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July 5, 2008

Z. Abedin ?

Has anyone had experience with Z. Abedin?

I am having my front stoop rebuilt and am considering him. I was referred to him by someone on Brownstoner (thanks Chris Montgomery from Decatur Street ) but would like a little more input. His English is not that good so it's a little hard to gauge him.

If you've used him, know anyone who has, or any addresses he has worked on - any info greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Comments

I cannot comment on ZA, but would steer away from any contractor that I couldn't communicate effectively with. I would think you'd be leaving a lot to chance if communication was an issue.

Posted by: guest at July 6, 2008 4:32 PM

I have met Z. Abedin and quite frankly found him to be the best value for price. His English was not really an issue for me at all. I have not moved forward on the work yet though (waiting to save up the money!). Quite frankly (please don't take this the wrong way. Many on this site like to take things out of context), most of the contractors who do this work best are non-native English speakers...mostly Pakistani. This is not a slight, this is fact. The best thing to do dobbs is go to a few worksites, talk to owners, and see if the communication was a barrier. At the end of the day you're just going to instruct them to chip away the old brownstoner, put on the scratch coat, select the finish color, apply the color, and acid wash the end result. As long as they can make it through this much English, you're good to go.

Posted by: guest at July 7, 2008 10:13 AM

i totally agree with you. someone may be highly skilled as a mason or contractor and speak poor english. not an issue for me. and as far as the job at hand, he clearly understood what i wanted and i clearly understood what he proposed doing. his only shortcoming is in marketing himself (due to language barrier). and i prefer someone who does great work rather than a great salesman.

if anyone can give me addresses where i can see his work, that would be great. i've seen one (he gave me) but it was too different from what i'm doing so i'm still not completely sold.

Posted by: dobbs at July 7, 2008 10:23 AM

Dobbs...this is 10:13 again. I saw two of his jobs. One on Grand between Gates and the next block heading toward Fulton. It's like the second or third house from the corner. This was the place I found him and got his number. It was a work in progress (scratch coat when I saw it) so I can actually say I'm impressed with the results. The second was on Lafayette Ave between Grand and St. James. Unfortunately I don't know the exact addresses. Hope this helps.

Posted by: guest at July 7, 2008 1:43 PM

Will check them out. Thanks!

Posted by: dobbs at July 7, 2008 2:03 PM

I was told that Malek and Abedin are the same company, and they approach customers differently (approach, cost, etc) to secure work. This may be complete heresay, but just passing along what I heard.

Posted by: guest at July 7, 2008 5:31 PM

ok. well i find that incredibly hard to believe - after speaking with them both, seeing the work they have done, and their price points are drastically different (everything about them is from opposite ends of the spectrum.) they would have to be master scammers with the most elaborate scam. and for what? anyway, thanks for passing that along but there is just no way.

Posted by: dobbs at July 7, 2008 10:05 PM

same company...makes no sense at all.

Posted by: guest at July 8, 2008 4:00 PM

same company...makes no sense at all. comparable work maybe. same company, not.