Poteat Landscape

I used them because the people we bought the house from were using them. We've been using him for a couple of years. If there's more to do, he charges me for it. I'm very happy with his work. He's a local guy and he does good work.

I cannot recommend this company to anyone. He did not do the job he was hired and payed for. They cleaned up our yard and trimmed the trees but did not do a good job with the landscaping. We wanted the rain and water running away from our house, but we still have big puddles when it rains. But the thing that makes me write this review is the fact that he did not plant any of the tulips.  When I payed him I has no way of knowing that he did not plant the 100 tulip bulbs and he never will. He never answered phone calls or returned e-mails to solve this problem.  I am going to ask for the help of Better Business Bureau to help us to resolve this problem.

It went really well.  Mark Poteat came out and looked at my front yard on Oct. 30th.  He gave me an estimate of $275 for the work, and then came out and did the work on Nov. 6th.   When I got home I saw that the work was done exactly as I'd  hoped it would be.  The tall plants were pruned well -- not too much, but enough that we can see clearly out our windows.  The runaway growth of the foundation ground covers had been trimmed back, and all the weeds were gone.  The large areas of ground cover in our front and side yards had been cut back and trimmed.   In addition, the final invoice was for $225, rather than $275, because Mark noted that the job had taken less time that he'd originally thought.  How's that for wonderful?  I got the exact work I wanted, done in a timely manner, and at a great price.  Couldn't be happier!

Did excellent work.  Very happy with results.

Simple lawn maintenance job went fine. Mark personally estimated our lawn maintenance job and additional possible plantings - in writing. We went with lawn maintenance only and set a date.  He then had to change the date but gave enough advance notice for courtesy. The crew arrived on day of service 45 minutes later than scheduled but got quickly to work and did a thorough, consistent job mowing and trimming most of 4-5 acres. We were flexible so the delay was not a problem, but it would have been good to get a heads- up cell phone call on a 45 minute delay like that. The work was great, the workers fine, no issues. Will work with him again, reminding him to give us an more accurate eta estimate.

Poteat Landscaping was professional, well-priced and the work was beyond satisfaction.

Things started OK with the stump grinding in the front yard. He showed up with stump grinder and did the job professionally. We were slated to begin the masonry work (brick planters and brick walkway) in late July. He didn't return our calls for two weeks and then finally showed up in mid August with a mason who was unprofessional but seemingly qualified. The mason admitted that he hadn't done something "like what you are asking for" before. He disappeared for a day, and returned the following day with another mason. They were slow but built the planters well. My only real complaint with the masons he provided were their nasty treatment of the two non-english speaking workers Mark had working with them (Many racist comments towards "spics" that upset my wife to the point of her telling them to straighten up or get off her property). The brick walkway was primarily done by the two hispanic workers Mark employed. The walkway was not graded properly and to this day still gathers water ridiculously. 

The other landscape work was done slowly over the period of a month (as opposed to the few days Mark promised us). We often had to contact Mark several times to finally get a promise to return to the house to do the work. Yard leveling was done OK, although drainage is still a problem for the yard. The workers cut my TV cable buried in the yard while working and we had to go several days without cable despite Mark's promise to handle it "immediately." What bothered us the most was that all the work Mark promised during the initial estimate ended up costing more once started. He nickel and dimed us over and over: extra money for the topsoil for leveling, extra money for the landscaping around trees or bushes, extra money for anything we reminded him to do. 

The biggest problem for us came around payment for services. We agreed on $3100 for the work and agreed on half up front and the rest upon satisfactory completion of the work. We paid the up front costs of $1550, and then paid another $1400 as the additional expenses added up for each "new" things we asked to have completed. Then he came to us before the work was completed, telling us that he had some expenses come up and he really needed the money so he requested that we pay him the remaining balance immediately. When we said no, not until the work was completed, he protested. Knowing that I was not going to pay for the services until they were completed, he went as far as to show up at my wife's workplace unannounced. He asked for her and she was in meetings. He proceeded to wait two hours to confront my wife and demand the money. She paid him under pressure. He never returned to complete the remaining work. Despite our requests to fix the walkway and rectify the patchy grass issues, he never returned. He also left a giant pile of sand beside the garage that I had to remove one backbreaking 5 gallon bucket at a time.

In short, Mark Poteat was perhaps the worst contractor I have had the displeasure of working with. I would not recommend him to anyone. Avoid him like the plague.

UPDATE: As I expected, and as he has done with the multitude of other negative reports about his service (how many F's can you make excuses for before one starts to doubt the quality of the business), Mark has resorted to simply claiming that everyone is lying about what happened except him. I ran my own business for 12 years and received grades from customers the entire time. I had over 4000 customer grades. You know how many "F's" I received? One. He has 7 or 8 in the small number of reviews here on Angie's list. But for each one, the customer is lying and he provided everything....

