Worthington Design & Remodeling

I chose Worthington Design and Remodeling to do a complete remodel of my childhood home in downtown Indianapolis. This home had a lot of sentimental value for me, but perhaps even more importantly, was going to be a very costly remodel so it was extremely important that selected the right company to do the job. I couldn't have asked for a better company to not only do the remodel, but project manage the entire whole-home renovation. What's more, I no longer live in town, so I was fully dependent on Worthington and the team to not only deliver, but also manage all aspects of the project and they were excellent. Specifically, the team that I worked with was excellent. Sydney was my primary contact in designing the new space. Andy was my project manager who was diligent in making sure I was kept up to speed at every turn, managed all contractor work, managed any delays or roadblocks, and has even supported me post-completion of the project when I had guests in the home. Lastly, Dan was the lead carpenter who worked his magic. Once the new foundation was laid, Dan went to work, addressing every detail and quickly building my home, but with a quality that was top notch. Everyone that stays at the home raves about the renovation and the design concepts that Sydney helped me bring to life. I highly recommend Worthington Design and Remodeling for any renovation you are considering. The level of professionalism and attention to detail were amazing! I am an extremely satisfied customer and am very grateful for my Worthington team!

We highly recommend Worthington Design & Remodeling. We remodeled our kitchen and it was a first class experience. From project planning all the way to completion, the staff was professional, skilled, and knowledgeable.

Had a terrible experience with them, starting March 2022. The project was to be a master bathroom remodel. As of October 2022, still did not have a viable design or contract. The problems with this vendor were many: • Lead designer was aloof and unresponsive. Virtually every communication with her took at least a week to get a response. She would either forget to tell us which of their offices to meet at, and in one case, she just didn’t show up. PAINFULLY SLOW. • Initial estimate was reasonable, but they refused to provide details that showed allowances they had included for major areas such as tile, fixtures, etc. It was just a number, $XX - $YY for the whole thing. • After several months we finally had our selections made, and revised pricing came in at >50% above the initial range. Naturally they said it was because of the selections we had made, but since they never gave us a breakdown of the initial allowances, we were completely blind to the deltas. Even after this, they refused to give us a breakdown of the costs. We were shocked and disappointed, and demanded a more thorough detailed analysis but their response was, “that’s not our model”.

This was not a good experience! They are very expensive. I paid a premium price but got an economy job treatment. We were without our bathroom for THREE months. It is a small room and should have taken a few weeks. The design phase went well and I really liked the design team. Unfortunately the execution and construction phase was a nightmare. The trim work done by the in house carpenter was very good, but the subcontractors that they hired for the rest of the job were in my opinion, substandard. The plumber put the cabinet drains in the wrong place and failed the code inspection twice. The electrician put in the wrong type of switches, and also failed the code inspection. The drywall company left a mess and very rough finished walls. We had drywall dust everywhere in the house. The tile company worked sporadically and killed a large section of our lawn where they dumped the tile and grout wash water. The glass company had to remake a large mirror three times to get it right. Workers often showed up in unmarked vans unannounced or failed to show up when expected. Almost all of the bathroom hardware was wrong, as it was either the wrong color, size or type. This was a very agonizing experience.

They were not cheap. We paid top dollar, but we got excellent service and we were happy with their work.

Everything was GREAT! I am incredibly happy with my new kitchen. My designers, Rochelle and Sydney, held my hand throughout the design process and were wonderful in helping me make my new selections. They really listened to what I wanted and the look I was going for. My project manager, Mike, was outstanding. He stayed on top of everything and was very quick to answer any questions I had and address my concerns. My lead carpenter, Jim, was wonderful as well. He was so kind and helpful and had amazing attention to detail and did fantastic work. Case was not the cheapest estimate I got, but I am a firm believer in that you get what you pay for. There were so many people looking out for me and my project and making sure that everything was completed correctly and in a timely fashion. They were so thorough throughout the entire process and were very upfront about all costs. I felt very well taken care of throughout the whole process. I highly recommend Case for any project you might be considering!

