Hestia Construction & Design

Do not hire Hestia under any circumstances. Horrible experience. Horrible people. Unprofessional. 6/8 week kitchen project took over 4 months. The sheer incompetence of the entire organization from the top to the bottom is mind boggling. Contract signed July 13, 2020 All selections made and submitted to Hestia by the date set out by Hestia of August 3, 2020 Demo started August 19, 2020 Final walk through December 17, 2020 That is 17 weeks on a project that was bid out as a 6 week project with original completion date for October 1, 2020 with no unexpected delays as a result of the home or homeowner. It was all on Hestia and their mismanagement of the project, their time and their staff. We met with Adam and Brian in March 2020 to discuss a complete kitchen remodel. We were impressed with their sales pitch and their promises. The first promise was that all materials are ordered and on site before any demo so that there are no delays. The second was that on the day of demo we were given a completion date and every day they go past that date, they pay us $100.00. After our meeting COVID hit and we put the remodel on hold. In July we met again with Brian and decided to move foreword with the project and he again boasted about Hestia’s reputation about having all of the supplies and materials on site and sticking to their completion date. It was all a lie. We had a three week window immediately after demo that not one person came to the house. We had hired a designer prior to the demo so every single light switch, light fixture, outlet, appliance placement and cabinet design had been done. All they had to do was follow the set out design. The cabinet layout and order was not finalized until September 11, 2020 and the cabinets were on back order. We had to raise two windows, which was in the original design and those weren’t ordered until the middle of September and those too were on back order. There were several days in a row scattered through out the process when no one showed up our called to tell us no one was coming. We had agreed on a payment scheduled prior to demo and paid 50% up front at the time we signed the contract and working off the original completion date. Office employee #1 hounded us for 75% of the full payment when less than 10% of the work had been done. After going back and forth a new payment plan was set out which correlated the amount of work done to the amount of payment made. We added a small project and we had to pay 100% of the change order that day. The project wasn’t completed for 7 weeks after the payment of the change order but the day a payment is due, Office Employee #1 will call you 6 times and then e-mail you threatening a delay in your project if you don’t pay that day (and let’s take into account at this point we are 2 weeks past the original completion date and less than 50% of the work had been done) The sub-contractors are inconsiderate, subpar, incompetent and do no speak English at all. They went into our garage and used our ladders and tools without asking. We keep buckets next to the pool to empty the skimmer baskets and they took those buckets, emptied them out and used them for the plaster when hanging the drywall. They didn’t bring their own supplies or replace the things they stole from us. I sat in my upstairs bedroom and watched them go behind my garage to pee when I had signed a pre-work order stating I would have a bathroom accessible to them at all time, which I did. One weekend we found 15 cigarette butts in the bushes after taking one out of the mouth of our 16 pound dog, which they knew we had. That could have killed our dog. It had gotten to the point that we wanted to talk to the owner, Hannah Valentine. Her contact information is nowhere on the Hestia web page. We asked to leave a message and we were told by Office Employee #1 “good luck, she won’t return your call”. We found her contact information on LinkedIn and we called and emailed her and we still have not heard from her after months of trying. We had problems at the beginning of the reno, Adam was gone, Brian was gone, we were assigned Project Manager #1 and a week or so later, we were assigned Project Manager #2 and Construction Foremen #1. Several weeks into the project they were all gone so we were assigned Project Manager #3. No one told Project Manager #3 anything so when I would tell him I wanted a blue island it needed to be painted, or that cabinet needed a clear glass front his response was “ no one told me that” and my response was always, “well, I told Adam, Brian, PM#1, PM#2 and CF#1 not my fault”. Or when the cabinet order was wrong, his response was “ I didn’t order it, not my fault or I didn’t do it”. No, you didn’t, but a former PM for Hestia did so it is your responsibility to fix it. We had to have custom cabinets built for a wall that was an odd shape. PM #3 brought out a cabinet maker, he measured and made sketches and promised a sketch for my approval within a couple of days. Two weeks later, after asking multiple times, they told me that they had fired construction foreman #1 and his team, which included that cabinet maker. A week later they brought out a new cabinet maker. Same thing, took measurements and sketched out a design. During the next two weeks I asked about the progress of the cabinets and I was put off by PM #3. Two weeks after the second cabinet maker came out the PM #3 told me he wanted to come out one more time to take measurements to be sure. I asked him specifically if this was the same guy that came out before and he said yes. I found out two days later that the PM #3 lied to me and this was a third cabinet maker. Every time the cabinets were delayed, the floor tile installation was delayed, the measuring and installation of the quartz countertops were delayed and the backsplash installation was delayed. Because of this, again, there were days where there was no progress made. He was shopping around for the cheapest price when these cabinets had been in the original plan and should have been arranged weeks prior. We ordered pre-fab cabinets that came with a nice thick crown molding. Apparently, more work would have had to be done to attach that crown molding because of the size and the small amount of space on the cabinet above the cabinet door for it to be attached. PM #3 instructed the construction foreman #2 not to use that molding and to get a smaller one. This was never discussed with us. When we found out, we told them we wanted what we had ordered and paid for so they had to come back in and lower the upper cabinets, wasting more time redoing what should have been done right the first time. This was also because we contracted matching crown molding around the rest of the kitchen to match the molding around the cabinets. The molding we paid for with the cabinets was expensive and they took it upon themselves to try to pass off a smaller, cheaper molding to use around the entire kitchen instead of paying for the more expensive molding to match the molding that came with the cabinets. When the contract was signed and we were discussing appliances Hestia’s representative suggested the vent hood so that was the one ordered. This was done about about a month prior to demo. In August, PM #2 requested the list of our appliances so she could order cabinets and a vent hood cover and that vent hood model number and maker was given to her. When the cabinets came in the vent hood cover didn’t fit the vent hood. At that point, PM # 2 was gone. PM #3 did everything he could to put the blame on us or tried to make us have to either modify and piecemeal the hood that was ordered (which would have looked cheap and tacky) or pay for a new one. We had to forward emails and texts to him showing that Hestia had the dimensions of the vent hood since day one and any errors were on their part. It ended up, we had to have a custom vent hood cover made because PM #2 screwed up. They tried to make us pay for it, but we had to fight back since it was their screw up and we had already paid for one that was trashed. It took their subcontractors over two weeks to assemb