His entire response is a series of made-up excuses. We never bounced any check to him (care to back that up with some record of such? ). He was friends with someone else she used to know so initially there were friendly discussions about Chapel Hill, and in those she disclosed where she worked and what she did. He showed up unannounced and she was horrified. I can't speak for how his company treats hispanics, I can only say that the two masonry sub-contractors he provided said horrible things. I never claimed, nor would I, that Mark himself mistreated those hispanic workers. On the contrary Mark seemed to treat them well, but those two masons did not. 

We were never provided any "itemized" estimates. In fact, I don't recall being provided a written estimate at all. This despite the fact that my wife (who is a project manage and does budgets for a living) asked multiple times for an itemized listing which Mark consistently said he would bring with him "next time." We didn't add anything extra to what we asked to be done, we simply asked that he complete all the things that he told us he would do during the initial visit for the estimate. I was not satisfied in 2007 and found that the only avenue I had to do anything about the poor service provided was to post a negative review on yellow pages and city search, which no one sees anymore. I joined Angie's list a few months ago and found his listing. I wasn't shocked to see several negative reviews that mimicked my experience. I am sure there are over 300 satisfied customers, the vast majority of which more than likely receive nothing but small yard maintenance services. I would be happy to add my pictures to the website, including the two inches of water on the walkway despite it being placed by Poteat Landscape and the grading of the yard also being done by Mark. I could also add pictures of the amateur job of connecting drainage pipes to the downspouting. In fact, if Angie's list has a way to do so, I can back up my claims of poor service (I took lots of pictures). But I know Mark cannot back up his lies about us. I see that he is currently in trouble with Angie's list as well for failing to meet his obligations to them. I am sure that it is because Angie's list is lying and they failed to play by his rules...

Mark Poteat, owner Poteat Landscape, replied very quickly to an initial telephone message asking about his company services.  Mark very promptly paid a visit to survey and estimate the job we described.  Within 24 hours of surveying the job, Mark sent us a detailed, written estimate for the services we requested.  Within just a few days of accepting the job estimate and confirming with Mark, the Poteat Landscape crew arrived ready to work.  All agreed services were performed quickly and efficiently with great results (an A+ job!).  We'll be sure to use Poteat Landscape again and would recommend Poteat Landscape without reservation.

The process of working with Poteat Landscape is very easy and you will be treated as a valued customer and not an account number.

Estimation process: Clear, concise and they will work with you to meet your needs.  I have never felt oversold or pushed. In all cases, we have sat down and agreed to high ticket items to ensure that we are on the same page prior to work. They will also offer plant recommendations if you are not a green thumb. 

Actual work: always completed to my satisfaction. Friendly owner, staff and considerate of my property.  The crew always cleans up after themselves and I am always called for follow-up to my services.

I have recommended Poteat Landscape to my neighbors as a quality vendor that has exceeded my expectations.

Mark and his team are very professional . I've used Poteat for my ongoing yard service (including planting, weeding, blowing, mulching, and mowing) and their prices are reasonable and they're quick to come if I call and reliable when we have an appointment. Better still, they'll check with me periodically to see if I want something done and I've even received a touch up after a bad storm! I have also used them for gutter cleaning.

Last year they built a retaining wall for me alongside my driveway? The results were great and the price was fair.

Excellent results.  Prompt - arrived when scheduled.  Good work.  No issues at all with the work.  Would definitely use again.

Again, I was very happy with the work that was done, with no complaints.  I plan to use this company again at my current house, and my future house.

Good Experience! Looks great and courteous service!

Company sodded my front yard, results were so good that in five months had them return to sod additional areas. Price was reasonable, work was performed in a timely manner. All in all a very good experience. Would recommend this company to others and would have them return for more work at my home.

I first heard about Poteat Landscaping via a flyer on our mail box.  I phoned the owner, Mark Poteat and found him to be knowledgable and courteous.   He provided me with estimates for several phases of yard work including tree removal,  a new railroad tie retaining wall, shrub pruning.  I was very satisfied with all aspects these services.  Mark Poteat has a knowledgable, courteous crew. The men seem to take great pride in their work and are willing to do little extras that show great focus on customer service.  I was impressed with how well the crew cleaned up after each service provided.  I will continue to use Poteate Landscaping landscape and yard maintenance needs.

Mark provided suggestions on how we could change our courtyard to allow for a base for our gas grill..which would include pavers in an area that had been flower beds.  He performed the work promptly.  Showed us samples of the pavers so that they would match the existing paver which were over 8 years old.  The work was done well and still looks great today.