It took awhile for them to come out, but they did finally reach back out to me to let me know when they could come out. The repair work they did was excellent. I was so pleased with the work and the man that came out to do the work. It turns out they were recently awarded an award for being the #1 Home Improvement company in the state. They are very busy, which is why they took awhile to get back to me, but by the time they finished the work and I saw how good of a job they did, it no longer mattered that it took awhile for them to contact me. I would use them again in a heartbeat!

Case exceeded my expectations. It actually is now much better looking and built than when we bought our house.

I realize that this is a lengthy review and want this evaluation to be as accurate and even-handed as possible. I contacted CASE at the suggestion of my father who had several projects completed by them in the past. He did share with me that over the years, CASE became increasingly expensive and, while they did add computer aided design improvements, the quality of their work, and particularly the work of their subs seemed to suffer a bit. The last project at his house resulted in a serious buried gas line leak that took over a year to resolve between CASE and its subs. My association with CASE began on August 3, 2016 when CASE visited my house to quote on an improvement to my existing rear patio. My plan was to build an outdoor kitchen with sink with built in grills (a Webber gas grill and a Big Green Egg) and to run power to the outdoor area. We would also need to expand the patio to make room for the kitchen and a table. We emphasized that we wanted this done before winter. We also requested quotes to remove the current cement staircase, and bury the power cord to an existing hot tub, among some other minor items. We made it clear on the first visit that we had a budget of no more than $30k total. They provided an estimate of anywhere between $19k and $49k for the described work. As my budget was within their range, I assumed we could reasonably reach our goal. On August 12, I signed a contract for design work that specified $750 as a deposit to be credited to the final project, if begun within 6 months but otherwise not refundable. The contract specified that even though I was paying for the design work with this $750, it remained the property of CASE and would not be returned to me if I didn’t go through with having CASE do the work. THIS IS AN IMPORTANT POINT THAT THE READER SHOULD NOTE : even though you are paying for ?design work?, the work product does not belong to you. We met with CASE on 4 separate occasions between 8/12 and 10/3 to complete the specifications for this work. During that time, CASE never actually provided us with a quote for the original scope of the project. However, we discovered that we could not get the same pavers as our existing patio. This would significantly increase the cost for that portion of the job, so we started to scale back the project. Our evaluation of where to cut back was significantly hampered by the fact that we were never provided a detailed breakdown of individual costs, but rather simply a (very high) lump sum figure at each meeting. They explained that the sink we requested would be “very expensive”, but never provided an actual dollar amount. This continued for each and every item until we asked “how much to simply build an outdoor countertop for the grills?? Despite repeated requests, we were never provided with an itemized price breakdown for the original scope of the project. They simply stated, “If this were my home, I would not be happy with the quote being presented?” (That is a direct quote from Jeff Baird, the project manager at CASE referencing the cost of the project). On October 3, CASE delivered their final plans to me. We didn’t get a chance to select the granite for our countertop as CASE took the liberty of selecting one for us. For the first time, I was informed that most of work would be done by a sub-contractor (despite CASE’s pitch in August that “we do all of the work ourselves - no third parties”). However, the most shocking thing was that the estimate for this “stripped down” version of the project - essentially a simple counter top - was over $15,000. It seemed at this point that CASE was weary of working with us and just wanted to either keep our deposit or charge a very large amount for a small project. On October 4, we asked CASE for a breakdown of the latest estimate as I couldn’t understand how a simple counter could cost this much. Keep in the mind that the grills are not included in this price, as I had already purchased them separately. I sent a follow up request for this breakdown on October 7. Ten days after my first request, on October 14, I received a phone call from Jeff. I responded immediately, and on October 17 he informed me that they could reduce their fee for setting up the subcontractor by an additional $2k to bring the overall cost to $13,002. He called it a “pass through” fee. I finally received a breakdown that showed a $3,600 fee for CASE on top of the sub-contractor fee of $4,223 and all of the parts and labor for CASE. A screenshot is below, showing only CASE’s portion, and they suggested I pay the subcontractor for their work directly. *Screenshot will not print, but the breakdown is: Contract Amount: $8,779 Project Management / Design / Administration: $3,606 Labor General / Demolition / Dump Fees / Carpentry / Material: $897 Plumbing / Rough / Finish / Materials: $560 Cabinets / Labor / Material: $496 Countertops / Labor / Materials: $3,220 On October 19, I asked for more information from CASE as the breakdown didn’t make sense and most of my desired elements were not included. On October 28, after no response, I followed up again. On Halloween (12 days after my request and 3 days after my follow up), CASE responded saying they didn't get the email. I immediately replied, saying I was concerned with the way they are handling the situation, and had strong reservations about this project, including the 3rd party who will be doing the majority of the work (and not listed on Angie's List, nor do they have a website). The chronology from this point is: • 11/7 - Jeff Baird at CASE responded that they have done everything in their power to make me happy, and that they don't understand my concerns. • 11/10 - I responded to Jeff at CASE, offering to discuss in person or on phone over the weekend at any point. • 11/15 - Jeff responded that they have a busy schedule, and didn't have time to meet to us. I follow up with an email demanding my money back due to poor treatment and lack of follow through with CASE. • 11/23 - Jeff responded they are sorry, but reminded me that I signed their contract stating that they have complete control. • 12/6 - After no further response for two weeks, I contact the owner of CASE, Larry Greene, to plead my CASE. He replied immediately that he will talk to Jeff about the matter, but that they have over $3,000 in design costs invested in this project, and they do not make a habit of returning deposits due to their costs. While I understand that concept, $3,000 is an outrageous sum given the level and amount of service we were given. Even if they put in 15 hours, (I doubt they had nearly that much time invested) it comes to $200 an hour to design a countertop. • 12/19 - No response from Mr. Greene or anyone else at CASE. • 1/4/2017 - Still no response from CASE I realize that I have no real recourse and that CASE will be keeping my money after delivering what I consider to be profoundly horrible customer service. However, I hope this review can prevent others from suffering this fate. My advice to anyone reading this is: DO NOT SIGN THE “DESIGN” CONTRACT WITH CASE unless you are willing to part with your money, regardless of the treatment you subsequently receive from CASE. I expect that CASE will have their own spin on this but the facts noted above are the facts. We both have spent a lot of time in a very frustrating process that could have, and should have, been easily avoided. All CASE had to do was to disclose upfront that the scope of this project and the budget I was willing to spend were too far apart before they took my $750. That minimal amount of professional honesty would have saved us both a great deal of time. I can only assume that they expected they could convince me to spend significantly in excess of my stated budget after I had paid their “design fee”. Further, I am very disappointed with CASE’s excessive delays in responding to my inquiries and their disingenuous attempt to resolve the matter fairly.

