Gem Construction Co Inc

They were horrible. The is horrible and wouldn't get back to us and promised to do stuff and didn't do it. He appealed money and he didn't even care. The pricing was good but you get what you pay for.

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Overall, we are not terribly pleased.  The project took too long.   The finished product in the bathroom - the new countertop looks good and after fixing the leaky pipe and shaving off some material so that the drawers open properly, we are pleased.
The deck looks cheap.  In redoing the steps, they left a large step at the bottom.  the carpenter's response was that's how we do it.   We insisted and they created a better bottom step that was not so large.

They traced back the company that manufactured the ceramic tiles.  They then replaced the tiles and put the new ones in. They did a fantastic job.  I will now use them for future projects whenever I need them.

While my relationship with Gem seemed to get off on the right foot (i.e. they were the low bid, came to meet with me and seem to have their act together), when all was said and done my experience was terrible and frankly there is very little I can say that is positive about them.  I knew this was a somewhat complicated project, but I had high expectations and was disappointed at nearly every turn.  I honestly felt like the stress was taking years off my life during the project.  Though in the end the project was ultimately finished.  Of course in about 6 months (not counting the many follow-up visits to fix the roof) vs. the original 6-8 week estimate they gave.  And dealing with most of the Gem guys face to face was pleasant enough (when I could actually get someone by phone).  Additional tidbits from my experience include the following 'gems' (pun intended):

3 days into the project the roof and old bathroom were gutted and taken off the back of the house, leaving the first floor kitchen exposed.  A nice thunderstorm followed on Saturday, and torrents of rain came pouring into my kitchen through the poorly laid plastic, collapsing the tile ceiling and ruining the parquet wood floor.  Oh and when I met with George to give him the final check at the end of the project, he had the audacity to include the floor replacement as an additional cost to me (needless to say I objected).

The 'dog house' built new by Gem to enclose the spiral staircase and provide deck access to this day is not weatherproof.  Whenever there is a severe thunderstorm, water backs up and comes into the staircase area just below the door (in the area completely constructed new by Gem).  This has been chronic issue since the project was completed, and each successive visit by Gem to fix the problem only managed to minimize, and not fix the water issues.

A drywall subcontractor who was doing the work to fix the kitchen felt it proper to use my box fan and stool to dry the work he performed, which was sub-par.  I think Gem got rid of him mid-project, and did the rest of the drywall work themselves (which was better quality).

Pieces of siding on the outside of the new construction (near the roof) were not properly nailed and secured as 2 pieces of siding were completely blown off during a Thunderstorm.  I had to buy 2 new pieces and fix this myself.

And speaking of fixing things myself, the following tasks were not performed correctly or at all by Gem so I had to do them myself: caulking in the bathroom, framing around the door to the deck access and new bathroom, plus staining/sealing the new deck.  Probably I could have gotten Gem to do this, but by this stage I desperately wanted them out of my life.

I could go on, but hopefully you get the point.  These guys treated my place like a work zone, not a home where someone was living.  My house was not livable during the 6 months of the project.

I would only use Gem under the following conditions:

- no one else will do the work
- you don't like right angles and don't mind poor quality here & there
- unresponsiveness does not bother you

Also, if you must use Gem, do a full check of any subcontractors they may wish to use -- and make them fully disclose these individuals (the drywall guy was a sub).

Sorry Gem, you earned every bit of this review, which is overdue but I wanted to make sure I filed before the handyman I've hired shows up next week to fix some of the problems you guys created (i.e. roof leak under door threshold in the spiral staircase Gem built).

I hired GEM to recover a decaying roof over my garage. The estimate price was great, the promise of a 2-day job was made and met. However, a flat roof REQUIRES FLASHING to be installed to maintain the integrity of the work performed and the materials used. GEM refused to install flashing, claiming it wasn't in the estimate. They also took over 6 months to send me a copy of the 10 year warranty they told me I had purchased with the roofing material.  I have called, and complained, and requested they complete the job, which would involve them putting the flashing on. They refused. I would NEVER recommend them, and would never use them again. I am looking into litigation over this matter, as after one year of use, I can no longer guarantee the garage roof is still leak-proof. CHOOSE SOMEONE ELSE!!

Gem Construction recommended a more substantial post which I though was a good recommendation and their craftsmanship is excellent.

