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Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146
Electrical for Home Addition or Remodel - Install, Electrical for Home Addition, Electrical Wiring or Panel Upgrade,
About us
2017 Angie’s List Super Service Award winning company that has earned the reputation as a premier Oregon full service Remodeling company! You don’t have to just take our word, please ask our customers! You’ll find that when it comes to customer satisfaction, experience, value and quality, Catalyst ranks among the best in Portland! In fact, we’ve been voted one of the best Portland remodeling companies 3 years in a row! We work with directly with each of our customers to evaluate their lifestyle needs and design preferences so that we can provide them the best results for their budget! Every remodeling or construction job – regardless of the size – works directly with our head contractor who manages the entire project through it’s completion. We are one of Portland’s best licensed general contractors and you can count on Catalyst to get the job done right!
Business highlights
17 years of experience
Services we offer
ADU's, Basement and attic conversions, cabinet and appliance installs, concrete counter tops, concrete retaining walls and flat work, decks, electrical and plumbing repairs., finish work, framing, garage additions, granite, hardwood floor install, home additions, kitchen & bath, kitchen & bath remodels, laminate floors, large scale rot repairs, masonry, quartz, refinish and repair, sheetrock repairs, stainless, tile
Amenities
Free Estimates
Yes
Reviews
4.654 Reviews
| Number of Stars | Image of Distribution | Number of Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 87% | ||
| 2% | ||
| 0% | ||
| 4% | ||
| 6% |
Showing 1-25 of 54 reviews
Dana R.
Jun 2022
Very satisfied, good attention to details and his floor guy was outstanding.
David S.
Aug 2021
One star only because I can’t give no stars Catalyst Construction doing business as Portland Egress Windows provided us with a bid for three egress-sized windows in February of 2020. We entered into a contract for the completion of three windows and were told it would take a matter of weeks, which actually turned into months; 4 MONTHS actually. The crew was very unprofessional and at times intimidating with aggressive behavior towards each other and their equipment, when it didn't do what they wanted it to. Throwing things, cussing and once actually relieving themselves in our back yard. What was supposed to be a very easy cut into our foundation in three locations turned into and all out assault on our 1920s-era concrete foundation. The cuts turned into jagged messes making it impossible to successfully frame in the windows. The comedy of errors just kept on rolling with windows installed backwards, nail fins inside, improper waterproofing, poorly installed metal wells, exposed jagged screws, poorly patched foundation openings and on and on. All of this inept construction led to a leaking window that destroyed our new flooring and a large section of drywall, but worst of all, a long horizontal crack in the foundation requiring thousands in repair costs and months of lost time in our newly finished basement. All told we have spent over $17,000 in time and materials to fix the issues all the while hearing from the owner of Catalyst Construction that this leak (which did not exist before his crew showed up with chainsaws and sledge hammers, no skills and poor attitudes) was not the fault of their work. DON'T DO IT! DON'T HIRE CATALYST CONSTRUCTION TO TOUCH ANY PART OF YOUR HOME!
Sarah C.
Aug 2020
I had a great experience with the folks at Catalyst. We recently completed a demolition and remodel of our basement including all new windows. Their bid was solidly in the middle of the bids we received, and they were able to complete the job within our budget. The work was well done with quality subcontractors. Ryan and Nick were honest and easy to communicate with, and any problems were addressed quickly. We are so happy with our beautiful new basement space and highly recommend Catalyst to anyone else looking for quality workmanship.
Joanne S.
Sep 2018
Actually it was really good. I was there the whole time while they are doing it. They were on time, professional, honest and upfront. I appreciated the most was their integrity.
David H.
Sep 2018
They service went very well, I like them, and I will be using them again for my kitchen.
John K.
Sep 2018
The work is within the budget, did a great job, they are fast, and no complaint at all. They communicated well to make sure that I got all I wanted.
Perry B.
Aug 2018
They communicated very well working with all the different ideas of what I wanted. Everything fit together and worked out great. I will highly recommend them and absolutely use them, again.
Lucas B.
Feb 2018
Catalyst is great, both in terms of value and results. Their attention to detail was excellent. It's safe to say that there are usually surprises when you do a remodeling project. I felt they always had a solution when something came up and were good about communicating what they were doing and why.
Harold L.
Dec 2017
The work went very well Ryan was easy to work with. They did a good job. We had to make some changes along the way as I was going to do some of the work and could not do it. Also there was an unused septic tank that ended up under the foundation. It was easy to work with him on these problems. I feel I got a good job at a reasonable price. I have been happy using the new facility
Sarah R.
