I bought a house in Kensington in August 2020. Inspectors' documents reported that extensive repair…read moreand replacement of major systems of the house were needed. In September 2020, over a 90 minute Facetime, I consulted with Maurice Levitch, the president, architect, and general contractor as to how best address the issues. He walked through the house I had just purchased; I was in my home on the East Coast which is where I then lived. During that Facetime we agreed on the major contours of the project. During the next two months, his staff and I refined what would be done. Project scope, cost, and expectations were completely transparent at all times. The project took place from September 2020 to April 2021. While the project was going on, I was in Washington, D.C. I never once visited the Kensington house. Levitch and I did the entire project over email and telephone. At the end of almost all days, pictures and a short report were posted on their ProCore website showing me what had been done that day. I found the whole process enjoyable and interesting. I found Maurice to be a first-rate architect and general contractor with a deep knowledge of design, building systems, environmental impact, materials, and product. He will offer alternatives so that you can stay within your budget (I did find I spent more than I intended to but that was because I wanted to expand the scope of the project or pursue alternatives I hadn't contemplated). I found his subcontractors to be first-rate as well and Maurice makes sure that their work is organized, efficient, and of the highest quality. Among other things done: --All windows, interior doors, and exterior doors replaced. --New HVAC system. --Electrical system replaced, new interior panel, outlets brought to code. --Plumbing issues remedied, an entire subfloor of a bathroom rebuilt. Exact match for a rare marble tile found for a new floor. --Wood floor repair. --All manner of Kensington animals removed from crawlspace and attic. Moisture barriers, crawlspace and attic insulation replaced. --Walls sanded, made uniform throughout house with skim-coat plastering and then painting. Old baseboard removed, new chosen and installed. --Closets gutted, expanded, outfitted with custom rods, panels, and underlit shelves --A gas-leaking 36" range in the kitchen removed. Replaced with a 30" induction range, involving carpentry, electrical and plumbing work. --Carpentry work in kitchen, old maple cabinet wood was reused or matched perfectly. --Mudded in light fixtures for art lighting and wall washing installed. Total project cost was more than $325,000. A daughter with an Oakland worked with Levitch on two projects (2018 - 2022). First project: structural work to prevent house from sinking and an addition of 2 bedrooms, a playroom, and 1 bathroom. Second project: total kitchen renovation involving re-architecting of entire main floor. Excellent work, lovely people!

If you want a quality project run by ultimate professionals, Levitch is the design/build company…read morefor your project. They designed and rebuilt our mid-60's home from the floor up. They made the process as comfortable as possible and worked with us every step of the way. When the city contractor reviewed and closed the permits, he said the work was the best he had seen in 30 years of performing inspections. We love Maurice, Vuk, Susan and the entire Levitch team. We definitely would use them again and recommend them to everyone who is looking for remodeling or rebuilding work to be performed.

The folks at Drafting Cafe have been incredibly helpful as we've been considering a small addition…read moreon our home. Ethan, Lindsey, Michael, and Lauren have been incredibly responsive and on top of things. Whenever we've spoken with anyone on the team, it's clear that they've reviewed our file/request and know exactly what we're hoping to build. The team has been very engaged and answered our many questions even while we were not yet 100% committed to the project. We ended up needing to take a pause before proceeding as we figure out budget on our end. But if we decide to move forward, we would feel great about working with DCA.

Ethan and his team at Drafting Cafe have a great design sense and deep knowledge of construction…read moreand permitting. They helped me convert my basement into my home office and to build a deck from my side yard in Alameda. Ethan coordinated with a construction crew he works with regularly to be sure I got a quality build in the end and at a fair price. Communication was great throughout the process, and they were fast! I'd definitely recommend them.

Horrible service -- no replies, no call backs I tried for…read moreweeks to get basic updates. Emails ignored, voicemails never returned, and no follow-through on promised timelines. If you need a responsive permit company, look elsewhere. Super disappointing.

