Brownstone facade (yet another post)
I’ve been scrolling through the posts on redoing a brownstone facade and realized a few things: -There’s a lot of mudslinging, possibly fake posts, and advertisements strewn about, leaving me with no idea who is serious or not -This is very important to get right, since it is prone to cracking/other damage if the workman…
I’ve been scrolling through the posts on redoing a brownstone facade and realized a few things:
-There’s a lot of mudslinging, possibly fake posts, and advertisements strewn about, leaving me with no idea who is serious or not
-This is very important to get right, since it is prone to cracking/other damage if the workman is not good at their job
-It’s very expensive
We need to get our facade redone (3 story, 20′ wide) with brownstone stucco. However, given the three things above, I find it really hard to make a decision on whether to go with the guy who charges twice as much and looks great or the guy who charges half and seems competent enough. Even if they do provide references, those could just be the people that they “got right” and are not providing the names of their screwups. Has anyone gotten through this process alive? How much did they pay? Are they satisfied? If all of those things, who did you use?
Try “Hatiya Cotracting Inc” and looks our job close to your neighborhood.
Hatiya Cotracting Inc
a new york’s brownstone restoration specialist
Web: http://www.hatiya.net
Email: hatiya@hatiya.net
Tel: 718-395-7744
Contact info for A&T?
How about Metro Restoration? seen any work?
We had to have the front resurfaced in a three story 17′ wide house 20 years ago, and are now having it done on a 4 story 20′ wide house. Malek did our smaller house – which..and this is important…had almost no detail at all. He did a fine job, but it was all straight lines and flat surfaces. Our current house has loads of detail, intricate carving work that has to be duplicated. This time the top three prices came from Adami, Edson and Valoroso. They also came with the highest recommendations and beautiful work that has stood the test of time. Each hit pretty close to a $100,000 ballpark. In the middle, came Malek and others at $70,000 – and some individuals came in as low as $40,000. The difference was past jobs with intricate detail that stood up well over time. We decided to take the $$ plunge and do it right. Valoroso’s past clients raved the most -but we had to wait over a year for them. The top three take much more time on each job – so they do fewer jobs per year. I hope this helps.
If it is any help, Z Abedin, who I also liked, quoted the same as the A &T guys I am using. But they were first, so I used them. I only did the ground floor and first floor, and the quote was $22,000. I have a 5 story house, so I imagine the full building would have been about $55,000.00. Included in my price was some work on the paved portion of my front yard.
yeah. i completely agree with you. That was my frustration. As a “lay” person, I have no clue what I would get for an incremental $30K??? Sometimes these guys just go for what they can get. I found it helpful to actually go to various addresses and see the work. Some will say, “check out websites.” The issue then becomes a) are these your pics, and b) do these places still look like this today? Z. Ab (as another friend who hired him calls him) was the most forthcoming with references and they were all good.
That said. I definitely encourage doing some digging, and scratching the surface (no pun intended) to understand what’s behind some of these prices.
Cheers
Wow. Those prices finally explain the mystery of aluminum siding.
Great. I understand the reluctance to quote actual prices because jobs vary, but I also can take similar quotes from similar guys and scale it to my project. What’s important is the fact that some charge double what others do, but that there must be a middle ground in terms of quality for a decent price. Having actual prices is one of the things I think is missing the most from these forums.
justinm. I feel your pain. I have SOOOO been there. I have posted before about Z. Abedin. I have been accused of actually being the guy myself. Oh well. I think people should share information and good stories about good contractors. I do the same for all of the better contractors who have worked on my house (plumber, electrician, carpenter, etc.). In the end, I believe good deeds come back to us.
I will tell you that I’m hesitant to quote prices because all work and all houses are not the same. It’s really up to the contractor(s) to determine what your house needs. I understand your frustration so here goes anyway. (Don’t curse me out though if your quotes are not the same!!! Just kidding.)
When I was in your position I contacted A. Malek, Z. Abedin, Mohona, and another contractor (forgot the name). Here’s what I got.
A. Malek – Took a look at the house and quoted me $79K off the bat. I had seen their work around Clinton Hill and Fort Greene so I knew they’d do a great job.
Mohona – Quoted me $30K. Seemed great, however, after looking at the work, I understood why it was so cheap.
Z. Abedin – Quoted me $49K and told me he was flexible with the payment schedule. I looked at his work and spoke to former customers and was very impressed. The guy was humble and, unlike my A. Malek experience, was genuinely interested in serving a customer, and did not have a take it or leave it attitude.
I’m sure there are others who can do the work. I can only share the experience I have had.
You can reach Z. Abedin at 917-903-0196. Tell him Chris Montgomery from Decatur Street referred you. I can provide contact info for the others if you like.
Best wishes.
P.S. Ignore the posters who aren’t actually trying to help
you out. Most of the time they haven’t been through the process and are probably just bored at work!