Oct 2017
Ryan did an incredible job with our basement remodel. He was accurate with our timeline and was straight forward with cost. We appreciated how approachable he was and always made time to explain things to us if we had questions. He allowed us to be a part of every step, which helped the project turn out exactly how we wanted. Ryan was professional and easy going. It was a pleasure to work with him and all the people he employs. We were impressed with his ability to get the highest level sub contractors and fast! The basement looks awesome and the work site was left clean after all was finished. We would recommend Catalyst!
Laurel R.
Aug 2017
N/A
We are delighted with the finished result. The room is gorgeous and Ryan's work (and that of his subcontractors) is excellent. There were some issues with the timeline of the project. Ryan essentially suggested a timeline that was not feasible given his current schedule so rather than extremely optimistic timeline of 8-10 weeks, the actual project took closer to 16 weeks. Ryan remained communicative and accessible throughout the project and made efforts to keep things moving along. He had good solutions for "old house unexpected problems" that arose (there are always old house remodel surprises). Even given the delays, I genuinely enjoyed working with him and his subcontractors on this project and would recommend him to future clients.
Response from Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146
"Thanks for the great review. I was overly optimist on completing the remodel in 3 months. As you know the work load in Portland last year and this year is tremendous. Not only does Catalyst have a back log of work, so do all of out subs and so projects are just taking longer than they have in the past. Time lines for all projects have been adjusted based on out performance last year and clients are being given realistic project durations."
Agnes S.
Aug 2017
Ryan gave a competitive bid. He was very responsive to my needs and schedule. He and his workers were friendly and professional. Most important, the final product is excellent. The window provides safe egress from the basement bedroom, and the finish work matched the existing finish perfectly.
Response from Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146
"Thanks for the great review. BTW, you were a great client"
Alex B.
Jul 2017
Ryan responded quickly to my request and gave us a good quote based on the Angie's List special pricing. He upsold us to a better well material. He worked within our specific time window and got the job done as expected! One of his employees did most of the heavy lifting, so to speak, and you could tell that he was still an apprentice. Ryan came over a few times during the installation to check on the work and ensure it was up to his standards. Overall, the window looks great and he matched the inside finish to look like the other windows in our basement. Very pleased with this work!
Response from Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146
"Thanks for the great review, and like to again point out that we meet your timeline needs and created and successful project."
Amanda H.
Jun 2017
Door was improperly installed (many problems). Required hiring a second contractor to reinstall. CCB complaint #201387-101 After arbitration my money was refunded. However the stress, hassle, and time wasted were not.
Response from Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146
"I have to admit that the install of your door was not what I would have hoped for either. So let me explain. Unfortunately for us, as this can happen, we bid our job early in the year when we had a slow down and bid the job for a bit less that we would have normally. You called back awhile later to schedule the project, which we accepted for the price that was originally quoted. Remember, we performed other services which you failed to mention such as framing the new door opening prior to your sheetrock being installed. We were able to provide this service to you on your timeline with your sheetrock contractor which I feel was very helpful. We also provided and installed a new quality wood window I also want to note that Catalyst provided the window. We also provided and installed all new wood trim work around the new doors and window. I am assuming the window and trim were installed properly since there was no negative mention of this. All this was provided at a very fair price. I want to make this clear, we did not provide the French Door. We negotiated this out of my contract because you were able to get a better deal on a door from the same supplier. But it wasn't the same door that i was going to provide, And this is where Catalyst got into trouble. The door you purchased was of a significantly lesser quality than the one I would have provided. I had had quoted a higher quality door with a wood jamb. This is very important to the time I had figured to install the door. In other words, the wood jamb would have made the job much easier and faster especially with a door of its size and weigh. The door you provided had a composite jamb which is basically sawdust glued together so the jamb wasn't straight and rigid like a wood jamb, the jamb on the door you provided was out of shape, crooked and warped. Obviously, the door you provided was more in your budget. We should have refused to allow you to provide the door. We should have refused to install the door. We should have requested more money to install the door, but we didn't. We all live and we learn from every job we do, especially the ones were we make mistakes. We now make sure we supply all the windows and doors we install so we have confidence in their install and warranty. We also should have fully inspected the door before we installed it. We verified the size and cut the opening before we realized the door had the inferior jamb. So we proceeded with he install. The composite jamb proceed to be very difficult to install and to be honest, I had never seen a fully composite jamb before. I have always installed doors with wood jambs. They are just better, more reliable and quicker to install but they are more expensive. I thought we had the door very secure when we left and you seemed happy with the service and you paid in full. I only found out about the problems when you contacted the CCB and filed a complaint. I would have been happy to return and correct any issues but you chose a less friendly route. I settled the dispute with you via arbitration and feel this negative review only spotlighting the door install and not the window or the finish trim work is small, petty and vengeful."
