[redacted] was the Lars rep that sold me on their capabilities, and then really came through, offering such creative design ideas for the selection of cabinets, flooring, granite, etc. My remodel involved taking down a couple walls relocating sink/stove, eliminating and resizing windows, and it's just beautiful. The construction crews were careful to be sure my cats didn't get out and they cleaned up every day. I interviewed five of the large remodeling firms and Lars reviews were consistently great - they were a perfect fit.
Here's my Yelp review that Lars tried to remove:
They got a truthful, but negative review (even though I pointed out positive things), so they got Yelp to remove my original review, citing privacy concerns (I used a full name, just like other reviews, yet they didn't ask to remove those). Due to this paragraph I have to edit even more due to word limits so I can't say every single thing that went wrong.
But know this, if you write a negative review to try to inform consumers- I was accurate/respectful in my review (They called me the same day it was posted, asking me if I'd remove it), they may try to find a way to remove it. They should've just taken accountability instead of doing this questionable (at best) action of trying to prevent a truthful review from being seen by consumers. I'm going to inform Revdex.com of what they did, as this is quite disturbing. Here it is: no last names/no privacy concern violation.
They sold us on idea of full service design-we lived out of town (a little bit of a scare tactic, they said if we did it ala carte things could get messed up, people not finish projects and easier if they did it all. All valid points). They were highest bid (double or more vs. others).
Of course, there are typical delays of remodelling. I get that. What I don't like is unprofessional behavior/unethical/bad customer service.
They had some of the worst contractors. Their electricians ate fast food INSIDE our home & threw trash on our property bringing ants. The electrician & another staff got in a profanity laced screaming match at our home/kept dropping F bombs. He quit on the spot, stomped in our house grabbing his kit, scratching our NEW floors. Neighbors heard- were gonna call the cops that's how loud it was. 'Til now one of the lights just turns off after less than 10 minutes.
They left lights on, windows open, doors unlocked overnite, despite multiple notes I left asking them to lock up.
They mismeasured Ex: originally installed shower head/tiles off center, cabinets crooked etc and the project manager (who ended up quitting the company) told us "just put a shower curtain no one will see it" and "no one will look up" (at the cabinets). They made a big hole leading to outside in the wall and he said "normally that's not our responsibility to fill the hole" What? You guys made a HOLE in my bathroom (bugs/rats could come in) and you're telling me you're not going to fix it?
Got a new project manager. I believe in second chances. Didn't improve much. Mismeasured the space needed in b/w fridge/cabinets. Their original solution: asked if I could get a smaller fridge. When I said something to Lori she actually told me "your expectations are too high" For wanting proper measurements? They ended up cutting out a doorway to fit it in, ruin NEW floors. No proper ventilation space. Delayed our project even more.
Some contractors had unlicensed student workers do some work and gave a bid to my neighbor for a fraction of the cost of what we paid. Another brought his daughter to my home while working. One of their own workers even badmouthed them.
Items disappeared from my garage. Simplest things like installing a towel rack, 2 kept falling off.
Nail in coffin: after ALL the issues we had, the owner came to our home. He apologized then downplayed it by saying that I was the one at fault for not knowing what to expect since this was our first remodel (can you be any more patronizing), he said this isn't one of their big jobs. I guess $106K+ isn't valuable business. I asked him to discount due to all the issues; he said it'd leave a bad taste in his mouth to come back to fix stuff (I interpreted that as blackmail. Complain, we won't fix your stuff).
They tried to charge me extra for a dumpster trip (some neighbors threw junk in there). I said they needed to lock the dumpster. They removed it. But the final bill was much higher than what should've been so I'm guessing they put in the fee there.
I would've contacted Costco/Revdex.com but I was dealing with some serious, high stress family issues consuming my time that I just had to let this go. I just paid the extra money and wanted to be done with them.
Only good thing I can say: they eventually completed the project- not w/in orig timeline
Price is what you pay; value is what you get. Didn't get what we paid for. The $106k+ is for the skeleton for 2 bathrooms/kitchen & few other things. I spent several thousand more beside Lars getting new toilets, knobs, flooring etc. When they fix their mistakes they make it sound like they're doing you a favor. No, that's just doing your job.
If you end up having a problem, they say they'll make it right but it seems like lip service. I'd skip the whole "full service design" (I ended up being my own project mgr) & get better contractors ala carte for a fraction of the cost. ALL my friends said we got ripped off.
Why review 3 yrs later? So consumers can be aware, learn from our experience & make an informed choice.
Biggest financial mistake of my life!
