Hammer & Hand

We’ve had the pleasure of working with Hammer and Hand on several of our residential projects. In every case they’ve proven to be excellent communicators and careful craftsmen. Their skillful approach to project management resulted in the final costs and completion dates coming close to their original estimates. During our most recent project, they successfully and beautifully completed a major renovation, while the owners lived in the house. This was a tricky project in many regards, and the results were carefully crafted and refined, and closely adhered to our drawings. The end result speaks to Hammer and Hand’s skillful client/contractor interactions, as well as adept implementation.

We have been working with and referring Hammer and Hand to our clients for over 20 years. They are highly respected and provide the highest level of professionalism and quality of construction in their work. They also are leaders in green/sustainable, net zero and passive house construction. I would highly recommend them.

We added a rather large (180 square foot) bathroom to our 1918 era house. Also repiped water lines, removed old oil tank, installed new water heater, and replaced kitchen sink and counters. It was a big project for us but H&H handled smoothly. It took awhile but the finished product was perfect. When we show our beautiful bathroom to our friends and neighbors the reaction is always the same. WOW!

We hired Hammer and Hand to design and build an ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) as our retirement home in our daughter's back yard in Portland's historic Irvington neighborhood. From our initial meeting with their team to the completion of our new home last month, we have nothing but praise. The lead carpenter for the project, Roman, could not have been more communicative and positive throughout the process, despite having to create 88 rafter tails for the ADU to match those on the main house! The house was completed on time. The subs were dependable and skilled. We are so glad we hired this company!

We worked together with Steph Lynch and her artisan team on the Willamette Valley residence, a "modern farmhouse" we designed for our client and their family. Steph was exceptional about asking good questions, problem solving, and executing the design intent with high precision and attention to detail. It's a beautifully crafted home and we could not have done it without her and her team. Well done Hammer and Hand. It's a stunningly beautiful home.

H&H has a reputation for completing projects with skill, precision, and thoughtful project management. Our last project together was no exception- we'd highly recommend H&H for both residential and commercial projects.

Used them a few years back for work on a 1910 craftsman. They use skilled craftsmen and mist of the work done was good. There were a few hiccups, but things mostly worked out in the end.

This is the second time we've worked with Hammer & Hand (H&H) on a remodel. The first time was for a small kitchen and bath remodel ($50k range) in 2011. Most recently we engaged H&H for a more extensive ($120k contract) ground floor remodel of our Lake Oswego home in early 2015. For the most part, the sub-contractors Hammer and Hand chooses to work with are excellent: their work met or exceeded our expectation. And for those times when the sub's work did not meet the contract specification, H&H represented the owner's interest and at the end of the day, we were very pleased with the final product. For example, we specified a certain direct vent fire place installation with a brushed nickel surround. The sub provided a fixed bid to provide and install the fireplace, but the fireplace installed was with a mat black surround, which was not what we specified. We later learned that the sub had incorrectly bid the fireplace installation project, first by not factoring in their profit and second, by providing a bid for the wrong surround (mat black was less expensive than brushed nickel.). Because of this, the sub actually lost money on our project and we are sure that it would have been much easier for the sub to "walk" on our project. However, for any number of reasons, perhaps which also includes the strength of H&H's relationship with the sub and their expected future work coming from that relationship, the sub honored their contract and corrected the surround to the specified brushed nickel. If we were dealing directly with the sub, we imagine this story might not have had such a happy ending. Instead, we were saved this unpleasant experience and later learned the details after it was all fixed. The other thing we want to mention is that the on-site lead is, in our opinion, the most important person in the arrangement and our H&H lead, Peter Bogart, is not only a highly skilled craftsman but he's an excellent communicator and very pleasant to be around. We came to trust and depend on Peter's opinion, especially when my husband and I couldn't agree on what we wanted. As the project continued, Peter learned our design esthetic and made suggestions that improved our project. Our original project came in under budget and was completed in less time than originally estimated. We are very happy with the final product and have recommended H&H to all our friends.

Working with Hammer&Hand was the best choice for our client who wanted a construction team that was able to work with in their budget limit, but able in incorporate many of the environmental performance goals they wanted to achieve. They are extremely knowledgeable in advance building systems that will soon be the normal in how our houses will perform in the future. - JT

Hammer and Hand is one of the best contractors in the Portland area. They are particularly knowledgeable about sustainable building techniques. We look forward to working together for years to come.

Hammer and Hand turned a commercial building into our home a couple of years ago. They did great work. They came in under budget, so we were able to remodel one more bathroom. They also were usually ahead of schedule. They constantly kept us in the loop on how things were progressing and any problems that arose. They also had great ideas on how to reuse materials already here. The insulation is amazing, keeping our large space quite warm.

Currently building a new house for us. They have been responsible and professional so far. We aren't anticipating any serious problems. Any small issues have been resolved to our satisfaction so far. As project progressed, things went downhill. 25 percent over budget. Bad communication.