Novel Remodeling

Gio F.

I hired this company six months ago to do simple plans and permits for a nearly finished attic conversion. I have neither plans nor permits. I have had much the same experience as others, even with Uncle Joe. I will update this review as I attempt to resolve the issue with Novel.

H M.

Their business practices appear shady and opaque. We were suspicious from the onset due to Novel's rep's hard sale practices and amateur attempts to look folksy and establish trust.
We are building a new front yard fence and asking around for estimates. Somehow, we got into a fence construction database and received a call from Yosif E.., a project consultant from Novel. Yosif came right away to meet us, and we discussed the project and budget of $15-$20K max. Yosif was endearing and folksy at first. He insisted on being addressed as ""Uncle Joe."" Unfortunately, Uncle Joe was not so interested in understanding our needs. All along, he was pushy, insisting we sign the agreement, which he priced at $22-$25. Naturally, we refused and asked for samples of materials and a proposal before signing any contract.
Uncle Joe showed up with a subcontractor the next day with two wood samples: cedar & bamboo. I asked for the price difference from either material. Uncle Joe suddenly became agitated and turned into ""Rambo Joe"" to my surprise. He started screaming and accused me of behaving unethically for asking the price difference of the materials. Uncle Rambo declared that the flat cost was $25K and refused to provide an estimate with cost or services breakdown. He barked at the crew and told them to leave the premises immediately while he continued screaming all sorts of rude nonsense at me.
Looking back, I thank God that Uncle Joe lost his cool and showed his true colors before it was too late. The bottom line is that we received an estimate with samples from an established contractor in the area. It's half the price from Uncle's for the same design, using top materials and without the attitude and a lack of professionalism. My impression is that Novel business goal is to milk customers. Beware of the wolf dressed in grandma+uncle Joe clothing.

Foodie A.

Horrible experience. I contacted Novell because of their ratings for a quote to repair and paint the outside of the house and siding. I had Ben come out to my house and he gave me a ridiculous price. I said no thank you and made a call to my uncle who is a contractor. He gave me a rough idea on how much a job like that should be and his price was not it. While i spoke to him, my wife spoke to Ben about the flooring I needed done at the house. He gave me a price that was the down payment on a house. I understand that they are a contractor and subcontract out the work, so it will be higher than going directly to a siding and flooring company, but I know we were paying at least 40%-60% too much.

Ben was extremely pushy and was saying our price is only for today. I have people nearby and if I leave, the price is gone. My uncle said kick him out. If he is acting like this now, imagine what he will do when they start the work. I SHOULD HAVE LISTENED. My wife wanted it done soon and rain season was on us, so I agreed.

Now, the outdoor painting and stucco group were awesome. They did great work, but the cost that I paid for replacing the wood components was not reimbursed as all the wood except for one or two pieces were salvaged. Money lost there.

Then came the flooring contractor. The guy was non-responsive and when he did finally show up, his attitude was so poor I almost threw him out the first day and asked him to leave later on. I called Ben and asked to switch companies for the flooring, but he refused. The job was to FULLY demo the float on the floor to the substrate, which the vendor did not do. They didn't even have me move items out of the rooms or they cover them with plastic. They got dust on every and any item that was in the areas. It took three days to clean up the mess they made. They scraped the float instead of removing it so the floor creaks in many areas, especially where the float is breaking. The demo of the float was the biggest cost to be incurred for the flooring. Again, more money lost there. The work was so shoddy, I would have been better hiring a few guys from home depot. They didn't secure my toilet, they didn't seal any of the joints. I had to call them back on four occasions as I continued to find horrible ways that they cut corners. They didn't use waterproof caulking in areas where there was water, like the bathroom. The caulking pulled out in three days on its own. The flooring contractor told me I had to hire someone else to do the baseboards that they were supposed to install. HORRIBLE experience.

Now I have a floor that looks horrible and is bound to start having problems soon. I am out a tremendous amount of money, and I am not happy with the way the work went down.

I called Ben and he said well they came back to fix the issues didn't they? I said I shouldn't have had to clean three days, and pull them back to do a decent job. If this was their house, they wouldn't have put up with it. The worst thing of all was what Ben did next.

I get a call from Ben saying ""I know it didn't work out the way you wanted, so I want to come over and discuss how we can help you."" I was thinking a discount on the services or to have another vendor come in to do a better job.

Ben comes over and offers me a ""hundred dollar discount"" to give them a 5 star rating. This guy was trying to bribe me with 0.4% of what the job costed. If that doesn't stink of dishonesty, I don't know what does.

Avoid this company at all costs. You wont regret it.

Loren S.

