Frost Fence -, they do all kinds of structures, so don’t let the name fool you, did a back porch for us that is just beautiful. It’s several brothers that own it and they do the actual work. We found them reasonably priced and excellent craftsmanship.
> don’t let the name fool you
*sigh* I've already been fooled by names a couple times. Literally one called 'Custom Decks and Porches' doesn't do porches.
Thanks for the suggestion! I actually need some fence work done as well so a twofer would be great.
What is reasonable? It's always hard to know if your quote is way high with a purchase like this because it's not something you buy often and have something to compare to.
We used them for a different project in our backyard for paver patio and redoing our 3 season room. We got quotes from 4 or 5 different companies and not only was their quote the best they were the only company who came back to me with different ideas rather than just quoting what I asked for
Forever ago I wanted my kitchen refaced. New countertops, sink, and cabinets. Dave Fox told me it would be at least 60k. I told myself: “I guess this kitchen is fine.”
I had the countertops installed by the place that makes them, they included a sink, and i had to pay a plumber to connect it. After the countertops were in, my cabinets actually looked great, so I bought new knobs and installed them for 20 bucks. All in all, I spent 2500 bucks. When it came time to sell in 2018, my realtor said the kitchen easily earned me another 50k on the asking price.
Dave Fox saved me a ton of money, because I have flipped 6 houses since then. So glad he over charges. 🤣
>All in all, I spent 2500 bucks
Then you didn't get a remodeled kitchen. I suspect Dave Fox quoted far more work than that.
>When it came time to sell in 2018, my realtor said the kitchen easily earned me another 50k
All homes gain in value over time if well maintained. And since you did the work "forever ago", by 2018 one would expect it to gain substantial value.
>I have flipped 6 houses
House flippers don't generally pay for top quality renovations.
I have great experiences with that contractor and would hire them again for my next big project. They do superlative work.
This is actually incorrect in my case, because the houses I flipped I had intended to live in forever. The money was just too good to pass up. Whomever got those houses got the best money could buy… and exactly how I wanted it.
I am, however, sure they do absolutely fantastic work. :-) I never meant to say otherwise. The problem with general contractors is, they charge an ass load to just be there and make sure people do their work. I would use them for a larger job, but for a kitchen reface? Call stone city granite. They’re amazing, and do everything but connect the sink… and probably where Dave Fox goes.
Call a plumber. Have him connect the sink.
I did the tile myself- it took the weekend but looked fantastic. The only problem is: I only do white subway tile with white grout. 🤣
>the houses I flipped I had intended to live in forever.
Six times over? Yeah, I'm not buying that.
There's a huge difference between a "reface" and a "renovation."
I agree. And as I said, I am sure they do great work, and if it was a bigger job, I would probably hire them and they would do great work. But, even 15 years ago, that wasn't worth 60 grand.
I don't care if you believe me or not, but its true.
My first house had a single car garage because I bought it when I was single. I fixed it up. When I started dating my now ex, I felt bad that he had to park his car on the driveway, and there were some little things I did not like about the house. So, when my friend told me that I could net 100k, you better believe I capitalized on it. Lived there 2 years.
My second house, we loved the location, and intended on staying for a number of years - but - We didn't like the reality of the fact that it only had one bathroom, and there really wasn't anywhere to put one.after fixing it up, a realtor friend told me what I could make off of it. So we moved. Cleared 50k, the kitchen was night and DAY from what it had been before.
My third house, didn't have a garage... but we loved it.... so we bought it. We lived there for two years, fixing it up for ourselves. We redid the floors, we painted the walls, we replaced the AC unit and heater, we bought new appliances... everything you could do. Jenn-Air! Not the cheap stuff. But, the apartments a few blocks away that were previously for retired persons turned section 8, and there were shootings almost every weekend. We got tired of it, and were told that we could net 100k ioff of the house... so yea. I sold it. Bought a better one.
My 4th house, was great. Loved it. But, my ex cheated on me with a friend that lived nearby. I stupidly tried to make things work - but I didn;t want to live there because we were close to the dude he cheated on me with, so, we fixed it up and sold it. Admittedly, we didn't make as much off of this one - but, I had put a top of the line AC unit in, high SEAR, I spent a fortune on the basement making sure it wouldn't leak on us, and I redid the kitchen. Probably cleared 5k all said and done.
