Penn Carpentry LLC - General Contractor

Greg Penn and his partner Tate Smith took on a substantial renovation based on an architect's design, adding a second floor to a 90-year-old house with beams that had sagged, leaving the walls and floors uneven. From the beginning, they proved to be helpful and creative, suggesting changes that maintained the integrity of the design while saving money. They were not the cheapest of the half dozen contractors whose bids we sought, but they were not the most expensive either. They were certainly the most attentive and straightforward. They didn't try to sell their services. Instead, they offered a clear-eyed assessment of what we could get for the dollars we had, and how long it would take. They did not overpromise. Tate, who ran this particular job, ensured that we came in on time and under budget. He was attentive to detail, and so reliable. As with any project, there were surprises and mishaps. But they were few and none ruffled Tate, who addressed every issue to our satisfaction without complaint. We entered this project with great apprehension, but we couldn't have been in better hands. Penn is a small and experienced company with a stable set of skilled subcontractors. Hire them if you can get them.

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Greg arrives promptly at the appointed time every day, eats lunch at the same time, cleans the job site and leaves at the same time.

His quotes and progress statements are precise and detailed and he listens to the homeowners' wishes and preferences. I can't think of a single area where Penn Carpentry let me down.

Greg was phenomenal, I originally thought that expanding the current laundry room was going to be the best idea.  Greg came out and we reviewed my idea.  He came up with a budget that was fair for the work we wanted done, but to me was not a good value.  So Greg came out a second time to consider some alternatives, one of which was to move the the laundry room upstairs.  This idea seemed the best, one, I was not using the area (it was difficult to access for storage) and two, the bedrooms are upstairs, with 2 young boys the living room was constantly filled with laundry baskets. 
We iterated over the plan a couple times, finally deciding on what I think was the best use of the space.  His subcontractors were timely and professional.  I really couldn't be happier with the outcome.  He made it extremely easy for me, taking care of all issues, getting ahead of some.  
Now that we have the empty laundry room off the kitchen, time for Phase Next. Whatever that will be, I'll be sure to use Greg and Penn Carpentry.  
Thanks again for a great experience.

They were punctual and professional. They did all the work that was asked of them in the 2 hour time that they were here. The two men were polite and were respectful of my home while they were here.would use them again.

Tate managed the process from the bid through completion and did an excellent job in meeting our expectations and managing the sub contractors.  All of the subs were professional and in the case of the granite company went over and above what we would have expected with advise on color, accent tile selection and final layout.  We required a new light fixture to match existing fixtures no longer in production as part of the project.  Tate went out of his way to find the final solution.

When I first had them out to bid on the work, I was immediately impressed with the attention to detail.  I had requested a shower for the bathroom (stubbed by the builder) to reduce expense.  Greg noted that the pipe was placed for a tub install and that while a shower could be installed, it would be have to be custom, and a tub would actually be less expensive. 
When I had them out a second time to walk through their bid, they had already put a timeline together which met my desired completion date. 
Throughout the process Tate was very responsive and helped us realize our vision for what we wanted. 
They finished on time and pretty close to the original budget (I went way over on my lighting allowance, but am extremely pleased with what we got).
I strongly recommend these guys and would hire them again for my next project.

When we met with Greg and Tate, they were very professional. They took measurements, looked at the plans we had drawn, gave good advice and came up with a drawing that provided everything we wanted. Greg Penn became our contractor. He gave us options every step of the way, explained the pros and cons of each decision and gave great advice. He provided a schedule and the subcontractors all showed up when they were scheduled and did the work in the estimated time frame. Greg kept in touch with us through every step and set up appointments for us to pick out the granite, the tile, the tub, etc. He followed up as necesary with the various subcontractors and let us know when there were any changes or something didn't work - i.e. the light fixtures we chose were not able to be centered over the sinks, but the spacing turned out fine.He also made people come back if he was not completely satisfied with their work.We are thoroughly enjoying our new bathroom and would highly recommend Greg Penn for a bath remodel or any other home remodel project.

It went great.  Greg and Tate both came out to our home and were prompt and professional, wearing company apparell, and spent over three hours walking through the entire house, which needed a substantial amount of work.  We gave them our "wish list", which included everything that we wanted to accomplish in our house.  They promptly provided us with a detailed estimate, broken down on a project-by-project basis, understanding that we had a limited budget and wanted to pick those projects that were most important to us.  Once we were able to decide, they commenced work right away.  Their subcontractors worked efficiently, for the most part, and their suppliers were amazingly helpful in the product selection process.  When we had minor issues with the work of a couple of the subcontractors, Tate was great at handling the issue directly with the subcontractor and insuring that the work was done properly and looked great.  The finished product was amazing, with a complete gut of the master and partial remodel of the jack n' jill bath.  Their time estimate was accurate, they were up front about costs, and understood what we wanted to accomplish and worked within our budget (and helped us stay on track by providing updates on budget status, the effect of change orders we requested on the budget, etc.).  We went slightly over the contract price due to changes we requested, but had we not made those changes, we would have come in at or below budget.  Additionally, to save money, we independently hired contractors to perform certain functions, and while certainly not an ideal situation for any contractor, Penn Carpentry was again accomodating to our budget and worked seemlessly with these other guys.  After comparing the product and workmanship of Penn against these other guys, we certainly wish we had had Penn do all of the work!

Great. All sub contractors very professional and trust worthy.

