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"Although we contracted and made an initial payment (1/3) on February 27, by mutual agreement the work began on 13 April 2015 to allow the work-site to dry out from the winter weather.  The contractor made incredible progress in the first two weeks demolishing the old deck & garage porch, pouring footers, raising the frame & putting on the roof.  The first crew was very hard working, here early in the morning, & leaving late in the afternoon (after cleaning up the area each day).  When rain was in the forecast, the crew would ask if they could make up the day on Saturday, which they did.  Everything we saw in the first 2 weeks was consistent with our previous great experience with Fox Creek 2 years earlier when they replaced all our siding, windows & doors. The only problem at that point was that a plain black roof (25 yr) was put on instead of the architectural roof (lifetime warranty) we asked for.  The contractor acknowledged the error and offered to replace the roof at no additional cost.  We had originally only contracted for 2 skylights so we asked if he'd install 2 more at no cost versus replacing the roof and he agreed.  We were told that everything was on schedule to complete the rest of the job in 2 weeks.  We made the second (of 3) payment on April 29 which was when the excavation work below the porch/deck was supposed to begin.  No one showed up to start this work for several days and when they did (it was a different crew from the first), they typically showed up around mid-morning and were gone by mid-afternoon.  We had beautiful weather during this period in which very little work got done.  The contractor claimed they were having trouble getting the supplier to deliver sand and crushed rock.  Since we're located in St. Mary's County which is a bit of a distance from the contractor's home base in Crownsville near Annapolis, they decided to use "local" suppliers & subcontractors (electricians) rather than those they normally use.  We found out later that the sand & gravel supplier was located in Brandywine about 40 miles from here (there are plenty of suppliers right here in the county).  When the sand & gravel finally showed up at 10:00 am one morning about the same time the crew arrived, the crew directed them to the spot they wanted it dumped and then everyone left shortly after that without doing anything.  We knew by then that the job wasn't going to be completed anywhere near the 3 & 1/2 week total time advertised.  The predictable springtime heavy rains started and we were delayed even more.  The week of May 11 was the first week we could see some progress each day.  The end product was beautiful.  A paver retaining wall was put in all around the perimeter below the deck/porch and in between the concrete slab under the porch and the pavered patio area below the deck.  

We couldn't understand why the remaining work on the porch above couldn't go on while the below work was going on.  Wiring had to be put in, and also all the finish work (soffets, gutters, trim work, ceiling made of soffet rolls - looks very nice).  Most of the holdup turned out to be waiting for the "local" electrician to show up.  The electrician (Goudie) wasn't really all that local but was from Waldorf 35 miles up the road.  Our contractor had to threaten, cajole and/or beg Goudie to show up and install wiring so that the finishing work could be done on the porch.  We begged our contractor to get another licensed electrician (there are plenty of good ones right here in the county that we've done business with).  Anyway, once the electrician showed up we had to get them back several more times because they'd forget to do something we'd asked for or they didn't have a part and we'd end up in the same waiting game.  They did end up getting shamed into sending an electrician on Sunday of Memorial Day weekend to put in 2 ceiling outlets they''d forgotten to put in, but we still didn't have any fans or lights to enjoy that weekend, by which time our contractor assured we'd be enjoying the porch.  You don't EVER want to do business with Goudie Electrical.  

To make a long story short, after a lot of nagging to get a lot of loose ends tied up, the work was finally finished and inspected the Thursday (the day) before this past 4th of July weekend.  The porch & deck are absolutely beautiful (we'll attach pictures if we can figure out how to do it - they will speak for themselves).  We got some extras that we asked for like 7" wide Azek boards along the tops of the vinyl railings inside the porch to serve as a counter top for setting drinks or small plates of food or snacks, which we've had a lot of nice compliments about.  They're the perfect height for pulling a barstool up to.  One of the things we didn't get that we expected was a decent landing area at the bottom of our deck stairs.  The crew threw grass seed and straw there.  When we asked about getting some sort of solid landing, they shoveled out the area and threw some leftover crushed rock on it and tamped it down.  When we asked if they were going to finish it (we told them they could use some of the many wall pavers that were left over) they said the wall pavers would require digging too deep. We offered to pick up (and did) some square flat stepping stones from Lowe's which we left for them.  One of the younger fellas who was there one day to meet with the inspector and had no tools just laid the stones down, stomped them down with his feet and let it go at that.  The area was not level and a downpour that evening directed a steady flow of water from the stones across our concrete slab.  We didn't bother asking again, just tore it up last weekend, leveled and tamped it down properly and reinstalled the stepping stones ourselves.

