HOME IMPROVEMENT SPECIALIST

It was not very good. I didn’t end up using them. It wasn’t very helpful. I never got any plan or anything. They didn’t really do much to the table. They just didn’t understand what we were trying to do. They weren’t really creative. We had some ideas that they kind of shot down and we ended up doing them anyway and it came out great.

They were great!

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He was responsive initially. But then he was supposed to send his engineer out to take measurements. A week has passed and I haven't heard anything from him at all.

He was very professional. He came out in force with lots of people, did a good job

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Extremely well. They were very punctual The work men were professional and cleaned up after themselves each day.I am very satisfied with all the work and will definitely use this company gain.

I wanted to have my bathrooms remodeled, but I was afraid because of all the stories you hear about contractors. I called several contractors to get ideas and prices..Three companies came out and I looked over their plans and prices. I decided to go with Home Improvement Specialist because 8 years ago they remodeled my kitchen and garage and I was very satisfied. The work was great and on time.

 Mr  Halprin   came with Mr. Freedman and they went over the work. Mr. Freedman said  he we would take me  shopping to buy the bathroom tub, shower faucets, vanity, and floor tile. He put my at ease because when they.did the work the first time my husband was alive and he picked out the material.

 I would recommend Home Improvement Specialist to anyone who needs a good and fair contractor

How did it go" Frustrating, seriously delayed, mediocre work. An "F" for failed experience!
[Photos are available to support all claims made below]
Contract signed in July, 2013 and final work completed on December 20.2013.
1. The bathroom lights were installed improperly (we were without lights in the almost completed bathroom for 3 weeks!)  so they were ripped them off the wall (now, no lights now in the bathroom) with NO DATE for reinstallation. (photos available of before and after)
2. Trim work unfinished for weeks. When finally finished, floor panels which were removed to install tile were disposed of and therefore not available for matched under the trim completion (Photos available)
3. Work delayed because contractor said that, "since vanities were delayed we can't continue." When vanities came in, one was moved and left for a week, directly in front of dresser making it very difficult to get to clean clothes. There was no need to wait for the vanities. In addition, care was not taken when vanities were installed;  crew stepped on the vanities during wall repairs and renovation, using them, apparently, as a ladder. While the vanities were screwed to the walls permanently, none of the hardware was installed. (Photos available)
4. Wrong size panels (6-foot) of man made granite instead of ceiling to floor panels for shower installation ordered by contractor. Contractor became angry when we did not settle for the 6-foot panels with a trim and 3-foot panels at the top. Thank goodness we had the words, "floor to ceiling panels," one pieces handwritten by us on addendum to contract. We were told that it would take an additional  20 days for the new CORRECTED order, even though the folks who make the stuff said (we called) it would take 5 -7 days to get it ready. Passive aggressive punishment by contractor because we did not agree to the configuration that he wanted which would have used the incorrectly ordered slabs affecting the appearance of the finished work. No shower, no lights....etc. (Photos available)
5. For six weeks, debris has been left in our house as if it was a construction zone. Bags of trash left in the bathroom on several occasions and now, even though the painting is over, for the most part, painting gear left in the corner of our bedroom, where we sleep. Did they forget that people live here? (Photos available)
6. Other miscellaneous failures (wrong door handle installed, dirt and debris left in the two new vanities, parts of known good hardware thrown out, etc.) (Photos available)
7. Dust everywhere. curtain and furniture covers not used during remodeling. Imagine your master bathroom a contraction zone, with garbage and debris, dust everywhere in your connected bedroom. Our bed and dressers were covered with dust! Did they forget that we live in this house and have to breathe here?  (Photos available)
8.   A working door handle and other hardware were trashed before discussing it with us. As it turns out we purchased an unneeded door handle for the guest bathroom, installed incorrectly (we fixed it). When we went looking for the old working in good condition door handle, it was gone. Contractor promised to be replace the door handle. We are still waiting (1/8/14!)
This all started in September, (9/5/13) when the plumber came to rip out the shower and left, without doing anything because a valve wasn?t purchased (what valve, what?), even though I was available to go buy the specified valve while the shower was removed. This delayed everything for 1 week. Still don?t know why. 
My strongest recommendation to anyone using this service (why would you?) or any other contractor in Louisiana, is to DEMAND A TIMELINE/TIMETABLE AND SCHEDULE FOR JOB COMPLETION. If you do not do this, you are the mercy of folks like this who will fit your repair or renovation in between what ever other project they are trying to manage, If the management is mediocre, like we believe was the case with this company, you will have the unfavorable experience we had. 
Seems like the work is done at the convenience of the contractor who had multiple projects. The management of which were pathetically poor as work that could?ve taken place did not for over 13 days, during the period from 9/5/13 to 10/29/30. Nothing was done except for trash left, dust left, and half of the work completed.  Perhaps this contractor has never been overwhelmed with projects and thus never had customers who new better to note the horrible management of the renovation. Hard to believe he has such high marks as a contractor. Never would guess, again, that he may have been overwhelmed. Together with passive aggressive behavior (seemingly delaying the installation for the correct size shower sections instead of using what was incorrect and modifying it so it would cost him less) in combination very poor management by and overwhelmed contractor equals a terribly extended long drawn out, ?can?t wait for these bastards to get out of here? attitude and feeling about Louisiana sluggish contractors. A very, very disappointing  experience that I would hope no one else experiences.
Yes, we did have restrictions of time but were willing to start at 7:30 in the morning, even though wife works evening shift and has multiple sclerosis), but they missed too many day opportunities to work to bring the project to an earlier completion. We were available on weekends and had at least one full day off during each week, ignored by the contractor.
The contractor told us that we were, along with ?only one other? customer from over 10 years ago, that ?gave me trouble.?  Apparently his 10-year old customer were also forgotten, or were considered less important than his other projects. Perhaps his ?customer from 10 years ago,?  chose, like us,  not to tolerate his less than medicare management. Perhaps 10 years ago he did a poor management job with that customer.  Think about it: we signed the contract in July and finished in December, with weeks of zero work completed (we had most fridays off, so did they!), work competed at their convenience, wrong basic parts ordered, property thrown out???. you decide! 
Beware of this contractor!  Apparently he has his friends and sub contractors, who like to work with this individual, write positive bogus reviews.

