Jai Koolwal says, "Five stars doesn't even begin to cover our experience with Mike (Bark & Build) on our full house remodel. When I say "full," I mean we took the house down to the studs. I couldn't be happier with how it went.Scope of work and FinancialsRight from the start, he was incredible about the planning process. We went back and forth multiple times on the initial estimate to make sure we were on the same page, and he was always patient and flexible. He then came up with a payment schedule that balanced project delivery and major milestones with payments due. I reviewed it, requested some edits, and Mike was more than happy to discuss and accommodate them. Even when we changed our minds or something unexpected came up, he was super reasonable with the costs for the extra work - never tried to overcharge us. He tracked everything through official Docusign documents, which made us feel really secure and provided a paper trail for us to refer to - a must-have for a project of this scale!Permitting & SafetyHe handled all the permitting for us, which was a huge relief, and somehow even got the PGE permit through much faster than we thought possible. Safety was never compromised, even if it meant more work for his crew, and that showed us his true character.Trust & TransparencyWhat really stands out, though, is how much we could trust him. He never tried to oversell us on anything. We'd bounce design ideas off him, and he'd always be a rational sounding board, telling us what was right for our family, not just what would make him more money. Beyond that, if his team occasionally missed something, he would own up to it and make sure they fixed it rather than trying to avoid the issue. This meant I could lean on him throughout the project, which significantly reduced my stress with an already busy schedule! For me, that trust is everything, and when you combine it with the quality of his work and his transparency, it puts him in the top 5% of contractors I've ever worked with.Duration and complexity of the projectThe whole project lasted six months with some rain delays, but we stayed in constant touch and managed to stay cordial till the very end - which, for a project this big, is an achievement in itself! In the end, we had new walls, new insulation, new lighting throughout the house, new electrical lines, panel, bathrooms, kitchen, flooring, closets, vertical piping, windows, doors AND a garage makeover that included turning it into a storage space with epoxy floors, paint, insulation and a laundry folding area as well as usable space for a home office!We are so thrilled with our new home. We're already working with him on our ADU project and have already referred him to several family members!P.S. It has been a few weeks living in the home - I will come back here and update in another 3-6 months how the workmanship is holding up to keep this review current!!"See more
