In 2008, having rented houses in East Hampton for over a decade, we finally decided to build our own home. Over that ten-year period we had visited virtually every house in the area that came up for sale but couldn't find the right fit. The houses were too small, the lots too dark, we just couldn't find the right one. So eventually we were thrilled to find a vacant lot that matched our spec and our budget, but nervous to design a home from scratch. A lot of things are daunting when you set out to do something you've never done before. In particular when you're relying on others for direction, you're spending a lot of money and you live 100 miles away. As we set out to create our dream home, we interviewed several architects. John Laffey stood out for several reasons. First, he came to meet us at our property rather than in his office, so he could really get a feel for it. Second, and as a result of his visit, he proposed we build our home at the north end of the lot, further from the ocean and in direct contrast to the suggestion of all of his competitors, this turned out to be an excellent idea. Third, John has excellent relationships with his prior clients. When he took us out to see samples of his work those homeowners greeted him warmly, with open arms, and all were happy to have us walk through their homes as they sang John's praises. Finally, John is a great listener. He's so good at his job that he listens carefully and hears things we didn't always communicate well. He's like the house whisperer, leveraging his experience and observing our reactions to his ideas to design the perfect home. Placing our home at the north end of our lot, which is significantly wider, allowed us to capture the one thing that was most important to us - light. Between the topography, the trees and the home John designed, we enjoy the sun from sunrise to sunset. This reminds us daily how much we appreciate our home, and John for designing it. After we hired John, we communicated with him regularly via phone and email and met at his office twice a month. John is very good at taking direction and meeting deadlines. In fact, he was able to absorb directions from two different people, often with conflicting ideas, but channel our wishes into compromises that worked for both of us. As our home came together on paper, John worked with us often as we reconsidered some areas, he and his team were endlessly patient and creative in helping us to get to the point where we were ready to sign off. We'd send them a quick email and at our next meeting they'd have several iterations of the same area ready for us to consider. Though we went back and forth on several things, John was always very fair in billing and we never felt nickel and dimed. It is three years since we moved into our home and we couldn't be happier with it. There is not one thing we would change, not one switch we'd move, one door in the wrong place, one entryway we'd reposition. With over 10,000 square feet, there's a lot of room for error but in our home, there isn't one. We are so grateful to John and his team for their strong work ethic, fastidious attention to detail and incredible talent. While we hope to never move, if we did we would use John again, without hesitation and we frequently recommend to him to our friends and visitors. read more

My partner and I engaged John Laffey in 2004 to design and execute a custom home to be built in East Hampton, NY. A home we never intend to abandon. Having never undertaken a project of this magnitude with no additional design resources, we were obviously a bit apprehensive and cautious. From our first meeting through obtaining our Certificate of Occupancy, Mr. Laffey and his talented team took great care to explain the process, manage our expectations and lead us through every phase with a confident hand balanced with a sensitive touch. He even attended detailed budget meetings with our general contractor to advise us on complex trade offs and to insure the overall budget was respected. The result: a warm and beautiful home that we consider a masterpiece of restrained elegance. John embraced all of the specifications we required, yet delivered on his promise to craft a home that we would find as comfortable alone or with a dozen friends. His design sensibility, his sense of scale and proportion as well as his respect for vistas and flow are truly remarkable. He is both a gifted artist and a uniquely wonderful man. We recommend him unreservedly. read more

I am an interior designer working in both NYC and the Hamptons, and have worked with John on several projects. John is the consummate professional in all respects. In 2005, John and his team designed and oversaw the construction of our home in East Hampton Village and we could not be more pleased with the result. Our home was recently featured in Hamptons Cottages & Gardens magazine and has received rave reviews. Both my husband and I have purchased another property in East Hampton Village and are in the process of working with John and his team again. I cannot speak highly enough of John and would whole-hearteddly recommend him and his team without any hesitation or qualification. He is a true talent and a gentleman. Daniel Fierro Interior Design. read more