I needed plans and a permit for my remodel and decided to use this drafting and permit service…read more They took care of the entire process, from preparing the drawings to submitting everything to the city and obtaining approval. They were knowledgeable, responsive, and easy to work with. They explained the steps clearly and kept me informed throughout. The plans were well done, and the permit was issued without delays. What could have been a complicated process turned into a smooth experience. I would absolutely recommend them to anyone needing help with drafting and permits for a remodel.

Searching for an architect was a process, and ultimately narrowed down my search to Bay Area Design…read moreConsultants to draw up blueprints for our house addition. Daniel has a great team under him; his design team were very collaborative in meeting my vision in drawing up the blueprints; and during the planning stages, his team also handled the burden in being in direct contact with the city in submitting paperwork and following any revisions needed. During the planning stages, I'd ultimately went with BADC to also handle the getting the addition built. Once the plans were approved and permit obtained, Daniel's construction crew, led by Alejandro, were on the ball to get construction started. During the construction phase, Daniel and his team were great to work with and responsive to any revisions that the city-inspectors, or myself included, had communicated. If you're looking for a company for an upcoming home renovation or remodel, from literally start-to-finish, look no further because their quality of work and customer service is definitely 5-stars!

Daniel and his team are top notch professionals and offer clear, consistent, transparent, and…read morehonest results. I was in the complete dark on an ADU project. Daniel was able to navigate me through the process and offer great advice. He is attentive and his team provided the work superbly and in a timely manner. I would recommend this company 100%.

I contacted Sam to help me with my home renovation in San Mateo Park…read more The first phase was a foundation upgrade and a seismic retrofit. My house is super old, I found the San Mateo County Design Review process cumbersome and unfriendly and the City's price for permits was completely insane. I have to say that Sam and Michael are the best designers that I have ever worked with hands down. Admittedly, I am somewhat difficult to deal with (just ask my wife and kids) lol. Sam and Michael held my hand all the way through the design process. They drew and submitted architectural and design drawings within two weeks, helped me negotiate an over the counter permit with the city, rather than going through the incredibly cumbersome/expensive design review process with the City but most of all they were accessible and present at all times. Thanks to Sam, my permits cost me a fraction of what the city quoted me initially. Best of all, Sam worked with me personally to find a contractor who was responsive to my needs and when there were problems on the jobsite, Sam came out and made sure they were fixed (this was not part of the contract. Most importantly, the price was very reasonable and waaaaay lower than the 4 structural engineers and architects' estimates I got prior. I will be updating this review soon as I have just hired Sam to design a 400 sq ft addition and a bathroom/kitchen remodel. So far an awesome job!!!!

I had a project that was stopped by the city and many people wouldnt even touch it because of the…read morecomplexity of joining a project mid construction. Sam came in and saved the day for me. He also stayed with me and answered a lot of questions throughout the process. The experience was not perfect, and there were times I was frustrated with our communication and speed. But considering the predicament I had placed myself and Sam in, I think he did a pretty good job and I really appreciate that he continued to respond and support my project even after being fully paid. (something a lot of contractors just dont do).

I have hired this team twice now and have been impressed twice! Very prompt and professional…read morecommunication, detail oriented, perfect design and great with problem solving. I have run into issues with the City but Romain was quick to create a solution, and I have heard other accolades from fellow business owners that have used this firm. Definitely recommend and will work with them again.

Overall, we've found Romain to be very reliable--not only in the quality of his work but also in…read morehis professional attitude. We've had his architectural designs reviewed by friends who majored in architecture as well as several interior and landscape designers. Everyone gave very positive feedback and encouraged me to move forward with finalizing the plan. If there is any "downside," it's simply that Romain moves quickly. You'll want to share your thoughts and feedback promptly, otherwise he may be a step ahead of you. Personally, I really appreciate his energy, fast turnaround, and thoughtful consideration of details. We highly recommend Romain.

