Ideal Property Management

In the Summer of 2012, we contracted with Rick Dassow of Ideal Property Management to replace an existing retaining wall that was incorrectly installed and construct a properly installed retaining wall with new materials. The work was performed over budget and we ended owing an additional $720 more than the original bid due to not quoting an adequate amount of retaining wall blocks to complete the job. The work was performed by two college students not his full time crew and Rick did not stop over to supervise the project until one of the workers severed our septic system monitoring line. In the Spring of 2013, less than a year, I called Rick because I noticed some minor shifting in the tallest of the four walls as well as significant settling of dirt/grading had occurred. Rick did have a crew come out to fix the grade issues and re-glued wall caps that had come loose from the shifting wall, but he did not address the fact the retaining wall was moving and shifting which we had expressed concern about since he said the blocks he was using for this wall would ‘never move’ when he quoted the bid. 2016- 4 years after installation, it took several calls before we finally received a visit from him. During that visit, he informed my wife that the tree behind the wall, a decorative pear, was the problem and it would have to be removed because it had an aggressive root system; he wouldn't do anything until the tree was taken down. We noticed no roots growing out between the now significant gaps between the retaining wall blocks. The Summer of 2022 we called to have the tree removed. Spring of 2024 with a section of the wall ready to collapse, I reached out to Rick and he stopped by only to state, again, that the tree roots were causing the wall to collapse, and that he remembered recommending to us to remove the tree before the wall was built. The subject of removing the tree was never brought up when Rick bid on the retaining wall project. We also had another landscape contractor bid on the same project at that time, and they also never made mention that the tree would need to be removed before the wall could be constructed. Rick’s bid never included a quote to remove the tree before the work was done and there was no waiver that we were asked to sign stating that the tree would void any warranty or work that was done. Because Rick insisted both the tree and root ball be removed before he would perform any work, we removed the tree root ball ourselves. Once we dug up the area around the wall, we discovered the #1 clear stone backfill along the retaining wall for the drainage tile had not been done as quoted in our bid. This meant that water pressure was building in the dirt directly behind the retaining wall and could not drain into the drain tile because the drain tile was choked off below three feet of dirt, silt, and crushed stone. The geogrid, which anchors the wall to the fill behind it, was not properly installed, it was sagging - perhaps due to dirt washing down and out of the large gaps in the retaining wall. The absence of the clear stone and proper drain tile installation was really what caused the retaining wall to fail. No tree roots were observed pushing against the wall in any location. In addition, the wall block was supposed to be constructed with a ‘locking’ mechanism that was to be installed in the grooves of each wall block to help hold the retaining wall blocks together and prevent shifting. These locking pieces were missing from the wall construction. I texted photos of what I found to Rick with images of the contract we signed and he, again, doesn't respond. We haved called their office phone but rarely get an answer, or if we do get the office manager, they say they will give the message to Rick, but no response. See same review on Google for photos of the work since I cannot upload to Angi's List

This company has a terrible work ethic and reputation for padding the bills. Weeding hours were added that were never done. They sprayed my lawn with fertilizer that I never wanted. My patio project was awful and the joints never hardened. It was a total mess. When I asked for him to fix it he ignored my texts and emails for weeks until someone on Next Door alerted him that the community was exposing his consistent behavior. He showed up at my house and told me his dad died two weeks ago and that he had ignored everyone. Poor guy. I found out a few days later that his dad died two years ago. I told him his lack of accountability and lies were reprehensible and that I wanted a refund as he could not be trusted and I didn’t want him on my property.

My husband contacted the owner Rick Dassow back in April of this year 2013 to help us with our lawn. It was in rough shape because of the drought the previous year. After several attempts he finally returned our call. We knew he was busy so we waited. We had hired Ideal Landscaping the previous year to apply fertilizer and we were pleased for the most part. We never knew when they would show up but they always did. We were very concerned about our pets and asked that the workers please cover their water bowls or at least refill it after the application and please close the gate so the dogs would not get out. Neither of these requests were taken care of. Since the owner of Ideal lives in our neighborhood we thought it was a good idea to rehire him for the 2013 season. After a long discussion Rick Dassow (owner) about the dog bowl and gate situation he assured us these items would be taken care of. We paid him in advance for the 2013 season.  His crew came and did the work we hired them to do but again forgot the dog bowl and gate situations. Not only that, but 2 of the 5 fertilizer applications there were no signs left in the yard to inform us of the fertilizer being applied to the lawn. ( isn't that against the law?) . 3 of the 5 times they were here they came and went in less than 10 minutes, actually blew the fertilizer right into the dogs water bowls and left the gate open. We also asked if Ricks company (at the start of the 2013 season before we knew what poor work he actually did) to  repair our lawn from the previous seasons drought. After many calls and missed appointments (should have been a clue) Rick finally showed up to give us a quote. We thought the quote was fair and once again because he was our neighbor we decided to hire him for that work as well. Very poor choice on our part because he set up at least 4 different times that he would come and do the work and never ever showed. We called many times but never received a returned  call. We really tried to give this guy a chance but he totally blew it. He is rude on the phone and promises work he does not do. We will NEVER hire this man again even though he IS our neighbor. After comparing his prices to other landscapers in the area we also feel his price on fertilizing is much higher than the rest. Next summer we will find someone else to do the work.

We were out of town this winter and used Ideal for snow removal in a pinch. We were charged nearly $250 for a one-time snow removal. Our driveway is a single car width and roughly 120 feet long. We also have about 70 feet of sidewalk. The job normally takes me about an hour and a half for a heavy snowfall. Ideal charged us nearly four hours of labor plus another $35 (!) for snow melt. To test my sense that this bill was exorbitant, I asked at least a half dozen people who are familiar with my lot what they thought would be a fair price for a one-time snow removal and not one guessed more than $125.  This bill was unconscionable.  
I can not urge you strongly enough to look elsewhere for snow removal or landscaping needs.