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The entire process went well.  They were great in the planning phase adjusting to our work schedules.  They had evening appts which is a plus for us since we both work.  We took a long time to get to a final plan but this was our issue and not theirs.  Again, the designers listened and put our ideas to work plus added their own ideas as professionals.  The work went smoothly and efficiently.  They were always on time and let me know if there were any issues to consider.  They managed all of the subs for plumbing and electrical.  I was happy to let someone else do all of that - and they did a great job.

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Absolutely the most professional service we have ever used.  It was hard to believe they were able to accomplish everything that they did because it was like they weren't even here. Quiet, clean, and outstanding workmanship.  Plan on using them again in the future for another project.

It went very well.  No additional leaks since the repairs.  Very professional and knowledgeable.  Ask for Mike Pfiel.  He is amazing!

Mike Phiel was superb.
I think he can do anything around the house.
The jobs were small and fitted around his schedule but always preceeded with a phone call.
The work was done to very high quality

Very nice job. Reliable people to do the job while I am at work.

This was a large project for a room addition, removing 2 walls (1 interior, 1 exterior) to enlarge the family room. Case completed a master design plan for the initial phase, providing many ideas for interior renovation. The design ideas were well done and the designers very flexible and professional. Case uses an interactive software package so you can take a virtual tour of different plans. The quality of the workmanship was good. The only issue we had was some turnover of the lead designer on our account and the lead Forman.

We enjoyed working with Caee. Everyone we worked with was very professional. They were a bit expensive, but we feel like we paid for good quality.

They services went very well, and they were also very professional. Also completed services in a timely manner.

