Review of Fernandez Landscaping
Lengthy Review! My experience with Fernandez Landscaping was unfortunately not a positive one, and I wholeheartedly regret hiring this company. While the initial consultation went smoothly, communication drastically declined once the project began. The contract was vague and lacked essential details, requiring several revisions to capture everything we had discussed. Thankfully, I pushed for those updates--especially since the HOA approval took about a month.
The project officially began on Wednesday, 3/13, and things went downhill quickly. There were multiple days when they either didn't show up as promised or only stayed for a couple of hours. Communication was so stressful and inconsistent that I eventually stopped speaking directly with the contractor and had my husband take over. Even then, when my husband tried to have a respectful conversation with Ernesto, it led to a heated exchange.
Let me give a clear example of what just two weeks looked like--with perfect weather and no reason for delays:
Wednesday, 4/2: We asked for a timeline after being asked for additional money, despite the contract not being followed. We were told that the concrete and electrical would be completed by Friday, 4/4, and the full project would be done by Friday, 4/12.
Thursday, 4/3: Some concrete and minor electrical work were done.
Friday, 4/4: No one showed up.
Saturday, 4/5 - Sunday, 4/6: No work (expected).
Monday, 4/7 - Wednesday, 4/9: No substantial progress. Someone briefly came to patch two holes and then left.
Thursday, 4/10: We were told the crew would arrive at noon. They showed up around 2:30 PM and left by 4 PM.
Friday, 4/11: They worked for about 4 hours.
Saturday, 4/12: We received a text saying the crew would arrive between 10 AM and 12 PM. Instead, they showed up after 1 PM and stayed for only about 20 minutes. We were also told that on this day I'd be able to pick out the granite for the outdoor kitchen and that the gutters would be installed. Neither of those things happened. When we called to ask what was going on, Ernesto didn't answer. We followed up with a text--and got no response.
So, for the entire week of April 7th through April 12th, they worked maybe 8 hours total. That kind of lack of progress and unresponsiveness was incredibly frustrating.
To make matters worse, they left materials sitting outside our gate for weeks, which led to two separate HOA warning violations for different issues. This added even more unnecessary stress and inconvenience.
On April 14, I received an email from the front office along with images of someone else's home. They informed me that two projects were complete when, in fact, they weren't. They also told me they were waiting on supplies for the kitchen--which I'm not sure how that is, because they were supposed to leave the countertop options for my review and yep, you guessed it--they were not there. And when we sent a text inquiring about them, yep, you guessed it again--no response. So all of a sudden, Ernesto, our point of contact, is too busy to respond.
And typically, I share contractors with my colleagues--and so does my husband. I know of two colleagues waiting to see how my project turned out to see if they want to hire them, but unfortunately, I won't be recommending them to anyone!
It also became clear that they were juggling multiple jobs, which dragged our timeline out significantly. What was supposed to be a 2-3 week job ended up taking 7 weeks.
Honestly, I hate to say it, but Ernesto's word means nothing--he simply never followed through on what he said. Whether it was timelines, updates, or commitments, nothing ever aligned with what was promised.
As a business, they should not take your concerns about the work being done as complaints. Customers have a right to ask questions, follow up, and expect communication--especially when things aren't being completed as agreed. Addressing concerns should be seen as part of providing good service, not as an annoyance.
Overall, working with Fernandez Landscaping was extremely stressful. I've gone through a full home remodel and a pool installation, and I've never had an experience this bad. I was genuinely relieved when the project was finally over.
Just some word of advice: when working with paying clients, communication is key. My experience might have gone differently if they had simply kept us informed--especially on the days they didn't show up after saying they would. Instead, days passed with no updates or explanations, which only made things worse.
I'm not going to bore you further with details. However, I will say that once I contacted the Better Business Bureau, it finally got the ball rolling. That step seemed to be the only thing that prompted any action at all.
Based on my experience, I would not recommend or hire Fernandez Landscaping. read more