Get matched with top home builders in Friendly, MD

"If you are looking to hire a contractor for home renovations/ new builds, don t hesitate to hire North Star. I spoke with and met several contractors prior to my major home renovation. Chris knows the business inside and out and is the consummate professional. The total renovation job done on my house was on time, within budget, and looks amazing. There are a lot of contractors out there..... finding a responsive, knowledgeable, professional that is trustworthy and courteous is hard to find. I wouldn t hesitate to hire North Star again!"

"The whole experience was wonderful! Calvin Lee came to our home to measure the space and provided exactly what we asked for as our remodel design. Jason and his crew worked very hard to complete our kitchen as quickly as possible while doing excellent work. Christian always answered question and addressed concerns as the process went on. Jason followed up each evening to let us know what would happen next. They arrived on time each day worked full days. We got all new cabinets, flooring, countertops, lighting and paint. We couldn’t be happier with our new beautiful kitchen!"

"Great guy, casual approach, does not ask enough questions. As a homeowner, I don't have his knowledge and is up to him to educate a little better. Overall, very, very good."

"The contracted the work off to a third party. Jon took longer than expected. The windows was installed pretty good from the looks. Communication could have been better with knowing the job will take longer and what types of trims I wanted for the windows. As the contractor that was hired for this job by this company. Did a good job with putting up decent trim. As for the new windows they look great. I purchased the myself and hired sentri homes to install them. I will need to have a my siding on my house redone to be closer to the new windows so the gaps are not so obvious. That was not expected at first. But from old storm windows and not knowing how they were put in originally. There was some unknown things that was learned from the job being completed. I will have the siding of the house slightly done to match really good for what I wanted later on. My only concern is better communication with sentri homes. Overall they were great when I did talk to them."

"One day I walked past a GS Builders sign in front of a house in our neighborhood where they were putting a second story onto a house that used to be a lot like ours. We spoke to Chris Papadopoulos, the owner and architect for GS Builders, and he explained their process. We paid less than we had previously paid an architect for one design, and received three preliminary designs. We worked with Chris for a couple of months on getting the design to a point where we really liked it while staying within our budget. The design was a collaboration in a way that it had not been with any of the other professionals with whom we worked on this project. Chris and his wife Nicoleta, who served as our project manager and interior designer, helped us to find a bank and assisted with the process of qualifying for a construction loan, without which we would not have been able to do the project. We started work on our project more than a year after our first discussion with GS Builders, in February of 2016. Although we had initially considered staying in the house during the construction, we ultimately decided against it, renting a smaller house nearby. The construction mostly went smoothly, although there were occasional blips in communication. We did appreciate that they kept surprises to a minimum. We had time to look at all the framing work including custom bay windows. It is solidly built and expertly done. While the builders were working on the house, my wife and I were working to find plumbing and lighting fixtures, kitchen appliances, cabinetry and countertops, paint and flooring combinations, and roofing and siding materials. Nicoleta was a fantastic resource, helping us to find vendors and websites, working with us to figure out what we liked and how to create the new space. The tilework, painting and other finishes that the crew from GSB put together is absolutely first-rate. They worked exceptionally hard and took great pride in their craftsmanship. We moved back in almost exactly six months after we moved out. We are in love with our new house. This kind of renovation creates stress in ways that I couldn't have imagined before I went through it and I think that GS Builders could help themselves by improving their communications and planning processes. We feel lucky that we chose to work with GS Builders. If we had to do the whole thing over we would choose them again. And when we save up enough to screen in the back porch, we will go back to them without hesitation. On-Time, High-Quality, and Reasonable Cost. We got all three."

"Debbie, the AC&R salesperson, was very knowledgeable and confident. They were the 2nd quote I got for work and came in even lower than I expected (which gave me pause as a low bid is a red flag). But true to her word, they did the work professionally (mostly...see below) and promptly. While I had another company do the energy audit for the Pepco rebate, AC&R took over the work, did the blown fiberglass one day and the spray foam the next.



For the blown fiberglass in the attics above our additions, they added spray foam (from a can) around any gaps per the contract and foam board baffles at the soffits. The installer noted that all our soffits were blocked and the batting insulation was too wide for the rafter channels, so he leveled it out as best he could to ensure an even coating of blown insulation. At the end, he sealed up the gaps between the attic and our to-be-finished upstairs (cape cod style, so all one room).



For the spray foam insulation, the team came in the next day, and I had to be out of the house due to fumes. I did come back around noon as they expected to be done well before then. They didn't know I came in and I went to the back of the house to watch TV on my work break. The one annoyance was during their cleanup, one of the installers came down into our kitchen and then saw me. He said he was looking for a vacuum cleaner to clean the stairs. I told him don't worry about the carpet as it was getting pulled up, but this was the one piece of unprofessionalism I noted above. Contractors should NEVER use the homeowner's property; they should bring their own tools, including vacuums!



While the spray foam can get very messy, they kept the splatter mostly contained to inside the crawlspace, not the finished flooring. However, I was surprised that they didn't tape off the outlet covers or light switched. since the particles are so small, we're going to have to replace the switches/receptacles at our cost. Also, there was a storm door screen that wasn't covered and now needs cleaned. Basically, I think they should have taken more care in covering the very few items we left upstairs and the outlets/switches.



They didn't spray around the window frames (large gaps where window weights used to be) because the open cell foam would expand too much. If I wasn't there, I think they would have just left, but it was clear in our contract discussions they needed to insulate those spaces too. They used a few cans of "Good Stuff" equivalent, but didn't fill in the gaps entirely. It did the job well enough, but it's a ding against them as I expected more preparation.



Lastly, I thought that AC&R would walk me through all the scheduling and final "test out" (for the Pepco rebate), but I had to contact them and schedule with someone different each time. They were always prompt, but I expect the experts to know to do this for/with me rather than expect me to know the process. I go through it once in a lifetime while they do it weekly.



While the end of the review sounds more negative than positive, I would definitely recommend AC&R out to others as they're priced right, they have been in business for over a century, and like any contractor, you just need to follow up to be sure everything is done to your satisfaction.
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"The roof work was great. The crew arrived on time, began working immediately. On putting on the new roof. They cleaned up everything afterwards, and there was no sign of work materials. Good price for great work!"

"Very well. Better than new."

"Contractor did everything he said he would when he said he would and faster than he said he would great guys any work I need done to my house from now on will be done by these guys"

"We had Flood Crew out to help when our hot water heater broke. Bill and his crew were great! From the water remediation to installing a whole new floor in the basement, the crew took care of every step. These are some of the hardest working guys I’ve ever seen! And they don’t play around, they get the job done. I recommend them to anyone needing this type of work done. Thanks a million, Bill & crew! ???"