Our sense through this whole experience was that there was nobody in charge.  Besides the first crew that started the project and came later on one day to install all the soffets and gutters, it appeared to be young fellas without any on-site direction or supervision.  They did a lot of good work but there was a lot of unfinished work that we had to call our contractor up to get fixed.  If we lived closer to Annapolis or the DC metro area, this would probably have been a much better experience.  They do good work at a fair price and the owners are very honest people and have the best of intentions.  But they appear to be ill-equipped to do business in St. Mary's, southern Charles or Calvert counties or other more distant locations.  I did mention to the owner that if he wanted to do more business here he needed to do more to establish relationships with truly local suppliers and subcontractors.  Communications also need to be improved all around - with the crews, between the partners, with suppliers, subs and us, the customers.  We had the sense that the crews didn't really enjoy coming here and that we were kind of at the bottom of Fox Creek's list of priorities due to our distance from their home base.  As much as we love the final product and will enjoy it and show it off for a lifetime, we couldn't go through the aggravation again.  We would encourage folks from the Annapolis and metro DC areas who are considering a project like this (or folks who aren't in any kind of a hurry to get a project like this completed in a reasonable amount of time) to give Fox Creek serious consideration.  

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"We were very pleased with the quality of work delivered on our project to repair our indoor stair railing. Over a period of two decades our cat had used the railing posts as a scratching post. We were concerned that the repair might not be esthetically pleasing without a full replacement. We were delighted that a pleasing and economical solution was delivered for this project in the promised timeframe. The assigned worker communicated well, offered options and delivered beyond our expectations."

"The young man that came to see my missing shingles on my roof, was professional, informed, and polite. The only issue was that the company does NOT conduct repair as I needed. The company only replaces the entire roof. I am glad he came and advised about replacing the roof if we decide to do that and decide that we can afford it. Right now I need to repair the missing shingles. and he/ his company can not help me."

"Step 1 for my project was replacing the original soffits, trim and gutters. My house is much better now that those things have been replaced. Step 2 will be having them replace my original siding. I like their products and ability to communicate through the multi step process."

"Very responsive to my need to seal the missing siding."

"It was an absolute pleasure working with everyone at American Home Contractors (AHC). I had a very customized project requiring a very specific type of siding since I live in Georgetown, DC, and we have several layers of historic oversight required prior to permit issuance. In other words, this neighborhood is extremely difficult to work in due to all the regulations required to obtain a legal permit to do any external work on these historic homes. John Roda, AHC’s Project Coordinator, was my primary contact at AHC over the many months it took me to finally obtain my permit and begin deciding on how to obtain the siding necessary to meet permit specifications. He was extremely competent and patient throughout the entire process and worked closely with me and the Historic Preservation Office contact for Georgetown to ensure that we were meeting strict product demands while also staying within my budget. So many other companies either refused to work with me or were incapable of working with me on this project due to the difficulties I encountered while navigating the permitting process alone. AHC is different. They have stamina, courage, and endurance. High-quality people + high-quality materials= high-quality job with the added bonus of a decent price for what you are getting. In the end, my home looks absolutely stunning. Even more importantly, I now have the peace of mind that my home has good quality siding and is structurally sound. AHC actually had to remove the illegal Masonite siding (has a class-action lawsuit for the damage it has caused homes in the past) that was likely installed in ~1970-1980 without the issuance of a legal permit when the old pebble dash stucco was removed. They installed some beautiful cedar siding in its place. I spent many sleepless nights worrying about the damage the Masonite might have done to the furring strips and the old 1880s substrate in the lead-up to the installation. Thankfully, all was well and the installation was extremely efficient and successful. The AHC siding installers arrived at 7 am on the day of installation and worked tirelessly until 7 pm. We initially estimated the job would take ~ three days, and they finished in only a day. Their work ethic and workmanship on the installation were truly astounding, especially in an era when simple tasks are often drawn out and good work ethic and professionalism are touted ad nauseam by companies but rarely mobilized in practice. As a first time homeowner, I have gone through a lot of mental anguish with my home’s historic idiosyncrasies, particularly when I am in the process of gathering estimates for necessary maintenance work and wait weeks or even months to hear back from companies that overcharge for low-quality materials and unenthusiastic, inefficient labor. AHC is different. I heard back with my first estimate within days (during fall 2020 with the COVID pandemic raging on), the materials were excellent, the price was fair, and John was very enthusiastic and optimistic throughout the project’s duration even despite the multiplicity of hurdles we encountered with the ever-changing demands of the historic preservation specialists. The only upside of gathering competing estimates and meeting with all those contractors I met with initially is that when I finally found a gold standard contractor (AHC), I experienced the sheer relief of having a reliable contractor for my current and future projects and to wholeheartedly recommend to friends and family. I am so grateful to everyone at AHC who worked so hard to make what really seemed impossible and out-of-reach finally materialize. If you have a tough (or simple) project that you need to be done right and are torn between companies or are just starting your search for a reliable, five-star contractor, I can highly, highly recommend AHC based on my experience with them. You will not be disappointed."