Tere C.
Jun 2017
Ryan emailed me and said he is no longer offering this service- contact Angi's List for a refund
Response from Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146
"I am sorry that Angie's List did not pull this offer down when I requested. I was just being honest. The review really wasn't necessary. This was an issue with Angie's List, not Catalyst Construction & Remodeling"
RUTH L.
May 2017
The person seemed uninterested in my project.
Response from Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146
"This in an odd review, I remember the project, gave you tons of great information and it was a good job."
Deborah L.
Feb 2017
Ryan is a good communicator and a good problem solver. As in any remodel, unexpected problems arise and Ryan gets high marks for working through those with us. The work was high quality and in general sub-contractors demonstrated respect for Ryan and work went on as scheduled. We are happy with our new apartment. We did go over initial budget but that was due to decisions we made along the way and a few unexpected problems. The project did take longer than expected, only some of which could be chalked up to suppliers schedules such as for windows and cabinets. Ryan seems to have committed to perhaps too many projects at once. Hopefully this is not a usual problem; we would hire him again for a similar project.
Maggie V.
Feb 2017
I gave them a list of what I wanted done to convert an old porch closet with a washer/dryer into a laundry room. They completed everything on my wish list (drywall, insulation, flooring, light fixture, etc) and even problem solved a leak in the ceiling! They are creative, innovative, affordable and very accommodating.
Ashan P.
Jun 2016
For our first major remodel job in our new home, Ryan and his sidekick James along with sub contractors did a great job. Overall we are very happy with the outcome. It was really nice to be able to get the project done couple of weeks before the originally estimated time on the contract.Everyone make small mistakes, but you just have to be on top of everything as a homeowner when you hire a contractor to check every fine details to make sure they are doing what you wanted done ( at the end of everyday),instead of regretting and leaving bad reviews afterwards. Ryan was very professional in attending to those finer things that didnt meet my expectations. I know I was a pain in the butt sometimes with all the adjustment but Ryan really nice about it and he rally wanted to make us happy about the work he was doing. I really liked how Ryan would ask us what we wanted done and how we wanted it done instead of doing the way he wants to (like others). It was also very easy with Ryan to make changes to original plan, he really took time to understand what we wanted. Ryan really knew what he was doing, so it was in a way happy to see him working on site. Communication with ryan was very easy as well - we could text him and he would get back to us fast. We communicated most of the time via text. I also want to thank Ryan for inspiring me to get into woodworking(with all the scrap wood!)At the end of the project, we are really happy with how everything had turned out and it is very nice to have a fully completed basement back.Would definitely hire Ryan again for future projects.
Marisa T.
Jun 2016
The overall quality of the work was poor and the professionalism was lacking. The work took 3-4 times as long as promised for each project, not including the wait time for special order materials to come in. Most days started after 9 or 10 and ended by 3 or 4 with breaks to go retrieve more materials from elsewhere instead of coming prepared. Once work was started there was often long stretches, several days, before any work continued. The work itself does not come anywhere near the quality expected for the price charged. There are large gaps between boards, rough cuts all over the place with flayed wood up to a half inch hanging out, the wood used varied from smooth surfaces and rough surfaces, exposed nails that were sticking out and then bent over instead of being redone, partial saw cuts in boards that sill got installed and in general it looks like I tried to do all of this work myself. The back deck boards were all installed with screws in crooked lines, the trellis that was built for the front porch was held up with only one nail on each side - and later fell down. All of the individual slats in the trellis were left unsecured - not a single nail holding the pieces in, as well as having minimum 1/4" gaps in each slot. After seeing the damage they did and then did not offer to repair to the old plaster from installing the front door and two windows it's clear they are not familiar with working with older homes. A question I wished I would have asked about. Another question I failed to ask was whether they were experienced or certified to deal with lead paint. The exterior of the home is coated in lead paint and no measures were taken to contain the paint flakes and debris from demolition of the old porches. A pile of lead coated wood was left on the back lawn for over a week and it took several hours to clean the yard ourselves, filling three buckets with small debris, screws, paint chips and various wood chunks after the back porch project was deemed finished. The company did request to come by and review the issues and possibly fix them when brought to their attention, but at this point the idea of having them on the property again for any length of time was not worth it. We later had the porches painted and the painters spent many additional hours fixing, sanding and preparing those areas to be properly primed and painted.