Response to response made by Howard:
We WERE NOT informed that we had to have a plumbing part available when the job began with the removal of the old bathtub/shower. What part? we were told a valve was necessary. What valve. We are NOT PLUMBERS and if a plumber was coming why didn't he bring the part. And why did he have to have BEFORE the plumbing was worked on? It seems to me that first you tear out the old bathtub and shower (2 hours minimum?) and then get the plumbing ready for the new work? Right? In those two hours I could've complied with a request, after being told what plumbing part I needed (i  was NEVER INFORMED!), and I could've have gone to Home Depot to buy it. Right? No. The plumber left before starting. Why? Howard had other things for him to do, as he did with his crew over and over again during this dismal display of incompetence.
And...
How do you explain the no-work days? Six months to finish the project, more than 30-40 days of us staring at an incomplete bathroom! Why? 
Good job in explaining your poor management, Howard: Attack personally by calling your customer a control freak and explaining that everyone else is satisfied. My guess is that we helped make other customers happy satisfied because you screwed around with our job, not competing it on time, doing other things with other customers while we waited tolerating an uneven schedule, leaving garbage in our house, moving a two sink cabinet in front of a dresser in the bedroom so we couldn't get to clothes, etc. All because of your poor management of our job so you can get to y

The workers are punctual, professional, and cleaned up thoroughly after completing the job. We have used this company on several occasions and have always been pleased with the quality of work, price, and professionalism. We recommend them highly.

They were great, punctual, enthusiastic, professional, friendly, the whole deal. They spent a lot of time and effort to see that we were happy.

It was an Angie's List Big Deal that I purchased. It went fine. They didn't understand what I wanted.

We hit a couple of snags with our choices and Home Improvement thought outside the box in order to get us what we want.  First class professionals.  Everything was talked through.  He listens to what his customers want.

They gave me an estimate. Everything went well.

Really went well. I wanted some unusual features in kitchen, and Mr Freedman understood, and did not try to talk me out of these features. Be sure to stick to your guns. I got a bosche dishwasher panel front dishwasher, which called for an extra couple of panels, which came out well. This did entail more time that neither of us expected, but it was worth the wait. I did pay for new sink and dishwasher myself, as agreed at contract signing. Mr Freedman took me to big box store for purchase of these items. He always responded quickly to any questions or concerns I had. Price was about what I expected, given extent of work needed.