My husband and I recently had our two bathrooms remodeled by Lars Remodeling and Design and we are extremely pleased with the outcome. Our main contact person was Lori Drake who was very patient with all my questions and always got back to me on a timely basis. All the design staff and construction crew were very good at their jobs, came when they said they would, and were very prompt to fix any small problems that happened along the way. And the entire project took less time than was originally scheduled. There was a complete understanding that remodeling, particularly bathrooms, can be very disruptive and they tried to make it as painless as possible. And now we have two beautiful new bathrooms.
This letter is in response to the Revdex.com
complaint that we received on January, 23, 2014. I have been in
communication with the complainant several times in the past week to schedule a
meeting with her in order to see the grout and understand the...
nature of the
complaint. Thus far, I have been unable to secure a date to meet but will
continue to reach out to her to try to schedule this meeting and seek a
resolution to her grout issues.
Sincerely,
[redacted]
President, Founder, Optimist
LARS Remodeling & Design
4703 Spring Street, La Mesa, CA 91941
619-CALL-LARS (###-###-####)
We decided to go with Lars Remodeling and Design after they performed similar jobs at other family members homes. Our remodel was a whole home remodel and we were nervous. This was our family home built in 1974 so I did not know what to expect.
The design team was very aware of our budgetary limitations and worked tirelessly to bring all work in under our budget. There were no hard sales or upgrade pitches.
Being a perfectionist myself, I ensured everything was up to my standard and when it wasn't, Lars was quick to make my happy. I will glady work with Lars again for any future home remodeling needs.
Jason of Lars Remodeling and Design has proven to be both reliable and well established in customer service and satisfaction. He is set on providing their customers with all their desires for their additions. Clients years later can expect the same service response for any questions they may have. Jason stands behind his company to be sure his customers are happy and taken care during the remodeling process and years after the process. I am very happy with his company's top notch work.
I would highly recommend Lars Remodeling & Design. They were true professionals from beginning to end. The minute Jason Larson walked into my house and saw outdated kitchen, you could almost see his brain at work. It all sounded great, so off we went. During the demolition process thru completion, we assigned a personal rep. who came daily to make sure every the project stayed on target. Our remodel was extensive that we had a number of vendors to visit - everyone he took us too were great!
As it has been several years since the completion of Ms. [redacted]’ s bathroom project in January of 2012, we were contacted by Ms. [redacted] notifying us of a grout issue. Our project team, accompanied by the tile trade specialist and a representative from the grout manufacturer, met on site with Ms. [redacted] to inspect her grout. After meeting, the grout manufacturer deemed the problem to be simply normal dirt from usage over the past few years and not an installation or product defect issue. We notified Ms. [redacted] of their findings and asked how we could satisfy her on this grout issue. As we left the door open for her, we were surprised to be notified of her complaint. We discovered in the complaint, Ms. [redacted] demands were to be compensated for the costs to remove and replace all of the bathroom floor grout and tile. Our company’s mission is to resolve any issue our clients may have and to maintain lasting relationships. Though honoring Ms. [redacted]’ s request goes against trusted guidance from the grout manufacturer and tile specialist, along with decades of experience for resolving similar issues, we expressed these concerns to Ms. [redacted]. In our efforts to resolve her issue and ensure that Ms. [redacted] was satisfied, we complied with Ms. [redacted]’ s request. We asked that Ms. [redacted] reciprocate our goodwill by rescinding her comments against our company, the tile installer and grout manufacturer. To date our request has gone unanswered. We wish our client, Ms. [redacted], all the best.
We were very satisfied with the remodel of our master bath, guest bathroom and then especially our office with the most beautiful entertainment center!!! [redacted], Project Mgr. was always there, on the spot, getting things done when necessary. Thanks [redacted] for a new wonderful relationship. Will miss you too!
NOTE: The first paragraph of this review is about our negative experience with another contractor and is NOT about Lars Design & Remodeling. The rest of the review is about our positive experience with Lars Design & Remodeling.
Back in 2010, my husband and I attempted to remodel our entire house, using another contractor, but it ended up in disaster due to fraudulent actions taken by this contractor. This contractor's plans never made it through the City of San Diego's approval process, so in the end we wasted thousands of dollars on completely useless preliminary design plans and we were unable to recoup the money we spent. Needless to say, this negative experience left us feeling frustrated, defeated, and unmotivated, so our project came to a standstill for over 4 years.
In 2014, my husband and I felt ready to begin our home remodel process again, but this time we extensively researched and interviewed 5 reputable home design and remodeling companies. Ultimately, Lars Design & Remodeling appeared to be the company that would best suit our needs, so we went with them.
