Great Neighborhood Homes

GNH has one of the best reputations in the area for a reason; they balance the highest quality craftsmanship and finish, with the highest level of service and integrity. Scott, Margaret, and their team are warm, wonderful, talented and trustworthy professionals who always put in extra effort and went the extra mile for us. They don't just stick with their clients through out the planning and construction process, they will be there for you for years (literally) after the build is concluded to make sure the home is exactly what you expected, and they promised. We love our new home, from the design/build process to the finished exterior and interior design they led. GNH really did treat us like neighbors, and because of that, they earned our trust, respect and highest recommendation. If we ever build again, it'll be with GNH.

We have been very satisfied with our house built by Great Neighborhood Homes. They did an awesome job and there have been no issues since moving in. Especially love how fast they built the house once we broke ground. Less than 9 months. I would highly recommend them

We had the opportunity to work with Scott & Margaret at GNH and had a very positive outcome. Their ability to understand your vision and bring it to life was impressive. Consistent communication, attention to detail, quality work and immediate follow-up to special requests were notable experiences. We valued their work and appreciated the effort and professionalism from all of their employees.

I cannot say enough great things about Great Neighborhood Homes. Their entire team was incredibly professional from start to finish. When any issues arose, they were quick to act and fair throughout. They were very easy to get ahold of and responded to concerns long after we moved in. Their in house design services were a welcome addition and we were left with a home that was more than we could have imagined. I would have no hesitations recommending them to anyone looking at building a new home in the twin cities. They are wonderful people and care deeply about their community and it shows in how they treat their past and present clients.

We used Great Neighborhood Homes for a major house remodeling project. Margaret was awesome to work with. Her ideas and guidance were invaluable throughout the entire remodeling process. She brought ideas we never would have considered without her, and we are very excited with the end result. We highly recommend Great Neighborhood Homes

We had a home built with Great Neighborhood Homes. Not a good experience for us. We have built a true custom home in the past and remodeled a home so we have had experience with different builders. The wrong house plans were on the site and not the ones we signed on. For months Margaret was telling me that I was making too many changes. When I looked at the house plans on site, they were not the final plans we signed with Scott Busyn. So many details that were previously signed off on were missed and not adjusted accordingly to the correct plans. We were not assigned to an interior decorator for most of the project. Erin, (GNH interior decorator) helped a little in the beginning and then a bit in the end since she was busy with a home that was going to be open to the public. By the time Erin was available it was so close to moving in that it wasn't helpful at that point. Margaret was our main contact person for interior design and it was not an organized experience with a typical interior decorator. Having a husband and wife as the main contact persons (as at GNH) can lead to possible conflict of interest based on our experience. Objectivity was lost early on when it was found that one spouse was disorganized and missing key elements in our house. I would recommend to have an outside interior decorator contracted so that your best interest is priority in quality and long term durability. So many decisions were made and I wasn't a part of the process. An independent interior designer will work for you, not for the builder. When things weren't going well and numerous things missed, we asked Scott if we should hire an outside decorator since Margaret seemed so busy but he said no we can make it work. We tried many times to work with the situation. Long punch list at move in too. Do not move in until home completed 100 %. We even found another rental so that the home could be more complete but GNH insisted we move in. It was horrible. I spent most of our summer and fall trying to get the punch list items completed, waiting around for workers who might show or might not, cancellations, redos since sometimes they sent temp workers etc. I felt like GNH wanted us to give up bugging them to come and complete the items on the punch list. Not all of the items were ever taken care of in a complete way. In our past homes built/remodeled we had very little of a punch list, it was more organized and much less damage and redos needed since there was a process followed to protect the home so it wouldn't be damaged unnecessarily (painting done at a certain time, cabinets, flooring etc) Touch ups and redos are never as good as the first time done. After living in the home for a while now. It isn't the best in relation to durability/quality. We have had a number of electrical issues, plumbing, cabinetry, heating/air conditioning issues, gas line and exterior issues since our home was built. A lot of extra money and time has been put into our home since being built. The issues go well beyond wrong house plans unfortunately. I couldn't possibly write all of the specific issues. GNH does want your house to look nice from a distance but when you look closely you will then see the issues. (i.e. painted over damaged millwork, raised heated floors that should be level with the rest of your floors, missed lighting, not centered lighting, minimal electrical plan, wrong cabinetry drawer covers, drawers that run into the fridge door every time you open them even though the plans do not depict it this way etc.). Our polished heated concrete floor in the basement upon moving in had all of these dings and were noticeably touched up/filled before moving in. When we questioned why all of the touch ups, Scott Busyn said that rocks "pushed up" and they needed to fill those areas. We have photos of the floor after it was initially completed, there were no dings or rocks "pushing up". The damaged areas were due to the floor not being covered properly while completing the house. The difference is visible on the photos. Building a home should be a good thing. It will be busy but it should be good. Our experience was not good and we have done this type of project before. GNH was too busy and would not admit it at the time, we asked if it should be placed on hold etc. We did not get the type of services they promoted. Wrong house plans, many reminders needed from me about missed things, not professional when we would point out things missed or differences related to house plans. Project was not on time nor on budget.

