JAY LITMAN CONSTRUCTION REMODELING & HANDYMAN SERV

Litman Construction won a bid through St. Louis County to install a vertical lift (elevator) to make our home handicapped accessible for our son with special needs. We began the project in ample time to complete it by the end of our funding year. We completed our portions of the project and Sam assured us that the project would be done on time. Two weeks before our funding year ended, Litman construction began their work, assuring us it would get done. The lift had not been ordered, so our project was not completed on time. It lost our son $12,000 of county funding to use this year for a handicapped accessible shower and ceiling lifts to keep him and our caregivers safe during transfers. Litman apologized, but did nothing to make the situation right. They proceeded to blame us for the delays. My husband was up until 2 AM one morning removing a wall so Litman could begin their work. Had we known that Litman's delays would be that impactful, we would have done what needed to be done ourselves. We could have easily done what needed to be done in a weekend. Litman Construction essentially sheet rocked and painted a U-shaped "closet" that was 5 feet deep, 6 feet wide and 12 feet high. They added a 42 inch high wall on top of the 8 foot wall my husband had already built. They sheet rocked and painted 204 square feet and charged $5,145 for their labor (85.75 hours over 30 days). On-line estimates put sheet rocking at $1.50-$3.00 per square foot (materials and labor combined) which would put our project at $306-$612. Even though Litman did not touch the lift (Arrow-Lift the lift manufacturer installed it) they charged a 10% mark up on the lift, and the electrician they hired (TK Electric) wired the main circuit board incorrectly so it was destroyed the first time it was hooked up. Their response to that was "He's done them for us before, but I guess mistakes can happen." Litman construction did not even do their work well. They left sheet rocked seams for us to have to blend into a wall above (they painted up to bare sheet rock). The bottom door header was put in crooked (it is 36" wide) and the dimensions for the door were incorrect despite them having a plan. When the lift was installed, shims needed to be placed at the top so the door opened correctly. We had to fix all their shoddy work after we fired them from the project. There was no service recovery or effort to make their mistake right. When we knew that the project was not going to get completed before the waiver year was up, Sam, the project manager, told us that he has had funding extended (our social worker never had heard of that) and that my husband was handy so he could complete parts of the next projects to fit into the money we have left over this year. He blamed us for the delays. In the end, Litman was paid for their job and there was no accountability for them. I left a one star review and told our story on their Facebook page and they deleted all four of their reviews. They turned off the ability for people to post to their page except in the comments of their posts. Instead of responding to a complaint, they deleted it. That, to me, says volumes about their company. If you want timely, high quality work done, go elsewhere.

Completed in timely manner. Fair price.

Overall, very good. Some projects were done quickly, to aid us, as a high priority, and inserted into their already busy work calendar, while others were planned out well in advance. Sam was always responsive and considerate and we were pleased with the communications. We had several crew members, from different crews, here on different projects and they were ALL and each very conscious of customer service. They were considerate of the possible disruptions and the challenges of sharing work spaces with living spaces AND they were always careful to involve us with decisions and ensure that we were pleased with the finished products. The experience was always positive for us, the homeowners, and the quality of work was very good.

unknown

Sam Litman and his crew, specifically Dave, did a great job. Sam is the son of Jay Litman and it is my impression that he is taking the reigns of the company. Sam was punctual on all appointments we made, was up front with costs, and performed the work as promised and on time. I hired him because he seemed the most honest of all of the contractors I interviewed. Sam has been working on historic houses since he was very young. I felt very comfortable hiring him and I would hire him again.

Excellent workmanship; very detailed; cleaned up after themselves.

unknown

It went well.

The owner Sam was great to talk with we thought we had finally found our handyman to help handle the small things that pop up at our rental properties.  So we scheduled two repairs a broken window and a bathroom tile that had broken.  It took Sam's crew 4 trips to replace a 4" x 4" shower tile and then he tried to charge us $400, when he was done there was still grout all over the shower walls.  When i complained he dropped the price to $240, the window pain was replaced but it took numerous phone calls and the painting of the sash was sloppy.  I would have had less of a problem paying the money I did if the quality was premium but it wasn't.  Again Sam and I believe his son were really stand up guys and said all the right things, but the crew was a little sloppy and price just seemed out of line.

Excellent customer service.  I dealt with Sam Litman, who was friendly, prompt, patient and great to work with; the top notch and professional team of Rick, Terry, Wynn and Dan who came out and worked so well as a team also demonstrated individual pride and expertise in their work. They were meticulously clean and did an outstanding job, even matching vents and the "whirligig" they replaced with almost the exact shade of roofing we had installed. It's supposed to last for at least 30 years, and the rubber portion of the roof may outlive me! I couldn't be happier with the quality of the work provided, and I would definitely recommend them to others. The bill was high, partly due to the special rubber portion of the roof, but I've called around, and roofing costs have now increased across the board. The quality of the shingles has been improved, however, which is why they will last 30 years minimum.  They are even going to leave us a full bundle of shingles to match in case we should need them.
I will definitely contact them first in the future to consider any future projects we have, and I am  impressed with their motto, "No job is too small".

Jay Litman was very prompt on getting over to quote out the project.

Once the project was started Jay let me know how it was going each week.

I stopped in several times and looked the project over.

They do a great job!

I would hire them again for our next job.