If there were A+'s to give Penn Carpentry, we'd give all of them we could!  We couldn't be happier with the experience of working with this firm, and especially with Tate Smith.  The contract called it a "whole house facelift," but it was so much more--it was a rejuvenation of a 1950's brick ranch in a neighborhood of look-alike homes.  Greg Penn and Tate Smith came together to walk through and prepare the bid on a beat-up HUD foreclosure that we bought with the intention to rent after refurbishment; they were personable and entirely professional in appearance and demeanor as we discussed possibilities.  Their bid was in line with others we received, and their advice was helpful to us as first-time prospective landlords.  They listened well, as did we when we checked references (all glowing), and when Tate took the assignment for our contract, he continued to do so. 

The roof was replaced immediately to prevent further damage to the interior.  Then, on their recommendation, we were introduced to an architect (who also listened well to what we wanted and incorporated our ideas) who drew plans for submission for permits, as the work required was structural as well as cosmetic.  Once plans were approved, the kitchen and some interior walls were demolished; a sagging floor was shored up in the crawl space; bathroom fixtures were selectively removed; and new spaces were defined and expertly framed.  The master bedroom has a new bathroom; the kitchen has a laundry area and gas appliance connections; the living room has opened up to the kitchen in a way that is far more modern than anything else on the street; the hardwood floors are like new (and some of them are new); everything is painted, inside and out; a new air conditioning condenser unit is in place; wiring has been updated and upgraded; and the plumbing has had a complete overhaul.

In fact, much of the plumbing has been done twice:  when work was almost complete, the cleaners found they had no water to work with.  Vandals had turned off water at the street and proceeded to rip--literally, rip--out the copper that had been installed.  Tate informed us immediately, and couldn't have been more horrified if it had been his own house.  We had to pay for a re-do, of course (in PVC plastic pipe this time), but Tate did not add the usual 20% contractor's fee, saying he "wouldn't dream of profiting from our misfortune." 

The finished work is simply beautiful--so much so, that our daughter and her family, who have lived nearby for six years, are moving in!  This process took several months to get going, but once underway, progress was swift and sure, and the work was done, including the repairs after the vandalism, in about 4-1/2 months.  Because we live 3 states away, we couldn't be there often to watch as things progressed, but we had no fears and we have no regrets.  The price and terms were fair and reasonable, the workmen careful about cleaning up after themselves, especially outside.  Penn Carpentry has our wholehearted endorsement.

Our renovation experience was awesome! We are now enjoying our new space and doing our best not to gloat to friends who warned us about living in our basement while our top floor was expanded and renovated. Our project was completed right on time and almost exactly on budget. Greg told us exactly what fixtures and features we needed to decide on, and he gave us great guidance when we needed it; so all the decision making that we'd been told would be so stressful turned out to be part of a fun and memorable experience. Greg also updated us on a regular basis about timing and budget issues, so we knew there wouldn't be any surprises at the end. We highly recommend Penn Carpentry, and we?re looking forward to a basement renovation in the near future.

The short story: both jobs were on time and on budget. Most people are shocked when we say this. But one would be naive to think that any home renovation job is all smooth. But with Penn, you are completely aware of changes in scope and in the event that something does go wrong, Penn will make it right, even at their own expense. Their cost plus arrangement provides complete visibility to the costs of the job, there are no surprises. We suggest scheduling regular check ins on how the job is proceeding against the budget. However, as the homeowner, you do have some responsibility. Penn does not pay anyone to manage their relationship to you. They are working contractors. So if you take responsibility for keeping in touch, are disciplined in keeping your job within scope, have the flexibility to make some purchases on your own and are timely with responses needed by the subs, you can hit your dates and budget. The most impressive thing about Penn to us is how much their sub-contractors value their relationship to Penn. Often they will make sure you are happy just so Penn always gets a good report. Penn Carpentry is here to be referred and provide a good experience for its customers.

Our architect had used Penn for some of his own house projects and we called some people we knew had used them but were not on Penn’s reference lists. We liked what we heard (on time, on budget, good quality) and their budget was reasonable. They are a cost-plus contractor, but have years of experience with such contracts and we were told that they come very close to their projected budget. In our case, we were in the house on time (even though there were lots of delays because of rain) and on budget. There were some minor glitches along the way (as in all house renovations), but all were handled professionally and satisfactorily. There was nothing we requested that was not fulfilled. We are very detail-oriented and need a lot of communication to feel comfortable that things are going as planned. Tate, who led our project, was easy to get a hold of and responsive. Based on their track record, we trust that they will indeed honor their 12-month warranty. In the end, we are very happy with the quality and are enjoying our new home. If we had to do another renovation, we would use Penn Carpentry again.

We were very pleased with Penn Carpentry. They completed the project on time and within budget.

We love the wonderful aspects to our home which are the results of projects completed by Penn Carpentry. From the beginning steps of the planning to the completion of all projects, the process went very smoothly. Greg and Tate showed a genuine interest and were very eager to please. They were professional, extremely knowledgeable and a pleasure to work with. It was important to us to keep the integrity of our 1930s home and Greg and Tate truly respected and honored that. Greg was the person we worked with more directly and he patiently listened to all of our questions and promptly responded. We were treated with Greg's can-do attitude, regular updates, open communication and his valuable sharing of ideas to assist in our decision making. It is amazing how flexible he is regarding changes we wanted and how he could easily come up with ideas to help guide us to make the best and most attractive decisions. Greg also worked well with our architect. Penn's quality of work is excellent. The sub-contractors are highly qualified, trustworthy and reliable, just like Penn Carpentry. Penn was within budget-that is very important to Greg and Tate. The projects were completed timely. As you can see, we highly recommend Penn Carpentry.