We selected Lars Design & Remodeling because we were impressed with their business model. [redacted] and [redacted], the initial Lars staff we met with, both spent a great deal of time with us, attempting to create a preliminary home design we both approved of, without charging us any money up front! Lars' practice of "no charges up front" took us by surprise because the other 4 companies we interviewed all wanted to charge us between $1,500.00 to $2,000.00, just to come up with a preliminary home design.
When we officially signed up with Lars, we naturally had concerns about the amount of money we were about to spend on our home remodeling project, as well as its final outcome, primarily due to the negative experience we had with the first contractor we attempted to use. But, during the course of our project, the Lars team assigned to our project, ([redacted]), alleviated our fears when we saw firsthand the level of experience, knowledge, expertise, competence, and professionalism each one of them brought to the table. As was to be expected with a project of this caliber, some minor unforeseen issues cropped up, but the Lars team always handled them with the utmost professionalism, patience, and to our complete satisfaction.
In the end, Lars Design & Remodeling gave us a Dream Home that turned out better than we ever imagined and we absolutely LOVE our new home, we're extremely pleased! From our positive experience with Lars Design & Remodeling, we feel confident in recommending them as a reputable home design and remodeling company, who focuses on customer satisfaction, quality, and providing the customer with an outstanding product. Thank you Lars Design & Remodeling, for making our home remodel dreams come true!
We recently went through an extensive renovation of our home which entailed moving our kitchen to a different location, expanding a bedroom, remodeling two bathrooms, adding a bedroom and an office, and adding a den. Everyone from Lars was amazing! They worked within our budget, gave us numerous options, and they were extremely accommodating considering we lived in our house during the renovation. Everyone was very professional and knowledgeable. We had estimates from other companies but Lars stood out because they really thought outside the box to make our wish list a reality. We liked the ideas they brought to the table and even almost a year after our renovation completed, they continue to stand behind all the work that their trades completed. We knew we were in good hands when we signed our contract. We highly recommend Lars to others looking to complete a renovation. You won't be disappointed!
[redacted] was the Lars rep that sold me on their capabilities, and then really came through, offering such creative design ideas for the selection of cabinets, flooring, granite, etc. My remodel involved taking down a couple walls relocating sink/stove, eliminating and resizing windows, and it's just beautiful. The construction crews were careful to be sure my cats didn't get out and they cleaned up every day. I interviewed five of the large remodeling firms and Lars reviews were consistently great - they were a perfect fit.
Here's my Yelp review that Lars tried to remove:
They got a truthful, but negative review (even though I pointed out positive things), so they got Yelp to remove my original review, citing privacy concerns (I used a full name, just like other reviews, yet they didn't ask to remove those). Due to this paragraph I have to edit even more due to word limits so I can't say every single thing that went wrong.
But know this, if you write a negative review to try to inform consumers- I was accurate/respectful in my review (They called me the same day it was posted, asking me if I'd remove it), they may try to find a way to remove it. They should've just taken accountability instead of doing this questionable (at best) action of trying to prevent a truthful review from being seen by consumers. I'm going to inform Revdex.com of what they did, as this is quite disturbing. Here it is: no last names/no privacy concern violation.
They sold us on idea of full service design-we lived out of town (a little bit of a scare tactic, they said if we did it ala carte things could get messed up, people not finish projects and easier if they did it all. All valid points). They were highest bid (double or more vs. others).
Of course, there are typical delays of remodelling. I get that. What I don't like is unprofessional behavior/unethical/bad customer service.
They had some of the worst contractors. Their electricians ate fast food INSIDE our home & threw trash on our property bringing ants. The electrician & another staff got in a profanity laced screaming match at our home/kept dropping F bombs. He quit on the spot, stomped in our house grabbing his kit, scratching our NEW floors. Neighbors heard- were gonna call the cops that's how loud it was. 'Til now one of the lights just turns off after less than 10 minutes.
They left lights on, windows open, doors unlocked overnite, despite multiple notes I left asking them to lock up.
They mismeasured Ex: originally installed shower head/tiles off center, cabinets crooked etc and the project manager (who ended up quitting the company) told us "just put a shower curtain no one will see it" and "no one will look up" (at the cabinets). They made a big hole leading to outside in the wall and he said "normally that's not our responsibility to fill the hole" What? You guys made a HOLE in my bathroom (bugs/rats could come in) and you're telling me you're not going to fix it?