We needed some landscaping done and a freind referred us to Mark Poteat and Poteat Landscape.  Mark came out and met with us and we told him we wanted to expand our back yard by adding dirt and installing a cross-tie retaining wall to stop erosion problem and correct drainage issues.

Mark created overall landscape plan and provided itemized estimate for the work he proposed.  Mark came up with plan to enlarge backyard and provided space for our children to play while also correcting our erosion and drainage problems - he graded the back area and constructed a cross-tie retaining wall and then planted new lawn.  We also hired Poteat Landscape to plant and mulch several trees and shrubs that are watered by a new drip-irrigation system.

Project went smoothly and was completed in 3 days - Poteat Landscape transformed our backyard from a wet, unusable space to a nice lawn where our children can play without getting muddy and bitten by mosquitos.  It is 2 years later and Poteat Landscape has periodically helped us with landscape maintenance  - pruning, mulching, etc.  Our lawn and plantings our doing great. 

We have recommend Mark Poteat and Poteat Landscape to many people.

I had consulted several landscape firms and described my thoughts for my yard, and was presented with a "generic" plan (in my opinion) and costs of services without much discussion. It was a change of pace when Mark arrived (on time) to walk through my yard and talk to me about what I was thinking about. It seemed as though he took his time and listened to what I was saying, and was able to take those thoughts and expand upon them in way that really made the plan come to life. The work was done in a very timely fashion, and he was responsive to feedback. Both Mark ad his employees were very courteous abd considerate. I cannot be more pleased with the outcome, and their ongoing maintainance has kept the yard looking beautiful and simple. I would highlly recommend his services.

I had a GREAT experience with Poteat Landscaping.  I heard about Poteat through a flyer left in my mailbox.  I contacted Mark through an e-mail and he responded very quickly.  Shortly thereafter he came by for an estimate.  He provided a professional estimate via e-mail the next day.  Mark and I corresponded a number of times to set-up a time to get the work done.  Mark was ALWAYS very responsive via e-mail and phone. 

The crew Mark had do the work were courteous, hardworking and very good in my opinion.  I was very happy with the work and I thought the price was fair.  I plan to use Mark and his crew again in the future.

Everything is done right every time.  It is always easy to tell when Mark's crew has been to our house, because even from the street everything looks neat and orderly. 

We have a very large lawn that my wife and I tried to maintain, but about five years ago, we decided that due to our age, we could no longer maintain it and that we needed to employ a lawn service.  We tried several services attempting to find one that would care of our lawn in the same we had. None met our expectations until we tired Poteat Landscaping.  Their attention to detail, prompt response time, and keen knowledge proved to be, with no doubt, the right choice. From the time we initially started using Poteat landscaping, which was about five years ago until right now, we were extremely pleased with the level of service, superior work ethic and quality of products applied.  The level of professionalism shown not only from Mark Poteat, but also from the entire staff is exceptional.  They are are prompt and thorough in the work being completed, and all aspects of the work being performed was done with precision workmanship. Mark was able to make many creative suggestions, which not only took care of a particular problem, but added attractiveness to our home.  Mark is a full service company and if you just need a mowing service, he can do that or he can solve many problems for you too and do special one-time jobs. We love that his crew will do a clean-up after a storm, without our having to call ask for this to be done.   I highly recommend Poteat Landscaping with the utmost confidence and enthusiasm.  

We were having our home remodeled in 2007 and needed help with our landscape.  Our contractor had worked with Mark several times and recommended Poteat Landscape.

Mark came and met with us and we told him our landscape ideas and asked him to create overall landscape design and maintenance plan.  Mark asked specific questions about which types of plants we liked, what colors, what mature plant size we were looking for, and what budget did we have to work within.   

He gave us a detailed plan with specific costs and also created a maintenance plan to ensure the plants remained healthy.  We agreed to have the initial landscape installed and then hired Poteat Landscape to provide maintenance for our entire landscape.  Poteat Landscape has been working at our home for the last 4+ years and we are very satisfied.  Mark has long-term, professional employees who perform most of the work and Mark always follows-up to make sure we are pleased with everything.  We have referred Mark Poteat and Poteat Landscape to several friends and co-workers over the years.

Mark visited the property and provided a detailed list of services for my client.  His team arrived as scheduled and did an excellent job, at a fair price.  Highly recommend.

They came on time, and did the work very well.  The work men are always friendly and polite and very welling to talk to me about what they are doing. Mark explains what is going to be done and doesn't push me to spend more than I want to do. Poteat Landscaping has done three sets of plantings for me (buttterfly bushes a couple of years ago, crepe myrtle trees last spring and ferns and general clean up and landscaping last winter).  I am very happy with their work and with the prices.

I think they did more than we had discussed, I think they did an excellent job.