This is our first time contacting a remodeling company, and we were extremely nervous as the bathroom remodel we where trying to do had setbacks. After researching various companies, Novel was chosen because of their ability to accommodate people with accessibility issues (Disabled and Elderly) and had commonsense protocols dealing with the Covid-19 issue. Other companies made it impossible to hire out because of their over the top protocols, and Novel seemed to handle things with a safe and commonsense approach.
Our Project Consultant was Ben Oirech, who was extremely professional, giving us his credentials and showing us upfront that he was licensed and ADA (American Disability Act) experienced. We soon had a great conversation and explained to him our bathroom remodel. We also expressed that we hoped we found a great company and wanted to build a relationship, as we had other construction planned for our old home.
As a courtesy he did inspect our roof, which was part of our planned home improvement. I already knew after the recent windstorms that it would need to be replaced. He did confirm my assessment and worked with us to get an exception deal on our roof.
Over the next two months his team replaced our roof and remodeled the bathroom. The roofing team members were extremely professional, efficient, and respectful of not only our property but also our neighbors. Each day they cleaned and removed and debris, leaving our property spotless.
As for our bathroom, Leon, was our contact and he visited often to ensure that the project was going well and wanted to make sure everything went well. They were also very knowledgeable about Los Angeles Building Codes, and made sure that everything would pass inspection.

As for cost, we all know that the prices our going up. I saved up for years to have enough for the bathroom, and was worried as I would need to save up years again before we could touch the roof. Novel provided reasonable pricing and also helped advised on how to finance the roof as that was in need of repair. Ben and his team treated us as people, not some just some customer. I wish I could remember everyone's name, but each person from roof, to tile artisan, to runners, to plumber were all great people. They truly look out for us, did their best to find us the best deal possible, and worked with us every step of the way.

They also offer Solar Power, and their consultant John is another knowledgeable guy who will also work with you to find the best solution possible. Unfortunately at this time we could not proceed with that, but I just wanted to include him as he another phenomenal member of the team.

Adjanys M.

I have proof of everything expressed. Buyer beware!!! We have had the worst experience with this company. They do not have customers service, they are rude and they behave like mobsters, threatening, intimidating and when you leave a review on skill level, professionalism and overall eve prince they respond with lies and accusations and blame, they blame the city and covid for the delays, at least from our view, the delays we complain about had nothing to do with those issues, everything they installed was incorrect of backward or broken by workers during installation. Finally, we are sitting here going into 5 months of a tiny unfinished bathroom, emailed documented harassment and multiple threats of lean. The project is not completed and they demanding final payment before it's finished or inspected. The only payment owed is the one submitted upon completion which they stated they will not complete over email. Completely unethical. Connected to a variety of DBA, there is no evidence the owner uses his real identity when we checked the license number. We had to explain to them their own terms of the contract to pay LAST1/3 upon completion as stated by them, they responded with aggressive intimidation and scare tactics, screaming and hanging up, and refusal to complete over email.

Derek M.

Spending $10k+ on a project was definitely the biggest remodeling project I have ever done in my 5 years of being a homeowner. I had the project bid by 5 parties and not only was Novel Remodeling the most reasonable, Ben, the project manager made all my anxiety go away. They knocked the job out in half the time they said they would, left no mess and everyone says how amazing the remodel looks. His team did a huge island with a waterfall edge, two kitchen counters, the matching backsplash and two bathroom counters all with matching granite. It looks insane, I've never been happier with a project which is great because it was also the most expensive. Definitely will use again and recommend A+++

Angela B.

Where can I start -- they were friendly and charming when pitching the job to me. I had purchased Ikea cabinets and provided all appliances for the kitchen remodel. They damaged by new GE profile range, and failed to modify the gas line, so the range stuck out beyond the cabinets. Installed the cabinets round my frig too low, and then shoved the frig under it, distorting the upper cabinet. Installed 12 volt wiring so they could not use the under-cabinet lights that came with my cabinets. Installed the kitchen motion sensor switch in the dining room! Had to redo all ceiling light cans when they installed them crooked and out of line (after arguing that the issue was the fact that I had beams). Washed paint and plaster tools in my jacuzzi. Removed supports from pre-made under sink cabinet, causing it to distort and doors unable to close. I bought a replacement cabinet. Installed backsplash tiles crooked, and redid them - I had to purchase more! Cleaned tools in my bathtub leaving debris. Failed to identify a bearing wall, resulting in my paying for reinforcing the foundation. Worker(s) stole two AllClad saucepans. And much, much more. I eventually fired them after 6 months and hired a carpenter and an electrician to make corrections and finish the job. After seeing no workers for weeks at a time, they scheduled work, several guys would show up in my kitchen, discuss in Hebrew for a half hour or so, then leave having done no work. This happened on several occasions. It was a $37,000 nightmare.

Luis V.

They took three months to complete a one day job. They went three months over the deadline to put up my patio cover and misc wood work.

Amar S.

If you have a big enough project then these people might be an option but if you have a small project don't even bother. The multiple messages and phone conversations and rescheduling of the appointment was evident that they were not interested in my project because it was probably not big enough for their taste.

Pietro D.

We suspected potential foundation At our home so we inquired with several structural to provide assessment. The two ladies from Novel showed up between the hours of scheduled appointment, demonstrated professional knowledge, responded to my questions with great depth of information and share tips for what to monitor. Offered what services were available via Novel without overhanded salesmanship. We will pursue the recommended exploratory option and keep their information for future work. Thank you Jennifer and Limor from Novel Remodeling.