The Gillen Company

Great experience. Would hire again

He wasn't doing any work. When I would call, he said he would be here, but never came. He stole my money and I fired him.

unknown

It turned out very nice.

It looks very nice. It was done well.

he following review is written by one of the two property owners. As a Veteran, I used my VA Eligibility to help purchase this home with my wife. I thought it was important to write this review to inform both Angie?s List as well as the consumer.
We executed a contract for home renovations (new roof and removal of ?load bearing? interior walls) on 3 July 2014. Below
is a summary of services that we initially contracted for:
1.  Pulling required permits.
2.   Remove all existing shingles, felt, vents and collars complete. Cut ridge 2" on each side of ridge. Patch holes for square
vents. Supply and install new felt, drip edge, Certainteed Architect Shingles, Certainteed ridge cap, Certainteed ridge vent,
new collars complete. Haul away all material and debris.
3.   Cover kitchen cabinets; remove walls to kitchen, front room complete. Remove ceilings in dining room, front hallway, and hallway to bed, front room, and kitchen complete. Remove ridge board and rafters in this area of construction.  Supply and install new double ridge header in open room, new rafters to accommodate insulation and airspace. Supply and install new ½ "
OSB on roof sheathing. Frame up existing walls to meet new ceiling. Insulate and plaster.
All material is guaranteed to be as specified, and the above work to be performed in accordance with the drawings and/or specifications submitted, along with this proposal, for the above work and completed in a substantial workmanlike manner for the sum of $xx,xxx.xx
Key Concerns with the Contractor:
The first item on the executed contract (above) was to register the appropriate permits with the City of Virginia Beach however this was not done. The demolition of the ?load bearing? walls were completed without a permit being registered with the city.
After numerous inquiries and a verbal quote by Tim Gillen ?if it makes you feel better we?ll get the permit?. As such, the permit was finally registered with the city of Virginia Beach on July 14th. It should be noted that the permit in question was not registered by The Gillen Company but registered by a completely different company known as Ocean Shore Construction (Record 2014-BDRA-17220). As the owners, we were never informed about this switch and only found out when we conducted a permit search through the City of Virginia Beach database.
·Upon extensive research during the early July timeframe, it appeared that The Gillen Company did not have either a valid
contractor?s license or the appropriate contractor?s license to perform the work for which they were contracted thus the reason why they engaged another company to register said permit.  Which raises a big question, did/does The Gillen Company and Ocean Shore Construction have a contractual arrangement if so what is/was there agreement & relationship.
The overall cost weighed against the craftsmanship was marginal which causes me concern from a safety perspective.
We had an extensive (multi-page) punch-list whereby Tim Gillen had to call in another contractor to assist without both homeowner?s knowledge and consent. Specifically, a group of workers showed up at the house and did not even know who Tim Gillen was. Again, these types of scenarios introduce both professional and personal risk.
Concerns with Angie?s List
After speaking with an Angie?s List representative on November 4, 2014 regarding the license and permitting situation, it appears that Angie?s List verification process is based upon the contractor self-certification of their credentials (self-attestation). That?s
alarming. This introduces numerous professional and personal risk scenarios especially not knowing who has access to your home. I would have expected Angie?s List to run the appropriate background checks on companies and its employees that
are working inside a family residence that includes children.
Overall
Suggest potential buyers perform their own independent due diligence including a review of all the postings regarding this company as there are many similarities.  

As Tim and his crew left the house after the kitchen update was complete, Tim said, "This is the way it's supposed to be".  Truer words were never spoken.  My experience over the years with a variety of contractors, "handy people" and self proclaimed experts have been pretty awful.  They make for good stories but not a satisfied homeowner.
Tim came for the original estimate on time and full of excellent ideas.  His suggestions made my vision of what I wanted come to life.  He built a beautiful cabinet beside my stove.  The upper part is open with beadboard backing and the lower part has 3 big drawers.  It's perfect and has made my kitchen so much easier to work in.  He installed a beadboard wall and beautiful red counter tops.  He also crowned all the existing cabinets to match the one he had built (his idea).  Perfect.  He also suggested putting in a new receptacle on the beadboard wall.  Who could say "no" to that???  He fixed an existing cabinet that had never been installed correctly (see "handy people and self procalaimed experts above).
It was the little things that also made a big difference to me: installing a pot rack correctly and securely, hanging a shelf right where I wanted it and making certain the drawers closed correctly.  The list could go on.
Tim and his crew came when they said they were coming, did what they set out to do, presented themselves in a very professional manner and cleaned up everything before they left.  I was at home for a good deal of the work and the team consistently consulted with me about little details (where to put the shelves so my dishes fit perfectly, would I like ALL white receptacles installed throughout the kitchen...etc).  As Tim said, "This is the way it's SUPPOSED to be".
Pictures of my beautiful updated kitchen are on Tim's website.  Take a look and see for yourself.