I work as a project manager here in the village of Southampton. I have had the pleasure of working with John and his team over the last 10 years and have found them to be extremely reliable and helpful. John is a "people person" and always try's to get to the core of what fulfills his clients and his contractors needs. I was so impressed with John's firm that I used them to design an addition for larger owners quarters on my village Bed and Breakfast. I can only assume that the previous poor review was sour grapes on their part and not because of incompetence in John's office because all the projects we worked on together came out great and the owners were very satisfied. I would recommend John highly and will continue to do so. read more

john Laffey designed a custom home for us in the west banks subdivision in North Haven. The house was well designed and received very positive reviews from everyone from the contractor to the real estate agents that listed it. It sold for over three million dollars in a depressed market for a profit. We have since worked on three other "Laffey " projects that have all been much larger and equally well received. I give my highest recommendation to this firm. John has a great creative eye while conscious of the overall budget for the project. His staff are professional at all times and very responsive to their clients wishes. I look forward to working with them again. read more

John designed my East Hampton house in 2011, and my family took possession on late 2012. As we live in Melbourne, Australia we needed an architect we could trust to get on with the job even though we were absent, and we could not have been happier with John's performance. He designed a beautiful, luxurious but practical 8000sq. ft. house for us, with real Hamptons style. He worked well with the builder in the design and execution phases and even though we visited the construction site only once during the building process we ended up with exactly what we wanted, and expected. I would recommend him unreservedly. read more

John Laffey is a wonderful architect. He designed and oversaw the construction of our family summer house in Southampton Village. We are extremely happy with the finished product and the house that will be in our family for generations. John was able to navigate the ins and outs of village politics and design boards with ease; at the same time, he throughly oversaw our general contractor's work and picked up on mistakes. I wholeheartedly recommend John Laffey to anyone who is considering building a new home or building or renovating an existing home or building. read more

John and his team designed a beautiful and functional home for my family. We gave him a long "wish list" at the onset of our working relationship and he realized each and every one. He understood how we wanted to use the house and suggested things that we had not even thought of to make it most comfortable for us and our guests. John's attention to detail was there as well as his creativity. He is a professional of the highest integrity and we would not hesitate to use him again. read more

John Laffey designed a house for me in 2004 and when I built it in East Hampton, it was unanimously praised. As a matter of fact, it was on the East Hampton Historical Society House Tour in 2005 and was voted most beautiful property "North of the highway". I sold this house in April of this year, realized a very healthy profit and John and his office are currently designing my next house; we plan to break ground in mid-September. read more

I had the pleasure of working with John Laffey over a period of almost 3 years during the design process and construction of our home from 1999-2001. Not only was John a very competent architect who listened to our ideas and needs, but he is incredibly easy to work with and our home turned out to be breathtakingly beautiful. If I were to build another house I would definitely use John again without question. read more

John and his firm were an absolute pleasure to work with! We set out to design our dream house and John accomplished just that. My family has enjoyed 4 years there so far and we have recommended him to several friends - each with the same experience. We constantly get complements and have even had random offers to buy it! I cannot say enough good things about John or his staff. read more

John Laffey is the ultimate gentleman. We have been working with him since May 2010 and are in the process of completing our dream house. John's eye for detail and design is exceptional. We are proud of what we have accomplished and cherish our relationship with him. We would recommend John without any reservations. You would be wise to choose him as your architect. read more

John designed our Watermill home in 2008. John was professional, accessible and a pleasure to work with. Anyone who sees our home praises the architecture. John and his team also collaborated well with the builder and other contractors. We have recommended John to friends and they have been very happy with the results. read more

I Have worked for John Laffey Architect for over ten years and have been amazed by not only the stellar work John has designed but how many of his clients come back for repeat work and always pass his name along to their friends. He is a true salt of the earth gentleman and a great Architect. read more

John designed a house for me back in 1998 and both the house and the process was great. I continue to work with John on many projects (I am a local land surveyor) and have found him to be a very competent professional. I have and will continue to recommend him highly. read more

John was a pleasure to work with on the design of our home 5 years ago. I would and do recommend him to my friends. He was open to suggestions and was able to answer all the questions the contractor had in a timely matter. read more

Interesting how with 20+ reviews Yelp "filters" one negative review and pushes it to the top. Read the actual reviews in the "not recommended" link for testimony from actual clients. John is a fantastic architect! read more

I have built many John Laffey homes, including a true historic restoration and have found his plans to be competent in every way. His designs are amongst the most beautiful in the Hamptons. read more