"We contracted with them to install windows and insulated vinyl siding in 2016. They completed the work on time and at budget. They were very agreeable and the installation team gave us some sound advice during the installation. Since we have an old house, there were some surprises along the way, but the installation team solved them in real time and we ended up very satisfied with the job. We saw an immediate decrease in heating and cooling costs that persists to this day. Recently, some of the window casings came loose. We called them and they sent a repair crew immediately. They've been consistently easy to work with, reasonably priced, and have given us quality work. We definitely recommend them."

"My wife and I purchased our house about 18 months ago. Back in March of this past year, we discovered that the previous owner had concealed some rot in the exterior walls of the house that had come from a leak somewhere along the roof line. We were initially referred to Ben and his company by a friend of ours who he had done some previous work for. Ben came out, inspected the roof and determined told us he believed that the leak had been coming in around the chimney, but had been corrected by the previous owner.  We asked him at the time if he could handle repairing the wall, and he said that while they might be able to find a way to fix it, they were not comfortable taking the job because, not being framers, they did not want to take on the job and have to tell us later they could not complete it.  This actually very much impressed my wife and I, since most people we found to look at that project were more than happy to take the money even if they were not really qualified for the work.
Several months later, we started having water leaking into our house again, this time on the other side of the home. Given that we very much appreciated their honesty the first time, we called Ben and his company.  They came right out, rearranging their schedule to help us with the pool that was slowly forming in our bathroom. With the weather being extremely rainy, as well as other factors, Ben made several trips out to our home to ensure that they could accurately diagnose the problem. They discovered that while the primary problem was coming from a window we had recently had replaced, the company that had replaced the roof for the previous owner had cut some corners which was leading to all of the edges of the roof starting to rot. He took the time to actually take me and show me the problem and explain what caused it.  He gave us a few options, and in the end we decided to replace the roof to ensure we could fix the rot. Ben and his team came out on 17 July and were able to do all of the work needed in a day, including the pitched roof replacement, replacement of some of the gutters, repairs to a flat roof we have over an addition, and the installation of gutter toppers.  Additionally, our window company was supposed to come out on the same day to fix the window. When they did not show on time, Ben offered to fix the windows for us free of charge, if they didn't come by the end of the day just to make sure it was done right.
When the crew left, the property was spotless! And throughout the whole process, we had nothing but amazing service from Ben and the team. They go out of their way to explain everything to you and show you how and why they are doing what they are doing. We would highly recommend them to anyone!
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"Chris checked the attic as well as on top of the roof for any damage or needed areas for repair.  He caulked and replaced the collar around one of the vents.  Excellent service.
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"I needed a complete exterior redo (roofing, siding, wood wrap and gutters), the services went very, very well and my home looks Brand New! The company is quality oriented, timely, honest and responsive. I would recommend them to anyone who needs their roofing or siding repaired and/or replaced. TJ, the owner was Johnny on the spot, responded to all my questions, concerns and requests within minutes by phone or text. He went above and beyond customer satisfaction with his personal service. His crew were hard working, precise, respectful and did whatever I asked of them during the repairs. You can't go wrong with this company!!"