When a sewer backup destroyed the first floor of our house last fall (yes, it was as abject as it sounds), Aaron Gordon and his incredible team brought our home back to life with extraordinary professionalism, knowledge, transparency and even humor. We interviewed some dozen general contractors and that many more subs; and the first thing that impressed us about Aaron’s team was their communication. Phone calls and emails were returned within an hour – and often in much less time than that - when nearly all of the competitors proved virtually irresponsive by comparison. The horror stories about many GCs not bothering to show up when scheduled; or failing to respond to queries; or never producing an estimate after weeks are, alas, all too true. Aaron Gordon, on the other hand, inspired confidence from the beginning– and this quality alone earns his company five+ stars. Aaron and every one of his team members were never anything less than upfront about cost, scheduling, time and upgrades. And then, of course, there’s the final product. The reconstruction is beautiful, rock-solid and for the ages. The team brought an artistic eye to the smallest details and an engineer’s expertise when it came to the house’s systems, plumbing and electrical. Everyone was professional, timely, meticulous, friendly and responsive.
AGC handled our rebuild with flexibility, sensitivity and patience, terms one hardly associates with home reconstruction at any scale, much less the traumatic and compulsory kind foisted upon us. That should tell you something about the kind of company they are: they actually managed to dial down our stress level from 11 to something entirely reasonable (5 or 6?) The conditions leading up to the reconstruction were beyond anxiety-ridden as they involved interminable exchanges with insurance. Given the rabid market for good GCs in the Bay Area, AGC could easily have declined our job in pursuit of an easier project. But they stuck it out with us over many months, even as the process seemed dammed to bureaucratic purgatory. On this count, our special thanks go to Brian, the stellar estimator, who somehow managed to bring humor to a very unfunny situation.
By the time actual construction began months later, we knew we had made the right choice. In fact, we trusted AGC so much that we were able to go abroad for work (scheduled well before the house damage) knowing that things would get done as planned. And we knew the work would be excellent. Good communications were even more essential during this stage. We could always rely on the upstanding foreman, Trevor, for informative video updates and timely Skype exchanges. A key to the success of the project, I think, is that Trevor and his crew foresaw any potential issues well in advance; and knew exactly the right questions to address and pose of us as homeowners. Our thanks to Trevor, Amber, Monique, Sal and all the others for such outstanding work.
Yes, it is true that this level of service and product comes at some cost; but I do believe you get what you pay for in the area of general contracting, especially in a city as morbidly expensive as San Francisco. This is very far from suggesting that AGC is an “elitist” or luxury firming catering only to the 1%. We’re a professional couple who have to watch the bottom line like everyone else; we hardly have disposable income to splash out on an enforced upgrade. But we also know that this kind of investment, both material and immaterial, is the best value. Entrusting your property to paid professionals is one thing. Entrusting your domestic space and time to strangers -- and then building an actual relationship with those people – is something else
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