Lisa H.
Nov 2015
We are extremely happy with the outcome of our project. Ryan and his team stayed on schedule and on budget practically to a tee. With an older home, a couple things came up, but I felt involved and satisfied with the solutions. The only other things that added time and/or money were our additions and requests for extended scope.
Ryan was one of the few contractors that was actually willing to work with us to meet our specific budget and be flexible with us doing some of the finish work. I received quite a few bids in our process for finding the right contractor, and Ryan was not only very competitive with his price, but one of the few that I felt was being transparent with me about the process. I am glad I listened to my gut! He was always, and still continues to be, very communicative via text, phone, and e-mail. He was always quick to get back to me with my constant stream of questions.
They say you can judge a good company not by when things go perfectly, but when they don't and how the issue gets handled. We had a situation where the flooring product we chose was potentially not behaving well. Ryan and his sub-contractor were immediately there to check it out and standing behind their work 110%. I feel confident that if I have issues, Ryan will make it right.
Overall, we are incredibly happy with our decision to go with Catalyst and love the final result. I just had a group of friends over yesterday and they were blown away by the transformation.
Ryan was one of the few contractors that was actually willing to work with us to meet our specific budget and be flexible with us doing some of the finish work. I received quite a few bids in our process for finding the right contractor, and Ryan was not only very competitive with his price, but one of the few that I felt was being transparent with me about the process. I am glad I listened to my gut! He was always, and still continues to be, very communicative via text, phone, and e-mail. He was always quick to get back to me with my constant stream of questions.
They say you can judge a good company not by when things go perfectly, but when they don't and how the issue gets handled. We had a situation where the flooring product we chose was potentially not behaving well. Ryan and his sub-contractor were immediately there to check it out and standing behind their work 110%. I feel confident that if I have issues, Ryan will make it right.
Overall, we are incredibly happy with our decision to go with Catalyst and love the final result. I just had a group of friends over yesterday and they were blown away by the transformation.
Tom W.
Oct 2015
Our church had dry rot issue on our roof, eave and fascia. We did not select Catalyst Construction & Remodeling among 4 roofing companies. We selected a different company; but, once they torn off the roof, they found out the structure had being damaged, and they needed to work with a remodel company for the roof structure issue first. Their quotes were well beyond our budget. Luckily, we picked the Catalyst Construction & Remodeling among 5 different companies on the second round.
We feel Catalyst Construction & Remodeling was very committed to resolve our dry rot problem. They provided a complete solution from repairing structure and roof to painting. They resolved our complicated dry rot issue. We are happy about their quality of work.
Stephen R.
Sep 2015
We were asking Ryan to do some tricky work, as our bathroom was not standard in its construction. He had to be creative and astute to make everything look nice. He did an outstanding job. He is skilled, trustworthy and clever.
Stephen R.
Aug 2015
Ryan was amazing. I say this not only for the excellent quality of his work and close attention to detail, but also because he had such a caring attitude. He was prompt, personable and highly skilled.
Laurel R.
Apr 2015
Ryan was great and ensured that the process was as smooth and painless as it possibly could have been. Considering that I was 7 months pregnant when we started construction and had a three month-old by the time it was finished, I think this was a major feat. Here are the things that I especially appreciated about working with Ryan:
1) His communication skills. Ryan was communicative and available throughout the project. He responded to text messages, phone calls and emails and fully kept us up-to-date as things progressed. When we weren't on the same page regarding an invoice or something else, he always took the time to meet with me to sort it out.
2) His attention to quality and detail. Ryan made sure that the work that he and all of his subcontractors did was of incredibly high quality. Ryan took care of many issues before we noticed them and if there was something that caught our eye, he fixed those as well. For example, there was a problem with the exterior paint on some of our shingles (the cedar wasn't fully dry and so there was some leaching). Ryan noticed this immediately and had the painters return to reprime and paint the shingles at no extra cost. We had an ongoing saga trying to get my husband's satellite dish hooked up. Ryan liaised with the company and managed to come up with a solution even though it wasn't strictly in his contract (and the company definitely made things difficult!).
3) The quality of his subcontractors. The subcontractors were lovely and easy to deal with. I was actually sorry to see some of them finish because they were so lovely (okay, sorry to see them finish may be a bit of an exaggeration but you get my point). There were people in my house for 6 months and there was only one person that bothered me (and he wasn't even someone that Ryan uses regularly and has since said he won't use again).
