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IDEA Architects + Builders
Designer Interior Lighting Plan, Acoustic Ceiling Tiles - Install, Deck or Porch - Build or Replace,
About us
4 employees. Uses subs for general contracting work- we have a team. No travel charges. $110/hour for design services. May contact by email. Award winning. Legal name IDEA + Build, LLC
Business highlights
25 years of experience
Services we offer
Architectural, engineering and interior design & general contracting services.
Reviews
4.720 Reviews
| Number of Stars | Image of Distribution | Number of Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 75% | ||
| 20% | ||
| 0% | ||
| 5% | ||
| 0% |
Showing 1-20 of 20 reviews
David B.
Jun 2015
This is a husband and wife team that will not doubt emerge under another name. Idea Architects + Builders, AKA Idea + Build, LLC and Idea + Build. The principal's of this business are Marty Murphy and Angela Murphy.
We deposited $6,800 with Angie Murphy in March of 2015 for cabinets.
When our permit was finally issued in Late August, Angela Murphy was asked on several occasions for an update on the cabinet order and when they would be delivered. When vague answers were given, my wife called the cabinet company directly and found out Angela Murphy had never placed the order. This was a stunning revelation for our family because the project was now pushed out another 10 weeks.
Marty Murphy was the general contractor finishing the job was secondary to anything else that was happening. He outright lied to both my wife and I on several occasions when we asked when various timelines would be met and completed.
Marty has all of the charm and absolutely none of the follow through. some of his subcontractors stopped showing up to the job because they never go paid from him.
We have hired 15 contractors directly from Angie's List - all A rated. This company too was A rated, but was not remotely worthy of such a standard.
Get several quotes and ask to visit some of their job sites to see the type of work they do and ask for references.
We deposited $6,800 with Angie Murphy in March of 2015 for cabinets.
When our permit was finally issued in Late August, Angela Murphy was asked on several occasions for an update on the cabinet order and when they would be delivered. When vague answers were given, my wife called the cabinet company directly and found out Angela Murphy had never placed the order. This was a stunning revelation for our family because the project was now pushed out another 10 weeks.
Marty Murphy was the general contractor finishing the job was secondary to anything else that was happening. He outright lied to both my wife and I on several occasions when we asked when various timelines would be met and completed.
Marty has all of the charm and absolutely none of the follow through. some of his subcontractors stopped showing up to the job because they never go paid from him.
We have hired 15 contractors directly from Angie's List - all A rated. This company too was A rated, but was not remotely worthy of such a standard.
Get several quotes and ask to visit some of their job sites to see the type of work they do and ask for references.
Marcela A.
Oct 2013
Everything was excellent with this builder. They are very trustworthy and the employees are very reliable,., I would definitely recommend them.
Christopher K.
Jun 2013
unknown
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"I apologize for the delay in response, my husband and I had a baby last week and we had some complications. Unfortunately, this affected our timely response to meet with you this past week."
Michelle H.
Mar 2013
IDEA was recommended to us by a local designer for two bathroom updating projects. Marty and IDEA provided a very reasonable quote to replace a light fixture, 3 vanity faucets, a shower fixture, a roman tub fixture and a toilet tank water line. Marty also recommended a sub-contractor to change out the old brass trim on our glass shower door enclosure. Marty was willing to help trouble shoot any problems that came up during the project and was on site each day to inspect the work of his team. Overall, we are happy with the work performed and the new look of our bathrooms.
David K.
Jan 2013
I attempted to contact them for a quote and have been unable to reach them.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"We apologize if you've had difficulty reaching us! We made some changes to our system in December and are creating a new, updated website which affected our "contact us" page. We can still be reached at 773-477-2999 and [email protected]. We would love to hear from you regarding your project."
TIM M.
Aug 2012
We started working with IDEA back in the fall of 2010 for designs for a remodel/addition to our 1950's Cape Cod. The designs were done by one of the original partners of the firm and we could not have been more pleased. He really took into account our desire to maintain the overall feel of the house and the charm as well as creative ways to re-purpose existing space.
Construction on the house started in April of 2011 and was originally supposed to take 6 months. We ended up being out of our house for 7 months but most of the delays were due to weather issues at the very beginning of the project. Also, mid-way through the project, Peter (the architect who did our drawings) left the company to move out of the country. Marty and Angela did scramble at first trying to pick up the pieces in Peter's absence but eventually, things sorted themselves out and we honestly have nothing but good things to say about them! They were incredibly responsive to our requests and concerns, Angela provided excellent guidance with design, color, style etc. on decisions that we easily could have been overwhelmed with. She has a wonderful taste level! Any time we had issues with how construction was progressing, Marty quickly responded, met with us and made sure things were fixed to our satisfaction. He is also one of the genuinely nicest people we have ever met!