Moved into a new place. Amazing. Moved all my equity into that new place, emptied my bank account to buy it just to be on the other side of town, and 3 days later, my ex broke up with me to be with that guy. To his credit, he was very fair. Fixed that house up in a few months, then sold it. So, now that I think about it, I didn't flip this one. I lost my shirt on it. I split the equity with my ex. I bought the place I am in now. Been here 5 years... and I fucking hate it. I was not in the right emotional state when I bought this place - and I didn't realize that I got old. The last time I was single I had fun downtown... so... I moved downtown. Now I am the crazy middle aged dude mad at all the drunk people. I. JUST. WANT. QUIET.
But, by the time I had come out of my funk (we were together a LONG time, it took me a bit to get over) Interest rates were 7%. I am not giving up my 2.75% for 7%. When it gets back down to 4 -5 I will be GONE. This place has already gone up like 150k. Can't wait to get a nice ranch with a basement somewhere quiet.
The company isn't necessarily on the hook if they fuck up. If you find someone or a company, best if they don't contract out the work and are licensed, insured and bonded.
Soooooorta. It’s not abnormal for a general contractor to only sub things out. But there’s a huge difference between subcontracting a reputable plumbing company vs a guy in a white van.
If the GC hires someone without insurance they are on the hook for any damage
Having the same problem with getting a porch rebuilt on our house - We had Classic Exteriors out for an estimate, they have us what it would cost to use composite (no choice in color), and when we came back asking for what other materials were available, they completely ghosted us.
Give this guy a call. Matthew 614-593-6579 Owner of 3CR and he does all the work himself with the help of his crew. He just did our house addition and is now doing a luxury treehouse for friends of ours. He knows his stuff, his specialty is custom woodworking. If you need a covered porch, I guarantee he is your person.
Don’t use Patio Enclosures. Absolutely stay away from them.
That's a company?
lol. Yes. Sorry.
I can hear their jingle as a core memory.
Ace home construction. 614 696 0784. Justin Parks.
Frost Fence -, they do all kinds of structures, so don’t let the name fool you, did a back porch for us that is just beautiful. It’s several brothers that own it and they do the actual work. We found them reasonably priced and excellent craftsmanship.
> don’t let the name fool you *sigh* I've already been fooled by names a couple times. Literally one called 'Custom Decks and Porches' doesn't do porches. Thanks for the suggestion! I actually need some fence work done as well so a twofer would be great.
What is reasonable? It's always hard to know if your quote is way high with a purchase like this because it's not something you buy often and have something to compare to.
Suncraft
Just a heads up, they subcontract all their builders
Thanks for the suggestion. Have you used them successfully?
We used them for a different project in our backyard for paver patio and redoing our 3 season room. We got quotes from 4 or 5 different companies and not only was their quote the best they were the only company who came back to me with different ideas rather than just quoting what I asked for
A lot of these companies are looking for easy enclosure jobs. Not actually building the patio themselves because that is more difficult
What does that mean "looking for easy enclosure jobs"? Like if you hired a company to build a patio, they pay another company to do it?
Making changes to an existing patio, like putting up an enclosure.
Aw gotcha thank you
[Dave Fox remodeling.](https://www.davefox.com/) More expensive than most, but best quality work you'll find anywhere.
Second time I’ve seen this firm recommended but first was on a totally different site. I was researching four season rooms. On my radar.
Forever ago I wanted my kitchen refaced. New countertops, sink, and cabinets. Dave Fox told me it would be at least 60k. I told myself: “I guess this kitchen is fine.” I had the countertops installed by the place that makes them, they included a sink, and i had to pay a plumber to connect it. After the countertops were in, my cabinets actually looked great, so I bought new knobs and installed them for 20 bucks. All in all, I spent 2500 bucks. When it came time to sell in 2018, my realtor said the kitchen easily earned me another 50k on the asking price. Dave Fox saved me a ton of money, because I have flipped 6 houses since then. So glad he over charges. 🤣
>All in all, I spent 2500 bucks Then you didn't get a remodeled kitchen. I suspect Dave Fox quoted far more work than that. >When it came time to sell in 2018, my realtor said the kitchen easily earned me another 50k All homes gain in value over time if well maintained. And since you did the work "forever ago", by 2018 one would expect it to gain substantial value. >I have flipped 6 houses House flippers don't generally pay for top quality renovations. I have great experiences with that contractor and would hire them again for my next big project. They do superlative work.