GNH has been a loyal customer for many years. We work as a good team together. We have grown together and learn from each other. I look forward to many more years!

We loved our experience building with GNH. From the beginning, they listened to our vision and led the charge on a complete and total renovation in a historic neighborhood where people prize older homes. So our project was a challenge from the start - with lots of city issues and tight deadlines to boot - yet Scott & Margaret were so calm to work with and on top of things at all time. They were on-site all the time and accessible anytime to answer all our questions and provide detailed reports on budgets and timelines. And their team - from the carpenters to designers to office staff - were great to work with. They felt like family by the end of the project and we were actually sad to see them go when it was finished. Not many people can say that about their builders, which is a true testament to GNH. We love our house and feel so fortunate not only to live here, but that we enjoyed the design and building of it so much.

It was a pleasure working with Great Neighborhood Homes. From the beginning, it was a creative conversation melding our wishes with their expertise. From the structural elements to the interior design, we were pushed just enough to make sure the outcome was a home that was both current, but would stand the test of time. Overall, the project was on-time and on-budget—which I am sure is a rarity in the greater world of home-building! It was important to us that our home truly fit in our neighborhood and GNH delivered. Our home received a BLEND award for doing just that.

Scott and Margaret of Great Neighborhood Homes have been a joy to work with. We absolutely love their creativity. They are a passionate and fun team and do a terrific job of mixing our barnwood with a modern flair into their custom homes. We were thrilled to supply our reclaimed barnwood for their Artisan and ASID Showcase Homes.

The design process truly started and ended with us. GNH took our ideas and turned them into design elements in our home. During the building process our family used an area at the top of the stairs as an “observation deck” to peek out the front of the house. When we mentioned it to Scott, he immediately took out his tape measure and came up with a plan for us to keep the area for us to have in our home forever! It was important for us to like and enjoy spending time with the GNH team and the subs. We could see how the team supported each other. They worked together to communicate and it was obvious that they were meeting outside of our meetings to talk about our project. They were all mindful of us and our home, and we knew that they were all engaged in the process. GNH took our feedback and ideas to heart and only presented to us what they thought we would like. We never felt like they were trying to design a house for them, we knew from the beginning that it was for our family. I believe that this made the design and selections process faster and more satisfying.

When we first considered the prospect of building a home, we knew we wanted to build with GNH. Having been to previous GNH homes & hearing from friends how awesome Scott & Margaret are to work with, choosing GNH was the easy decision. Building our home involved more decisions & not always easy ones but Scott had a very confident, yet calming effect throughout the pre-construction process. After that, when our home was being built, Scott, his team and contractors were very responsive to any issues that arose. Being able to walk on site and speak with the contractors and the job supervisor and knowing they care just as much as you do about the quality of what is being built, makes you feel like the entire GNH team is extended family. As a result of everyone's hard work, we are now very happy in our new home and we always receive compliments from our guests regarding the quality and beauty of the home GNH built for us. I believe the greatest accolade is that I not only highly recommend them, but if I have another home built I want it done by GNH.