It was perfect. They are excellent.

We had a complete master bathroom remodel done in March 2018. Hestia Home Services was very professional and did great work. We have nothing but great things to say about the staff. Brian, Reynaldo and Hannah were easy to work with and were always available when needed. We are very pleased with the results of our bathroom remodel and would recommend Hestia Home Services to others.

Hestia was a first class company to work with, from Jesse, Brian, Hannah, and Reynaldo, to the individuals performing the work. The entire team was focused on meeting/exceeding our expectations. Very satisfied with the end result which finished ahead of schedule and at the agreed cost. Our work consisted of a kitchen and 2-bath (only cabinets in master) remodel, with additional work inclusive of: repair of a recurring roof/ceiling leak in the living area, full replacement of stairway balusters, addition of trim and molding to the living room, a new built-in bookshelf, and painting of the living areas and ceilings. The duration was estimated at 5 weeks and work was completed in 4 weeks. Throughout the effort, the Hestia team endeavored to carry out the work in a sequence to minimize household disruption. The workers were pleasant, courteous, and very hard working. We tried to minimize any scope creep but inevitably made several requests that increased the overall scope. The Hestia team just adjusted and accommodated with a reasonable cost and can-do spirit. The site team also made a few 'extra' enhancements (baseboard trim and painting of small areas) without a formal scope change. For those that have not experienced a major remodel, it is not for the faint of heart. With the kitchen and one bath out of commission for a couple of weeks, the master bedroom and bath became our headquarters and dining facility. However, Hestia did its best to get the other facilities back to 'serviceable' as quickly as possible. For our part, we did our best to have our materials selected and available to minimize disruptions. Hannah and Brian offered excellent guidance in the selection of countertops, colors, etc. We are especially pleased with the wood work overall and, after having witnessed the craftsmanship and care, have an even greater appreciation for those that performed the work At the end of the day, we are extremely pleased with the end result and have received compliments from numerous visitors. I highly recommend Hestia to anyone looking to remodel or upgrade a home and even plan to use them for further home upgrades early next year.

Do not use them. I will not recommend them.

Sales rep was fabulous when giving us a quote. Some areas were not completed or only half done. Master bedroom, Laundry room, , 1/2 bath had multiple holes. They left drywall mess in the kitchen and in the master. Tried to call our sale rep on 3 different occasions after the actual workers left - funny no response from him or anyone else at Hestia - Will not use again and would not recommend to others.

Very responsive, even during a tough time with the hurricane damages everywhere. They were easy to work with, came out and looked at the job in person to give the estimate (some others did not), and all around had great communication. I was really impressed with them through the whole process. They made sure that the small section that was repaired matched the rest of the wall perfectly, even came back to make sure it was done right to our standards as well as the boss'. I highly recommend them to others.

Looking great!

Really good. They do quality work!

Good

OK!

OK!

If I send a text or a call I always get an immediate response. Their subcontractors are also very responsive and they work hard from sun up to sun down. Great communication and kept me up to date throughout the entire process. They also make sure I am informed and understand what they are doing the entire way. Very trustworthy, great experience.