The owner, Sam was great to work with and very professional. The crew of men that he had working with us were very nice, but the quality of work was not as good as expected. After the work was supposedly complete, I had to go back and ask them to fix several things that looked like they had not been done by a professional. The caulking was sloppy, you could see many imperfections on the brand new walls, the new showerhead leaked and ruined our  new sheetrock (which they sent someone to look at it and he then said I would need to call and get a job order for it-isn't that why I had called in the first place?). We had a clear vinyl sheet placed over the wall where our resident's bump against the wall with walkers and shower chairs. It was installed where the piece had cracked. I had sent pictures to the owner as well and said he would send someone over. They looked at it but never fixed it. The quality of work was much less than I expected.

unknown

We asked for an estimate for work on four different problem areas, and we got a detailed and timely proposal. Only one area was urgent, and we ended up using a handyman our neighbor knew. However, I definitely would consider this company for more extensive work and have kept its proposal.

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Apparently, my mom's toilet had a slow leak that eventually weakened the structure that supports it  I discovered this when I was washing dishes in the kitchen and felt drops of water on my head.  I ran upstairs to find the floor almost totally given away. 
I searched on Angie's list and found this contractor and they came over right away to assess the damage; they were shocked.  I explained that this is my mother's house and I only live here two months out of the year to help her through the winter months.  I stated my mom is 83 and she has a very low heart rate, around 40, has had two knee replacements several  years ago that are wearing out, and she gets out of breath when she walks down three flights of stairs to use the 1/2 bathroom down in the basement. 
The contractor asessing the job, took notes, took pictures, was very sympathetic, and forwarded the pictures and details to his boss.  The boss scheduled reconstruction work for the very next day as he too felt that it was an emergency. 
The work is not finished and they will come back next week to put the final finishing touches on everything which includes leveling the floor and putting new vinyl flooring down.  This comment is for the first part of the work, the professional response and follow up, and work to reconstruct the floor in one day so my mom would have to climb down three flights of stairs.  When  you look for a contractor you are looking for the following:

Prompt reply
Prompt visit to assess the work requested
Friendly contractor; one that sees the situation through the eyes of the customer requesting the work
Prompt scheduling of work
Quality Professional work
This vendor was all that and more.  I can't thank them enough for their kindness and professionalism.

Everything looks/works great and was completed in a day. It would have taken us several weekends. We are very pleased.

The work was great.  The men spent significant time trying to locate the source of the problem in the window above.  Once locating the problem, they sealed the leaks and patched the ceiling in the room below.
The original fix did not solve the problem and they were quick to return to re-evaluate and fix the problem the second time.
We have had no leak since.

Jay and his crew was great!
They come in and put the drywall up in one day, then over the balamce of the week they put the finishing coats of mud on the walls and it turned out Great!
Thanks Jay for your execellent work!

He did a good job, he was just a little expensive.

Nice / knowledgeable/ on time.

My experience with Jay Litman Construction was very good. It was dependable and high quality work. They were very easy to work with.

The entire project was completed in 2 days. There were no problems encountered during the process.  The employee, Keegan Anderson, worked efficiently and steadily.  He was respectful and explained the work as he tackled each phase of the projects..
He cleaned up the multiple work sites at the end of each day and at the completion of the project. 
We appreciated the professionalism, service and quality of workmanship which we have experienced with Litman Construction and Remodeling.  We have hired them for another project which we hope to have completed this fall.

They began the work around May and did not finish until October.  We did have a lot of rain last spring and summer, so I'm assuming they had a backlog of work and that is why it took so long.  I did not report on this project until now because it was too cold in October to test the freon in the air conditioner. I wanted to make sure it was working properly before making this report.  They (the people he hired to repair the air conditioner) just tested it this past week (May 15).
The room with the interior damage was completed within a couple weeks, but as mentioned above, they did take a long time to finish the roof and gutters. 
They were always responsive when I called and answered any questions I had.  They were also very helpful in dealing with the insurance company.

I had several small projects I needed to have completed at my home:

• - Small masonry repair to an outside wall, some decorative stone had fallen off the house during the winter
• - Door to patio rehung or realigned
• - Garage drain repaired or rerouted

I contacted the company via Angie's List and they responded in a prompt and friendly manner.  It is a family owned business and one of the family members came out within a few days to estimate the work.  He was great to deal with, very professional.  The estimate was on the high side but I don't mind paying for quality work.  I signed off on the estimate the same week.  I was told that it would be "at least couple of weeks" before they could get to the work.  I was not in a huge hurry and had no issue with this.

A couple of weeks came and went, and again, and again with no word from the contractor.  Finally, after about 6 weeks i was so concerned about impending winter weather (October in Duluth) that I called and asked for an update.  I got the impression they had simply forgotten about me.

They scheduled the work for a couple of weeks after that, and did show up on schedule.  Total time from estimate to completion of tasks was 2 months.  In my opinion this was a long time given the light nature of the work.

The quality of the work was just OK.

The garage drain issue required that they dig a hole in my front yard (which I approved to be sure), and that they build a catch basin for me.  This required some unplanned extra effort and was the piece of work i was most impressed with.

The masonry repair was completed and the work was fair.

The repairs to my patio door were not impressive.  It is a large swinging wood door that was likely improperly hung when the house was built and has never closed correctly.  When the estimate was done we talked about how the door would probably need to be completely rehung.  When they did the work they simply adjusted the door as much as they could without rehanging it.  It doesn't close much better than it did before.

Overall I would work with them again.  Once I reminded them that i was on the waiting list they did react promptly and were professional to deal with.  The reality is that they answer their phones and are an actual business, which puts them well ahead of the majority of contractors available in Duluth.