Howland Built

This contractor is an outstanding communicator. He works with the highest integrity, and keeps to a strict budget and timeline. Every nuance is discussed thoroughly before proceeding. Workmanship is exquisite, with continuous attention to detail and quality. He makes surprising and delightful suggestions to how to make the project even better or more cost effective. He is unflappable and immensely resourceful. Couldn't be happier!

I first met Rory Howland in spring of 2009. A friend who had him remodel her kitchen on east side Santa Cruz recommended him. We decided to hire Rory after interviewing 4 different contractors for an extensive remodel of our west side Santa Cruz home. Our house is over 120 years old. The job included rebuilding the foundation to current building codes, gutting the inside including installing a new roof, electrical and plumbing. I already had all of the surface materials, appliances to be installed, paint colors to be used. Rory was very flexible of working with my choices of materials. He was able to stick with a strict timeline starting in May of 2009 finishing in November 2009. When you are remodeling an older structure there are many things that can come up that no one is able to predict. Rory was able to handle whatever came his way. Rory is selective on who he used as his sub contractors. He had an understanding of what the building codes required and I believe we passed all the inspections the first time. I was very pleased with his management of the project and his subs. We met weekly to discuss progress. I liked his ability to keep me updated. He is very good communicator and easy to get in touch with if you have any questions. I had a specific image of what the house would look like at the finish of the project and let me tell you Rory Howland was able to “… make my dream come true”. In the end, the house received a green building award. Fast forward to late 2014. I contacted Rory to see if he would be interested in remodeling the space in the attic. Rory suggested that we work directly with a residential design specialist that he had previously worked with on several projects. This suggestion alone is/was worth its weight in gold. What I had was the design person and the contractor working together. Often you get an architect that will design a plan that looks good on paper, meets all the building code requirements but when the contractor tries to implement these plans all kinds of problems can occur. Of course, Rory has already worked on the house. With his building expertise, and the residential design specialist skills and my very detailed list of what I wanted to have happen in that attic space, there was a cohesive plan developed that has had very few “unexpected or unforeseen” problems come up. The second project started late May 2016. As on the previous project, we meet weekly to go over progress and the next week’s timeline. He is good about introducing you to the subs. There is no “down” time when nothing is happening. Rory knows how to schedule the subs and the subs show up. In fact, even though he has given me a timeline, he is often ahead of schedule in getting subs in ahead of time to talk about certain aspects of the remodel. I appreciate that his crew is clean and pick up each day. I am sure that I will be equally happy at the end of this project as I was with the first project. One additional thing. Many contractors, architects, etc will spend your money freely not thinking of the bottom line- namely your budget. Rory and I had many discussions about how he could save me money by using one product over another. This allowed me to stay within my budget and also add some requests/change orders that I otherwise may not have been able to afford. I would recommend Howland Built to anyone. Rory is knowledge about building codes, collaborative, communicative, and a conscientious contractor. .

From the first time we met with Rory his professionalism was evident. He walked us through building a new home with patience and support. He and his crew had an attention to detail and their work was first rate. The work was in our backyard and his crew was always respectful and careful of our living space and needs. Everything was left neat and tidy at the end of each day. When obstacles came up Rory could be counted on to find a way to "make it work". He was always calm when we might be freaking out. Getting through the permitting process and building inspections was uneventful. We highly recommend Howland Built to anyone in need of a contractor.

I have collaborated with Rory at Howland Built Construction on many projects over the years. We have worked together in a Design/ Build capacity, as well as independently, but the end result is a well built, well thought out home, and a happy client. It seems any time I arrive on the job site, whether expected or not, the job site is orderly and the workers are focused and aware of the work in front of them. Sometimes the workers are part of his crew, sometimes subcontractors, or sometimes a mix of both, but they all are very capable and competent people on the job. To say Rory hires conscientious and reliable subs is an understatement. As the designer of a project, I appreciate that the lead builder on the site coordinates things with me whenever there is a question about things shown on the plans, or other significant items. Rory is aware of budgetary concerns and constraints, and works hard to find efficiency and solutions where he can to get the most into a project within the given budget. When Rory is the contractor for a project I have designed, I can rest easy that the project is in good hands with he and his crew on the job. The end results are always spectacular.