Michaelson Homes "took a chance" on us, coming all the way to Morrow to work with us first time home builders on a somewhat unconventional project; it was clear from the outset that Marc and his team embraced this challenge. Our project was unique in that it was a complete build involving creating a barn home on the site of an old farm with a barn. Our goal was to incorporate/use much of the old barn in our new home. Headline: this job FAR exceeded anything we could have hoped for or imagined.
Skills/Professionalism - Marc and his team are the epitome of skills/professionalism/listening to customer. Plus, the entire team was the friendliest group of folks we've ever encountered in a field where "friendly" and "construction" are rarely used in the same sentence. Michaelson Homes completely debunks this stereotype.
Design - Our first encounter with Marc, Kristin and Francesca left us driving home saying "WOW!" Marc, Francesca, Lisa and Steve (Riverside Cabinetry) were incredible in the design process, carefully listening to our desires, incorporating everything into initial designs, being flexible/patient to make changes and most importantly, coming up with ideas we would never have imagined on our own. Our goal was to incorporate as much of the "old barn" into the home and the Design Team was amazing in identifying creative yet not overwhelming uses for much of the old Barnwood. Francesca has an amazing knack for listening to not only what is said but also to unspoken or hard to verbalize wants/needs. She created 3 unique floor plans and encouraged us to pick and choose what we liked from each, which she then seamlessly incorporated into final plans.
Construction Management - we feel we have a lot of credibility here because we lived on site in a small house on the property so we had a birds-eye view to every aspect of the on-site process. Denny was/is without question beyond amazing as a construction manager, craftsman and liaison with the customer. He was the glue that held everything together and after 12+ months of nearly daily contact, we joked that he became part of our family. Words that describe Denny: caring, personable, expert craftsman, fun, down to earth, anything is possible attitude, insightful/creative, great listener! We love showing off some of the amazing features that Denny created and personally built; our stairway to the 2nd floor is 90% components from the old barn and when folks walk in, the first thing they say, is "oh my, that is incredible." Best testimony: many of the inspectors who came in to review the various stages of construction often brought colleagues back just so they could see such features!
Craftsmanship - The initial demo phase on the old barn was our first clue that Michaelson Homes was different. Demo was actually a careful piece-by-piece deconstruction knowing that much of the wood would have a place in the new home; amazing attention to detail. Steve and his team of craftsman/cabinet builders at Riverside Cabinetry designed/built features from cabinets/tables/shelving to several barnwood sliding doors to stair treads actually made from support timber from the barn. Impeccable.
Construction Team - it is clear that Marc carefully vets/selects his sub-contracting team beyond the Michaelson Team of craftsmen. We saw EVERY sub and honestly developed great relationships with each of them.....none of them fit the stereotype..... they owned their craft and went out of their way to communicate with us. Denny knew every sub well b/c he works regularly with each of them.....this created a cohesive team. Marc clearly has incredibly high standards and every one of his subs embraced this same level of perfection expected.
Problem Resolution - projects inevitably have issues along the way and ours' was no exception. But Marc and his team were most responsive and "owned" every problem with never a hint of "that's not my problem." We could share several examples but having been in the business of dealing with "customers" through much of our professional careers, all we can say is that Marc's teams' response to "problems" made us "Raving Fans" of their attitude, skills and quality of resolution. Think of a problem as a "-10" and we usually just hope to get back to "even" but Michaelson Homes turned every problem into a "+10".....every time!
Kristin gets her own paragraph! Kristin is that often unseen, behind the curtain stagehand who quietly but effectively solves problems you didn't know you had. Ultra responsive and friendly, we knew that whenever "Kristin was on it," great things were about to happen.......every time. She wins our "unsung heroine" award. New clients will be honored and amazed to interact with Kristin.
Bottomline - our project came in under budget and wildly over expectations! We just celebrated Thanksgiving with our family of 17 and our vision of an open, inviting, warm home came to life beyond measure. Very thankful for the Michaelson Homes team.
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