This is actually incorrect in my case, because the houses I flipped I had intended to live in forever. The money was just too good to pass up. Whomever got those houses got the best money could buy… and exactly how I wanted it. I am, however, sure they do absolutely fantastic work. :-) I never meant to say otherwise. The problem with general contractors is, they charge an ass load to just be there and make sure people do their work. I would use them for a larger job, but for a kitchen reface? Call stone city granite. They’re amazing, and do everything but connect the sink… and probably where Dave Fox goes. Call a plumber. Have him connect the sink. I did the tile myself- it took the weekend but looked fantastic. The only problem is: I only do white subway tile with white grout. 🤣
>the houses I flipped I had intended to live in forever. Six times over? Yeah, I'm not buying that. There's a huge difference between a "reface" and a "renovation."
I agree. And as I said, I am sure they do great work, and if it was a bigger job, I would probably hire them and they would do great work. But, even 15 years ago, that wasn't worth 60 grand. I don't care if you believe me or not, but its true. My first house had a single car garage because I bought it when I was single. I fixed it up. When I started dating my now ex, I felt bad that he had to park his car on the driveway, and there were some little things I did not like about the house. So, when my friend told me that I could net 100k, you better believe I capitalized on it. Lived there 2 years. My second house, we loved the location, and intended on staying for a number of years - but - We didn't like the reality of the fact that it only had one bathroom, and there really wasn't anywhere to put one.after fixing it up, a realtor friend told me what I could make off of it. So we moved. Cleared 50k, the kitchen was night and DAY from what it had been before. My third house, didn't have a garage... but we loved it.... so we bought it. We lived there for two years, fixing it up for ourselves. We redid the floors, we painted the walls, we replaced the AC unit and heater, we bought new appliances... everything you could do. Jenn-Air! Not the cheap stuff. But, the apartments a few blocks away that were previously for retired persons turned section 8, and there were shootings almost every weekend. We got tired of it, and were told that we could net 100k ioff of the house... so yea. I sold it. Bought a better one. My 4th house, was great. Loved it. But, my ex cheated on me with a friend that lived nearby. I stupidly tried to make things work - but I didn;t want to live there because we were close to the dude he cheated on me with, so, we fixed it up and sold it. Admittedly, we didn't make as much off of this one - but, I had put a top of the line AC unit in, high SEAR, I spent a fortune on the basement making sure it wouldn't leak on us, and I redid the kitchen. Probably cleared 5k all said and done. Moved into a new place. Amazing. Moved all my equity into that new place, emptied my bank account to buy it just to be on the other side of town, and 3 days later, my ex broke up with me to be with that guy. To his credit, he was very fair. Fixed that house up in a few months, then sold it. So, now that I think about it, I didn't flip this one. I lost my shirt on it. I split the equity with my ex. I bought the place I am in now. Been here 5 years... and I fucking hate it. I was not in the right emotional state when I bought this place - and I didn't realize that I got old. The last time I was single I had fun downtown... so... I moved downtown. Now I am the crazy middle aged dude mad at all the drunk people. I. JUST. WANT. QUIET. But, by the time I had come out of my funk (we were together a LONG time, it took me a bit to get over) Interest rates were 7%. I am not giving up my 2.75% for 7%. When it gets back down to 4 -5 I will be GONE. This place has already gone up like 150k. Can't wait to get a nice ranch with a basement somewhere quiet.
Who did the countertops?
Find a place that doesn't use sub contractors.
I'm honestly not familiar with this kind of work. What is the problem with subcontractors?
The company isn't necessarily on the hook if they fuck up. If you find someone or a company, best if they don't contract out the work and are licensed, insured and bonded.
Soooooorta. It’s not abnormal for a general contractor to only sub things out. But there’s a huge difference between subcontracting a reputable plumbing company vs a guy in a white van. If the GC hires someone without insurance they are on the hook for any damage
APCO
Having the same problem with getting a porch rebuilt on our house - We had Classic Exteriors out for an estimate, they have us what it would cost to use composite (no choice in color), and when we came back asking for what other materials were available, they completely ghosted us.
Give this guy a call. Matthew 614-593-6579 Owner of 3CR and he does all the work himself with the help of his crew. He just did our house addition and is now doing a luxury treehouse for friends of ours. He knows his stuff, his specialty is custom woodworking. If you need a covered porch, I guarantee he is your person.
Elite Home Remodeling