It's been several months now since the project has been completed and we could not be more pleased. Any kind of construction/remodeling on your house is stressful but in retrospect, Marty and Angela were great to work with and we would definitely recommend them, and IDEA to anyone considering a remodel or addition. They were great!
Construction on the house started in April of 2011 and was originally supposed to take 6 months. We ended up being out of our house for 7 months but most of the delays were due to weather issues at the very beginning of the project. Also, mid-way through the project, Peter (the architect who did our drawings) left the company to move out of the country. Marty and Angela did scramble at first trying to pick up the pieces in Peter's absence but eventually, things sorted themselves out and we honestly have nothing but good things to say about them! They were incredibly responsive to our requests and concerns, Angela provided excellent guidance with design, color, style etc. on decisions that we easily could have been overwhelmed with. She has a wonderful taste level! Any time we had issues with how construction was progressing, Marty quickly responded, met with us and made sure things were fixed to our satisfaction. He is also one of the genuinely nicest people we have ever met!
It's been several months now since the project has been completed and we could not be more pleased. Any kind of construction/remodeling on your house is stressful but in retrospect, Marty and Angela were great to work with and we would definitely recommend them, and IDEA to anyone considering a remodel or addition. They were great!
JAIME F.
Jun 2012
I really liked this company. They do an entire build and we didn't need that complete of a project. They were very professional. They came out on time and had some great ideas.
Steve R.
Mar 2011
Overall, my wife and I were very happy with the direction we received from Peter on the architecture. In 2009 we purchased a foreclosed (and neglected) 1950s split level in Wilmette that needed significant renovation, so I knew we needed a professional architect in order to make it happen. After interviewing several candidates we had a good connection with Peter and his design style (like us, he loves mid-century and modern style homes), so we went with IDEA. Similarly, we interviewed several contractors and decided to go with Marty and IDEA, not because they were the lowest priced (they weren't), but because we felt there would be better communication between the architect and contractor if they were part of the same company. For the most part that proved to be the case.
CAROL R.
Mar 2011
Although Peter was not interested in the job, for very reasonable reasons, he was helpful on the phone and professional. I appreciated the input he could offer. He also called me back within minutes. Impressive.
Robert K.
Sep 2010
They were very good in terms of response and easily handled any changes that needed to occur on the designs.
Julius Z.
Jul 2010
We originally hired Peter to do the design only. We selected him over other architects and are pleased with the design. He listened to our ideas and provided very practical solutions and helped us with zoning variances. During the design phase, they added "and Builders" to their services. We selected Idea over a lower bid because of our good experience with Peter. The build is in progress and the sub-contractors are profession and do quality work. I will update this report when the build portion is complete.
Aaron B.
May 2010
One way, and in our opinion, the best way to answer the question of "how did it go overall?" is to know that, in the end, we got exactly the product we signed up for, and that the quality of the workmanship was very high. Anybody that has experienced a major renovation understands that the best laid plans are often led astray, and our experience did have its share of hiccups, which cumulatively led to a project which broke through the anticipated time and money budgets. The reasons for this are manifold, but the big three were 1. surprises that were found when opening up the walls/floors of our old home 2. delays in getting the necessary blessings/permits from the various city departments and inspectors 3. growing pains of Idea +Build (we were one of, if not the first build project that the firm tackled.) Before expounding on those growing pains, we think it is important to re-emphasize that these are just that, growing pains, and we truly believe that future clients would probably have smoother sailing overall. Like we said, the final product is A quality. The problems that we had with the firm along the way ultimately had to do with breakdowns in communication, both between the 2 guys who at various points were heading up our renovation, and also, at points, between them and the various subcontractors. To their credit, when mistakes were made, they owned up to them and shared costs accordingly. Where we wish they had done a better job, and what future clients should firmly request, is to have one go to guy head up the project from start to finish. It will avoid a lot of miscommunication as the project proceeds. All in all, we have a house that clearly made the most of its space, in the style that we want, and with high quality workmanship.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"Thanks. It was great working with you, and we are definitely working on ironing out the wrinkles in our construction process to make things go more smoothly in the future. One of the big changes we have made is that Marty is now completely in charge of construction and JP and Peter are staying out of it except for quality control. This effectively solves most of the communication issues."
Delanda L.