4) His integrity. I never felt like Ryan was being anything but honest with me. There was an occasion in which there was a screw-up happened on Ryan's end. He apologized, took full responsibility for it and worked with us to come up with a solution that was acceptable to us both. We were not happy about the mistake but really appreciated the way he handled it.
My only word of caution is that the price of the project exceeded the initial bid. I have still given Ryan an "A" on price because on almost all counts, the price changes were our doing and I feel like the price point of his services overall were on point. We added several things along the way and as with any project unexpected expenses arise. However, there were some charges that I think could have been more accurately represented in the initial bid. For example, the bid for the plumbing was half of what we spent. We chose more expensive materials but some of the bid items were "super budget" such as a $30 laundry sink. The cabinets ended up being three times more expensive than originally bid. We did added more cabinets but not 3x the amount (because we ended up with more cabinets than could be painted at the cabinet makers, we had to pay for "painting in place" which was almost the price of the initial cabinet bid). I don't think Ryan behaved untowardly and on both counts, he did take the time to explain the increase in price to me complete with his invoices from the subcontractors. I bring it up in the interest of giving a comprehensive review rather than as an unresolved complaint.
Overall, I am extremely happy we hired Catalyst Construction. I was initially hesitant to hire Ryan because the projects he had been reviewed on here on Angie's List were smaller projects than this one and he wasn't one of the contractors recommended by our space designer. However, his work was excellent and I won't hesitate at all to use him for any projects that we may undertake in the future.
1) His communication skills. Ryan was communicative and available throughout the project. He responded to text messages, phone calls and emails and fully kept us up-to-date as things progressed. When we weren't on the same page regarding an invoice or something else, he always took the time to meet with me to sort it out.
2) His attention to quality and detail. Ryan made sure that the work that he and all of his subcontractors did was of incredibly high quality. Ryan took care of many issues before we noticed them and if there was something that caught our eye, he fixed those as well. For example, there was a problem with the exterior paint on some of our shingles (the cedar wasn't fully dry and so there was some leaching). Ryan noticed this immediately and had the painters return to reprime and paint the shingles at no extra cost. We had an ongoing saga trying to get my husband's satellite dish hooked up. Ryan liaised with the company and managed to come up with a solution even though it wasn't strictly in his contract (and the company definitely made things difficult!).
3) The quality of his subcontractors. The subcontractors were lovely and easy to deal with. I was actually sorry to see some of them finish because they were so lovely (okay, sorry to see them finish may be a bit of an exaggeration but you get my point). There were people in my house for 6 months and there was only one person that bothered me (and he wasn't even someone that Ryan uses regularly and has since said he won't use again).
4) His integrity. I never felt like Ryan was being anything but honest with me. There was an occasion in which there was a screw-up happened on Ryan's end. He apologized, took full responsibility for it and worked with us to come up with a solution that was acceptable to us both. We were not happy about the mistake but really appreciated the way he handled it.
My only word of caution is that the price of the project exceeded the initial bid. I have still given Ryan an "A" on price because on almost all counts, the price changes were our doing and I feel like the price point of his services overall were on point. We added several things along the way and as with any project unexpected expenses arise. However, there were some charges that I think could have been more accurately represented in the initial bid. For example, the bid for the plumbing was half of what we spent. We chose more expensive materials but some of the bid items were "super budget" such as a $30 laundry sink. The cabinets ended up being three times more expensive than originally bid. We did added more cabinets but not 3x the amount (because we ended up with more cabinets than could be painted at the cabinet makers, we had to pay for "painting in place" which was almost the price of the initial cabinet bid). I don't think Ryan behaved untowardly and on both counts, he did take the time to explain the increase in price to me complete with his invoices from the subcontractors. I bring it up in the interest of giving a comprehensive review rather than as an unresolved complaint.
Overall, I am extremely happy we hired Catalyst Construction. I was initially hesitant to hire Ryan because the projects he had been reviewed on here on Angie's List were smaller projects than this one and he wasn't one of the contractors recommended by our space designer. However, his work was excellent and I won't hesitate at all to use him for any projects that we may undertake in the future.
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FAQ
Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146 is currently rated 4.6 overall out of 5.
Yes, Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146 offers free project estimates.
No, Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146 does not offer eco-friendly accreditations.
No, Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146 does not offer a senior discount.
No, Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146 does not offer emergency services.
No, Catalyst Construction & Remodeling 503-914-9146 does not offer warranties.