Peter Waters from Halton Hills

My wife and set about looking for a contractor for a fairly complex kitchen renovation in early 2014. Our first step was to do as much research on the web as we could. Talk about confusing. We knew the 3 or 4 companies that we wanted to talk with about our renovation plans - but when we went to sites like Home Stars and others - the reviews were all over the map. After much follow up and research we realized that many of these reviews were staged. Either by another company's competitor or just a client who was a mean person and took a small issue and made it into something grander. We realized that any "0" rating should not be regarded, and conversely most "10" rating were to be taken with a grain of salt as well. These were likely posted by a family member or friend. And so we ventured into the uncertain world of which contractor to pick and why. We initially called 4 companies (all with good and bad reviews across the web). Only 3 of these companies actually showed up to our home for an initial consultation. Of these, only 1 company was on time and did not re-schedule. That professionalism meant a lot to us. When we initially contacted Plumbing Mart we were treated very well over the phone by the person who took our information. The two folks from Plumbing Mart showed up on time and they were very Knowledgable and professional. The first meeting in our home took over 2 hours and Mark Noonan and his Designer, Harpreet spent a lot of time with us reviewing all of our renovation requirements. They seemed very focused on he renovation "we" wanted. This was different than the other two companies we met with. We felt they weren't listening to us and that they were pushing "their" renovation ideas on us rather than our vision. After the first meeting we then had a follow up meeting at the Plumbing Mart store in Mississauga. Mark and Preet had created a very thorough and comprehensive presentation for us. It covered everything from all products to labour to incidentals that were required. It was a "turn key" renovations with no surprises. The other two contractors each came back to our home to present - they had no showroom. Each of them re-schedule the appointment at our home and we found this a misuse of out time. None the less, we wanted the hear and see what they had to offer so we went through the process. Neither of these quotes were as complete as Plumbing Mart's so we had some reservations about how things might end up. We really didn't want any surprises. Also, we weren't sure if they could live up to their promises. One of the companies was much less expensive than Plumbing Mart's quote. The price was attractive, but it just didn't seem right. The other company was probably 10% more expensive - but they didn't offer the same program Plumbing Mart did. Our final problem in deciding were the various reviews on the web - Home Stars was a good source. We asked each company to give us a couple of references and only Plumbing Mart and the higher priced company were willing to do this. After speaking with 2 clients from each company we chose Plumbing Mart. It seemed they delivered as advertised without any major issues - (we all know renovations have issues). The references were very satisfied, and they were clients who had recent work done. The second company provide one reference from two years ago, and the other reference didn't inspire total confidence. In the end we were very satisfied with the finished project. It took about a week and a half longer than originally planned - because there were a few surprises , but Plumbing Mart dealt with them with no additional cost to us. We also asked for a few changes and those were billed to us at a fair cost. All is all we were very happy, things ran smooth, and their payment plan was by far the most accommodating. The other companies required so much $$$ up front that we were a bit nervous. Plumbing Mart took little bits along the way. Since this project went well, we had Plumbing Mart do a bathroom renovation for us in the late summer. This was a good experience as well. I have also had them renovate 2 "lower end" renovations in 2 of my rental properties and they were in and out without complications. These renovations were very different than our high end kitchen, but they were perfect for a rental situation. We didn't spend a lot of money, but they were built to be durable. As a home owner, it's very hard to pick a contractor these days. All I ca say is don't believe everything you see. Talk to references for your best feedback and you will get what you pay for.