Apr 2010
From the calls that I had been making to try to find someone to do the project, we were told that we would need an architect to do the drawings and submit the drawings to the city to get a permit. When I called Ideal Build, Peter was very responsive and we set an appointment during that call. He was on time for the appointment and was very professional and friendly. The main thing that I liked about him was that he was the only one that came that actually went up on the roof to see what we were dealing with, gave us good suggestions for what would have to be done and how to handle the chimney. He also gave us a good suggestion that if we decided to remove the chimney that we can have the venting changed to the side of the house and change our water heater to one of the tankless models. Overall the experience with Peter was great. We did not end up using him for the project because we were on a really tight budget. My mother had spent so much replacing roof after roof that there was really not a lot of equity left in the property to refinance, not to mention the market taking a dive with the home prices. Anyway, Peter gave us a quote for $4k to $6k dollars, that included drawings & permits. We would have to get a second quote from the contractor he worked with. Most of the people that we ended up getting quotes from were quoting us around $30k or more for the project. My thought process was that if we did a tear down and full roof replacements before for around $10k, why in the world would adding some joist to the project double the price for the project? We did go with another contractor that the price was way more reasonable and we are happy with the work. I would use Idea Build if you are planning on doing a large scale project, where the cost is a little more justifiable.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"Thanks for the nice review. I do wish we could have worked with you, but the level of service and quality of product we provide does tend to take a little bit more work and cost a little bit more than what some of our competition offers. Many people have asked me why we need to complete the drawings (blueprints) first before we will provide a bid for the construction work. We firmly feel that we can not give our clients the best price for the construction work and, at the same time, guarantee that we can perform the work at a high level of quality for the cost that we have given on most projects without having a full set of construction drawings (blueprints) completed first. The fact is that it really is almost impossible on anything but perhaps the very smallest of our projects for our subcontractors to give us accurate pricing without that set of very specific instructions. In the end it really comes down to us being able to give our clients a high quality product at the best value possible."
Darin M.
Nov 2009
Overall our experience with Idea was very good, but we did have a few hiccups along the way that should have been prevented.? For example, there was a overwrite issue while two architects were working on the same set of plans which resulted in some confusion during the building and bid processes.? Peter did meet and sometimes exceeded our expectations for our very tight schedule while staying on budget for the most part.? Peter was very helpful in resolving issues with contractors and other issues that came up on the building site.?Ideas' pricing for our project was very competitive although not the lowest bid we received.? A coordination error between architects resulted in a number of lost modifications that were not caught until the bid process was completed and building had begun.? As a result the contractors required additional fees beyond the original bid to accommodate these changes.? Additionally, our project was selected for a random audit by the city. The city found a few items that required changes in the plans which required a second permitting and zone process to be completed. Peter was always quick to respond to emails and phone calls throughout the process. Peter was always very punctual and generally well organized. During the audit process we were looped into the process far more than we should have been resulting in increased stress for us.? We later learned that the audit was check of the architect's self-permitting status and was not intended to delay or disrupt the progress of our project.? Unfortunately, Peter did not convey this to us in a clear manner and cause quite a bit of additional stress surrounding our project.? It was also a bit irritating that we were billed for time that Peter and his team spend on this audit.? The audit increased our overall architectural fees by approximately $2,000.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"It was rather unfortunate that their were some difficulties on your project, and I'm really sorry about that. The city literally pulled a new self certification review rule system out of nowhere on us and that is one of the reasons we no longer participate in the self certification review process with the City of Chicago building department. Plus we had some data loss occur on your project without our immediate knowledge where our CAD drawings reverted back to an older version, so we have addressed that issue by keeping all of our project files on a central server that is backed up daily to avoid that ever happening again on any future projects."
VINCE M.
Oct 2009
It was a wonderful experience to work with the professionals at IDEA. They listened to my requirements and provided a solution that exceeded my expectations. Remodeling a vintage building from the 1920s presented some unanticipated challenges as the work progressed. However, Peter and his team were continually in contact to assist and resolve the issues I faced. The communication was excellent throughout the project, from concept to permitting to final checks that the work was performed correctly. Now that it's finished, I continually to get rave reviews of my finished kitchen and new family room. The project significantly increased the livability and value of my property.
DANIEL C.