GEM construction responded promptly and professionally to our request for an estimate. We were a little surprised at the cost, but without another estimate, the price seemed with the realm of reason. Work began quickly after signing a contract and was completed within a week. There were several changes from the initial description of the work we had agreed on, but the foreman cleared the only major deviation with us before proceeding. The overall construction seems quite solid and attractive. Small details in the work prevent me from giving an 'A' for quality, but we would recommend that other try using GEM.

We are maintaining our slate roof. George presented us with several options. We plan to have him come each year to replace degraded tiles. He does a good job and explains everything. I recommend him highly.

Called and got a prompt response with a written cost estimate. Agreed to the contract and the work was scheduled. The crew showed up promptly on the scheduled day and for the next 4 days it took to get the job finished. It was usually a 2 or 3 man crew each day. When the ceiling came down we had to make adjustments to the work which was taken in stride and the cost was re-assessed and lowered to reflect the final job. The crew was friendly, courteous and took good care of my furniture which had to stay in the room. It was a messy job but they cleaned up well and put all my heavy pieces of furniture back in place before they left. I was very pleased with their work and would use them again next time I need work done.

From the very first encounter to the finish these people were fabulous. I had left messages with other "handyman" people who were unresponsive. Gem Const. got back to me immediately, worked well by email or phone. They showed up on time to do the work and my tenants said they were pleasant and professional and quick. I sent them a link of the fan I wanted from Home Depot, they bought it and installed it. I thought the price for all the work needed was fair, the fan was approx. $150 so their labor was $300. Gem Construction are "keepers", I highly recommend them.

The job was completed in a week and a half. The quality of the work was above average. The workers went out of the way to communicate what they were doing when I asked them questions. Doug was supervisor and answered all the questions I asked quite well. He explained in detail what they were doing and why. John, who installed new walls, prepared the floor and installed the ceramic tile, was outstanding throughout the job. He has a great eye for detail and treats your job as if it is his own house he is working on. Tony, who installed a backsplash in the kitchen was meticulous in what he did. His work was outstanding. The original estimate was reasonable. The problem I had was in the sudden price increase that I felt was not justified. As the job began, a heavy rain storm left water on the basement floor. We decided at that point it would no longer be prudent to install a wood laminate floor. I investigated prices at a Lowes where the tile is purchased and found a ceramic tile that was almost the exact same price as the wood laminate. We asked to change to the ceramic tile. I can understand an increase in cost since the unopened laminate had to be returned and new tile purchased but I was shocked that an additional $4,000 was charged for purchasing and installing the ceramic tile. I was told the ceramic tile cost of installation is $15 per foot and the laminate was half that cost. I was charged $1350 for additional cost to install the ceramic tile floor and a $2,450 addional cost for the flooring itself. The numbers just do not add up when you price the product at Lowes and when you look at cost of installing the two products on the Internet. I strongly communicated this to the estimator but no change was made. My feeling is I was given a low cost so the contractor could get the job and then the company decided it would more than make up for its low cost estimate by taking advantage of my water situation. I did not appreciate this method of doing business.

Gem Construction is truly worthy of their name. From the initial meeting to completion, I couldn't have asked for a better company to work with for this project. Every step of the way was easy and the management of the job was INCREDIBLE! It was like a ballet. There wasn't a lost minute in the entire process. Something was always going on to work the job towards completion. They finished under the contracted projection for a completion date! The workers always knew their assignments and were always on top of the situation as well. Mr. Greaver was a presence on the job as well and made sure everything was working like clockwork and even assisting his workers, if needed. It was truly a team effort and I couldn't have been happier. Like I said, they are worthy of their name! They are a GEM!

They do great work but I have had a few issues, which is not the workers fault. They have failed to include several of the projects in the work order.

This was a very good service experience from the initial contact with Mr. Greaver. The job was estimated promptly, the work was completed by the estimated date. The crew was pleasant, respectful, and careful. It was a small job but the result was worth the price. I really have only good things to say about this company!

