Bumpy start but in the end, all is well
Overall, we are very pleased with our basement renovation that was completed by Penguin Basements.
The initial sales meeting around our dining room table was not a pleasant experience. The meeting was very lengthy, 4 -5 hours long, far longer than it needed to be. We were impressed by the materials that are used by Penguin, especially the fact that they are water resistant. However, we felt a great deal of pressure to sign without having been given the opportunity to review the costs!!! Things did not seem transparent which made us uneasy. This was very near a deal breaker for us as things felt quite disrespectful. Costs do seem high, and it went over our budget, so we had to trim back on our initial wants to get it back in line. However, it appeared to us that the quality of workmanship was going to be very good, at least in the materials that were being used, so perhaps warranted the premium price.
With respect to the selections for the finishings, we found most of the base offerings to be quite dated and not many to choose from. And to upgrade, you have to be prepared to pay a large premium.
The weeks leading up to our start date were a bit frustrating. We had heard from previous clients and through various reviews that communication was very poor and we were prepared for this. However, we had some upfront questions and it was very frustrating to send emails or messages through the BuilderTrend app, with no response as we wanted some answers to our questions before our start date. Without the answers, we could not sign our change orders. We did not know what was happening.
We would highly recommend that Penguin do a review of the selections and the job requirements face to face a couple of weeks before the work begins to do a final check and to be sure we were all on the same page. A lot of time goes by between the initial meetings and the start date. ( in our case, we had asked to push the start date out from the original date and Penguin was very gracious about this). We discovered that some of our requests were not included in the contract that we thought were there. Also we requested a square sink for the bathroom and got oval. There was no indication of this in the selections, and unfortunately the designer we were dealing with had left the company. So nothing to go back on. That was disappointing.
Once the job got underway, things ran pretty smoothly. We appreciated the fact that all the trades were scheduled on BuilderTrend and that they stuck very closely to the timetable. We knew who was coming in when, and everyone showed up when they were supposed to. For the most part, all the trades were respectful of our home. Sometimes the crews worked very late into the evening to stay on track which we would have appreciated knowing in advance.
We really appreciated having Walter as our project manager. He kept things running smoothly and he kept us informed. He made us feel that ours was the only job he was working on. Communication with him was excellent and he was very responsive. Any concerns we had were dealt with quickly and to our satisfaction. He wanted us to be happy with our finished basement and because of him, we were.
We would recommend Penguin. They may be a bit of a premium cost, and despite a bumpy beginning, in the end, you get an efficient process and a high quality job .
Many thanks to Walter and all the crew for our lovely basement!
- Approximate cost of services:
- $70,000.00
- Company Response
Hi Bruno, we appreciate the fair and honest review and are happy you are happy with the finished project. We'll let Walter know about your kind words. We'd like to address a couple of the items for improvement you brought up, as we are constantly striving to improve every aspect of the company as it grows and evolves. As we noted with someone else just recently, it seems our sales teams intention to quickly slot jobs into a production schedule comes across very differently from a client perspective, and we are addressing that to ensure people do not feel strong armed into signing. We feel our prices are fair for the material, services and timelines we offer. To that end, we are always looking at the base items and upgrades to offer both better value and more selection. Most clients are happy with the current base offering and they were selected based on popularity, and have been selected from our end based on quality more than leading edge design. Most people tend to have conservative tastes. We do hear what you are saying though, and will look at expanding our base selection moving forward. As with all client feedback during, and after the job, this review will be reviewed at this week's management meeting to see what we can approve upon, what we do right, and what new things we can offer our clients. Enjoy the basement!