Got a new project manager. I believe in second chances. Didn't improve much. Mismeasured the space needed in b/w fridge/cabinets. Their original solution: asked if I could get a smaller fridge. When I said something to Lori she actually told me "your expectations are too high" For wanting proper measurements? They ended up cutting out a doorway to fit it in, ruin NEW floors. No proper ventilation space. Delayed our project even more.
Some contractors had unlicensed student workers do some work and gave a bid to my neighbor for a fraction of the cost of what we paid. Another brought his daughter to my home while working. One of their own workers even badmouthed them.
Items disappeared from my garage. Simplest things like installing a towel rack, 2 kept falling off.
Nail in coffin: after ALL the issues we had, the owner came to our home. He apologized then downplayed it by saying that I was the one at fault for not knowing what to expect since this was our first remodel (can you be any more patronizing), he said this isn't one of their big jobs. I guess $106K+ isn't valuable business. I asked him to discount due to all the issues; he said it'd leave a bad taste in his mouth to come back to fix stuff (I interpreted that as blackmail. Complain, we won't fix your stuff).
They tried to charge me extra for a dumpster trip (some neighbors threw junk in there). I said they needed to lock the dumpster. They removed it. But the final bill was much higher than what should've been so I'm guessing they put in the fee there.
I would've contacted Costco/Revdex.com but I was dealing with some serious, high stress family issues consuming my time that I just had to let this go. I just paid the extra money and wanted to be done with them.
Only good thing I can say: they eventually completed the project- not w/in orig timeline
Price is what you pay; value is what you get. Didn't get what we paid for. The $106k+ is for the skeleton for 2 bathrooms/kitchen & few other things. I spent several thousand more beside Lars getting new toilets, knobs, flooring etc. When they fix their mistakes they make it sound like they're doing you a favor. No, that's just doing your job.
If you end up having a problem, they say they'll make it right but it seems like lip service. I'd skip the whole "full service design" (I ended up being my own project mgr) & get better contractors ala carte for a fraction of the cost. ALL my friends said we got ripped off.
Why review 3 yrs later? So consumers can be aware, learn from our experience & make an informed choice.
Biggest financial mistake of my life!
My husband and I recently had our two bathrooms remodeled by Lars Remodeling and Design and we are extremely pleased with the outcome. Our main contact person was Lori Drake who was very patient with all my questions and always got back to me on a timely basis. All the design staff and construction crew were very good at their jobs, came when they said they would, and were very prompt to fix any small problems that happened along the way. And the entire project took less time than was originally scheduled. There was a complete understanding that remodeling, particularly bathrooms, can be very disruptive and they tried to make it as painless as possible. And now we have two beautiful new bathrooms.
This letter is in response to the Revdex.com
complaint that we received on January, 23, 2014. I have been in
communication with the complainant several times in the past week to schedule a
meeting with her in order to see the grout and understand the...
nature of the
complaint. Thus far, I have been unable to secure a date to meet but will
continue to reach out to her to try to schedule this meeting and seek a
resolution to her grout issues.
Sincerely,
[redacted]
President, Founder, Optimist
LARS Remodeling & Design
4703 Spring Street, La Mesa, CA 91941
619-CALL-LARS (###-###-####)
We decided to go with Lars Remodeling and Design after they performed similar jobs at other family members homes. Our remodel was a whole home remodel and we were nervous. This was our family home built in 1974 so I did not know what to expect.
The design team was very aware of our budgetary limitations and worked tirelessly to bring all work in under our budget. There were no hard sales or upgrade pitches.
Being a perfectionist myself, I ensured everything was up to my standard and when it wasn't, Lars was quick to make my happy. I will glady work with Lars again for any future home remodeling needs.
Jason of Lars Remodeling and Design has proven to be both reliable and well established in customer service and satisfaction. He is set on providing their customers with all their desires for their additions. Clients years later can expect the same service response for any questions they may have. Jason stands behind his company to be sure his customers are happy and taken care during the remodeling process and years after the process. I am very happy with his company's top notch work.
I would highly recommend Lars Remodeling & Design. They were true professionals from beginning to end. The minute Jason Larson walked into my house and saw outdated kitchen, you could almost see his brain at work. It all sounded great, so off we went. During the demolition process thru completion, we assigned a personal rep. who came daily to make sure every the project stayed on target. Our remodel was extensive that we had a number of vendors to visit - everyone he took us too were great!