Our experience was not a good one.  There were days when no one showed up to work, and we weren’t even called.  The job took way longer than it should have. At the time, he had taken on too many jobs.  He rushed the job at the end to finish.  The worst part was that we had a leak, which caused a serious mold problem and ruined our kitchen floor.  He was not at all cooperative in this matter; in fact,, he basically ignored our phone calls.  We ended up paying for the damages ourselves.  The plumber involved was contacted by Mr. Gillen, and was willing to meet with us to work out something in the form of compensation, but Mr. Gillen never returned his call to set up a meeting.  I have a serious allergy to mold, and after several weeks, we just had to take care of it ourselves.  It was a miserable experience.

Very well. Very professional in all aspects of the job. I have recommended them to friends.

unknown

They did an outstanding job. I worked primarily with Tim, he and his crew were excellent. They had a crew of 5-6 people working on the the project and it took them about 3 weeks to complete the remodel. The crew was clean while working on the remodel and after they finished.

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Tim Gillen owns the company and is physically present for almost all the work that goes on during the project. This ensures that the quality stays high on the work performed.  He directly oversees the job and the final walk through was easy as there were only a few items to finish off. These were completed in a few hours with no issues.
His crew cleaned up after every work day, including picking up all drop cloths, vacuuming and wiping down where any construction dust had settled. 
The employees we met were all personable, friendly and competent.  All requests were completed with a good attitude and willingness to accommodate our needs.  Vendors employed by The Gillen Co to provide service such as electric and plaster repair were likewise helpful and friendly. 
Change orders or additional work was negotiated in a friendly and easy manner.  Upgrades were handled the same way.
The Gillen Co provides a vendor list for common suppliers such as tile, granite, lighting etc and this is a good place to start if you are unfamiliar with local vendors. After doing our own research we ended up using a mix of recommended suppliers and our own sources for items purchased during this project.
The project turned out very well and we are pleased with the end result.    

We cannot say enough great things about the Gillen Company. We hired them to make various repairs and renovations to our rental property in order to get it ready to sale. We live 3 hours away and was a little apprehensive about going through the process long distance. We met with Tim Gillen the owner, and was very pleased with his professionalism and courtesy. He understood our need to make the renovations in a timely matter so that we could put the house on the market as soon as possible. He suggested and then started the outside renovations first before the tenants moved out in order to get a jump on the project .He was slated to start the indoor renovations on Oct 1st, the day after the tenants moved out. We got word that the tenants were leaving a week early. I called Tim to see if he could start earlier then Oct 1st and he was in to start the renovations the very afternoon the tenants vacated. We are so pleased with all the work he has completed. He even fixed small things that he found without charging us extra. He stayed in constant contact with us sending pictures and updates as things were finished. When we needed services preformed that was beyond his scope of work, he recommended companies to us that provided outstanding services also.  We spoke with Courtny his secretary on several occasions and she was very courteous and helpful. The house was finished within two weeks, we put it on the market Oct 4th and we had a contract on it within a week and a half. When the inspection report came in with a few things the prospective buyers wanted done, our realtor called Tim and he was in the next day completing the task. We cannot convey how very pleased we are. We know without a doubt Tim was instrumental in getting our house on the market and sold so fast. We absolutely recommend him!!