We decided to go with Gem and we are glad we did! We are very satisfied with the results. The roof support timbers, underside, sides, downspouts & gutters are all "maintenance free" trimmed. The work crew, and especially the job foreman - Doug (who took a lot of pride in his work) - were great, very polite and respectful of our property, and cleaned up each day. Our numerous questions were answered patiently, constantly checked with us on how we might want something done, kept us informed when they would be here, what to expect the next day, kept the gate shut so the dog wouldn't get out. We also had them install 2 ceiling fans under the roof and they furnished & installed 2 skylights - there was some initial leakage on one fan plus leakage behind part of the gutter - they promptly returned to correct - 2 times for both! As far as pricing goes - it's hard to say how Gem compared to others because some estimates weren't quite comparing apples to apples, but we feel it was money well spent. And I do believe there was a mis-understanding regarding the estimate - when the contract was written up (at least 7 days later), some items I thought were included were not, said the estimator. Now I'm not absolutely positive I am correct, I failed to take detailed notes on this issue, so I give him the benefit of the doubt...very cautiously. And I should further mention that we had Gem do more work 3 months later (see report submitted) and there was no such problem, but I took much better notes!

This contractor is the most professional and competent contractor I have had work on my house in the past 18 years! I plan to have them do a lot of other work on my home in the near future. I highly recommend Gem Construction.

I was extremely pleased with the entire process. GEM's estimator arrived punctually, performed a careful evaluation of the extent of the damage, and gave me an estimate. Subsequently, I widened the scope of the work. The estimator returned, made the adjustments, and we signed the contract. The contract amount was in the ballpark of my insurance settlement, so I believe the amount was fair. The job foreman called within a few days to schedule a walk-through. He and a helper arrived punctually, taking detailed notes of the extent of the work and materials needed. They were willing and able to get to work quickly, and were quite flexible with working around my scheduled vacation. The work went according to plan and I am quite pleased with the final result.

The two bathroom floors are great. They revised a laundry room and bathroom. That was generally very good work. However, the fiber glass doors they put in stick.

They claimed to have created a screened porch for me but I am very unhappy with that. It was a separate crew that did that work. I made one phone call back to them with a question about that and they never called back.

I supplied them some shingles and they replaced those. I thought it was a little pricey from the git-go. Later when they started working they gave me another price and I thought it was WAY too much! They did a good job but I'd never use them again.

They had good recommendations on Angie's List and we met with Henry and John and really liked them and they said they could get it done in two weeks when other companies said it would take a month. They even worked on the weekends. They were outstanding. My house looks beautiful.

After 2 months more of the run around the quoted start date of my project arrived. I had been in touch with Henry and he said he might not be able to start on that day, but I assumed he would call if he wasn't coming. No one showed up to do the project, after 6 days and 9 phone messages, finally, the secretary answered. I told the secretary I was really angry and wanted to talk to someone besides George or Henry and I was canceling all of my projects except the front door and the roof leak-which I really needed done now, and I wanted a copy of my contract. Secretary told me (no apology) she would send me a copy of the contract "even though George usually takes care of that", have the owner call me and Henry call me. Henry called (no apology) and scheduled the project for Saturday. He showed up on Saturday, did the work, good work, pleasant to work with, all fine. The owner never called. Henry came back to put in the transome window, still without a contract. Henry said he would call George to get a final number so I could write them a check. George's number was about $1,000 over what I thought it should be. Apparently he was never told I was cancelling the rest of my projects, my response was well, you haven't done any of them, his response was how should I know Henry hasn't done them. Further, when we finally straighten out what was on my contract there was an extra charge of $400 for wrapping the door in black metal, which I had agreed to, but had never gotten a price on. George, unapologetic, asked if I would be home the following day because I refused to pay without a contract. I told him I could be home. I waited 5 hours for him, called the office again, secretary told me she would have George and the owner call me. George called me, angry saying he'd never said he would actually come by, and was tied up on another job. I felt the secretary had ratted me out to George for being angry. The owner never called. I was so angry but I just wanted to be done with them, George came over, I signed a contract (post work) and wrote them a check. He was finally somewhat apologetic. I never did hear from the owner. This was the worst company I ever worked with, the actual work was okay, but what I had to endure to get it done, they were constantly blaming each other, I just don't understand how communication could be so bad just between George, Henry, and a secretary. I would never work with them again. If you want a good carpenter try Tom Hauf, he charges less, is quick, and responsive.

Gem contractor Henry & John are A+ workers, they did a very good job. My husband and I were very pleased with the job they did for us. I would recommend them to anyone that needs work to be done.