My wife and I wanted additional work space in the kitchen.  HIS sized and sketched an island then scheduled a meeting with a cabinet showroom.  After visiting the showroom, It was evident to us that a more economical approach would suit our needs.
We took the sketches to a local cabinet shop and contacted with them for the finished product.

There was no design. The proposal did not break down for each are of work and what the cost would be for each item. It was just a lump sum. I was disappointment with that aspect. I met with them twice and they were pleasant people.

We were pleased with the price and the professionalism.  Also, with the scheduling and promptness of the contractors.  We were pleased, overall, with the quality of the work.  Our concerns dealt with the sometimes inattention or overlooking of details.  Did not feel the provider had an eye for detail, such that it was necessary for us to get mistakes corrected that the provider should have overseen.  We have an old house that is not plumb making the countertop work difficult.  We had to have the granite installers come back to make adjustments.

They were great we were extremely happy with the results we just love it

It was slow starting because we live in a tree preservation district, requiring we and the contractor jump through some extra hoops. In all their years of experience, contractor had not encountered this. The delays were not the fault if the contractor. Once started, the work went relatively quickly, with delays caused by inspections not the contractor. There was a bit of a language barrier with two of the actual workers, but we worked through it. Any time there were concerns on my part, not only were they resolved near-immediately, but the owner came by to confirm that it was resolved. They were very hands-on. Additionally, I have a two year old. They were all great about working around her and her schedule, to the point that they took lunch or did quieter tasks during her nap time. I can not say enough nice things about Home Improvement Specialists. They have become my go-to contractors.

he brought us to cabinet store, sink store, ceramic tile store and counter top store and show us a way to select what we want in our kitchen.

The work went pretty smoothly, the pace was a little slow.  The materials were not delivered or brought in the morning all days, but sometimes would be brought to the work site after the crew was already here.  This seemed to be loss time to me, but I wasn't paying by the hour, but by the job, so I wasn't really worried about it.  I am retired so I could pretty much be here all the time to answer any question the builders had.  There were a few questions, such as where do I want the ramp to end, and what color stain to use and the like, all minor personal preference type of questions.  The dirt that was dug for the ramp clearances was spread or hauled away, so that that was never a problem. 

 The work went smoothly, working around some rainy days.  The only issue I had was that one of the workers was not as attentive as he should have been and some wood went up with the "bad" side facing out.  In other words, wood that had blemishes on one side went up with the blemish facing out where you can see it instead of facing in where it was not seen.   To their credit, after pointing these out, the wood was either changed or taken out and turned around.  Absolutely no argument or problem to get this done, but it did extend the time to complete the job.  There was a problem with a top rail that "curled" after sitting a full day in the hot sun, after calling Doug, the problem was fixed the next morning, no questions or hassle.  The city inspector came by to do the final inspection and said it was a good job and easily passed it.

Conclusion:   Some issues with time management (I thought), some issues with not paying attention, (never was "bad" wood used, just wrong face exposed).  I have received good reviews from family and friends, especially after I dressed up the outside of the ramp with stepping stones with plants and solar lighthouses on them.  After the entire experience, I would definitely not hesitate to use this company again for projects in the future.  I was very happy with the outcome of the ramp.  The ramp was built with 4 foot clearance for the turnaround to the front door and my handicapped relative moved his wheelchair easily up to and through the front door, and he was happy as well.  The finished job came out "better" than I imagined after looking at other ramps in the neighborhood.  Overall I thought an excellent job was done.

The inside crew was very efficient and clean.  The work was done timely considering the drying time needed for the mud and taping.  All the time someone was keeping the mess to a minimum and constantly cleaning up after every stage.
The end product is terrific and beautiful.  The crown molding looks great.  There are no blemishes to be seen.  You can't tell where the old damaged section of the ceiling or the ceiling fan used to be.  All in all, it was a great job.

On the outside job there was an issue with the workers about putting an insulation board under the siding, but that was handled with one call to Doug (the salesman and contact person for the company).  The insulation board was installed and the siding was installed over that.  That was the only issue to the entire job.  (Except for a missed nail that found its way into my wife's car tire, easily repaired.)

The entire job, inside and out, has been completed to my utmost satisfaction, and better than I imagined that it would, especially the inside work.  I have already had people come over to see it (and to look for flaws...they found none) and everyone compliments on the good job. 

The entire job site was cleaned and all the trash hauled away from inside and outside. 

I would not hesitate one minute to use this company again should I need other work done in the future.