Painting is expensive, intrusive, stressful and you have to live with the results for years; so you want to get it right the first time. This 5 star review could have been a 2 star review but because of Andrew and his great team, I would have given him a 6 star if available. In my 20's I was a certified journeyman painter and after 4 years I decided it was not what I wanted to do. Painting is hard and tedious work, but as a result, I know what to look for when hiring a paint contractor. Even with that, things can go wrong. Some painters will paint over termite infected wood because they are not skilled in carpentry, some will water down paint to save on material, some will tell you that they don't need to prime because the paint has built in primer, or that spraying horizontally and then vertically is the same as applying 2 coats of paint. Every can of paint will tell you to wait 1 to 2 hours before applying the second coat of paint. If you know the basics to look for, it can help getting a satisfactory job.
First off, Andrew himself is not the painter, he is more of the CFO and COO combined. If you have a major concern he is the man to talk to. He is a calm, soft spoken and sensible person. Basically he is a professional and problem solver.
The team that painted my home was: 1. Mr. Kim; he is very skilled in his profession. He is the lead painter and can do it all. He is very patient, attentive to detail and listens to any job site concerns. He works tirelessly and non-stop. His English is limited, but he understands well and knows his trade. 2. Ulysses; he is Mr. Kim's protégé. He primarily did the spraying. They have worked together for 20 years according to Ulysses. He too is a non -stop worker. He was my go to man when I wanted to explain anything. His English is great. Then there was Jorge and Louis. They do the taping, prepping, rolling and brush work. Both hard workers. They all showed up around 7:30 am and worked until 3:30 pm with a one 1 hour lunch break. They don't fool around, and they work well as a team. I could not have asked for a better group.
For the past 41 years I have been a real estate broker and have had the opportunity to have hundreds of homes painted. So when I say this team was good, I mean it.
This was a 9 day job and on the 4th day we had a major problem. The paint color was not as approved but we did not notice it until 2/3 of the stucco had been painted. Our goal was to match our existing color, so we used Dunn Edwards paint just as before. My wife and I even went so far as to have a gallon premixed before the job started. We approved the color, but the color Mr. Kim picked up at Dunn Edwards was much lighter than our approved gallon. Just when we thought that we had solved that problem, another color issue came up. Again the colors did not match, and I called Dunn Edwards field rep to take a look. He was of no use. He tried telling me it was all due to the method of application. This was my 5th time painting my home in 24 years, so I can smell fast talk when I hear it. His job was to advocate for Dunn Edwards, not the customer.
Andrew agreed to repaint the surfaces that needed to be repainted and it all worked out perfect. My opinion is that it was Dunn Edwards fault, not the application technique. But it cost me an additional $850, which I think was a little on the high side, but I agreed because I saw that the painters were doing a good job.
Before I hired Andrew, I called 5 other painters for a bid. One flaked on me, another showed up and gave me a bid that was very comparable in price to Andrews bid, another gave me a bid over the phone based on photos I provided, and the last had scheduled to come out in a week for a bid. I selected Andrew based on a few factors.
I called his office at 7:30 am, he answered and said he could be here in 1 hour. I live in Rancho Santa Margarita, his office is in Placenta. Not exactly close. He text me a link to a map so I could follow his travel to my home. He arrived on time. He presented himself in a professional manner and had a written bid, license and insurance information emailed to me within 1.5 hours after leaving. He started the job 1 week later, (on the same day that the 5th painter I called was scheduled to give me his bid).
Plus the many Yelp reviews helped in my decision, which is why I wanted to add my experience. This job could have gone south very quickly if Andrew and his team of professionals had different personalities. But their willingness to work through the color issues and a few other minor details, made this a Win-Win for both parties.
I would highly recommend Andrew and the crew that painted my house to anyone looking for a great job at a fair price. But remember, it's your money and your home, so keep an eye on the process. Catching a potential problem early on can save everyone a lot of time, money and stress. Good Luck! read more