The design process to much longer than I wanted. My first appointment with Case was in January, and I signed off on the design in May. Having their interior designer help pick the materials was invaluable. The construction phase was trying as there were unforeseen issues that came up, like in any project, so there were some delays, but overall not too bad. I'm happy with the result.

a very old master bathroom ( bulit in 1980s) remodeled. Walls knocked down. used a space of (old bathroom, closets, powder room) combined and made into a large, well-lit, beautifully designed modern, open concept bathroom with vanity/bowl, soaking tub, tiled-glass shower, California closets, and tucked away toilet in same area.
The lead designer kept us abreast of cost as we work through the design/material selection/ construction phases. ( very nice
and upfront about costs).
design phase  was excellent- gives you an idea of how the end-product looks like. changes can be made on the fly, without causing any damages. Work was done by a team of CASE designers on computer CAD-CAM. We gave our input weekly, until satisfied with the design , then came the
phase of selecting materials: tiles, vanity, sink, colors, soakign tub, accessories, etc. we had help from CASE interior designers.
then the Construction phase: the master craftsmen are courteous, very professional, punctual every day for 5-6 weeks, until all work is done. they leave the area clean every day, respect the household ( with pets) . We were involved in the day-day progress and give our input during the installation of the vanity (location/height), bathroom accessories, etc...
we also had closets installed by California Closets. This team works closely with CASE design team.
the end product is a beautiful bathroom. little hassle. The price is right.
We will schedule more work with CASE Design in the near future.

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We chose Case because of their advertising, referrals, and positive reviews on Angie's List.  We were impressed by their fancy showroom and computer programs showing us a 3D image of what our finished product would look like.  They were polite, professional, and seemed to know what they were talking about.  The design and planning process went smoothly, however the construction was where we ran into problems.  Once the framing, drywall, and painting had been completed, we noticed the arch was visibly uneven (we have 15 arches in our home to compare it to, so this mistake was obvious).  We pointed it out to the project manager, and he sent the carpenter back to fix it.  After two attempts and his insistence that "the numbers added up", we were becoming frustrated because it was still clearly not even.  They finally sent another carpenter to help him, and they seemed to have fixed the problem immediately.  We also had come to find out that the carpenter they assigned to us had little experience in doing arches (this info came directly from project manager).  So, then our issue was why did they not assign someone with more experience OR send with him a second individual who knew what he was doing in order to avoid this in the first place?  Also, why did they let him have 2 more attempts before calling in for back-up? They essentially wasted both ours and their time by sending someone in to fix a problem he didn't see in the first place.  
 
Once we got over that bump in the road, the painters came back to finish their job.  Once they were done, we noticed there were many spots where the paint was not smooth (bumps along the arch and on the trim of the columns), so we called them back.  At this point, they sent in their drywall guy to smooth out the arch, which the painters painted again.  It STILL was not completely smooth, nor did they smooth out the spots on the trim to my satisfaction (there were bumps and spots that were not filled in/sanded  properly despite my asking painter to do them).  Finally, the project manager himself came to do the work on the arch and when I complained about the trim on the columns still not being right, he answered that they were still working with the painters on training for those details. At this point I was done dealing with them and just wanted this to be over.   
In addition, I felt Case did not properly manage the team in a time efficient manner, there was a bit of miscommunication about where our team of carpenters/painters were supposed to be a couple times, and that the carpenters/painters were bouncing around in between several jobs on any given day.   Sometimes we get a few hours here and there or several days of no one, and them having to wait around for help/materials.  I also felt they wasted a lot of time not by not getting our carpenter the help he needed immediately.  This project took 6 weeks instead of the 2-3 weeks they estimated.  I realize we may be on the smaller end of remodeling projects, but our expectations were high given Case's reputation, and they sadly fell very short of those.  To us, there was no excuse for sending someone inexperienced in the first place, then sending him back 2 more times before calling in for help.  If your best person was not available, then we would have been happy to reschedule.  We had already been flexible with scheduling and told them we were not in a rush to get this done.  Despite several apologies from the project manager, we ended up with a negative view of this experience.  For the amount of money spent, it was not worth the hassles.  The fact that all of this was avoidable is what frustrates us the most.   I still plan to have someone come in a fill in the uneven spots on the trim properly. To end on a positive note, they were polite and cleaned up after themselves.  

They were a little pricey but do great work. They came out right when they said they would. The office and the handymen were very professional.