The Gillen Company DBA A G development using license 2705037578 and2705017845, claiming to be. Lead licensed contractor with A and B. This information was used by the contractor defrauding myself and other consumers with false information. I am asking to be refunded the 22,000.00 that was paid out for services not rendered And a devices that were not completed and misrepresentation of license.Buyer beware of this company. My address is below with telephone number. 1439 Monarch Reach Chesapeake, VA 23320 17576630895 For one the invoice was paid in full, as I payed prior to the completion S I thought the company was trustworthy. That is far from the truck. I told you a cazillion times the screen porch is incomplete. The doors don't hardly open without scraping the wood, the doors are flimsy and hard to close. The screen in the doors is concaving in and my 1 year old twin fell thought the door. The very thing I was trying to avoid you put her at risk and she could of drowned if my daughter didn't pick her up after falling through it. He never pulled a building permit, his license states expired since 1998 for one license and expired 1999 license, he misrepresented himself. Two years of warranty was stated, but in fact he has not, nor has he ever honored this. The dimensions of the porch and deck are inaccurate. The porch caused the back side of my home to rotten Mr Gillen has been brazen, insultive, and barbaric in his response to this matter so I wish to arise any and all communication. Nor do I want him back on my property, with the comments about my children, and how he caused the damage to my home. I do not feel safe with him on my property and he will be escorted by the sheriff if he shows up, as he had many chances to complete his work which he didn't. The would was supposed to be treated, which it is not. The deck dimensions need rechecked for accuracy. The gates are inoperable, very easily shaken, and handrails are flimsy and easily shakable. No support around the entire railings and gate. All the floors have splinters, No repaired metal wraps, wood rottening throughout. Walls on porch are flimsy. Clean out not extended, condensate line not extended, no replaced screws induct with stainless steel. You defrauded or shall I say lied to me, as your not licensed, you emailed my bills and tried to change it on the paper you presented. All lies. The home not power washed, nor painted. Floors do not have pressure treated wood and in no way treated which caused my babies to get flint era in the bottom of their feet. The back door and trimming not replaced as contracted. The home was never painted, and the roofing flashing collars were replaced, however over charged and you took advantage of me. Being female and my husband being on deployment I trusted you to be honest and fair and that was not what happened. Last but definitely not less, there was no sleeper system installed under deck which you upcharged and over charged and did not install. Grass is growing through the deck and the lawn company states that the deck would be on a hard flat surface that is build which is definitely not down. I want all monies paid back as you did not hold up to your end up the bargain. You also tried to charge me for the door going into the porch, which came with installation with the porch. If you continue to harass me I will file charges against you and your company along with your secretary do not contact my husband as he is deployed and the command will file harassment charges as well. R. Sheila Baker From: Tim Gillen ; To: Sheila Baker ; Subject: Re: Invoice from The Gillen Company Sent: Sat, Sep 7, 2013 1:29:06 PM What exactly do you feel is incomplete on the job? Thank you, The Gillen Company, 757-353-0533 On Sep 6, 2013 11:32 PM, "Sheila Baker" wrote: Everything on this invoice was incomplete and not done. I am filing this with DPOR, Angie's list, Better Business Bureau, and your insurance calendar. Copies of my checks will also accompany this as well as submitted to my attorney. Kindest regards, R. Sheila Baker DNPc FNP-BC MSN MHA HIC On Jul 2, 2013, at 11:33 AM, THE GILLEN COMPANY wrote: Dear Rahsheda Baker, Your invoice is attached. Please remit payment at your earliest convenience. Thank you for your business - we appreciate it very much. Sincerely, The Gillen Company ---------------------------------- Invoice --------------------------------- The Gillen Company 5998 Providence Road, Suite 103 Virginia Beach, VA 23464 (757)353-0533 [email protected] http://thegillencompany.com Invoice #: Kr-2078 Date: 06/12/2013 Due Date: 06/12/2013 Balance Due: $7,276.67 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill To: Rahsheda Baker 1439 Monarch Reach Chesapeake, VA Ship Date: 06/12/2013 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Service Activity Amount Exterior TExterior Trim & Decks-13'4"x20'9" screened in 15,700.00 porch Exterior TExterior Trim & Decks-17'6"x16'x12'6"x8'x24'8" 5,382.00 deck, with handrail, no steps, two gates, pressure treated wood, raise deck with sleeper system Exterior TExterior Trim & Decks-repair metal wrap in 3 0.00 spots, replace rotten wood by back door; extend, clean out, extend condensate line; replace screws on duct with stainless Specialty Specialties- Powerwash home 0.00 Doors & TrDoors & Trim- replace 32" back door 0.00 Painting Painting- Prime & Paint home complete 0.00 Roof Roofing, Flashing- replace Pipe collars 750.00 ____________________________________________________________________________ Total: $21,832.00 Payment: $14,555.33 -------------------------------------- Balance Due: $7,276.67 Kindest regards, R. Sheila Baker DNPc FNP-BC MSN MHA HIC

The work was very good and the cost is reasonable! They operate with integrity. That is very important to me because I have had other contractors since moving to Virginia Beach and it has been like a nightmare. The only reason I tried others was only because the cost was less. The owner/operator is very professional and pretty meticulous. His staff is very attentive to the customers needs. Anytime I called or sent an email, they responded right away. His secretary had even given me her cell phone number that way if I had questions after hours, I was able to contact her. The remodel was the selling point and it is absolutely fabulous. Some of my neighbors have seen the kitchen and have asked me the contact information for the company for over a year. They are very respectful and a good listened to the customer’s wants and desires. I relocated from California to Virginia Beach and the owner has been very helpful. He had worked with the previous owners and was able to provide me with the code to get into the home as I had forgotten it. He also held a bathtub for me after purchasing it while it was awaiting installation. He definitely goes the extra mile. I would highly recommend them and I am going to hire them to do a bathroom for me as well.

The work turned out excellent! They are very polite, conscientious workers. They are easy to get a hold of with good office staff.

This job started out small, but when a significant problem was discovered, it turned into a major job. Rotten, moldy wood was discovered, and due to health concerns, it was necessary for the job to be done quickly. Mr. Gillen was very responsive and started the work on a Saturday of a holiday weekend. He did a great job. We have used this company in the past, and they always do a quality job.