone to use. She was very knowledgeable, and just by looking at the type of brick used and style of house was able to give me incredible insight into the materials used to build the house, the time period it was built, etc. If I ever need masonry work in the future I will be sure to contact Renaissance.

They were extremely professional, the wall looks great! They were responsive, the estimate was very professional and they worked hard and long hours.

The did a great job. Their repointing work is neat, and they got it done in a timely fashion. When they did the work on the basement, there was a little confusion over whether they were supposed to do the entire wall or only some spots. Once I cleared that up, and they charged me only for the work that was supposed to be done, I was very happy with their work.

Initial scheduling took a while, but once the work began, the three workers did a great job and were amazingly courteous. Catherine was very sympathetic to the delay and appreciated every aspect of our long-term plan. Having her knowledge and passion for architectural integrity driving the project made all the difference. It was really refreshing. We plan to hire them for future jobs (as soon as funds allow).

Project went very well from start to finish. Our neighbor next door also needed the same work done. We talked with Christina Wilson (owner) and she set up both jobs for the same time and the two household shared a discount. Renaissance got the permits and moved out smartly. The work was done quickly, the workmen were polite and took take to clean up regularly. Renaissance addressed the concerns raise by the neighbor on the other side (who had no work done) quickly and avoided a potential disagreement. There we no surprises; everything was done right on budget and maybe a little ahead of schedule. All of the follow-up items were promptly and properly addressed. Renaissance did great work! We are very happy with the outcome.

Ms Wilson arrived on time to give an estimate for work on an exterior brick wall that involved removing 1 window and expanding a nearby window to a double window. She said the job would be "no problem" and told me to look at her company's work at a job site just a block away. However, I never received an estimate from her for the job.

Christina Wilson is very knowledgeable. I was only unhappy with the overall coordination of the project, as I do not feel she was responsive enough or proactive enough in our communications and she ended up being the communications bottleneck., That said, her crew was excellent in their workmanship, courtesy and politeness. Therefore, it's difficult to follow the survey as I'd give her a C but her crew an A. Also, she had to subcontract the railing work which ended up being a nearly 2 month coordination effort (her crew was done within days of the project). In the end, she took a financial hit on the project because she didn't know how much her sub would charge her for the work. To her credit, she maintained the original price of the contract, but I'm pleased that I helped re-word the contract before it was signed.

Christina was honest and informative. She gave her honest opinion that nothing was wrong with the structure of my NW DC home. The concrete placed over the underlying brick work had simply cracked due to the settlement of the home, which is normal for a home over 100 years old. She was very friendly and pointed me to resources where I could research the history and architecture of my neighborhood and home.

After receiving quotes from two other companies, we contacted Renaissance. The owner, Christina Wilson, immediately stood out in comparison to other contractors we'd spoken with. She is passionate about masonry and incredibly knowledgeable about her work-I learned more about 19Th century masonry than I ever imagined possible. After visiting the building, Christina provided an extensively detailed estimate-about six pages vs. one page from each of the other bidders. This was a very large project, and Christina went out of her way to work within our budget. Her crew members were remarkable-showing up on-time when promised, working tremendously hard despite very cold temperatures (we did the work over the winter) and leaving the work site as clean as possible every night. These guys were truly amazing-meticulous, courteous, responsible and highly skilled. The final result was amazing -- our old building has new life. We couldn't be more pleased.

I would highly recommend them for any brick work. They were very good.

Work was very professionally done. Christina Wilson provided a timely estimate and detailed explanation of how project would be done and maintained regular contact during project. Contract was clear and detailed. Work was well-supervised. Workers kept work site clean and cleared away all debris. They had to erect scaffolding on several neighbors' property because the wall was on or near the property line and did so without disturbing or annoying the neighbors. Slight damage to a neighbor's fence was repaired. Work was done in a timely fashion. Price was highest of estimates, but this was a totally hassle-free experience with high quality results.

Dr. Christina Wilson, the company's president, came to evaluate the job. We discussed the objective. She is very knowledgeable about historical buildings and restoration work. She gave me an estimate immediately and was very accommodating in scheduling the job. I recommend this company very highly and commend them for excellent work.

Very good! Good ideas, accurate price quote, polite workers. The work was done on time and as promised. Since this is outdoors work, there was some changing of the schedule to accommodate the weather, but once Mother Nature calmed-down, the work went very quickly, with no fuss and little muss.

Fantastic!!! On time, on price (not cheap, but not the most expensive, just value for money), friendly workers, no dramas, and they clean-up the worksite too!