I highly recommend Simplengi for any structural engineering needs…read more David is a responsive, prompt, and highly knowledgeable structural engineer. I enjoyed his candid style and excellent recommendations. David formulated and documented the necessary engineering solution, so my architectural plans for a duplex remodel would pass review. In fact, my plans passed DBI the first time, and I accredit that to David's excellent work. David was even available for a call during the DBI review to help answer questions. Truly the sign of a professional who cares about his clients.

We have been working on a 2nd floor addition to a 100 yr old house. As one can imagine, there are…read moremany significant structural issues that may arise unexpectedly when opening up walls and seeing how people build things 100 yrs ago. David and Ray have been incredible since the beginning of the process, helping us navigate through all the structural concerns and always trying to find a value engineering approach - whether it was optimizing depth of foundation work, or finding ways to reinforce old windows, coming up with ways to get headers into locations where there isn't the space, and/or proposing alternative shear wall options when there isn't room to fit things. Ray, our project engineer, has been the best communicating and responding to all our questions and worries. He carefully reviews the problem at hand that arise and often will provide 2 or 3 possible options that our builder can work on. With our current project, Ray is always super prompt to resolve any issues via call or email, or video conference and if necessary an onsite visit to inspect the construction phase. He was just crawling in our crawlspace the other day and notified our builder if some items that needed to be addressed to maintain a positive continuous connection from 2nd floor down to 1st floor and to crawlspace foundation. We are now adding the 2nd floor framing and almost done the most stressful part of the project. We have done 3 major remodels in the past with other firms where it was difficult to get in touch with anybody. With Ray and David at Simplengi Engineering, it has been a very refreshing experience to have experts that promptly responds to all our concerns. Value engineering, great timely communication, attention to detail, common sense, simple and smart engineering. We highly recommend Ray and David and Simplengi Engineering for any structural work. Simply great engineering. We don't plan to do another remodel for 100+ years but if we did, we would hire Simplengi 100% for sure.

What a ROCKSTAR! I…read morecalled Mr. Moran (Everett) regarding a initial question I had in anticipating to a property line dispute with a soon to be new owner of my neighbors home. SInce I purchased my home from the bank (foreclosure) in 2008, it was unclear what would happen with the owners of the home when my former neighbor flaked and moved out because she couldn't deal with the neighborhood and the issues the house had. The new owner was kind of a slick-talking RE guy that tried to bamboozle me regarding my property line, since the existing fence (which was in place prior to my purchase and his) is basically abutting my property and eating into the property line (costing me money tax wise, for space I'm not enjoying). I spoke to Mr. Moran and he gave me some insight on how to review the problem, even before I consider hiring his firm to come and stake the property (which I can do and will intend on doing once I can afford to of course). It turns out, however, that the backyard fence which was also in place in my yard is EXACTLY the measurement he informed the property most likely would be (25 feet parcel, based on his knowledge of the area I live and his professional expertise...barring in mind that he could have been wrong). He couldn't have known that whoever was the prior owner of my home put this fence in place to indicate what the REAL property lines are, so any new owner/neighbor HAS to be aware of this fact. All I can say is that while I would love to hire a surveyor to stake the property and a lawyer (if required) to fight the street fight for me, at least I'm feeling armed with knowledge and can challenge the SOB real estate slick-talker and not get screwed out of an inch of my property. Thank you so much Mr. Moran for being a human being that is sharp as a tack in his business! The minute I get some $$$ I'm going to have my land surveyed, and I know exactly who I'm calling!

Moran Engineering has integrity, experience and heart. We…read morehired Moran Engineering as part of our team to repair a large slide in the Berkeley Hills. Jim Moran and his group knew just what the City required for Permits in Berkekey and they delivered on time. Our communication was clear and they were able to accommodate our changing schedule, keeping everyone on track. Kathryn Kimball Berkeley CA