Revdex.com,
As it has been several years since the completion of Ms. [redacted]’ s bathroom project in January of 2012, we were contacted by Ms. [redacted] notifying us of a grout issue. Our project team, accompanied by the tile trade specialist and a representative from the grout manufacturer, met on site with Ms. [redacted] to inspect her grout. After meeting, the grout manufacturer deemed the problem to be simply normal dirt from usage over the past few years and not an installation or product defect issue. We notified Ms. [redacted] of their findings and asked how we could satisfy her on this grout issue. As we left the door open for her, we were surprised to be notified of her complaint. We discovered in the complaint, Ms. [redacted] demands were to be compensated for the costs to remove and replace all of the bathroom floor grout and tile. Our company’s mission is to resolve any issue our clients may have and to maintain lasting relationships. Though honoring Ms. [redacted]’ s request goes against trusted guidance from the grout manufacturer and tile specialist, along with decades of experience for resolving similar issues, we expressed these concerns to Ms. [redacted]. In our efforts to resolve her issue and ensure that Ms. [redacted] was satisfied, we complied with Ms. [redacted]’ s request. We asked that Ms. [redacted] reciprocate our goodwill by rescinding her comments against our company, the tile installer and grout manufacturer. To date our request has gone unanswered. We wish our client, Ms. [redacted], all the best.
Sincerely,
Jason Larson
President, Founder, Optimist
E-mail: [email protected]
Lars Remodeling & Design
4703 Spring Street
La Mesa, CA 91941
619-CALL-LARS (###-###-####)
Fax: ###-###-####
Website: www.larsremodel.com
We were very satisfied with the remodel of our master bath, guest bathroom and then especially our office with the most beautiful entertainment center!!! [redacted], Project Mgr. was always there, on the spot, getting things done when necessary. Thanks [redacted] for a new wonderful relationship. Will miss you too!
NOTE: The first paragraph of this review is about our negative experience with another contractor and is NOT about Lars Design & Remodeling. The rest of the review is about our positive experience with Lars Design & Remodeling.
Back in 2010, my husband and I attempted to remodel our entire house, using another contractor, but it ended up in disaster due to fraudulent actions taken by this contractor. This contractor's plans never made it through the City of San Diego's approval process, so in the end we wasted thousands of dollars on completely useless preliminary design plans and we were unable to recoup the money we spent. Needless to say, this negative experience left us feeling frustrated, defeated, and unmotivated, so our project came to a standstill for over 4 years.
In 2014, my husband and I felt ready to begin our home remodel process again, but this time we extensively researched and interviewed 5 reputable home design and remodeling companies. Ultimately, Lars Design & Remodeling appeared to be the company that would best suit our needs, so we went with them.
We selected Lars Design & Remodeling because we were impressed with their business model. [redacted] and [redacted], the initial Lars staff we met with, both spent a great deal of time with us, attempting to create a preliminary home design we both approved of, without charging us any money up front! Lars' practice of "no charges up front" took us by surprise because the other 4 companies we interviewed all wanted to charge us between $1,500.00 to $2,000.00, just to come up with a preliminary home design.
When we officially signed up with Lars, we naturally had concerns about the amount of money we were about to spend on our home remodeling project, as well as its final outcome, primarily due to the negative experience we had with the first contractor we attempted to use. But, during the course of our project, the Lars team assigned to our project, ([redacted]), alleviated our fears when we saw firsthand the level of experience, knowledge, expertise, competence, and professionalism each one of them brought to the table. As was to be expected with a project of this caliber, some minor unforeseen issues cropped up, but the Lars team always handled them with the utmost professionalism, patience, and to our complete satisfaction.
In the end, Lars Design & Remodeling gave us a Dream Home that turned out better than we ever imagined and we absolutely LOVE our new home, we're extremely pleased! From our positive experience with Lars Design & Remodeling, we feel confident in recommending them as a reputable home design and remodeling company, who focuses on customer satisfaction, quality, and providing the customer with an outstanding product. Thank you Lars Design & Remodeling, for making our home remodel dreams come true!
We recently went through an extensive renovation of our home which entailed moving our kitchen to a different location, expanding a bedroom, remodeling two bathrooms, adding a bedroom and an office, and adding a den. Everyone from Lars was amazing! They worked within our budget, gave us numerous options, and they were extremely accommodating considering we lived in our house during the renovation. Everyone was very professional and knowledgeable. We had estimates from other companies but Lars stood out because they really thought outside the box to make our wish list a reality. We liked the ideas they brought to the table and even almost a year after our renovation completed, they continue to stand behind all the work that their trades completed. We knew we were in good hands when we signed our contract. We highly recommend Lars to others looking to complete a renovation. You won't be disappointed!