Oct 2009
There were some problems which in defense of Peter were not entirely his fault. He took on turning around the kitchen design in an expedited manner in order for us to take advantage of a sale at Ikea. Peter was contracted to deliver plans that included all the cabinets that we were to need to order from Ikea. Unfortunately while the design features were completely right within the plans delivered, unfortunately, during construction some issues arose that should have been accounted for in the plan. The main issue was the placement of the free-standing exhaust hood and cook top. Peter's design did not taken into account the centering of the cook top and hood that is adjacent to the bar (see photos). As a result, during the installation process the contractors recommended a correction that resulted in us having to change the cabinet plans for that entire side of the kitchen. Overall, it was just more of a headache to redo and not a huge deal. The most important work that Peter did was the design itself which was exceptional and we're very very happy with his suggestions.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"I think a B overall is undeserved on this... I purposefully designed it with the cooktop slightly off center so the cabinets and layout worked better."
MARK R.
Jan 2009
Due to all kinds of zoning challenges, this project dragged on far longer than any of us ever expected. Peter and his team were endlessly patient shepherding through paperwork. The porch is more beautiful than we'd hoped. It has completely changed the look of our home, and we could not be happier with Peter's design. He listened to our input and considered the examples we showed him of what we liked and did not like, and created plans that met our wishes.
CHUCK M.
Dec 2008
Everything about the experience was very positive. He was very personable and everything turned out very well. I would highly recommend them.
ALLEN G.
Nov 2008
Peter was a delight to work with. He was courteous & professional & a very nice person. He designed our addition to suit not only our tastes but to fit our budget. Our contractor found the plans very detailed & easy to follow. Peter came out to check the work & said that our construction company was doing everything correctly. The addition is almost completely finished. We love the way the looks!! It is exactly how we imagined it! Actually it is better than we imagined it!! We highly recommend Peter!!!!
Ardi K.
Oct 2008
Went well. It took a little longer than what we expected but it was all good.
Chad H.
Sep 2008
Interacting with Peter was very pleasant and professional. The drawings were very well done. Peter worked very hard to get our permit quickly so that we could start before winter. Peter cut a small hole in the ceiling to make sure that there wouldn't be any plumbing surprises. I thought that was very thorough.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"THANKS! I WISH WE COULD CONTROL THE GCS WE KNOW, BUT UNFORTUNATELY THE ONE YOU ENDED UP USING WENT BANKRUPT ON ME AFTER 4 YEARS OF DOING GREAT WORK FOR OUR CLIENTS, WHICH WAS A SHOCK TO US. THIS HAS BEEN THE SECOND ONE THIS YEAR SO I HAVE CALLED ALL OF MY OTHER GCS AND ASKED THEM DIRECTLY ABOUT THEIR FINANCIAL SITUATION TO TRY TO HEAD THIS PROBLEM OFF AT THE PASS AND PROTECT OUR CLIENTS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE."
Karen G.
Jan 2008
Excellent. Very professional and very understanding that this was a big project for us and not the big of a deal to him. He was keeping it in perspective. I was very comfortable with him. I feel he is honest and does a good job. His ideas were wonderful. He did call to let me know he was going to five minutes late.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"THANKS! I HOPE WE GET TO DO A FULL PROJECT FOR YOU SOMEDAY."
Julie Z.
Oct 2007
Peter was a pleasure to work with from start to finish. He met with us to get our initial thoughts and then came up with a design proposal, which we changed very little. He produced highly detailed plans that specified everything the contractor would need to know. During the construction process we had to contact Peter several times with questions, and he always replied promptly and helpfully.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT. IT WAS GREAT WORKING WITH YOU."
JOHN D.
Feb 2007
Excellent. We talked to 4-5 architects and Peter, by far, carried the most innovation and understanding of our needs. Our space is not typical. The others seemed perplexed by high ceilings and a lot of brick. Peter saw it as an opportunity. He came up with a design that complemented the space we have and shows off the assets of the building.
Response from IDEA Architects + Builders
"YOU ARE FABULOUS CLIENTS AS WELL. THANKS FOR BEING SO SUPPORTIVE AND FOR FINALLY GETTING US ON THE LIST AFTER OVER 2 YEARS OF TRYING."
Licensing
State Contractor License Requirements
All statements concerning insurance, licenses, and bonds are informational only, and are self-reported. Since insurance, licenses and bonds can expire and can be cancelled, homeowners should always check such information for themselves. To find more licensing information for your state, visit our Find Licensing Requirements page.
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FAQ
IDEA Architects + Builders is currently rated 4.7 overall out of 5.
No, IDEA Architects + Builders does not offer free project estimates.
No, IDEA Architects + Builders does not offer eco-friendly accreditations.
No, IDEA Architects + Builders does not offer a senior discount.
No, IDEA Architects + Builders does not offer emergency services.
No, IDEA Architects + Builders does not offer warranties.
Contact Information
3506 North Broadway, Chicago, IL 60657
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