I am writing to give my strongest recommendation for Meryl Phillips of Meryl & Miller. I recently sold the home where I raised three kids. Before hiring Meryl, the house was well worn (tired and dated). I hired Meryl to guide me through an extensive renovation AND to stage the home for sale. Meryl was amazing. Not only did she provide sage advice about which improvements we're worthwhile and which were not, she provided invaluable overnight in the work itself. No detail was too small. She kept the project on track, oversaw paint (interior and exterior), light fixture updating, wood floor refinishing, and a full kitchen remodel. Her ideas were fresh and aimed at the exact demografic that would be must likely to buy the house. She helped me select the perfect real estate agent and her easy going personality and credibility allowed her to provide welcome feedback to the entire team. I was at times overwhelmed by the fast pace of all the decisions i had to make, but a conversation with Meryl always put me at ease. One other thing I have to add is that Meryl understands budget constraints and strives to spend money in the most efficient way possible. My home sold in one day after listing - and for well over asking -- largely because of the amazing work of Meryl and her team. Not only would I hire them again - I would not hire anyone else. Period. read more

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I love working with Meryl & Miller. Meryl has a great aesthetic and I love that it's not cliche. She will make bold choices when appropriate that help highlight the home. She knows how to use proportion, placement, color, scale and texture. The design is never flat and she presents you with a mood board in advance so it's not a complete surprise. My client loved the small details and I liked that the pieces didn't all look like they came from the same store, some were vintage and added depth to the design. read more

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We recently hired M&M again to do remodeling and updates on our house. They were amazing to work with -- Meryl and her team on the design side, and Chris and his team on the construction side. They were communicative and creative, and patient with our (sometimes very basic) questions. Best of all, they were very conscious of the practicalities of day-to-day life, and made construction and design proposals with those needs in mind. We've received nothing but compliments about the house, even from the most critical of family members. We could not have sanely survived this project with any lesser team, and could not recommend M&M more. read more

We started using this contractor several years ago for small repairs. Since then we have used them to build a large deck and handrail, several bathrooms, and a kitchen remodel. They have been dependable, timely, and flexible. One of the best contractor's we have ever worked with! One of my friends also used them for staging and said their attention to detail was meticulous and their staging brought them a better offer than they could have ever hoped for. read more

These guys are excellent. I've used them for simple things like touch up painting as well as big jobs like moving an 80 ft long fence and building a custom built in entertainment cabinet. They are very conscientious and careful to stay within your budget. They can offer excellent design suggestions. But most importantly their work quality is exemplary. I don't hesitate to recommend them for any household repairs, designs or organization large or small. V read more

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Great job M&M! Ethan was on time and thorough with some minor repairs for our condo sale transition. Great response and follow through. These guys are legit ! read more

I don't usually write bad reviews, but I am taking time to write this one, to relay my experience with M+M staging my condo for sale. My agent picked this team and I was terribly disappointed, but it was too late to change. I paid over $10,000 for staging a 1 bdr condo, which I am very upset about. Meryl's opinion was that 2 of of the light fixtures in my place needed to be changed. I was VERY clear with her that I was on a tight budget, but that if she really thought they needed to be changed, to please be conscious of the money spent. She spent $1600 on 3 LIGHT FIXTURES! And that didn't include the charge for her partner to install them! And they're so tacky they look like something straight out of Trump Tower, so the new owners will probably replace them immediately. Then they overstuffed my small condo with huge furniture, tons of tacky nick-nacks everywhere and avant garde art that was verging on the offensive, but let's just say it was too "advanced" for the average home shopper. I'm an accomplished artist and professional designer myself. I went to art school, and received my degree in Environmental Design. I'm pretty tapped into the contemporary art scene, and it was too much in a small home, even for my taste. She might possibly have good taste for a certain specific buyer, but it's a pretty limited audience, which is not what you want as a seller. Sure 2020 was a tough market, but that's exactly when you want to play it safe with buyers, and their taste was waaaayyy too far out there. And make sure to set a budget for them or they'll take you to the cleaners, carelessly spending YOUR hard earned money on their own indulgent bad taste. Agents will tell you that staging is an investment that will pay off with increased sale value, but in my case, it went for well under the reasonable asking price. I'm one extremely disappointed client. read more

As a realtor I know how hard it is to find a reliable resource to take care of those numerous " honey do" jobs. I've referred Chris to neighbors who've been very pleased with his work, and recently had him knock a few things off my own list..... somehow my house never seems to be the highest priority! Holes patched, new grout, doors no longer stick, Oh happy days! Chris is careful and efficient, I trust him in my home and will recommend him to friends and clients. read more

Chris and Meryl are a great team. I worked with Chris at a previous job, so I know him fairly well in both a professional and friendly manner. He couldn't be a more pleasant person. He listens, gives sound advice, is very upfront and honest, and arrives perfectly on time, every time. He works hard and does a great job. Over the course of many days, he installed attic insulation, wired our home network including installing network boxes, fixed wooden doors and door sills, fixed our bathroom vent, inspected our roof, and cleaned debris from our basement. He is the epitome of a "great handyman" and should be first on your list as someone to call when you need that random house thing done. I very highly recommend Meryl and Miller! read more

Chris Miller is the consummate professional. Punctual and efficient. Fixed everything in an extremely timely manner. Not a lot of "chit-chat" and no B.S. If you want the job(s) done skillfully and smoothly, I highly recommend him. read more

