Universal Designers in Seacliff

“During the 13 month construction our neighbors would comment, "Your contractors are doing a good job on your house and we're impressed that they are respectful of the neighbors. I like it that they don't play loud music and clean up every day." We were happy to hear that. We are even happier with the results. As the first house in Santa Cruz County to be built (technically remodeled) to the Passive House standards, we enjoy a very comfortable temperature throughout the house AND use much less energy than similar houses in the neighborhood. The biggest challenge was the air tightness requirement for Passive House certification. This was tested with a blower door to verify that the house achieve 0.6ACH50 (131 CFM in our case) which is VERY tight. Achieving this level of airtightness in the house that was originally built in 1922, where we kept the original foundation and framing, has not been done before. Santa Cruz Green Builders also installed the first Heat Recovery Ventilator in this area. The professional who came to commission the HRV commented that our installation was one of the better ones he's observed. So, the point of this paragraph is Santa Cruz Green Builders is not afraid to take on new challenges and achieve amazing results. When you hear the words "green building" it may bring the image of a certain contemporary aesthetic to mind. But our house has the curve appeal of a nice old house -- a 1922 bungalow that has the arts and crafts styling with details in the window trims and flared skirt look on the siding. On the interior we are very happy that Santa Cruz Green Builders talked us into keeping the original floors and refinishing them. The tight grains of old fir is appealing and the polished distressed wood brings out the period style. They carefully deconstructed the house so that original base boards, doors, etc. were re-used. We also selected finishes that reflects the old arts and crafts style. When people come to our house they can't tell what's original and what's new. We like that. True to their name, Santa Cruz Green Builders walk their talk. I can continue with other elements like structured plumbing, gray water, insulation, recycling, etc. If you're curious about that please visit my blog http://http://midorihaus.blogspot.com/”

“Eugene Sakai stood out far above the pack of the 5 Architectural firms that we investigated to do our total house construction. He was simply the best to deal with, very professional, on time, and took a personal interest in the project, and within budget. We moved in 2 years ago and still love him and the contractor, C.W. Wright in San Carlos. We are pleased to show the house through Eugene Sakai at any time.”

“Kitchen and master bath remodel. Also deck redone off of master bedroom. We were extremely pleased with all of the work that John did for us. The project was finished ahead of schedule. John stopped by our job every morning to discuss what was going to be done that day. They were extremely helpful in helping us to make decisions on the materials to select. All of the sub-contractors working with John were very professional and completed the work in a timely manner.”

“We are very happy about the services provided by Design and More. The job comprised of design and full refurbishment of two bedroom apartment, including interior design, demolishing. Complete remodeling and refurbishment of the space, providing of custom made high quality kitchen and joinery.”

“Start to finish, Bill, Courtney and team were exceptional. They guided us through every step of the design and build process, made the experience smooth and enjoyable and made our dream come to life. This firm was highly recommended to us and I’m so happy we found them. Our house turned out better than our wildest dreams and I very much credit it to these architects. I would recommend them to anyone looking to build.”

“We hired Hellen Hsieh, the owner of Design Loft Company, to design our 725 sq ft great room addition. We are so incredibly thrilled with the completed project, it is exactly what we had envisioned. Our existing house was a 1200 sq ft 3 bedroom, 2 bath home. The kitchen and living area was very modest. With two teenagers at home, we needed to expand and wanted more room to entertain. When we started the project we were uncertain if we should knock down walls and remodel the current floor plan and add a small addition or keep the footprint of the existing house exactly the same and add on one large great room. We decided to do the later, however, to get to this point, we went through several different renderings. Hellen provided us with many great options and helped us decide what would be the most economical and feasible plan. She was flexible, patient and was great about pointing out the pros and cons of each option. Her interactions with our architect , contractor and cabinet supplier went very smoothly which helped us to meet specific deadlines. Hellen was maticulous when it came to the kitchen cabinets and made sure everything was ordered properly and our custom stain came out exactly how we wanted. As a designer, she is very creative and knowledgeable. She understood the style and feel we were after. More importantly she was very conscious and respectful of our monetary constraints which helped us complete our entire project within budget. What impressed us most was her understanding of the build process: from the contractors needs, the city requirements, realistic costs and time estimates, appliance installation prerequisites and inspection requirements. We couldn't be more pleased with Design Loft and Hellen's professionalism.”

“This was a residential renovation of and addition to an older house with good bones that had not been well maintained and had been subjected to several DIY projects that appeared to be beyond the capabilities of those who did them. Kurt's design solutions both suited our taste and were consistent with the original style and design of the house. In particular, he suggested a limited number of minor touches (pass throughs, moving a dividing wall) that quite cost effectively opened up the house and made it much more livable, but also was true to its original design and incorporated its positive features. His design of the new and expand master suite used existing elements to create a vastly improved layout. Kurt offered solutions that enabled us to obtain quick permitting. He supervised construction which was significantly closer to budget and on schedule than other neighborhood projects. He was very responsive when field conditions required adaptations to original plans, and devised solutions that kept costs increases of the project reasonable. He was a pleasure to work with and made what is often a very stressful process a very positive experience.”

“I was looking for a company to remodel my mom's property in alameda. I heard about this company from a friend and I decided to give it a shot . My mom is 75 years old and not able to communicate so I came to help her. Initially, we wanted to remodel our kitchen but decided to extend our kitchen and dinning room by breaking the wall that divided it. Maor the owner had a lot of layout options to choose from. He is very knowledgeable about design, and offered other possibilities. He also explain the different price between each option . We decided move forward with the build out and started the work on feb 14th. It took him 6 weeks to finish the project. My conclusion: He was almost every day supervise the different crews. Easy to communicate with. He is very pleasant person, he alway find a solution to any request we had. The crew was very professional and pass all inspection the first time . Every day they clean my house and moved their equipment on the side of the house . They didn't work on weekends for our request. He helped us choose all the fixtures from different supplier. Most of the guys speak English and very respectful to both my mom and I. The prices was fair for the quality of the job. The quality of his work is very high and the finish was super. Now we are thinking about doing the 2 bathroom and other area of the house. He will definitely be the contractor I choose . If anyone want to see picture feel free to email me and I will send him the pictures. Thank you very much for making this project a pleasant experience.”

“Sue worked closely with us to create a design for our kitchen remodel that met our needs and preferences. She took the time to get to know us, understand our priorities and how we would use the space. Her knowledge of good kitchen design and collaborative working relationships with other professionals helped us select the products and finishes that would work best for us. She guided us through the process skilfully to help reduce uncertainty and keep our project on track and on budget. Our physical space was limited and Sue helped us think outside the box to make the most of it. Project is in progress, but will gladly post photos in a few weeks when complete.”

“I have worked with Todd from Bayless Architecture on 2 ADU projects and would highly recommend him. He is fast with his work, very attentive, and does the research about city regulations. Working with him made getting my plans approved through the City a breeze with minimal corrections. A++”