| Year Established | 2009 |
|---|---|
| Business Categories | Additions and Remodels, Bathroom Remodeling, Kitchen Remodeling in Lincoln, CA |
Owner Art Unland is a very nice man and a good contractor, polite and cordial. So is his assistant Cameron. This was a large project that took a few months to complete. There were a few hiccups but things with Art went fairly smoothly. His company workers were polite and efficient. The painting sub-contractor did good work and again the crew was well mannered and respectful of my mother and her property. The only thing I would warn anyone about is his cabinet subcontractor D&G Cabinets. One of the reasons that kept me from giving Artland Construction a 5 star rating, were these guys. They measured many parts of the kitchen incorrectly resulting in delays of several weeks in the projects. The quality of their work is mediocre at best. The co-owner and installer Josh is a nightmare to deal with; rude and always in a rush. My mother wanted him to repair some problems with the cabinet installation. All he did was argue with her about how she was wrong and that's not the way they do things now. He never finished the job to our satisfaction and really couldn't care less. We now have to hire another cabinet contractor to come in at our cost to finish the work properly. Which is fine, since we’d never let D&G into my Mother’s home again anyway. Please ask Art to find you what I'm sure will be a much better cabinet sub-contractor. The only other negative is that we found his billing format to be a bit confusing. We shared this with him and he was very receptive.
The question is great for some industries and non-applicable for others. A general contractor, for example, will by definition employ subcontractors. Most Lincoln Additions and Remodels companies do not, but there are exceptions. You should always ask this question to your service providers. If they do use subcontractors, ask if they're all licensed and insured independently.
Many jobs in California will require municipal permits in order to be approved by the town's inspector. It's always good to ask who will be responsible for pulling those permits, and if you'll be expected to do it. You'll almost never be told to pull your own, but knowing that Lincoln Additions and Remodels permits are required makes you appear to be a well informed customer.
This is important mostly for larger jobs. Clearly a two man operation is going to build a home much slower than a 15 man crew. This is also a good indication of the overall size of the Additions and Remodels company, if that's an area of concern for you. The reason you may want to ask about the fleet is that fleet size is a good indicator of the mobility of the company. Mobility may not sound important, but it's hard for the Lincoln contractors to get to job sites if they lack appropriate vehicles.
Always ask for references, and always check them. Keep in mind though that the only references you'll get are people who the contractor is certain will give him a good review. You'd also be well advised to check online review sources in Lincoln as well, which will give you a broader view of customer satisfaction for a given company.
You'll always want to ask how long the company has been in business in Lincoln. While this isn't a guarantee that the company will do good work, companies with longevity on their side must be doing something right. That being said, there are newer companies that do great work. If the company is under three years old, ask where the owner was employed before and for how long. If he/she has a long history of employment, it's reasonable to infer that he or she decided to go into business for themselves after so many years of experience.