We hired Meryl & Miller to do a variety of odd jobs that were beyond my skill set--including some electrical, some plumbing and some general fixing. Within 4 hours they replaced 6 wired-in smoke detectors, installed 3 new pop-up sink drains, textured and painted portions of a wall, fixed a wobbly faucet, replaced a dimmer switch and several other items. More than that, the house was cleaner after than it was before they arrived. It was like having the home improvement fairies come to visit! They were professional and communicated clearly throughout so there were no surprises. And if that wasn't enough, the bill was actually less than the estimate!! It is rare to find this combination of quality work and reputable people. This is only my second Yelp post ever, but these guys are great and I highly recommend them!! read more

Chris came out to help me remove some stubborn cabinets. For starters he arrived at exactly the time the said he would, which I very much appreciated. He's a smart guy and was able to problem solve and figure out what needed to be done, all while explaining it to me as we went. Couldn't be happier with his service. I'll call him again in a heartbeat. read more

Meryl and Miller are great. Chris has built a gate for me, done electrical work, installed light fixtures, hung artwork, and done countless other touch-up projects. He's really good about explaining the different ways you could approach a project and the pros and cons of each of those options. He's extremely reasonably priced, sticks to his estimate, and isn't going to upsell you. He's my go-to handyman and I've recommended him to many friends who now feel the same way. read more

I contacted Meryl and Miller after contacting some other handy people with no response. I emailed them my questions and was impressed with their fast reply. I explained my issues and asked some questions and we set up our appointment time. Chris arrived right on time and after I showed him what needed to be done he promptly got to work. My overall job was a small one, after moving I needed a large Ikea bookshelf put back together after some of the dowels had broke off, and I needed two sets of curtain rods hung. Chris managed to fix and put together the bookshelf in about 30 minutes despite not having any directions or guidance. He then finished the curtain rods and even put my footboard on my bed for me. He was done in about 85 minutes and the cost was very affordable. I definitely would not hesitate to contact Meryl and Miller with any other jobs around the house I needed help with. read more

Meryl and Miller are wonderful in every way. We had them install recessed lighting, wire and mount a ceiling fan, and install and wire ceiling light fixtures. Every step of the way, Chris (the Miller of Meryl and Miller) was professional and knowledgable. He was able to work around all of the unexpected problems that came up, all while keeping a calm demeanor. He was clear and thoughtful and explained each step he was going to do before he proceeded so there were no surprises. I can't say enough good things about them. Meryl and Miller couldn't have been better and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to anyone looking for any kind of repair or housework. They will work with you and provide insightful guidance. read more

We are new to the East Bay after moving here from Boston and needed various jobs done in our new condo, but didn't know anyone. I found Meryl & Miller here on Yelp and couldn't be happier with their work. Chris is an excellent handyman, he can fix just about anything, shows up on time, works hard and is pleasant and friendly. Meryl designed cabinets to go in an awkward space in our new condo and, although they have not been delivered yet, I know that they will be perfect when they are installed. I recommend them highly. read more

This review is for Chris' amazing response time. I emailed him for an estimate for a small job, and he got back to me with a fair price super quickly! Thank you! read more

After my determined attempt to sand and stain my own wood wall, I was disappointed with the noticeable sanding marks and decided that more practice was in order. I contacted Chris and we talked about various options for completing the project. He re-sanded and stained the wall (it looks fantastic) as well as an adjacent awning and the railings around the yard. Sanding the railings and awning were a tedious task, but he was steadfast and I'm really happy with the results. It may take a couple weeks to get on his calendar, but it's worth the wait--Chris is conscientious and does excellent work. read more

Fantastic! I didn't have a huge job, but a few medium-sized ones, and Chris came and got them done perfectly and quickly, and very reasonably priced. I am the least handy person in the universe and it's good to know there's someone friendly and capable out there to help! read more

Chris is absolutely wonderful! He came to fix a number of fairly small household items with no muss, no fuss, just easy and competent. The big item for us was our 2 year old portable dishwasher which flooded our kitchen one night. Other contractors had told us to simply buy a new one. Since we'll be having our whole kitchen remodeled within a year, including having an installed dishwasher, we didn't want to do that. Chris was honest and told us he didn't typically work on appliances and had never worked on a portable dishwasher. I begged, pleaded and he took pity on me. He actually contacted the manufacturer who told him it needed a new pump, for which they didn't even charge us. He brought it over, installed it and - voila - we can still have a dishwasher without waiting for an entire remodel. I think that's going above and beyond. He's also a really nice guy - easy, friendly, good sense of humor. As others have said, he listens carefully, explains what he's doing, gives good advice and always comes exactly when he says he will. He's a gem. I told him we're hanging on to him for life. read more

Meryl has coordinated the rehab of several projects for me. She does great work, doesn't take longer than she should and bills efficiently. Can't get better than that! Would recommend her to other real estate professionals or clients looking for design, organization, and/or construction help. read more

This is my second review of Meryl & Miller. I first raved about Meryl's design, color and fixture recommendations for my bathroom remodel. She was fabu. This weekend, Chris and Meryl came over for some structural repair on my garage. My house was built in the early 1920's. There have been several remodels. Tying in 90 years of mis-matched materials and construction styles is tough. My garage hangs partly over a small creek. The creek flooded badly in December, lifting the garage off several piers/posts. Chris figured a way to jack-up the garage and re-attach the old concrete piers and install new posts as needed. And. He strapped the bottom of the garage too the posts and the piers so theoretically it won't lift off the next time-and there will be a next time. All that in less than 4 hours of work. These guys know tools and they know how to solve problems. They don't complain about the fact that they are dealing with 90 year-old structures. In fact, they find it a challenge. read more