The best contractor experience we have had in the 16 years we have lived in Honolulu. I found them…read moreon Yelp (thank you Yelp!!!) after having disastrous results with another contractor who quit the day before he was supposed to start work (I will cover that in a separate review). But on to the important stuff: Maika'i showed up to look at the job 2 days after first contact and I had an extremely reasonable proposal in my hands 3 days later which I immediately signed. They started work 2 days later! Work was for remodeling of a 100 yr old solid stone house where nothing is easy (try running electrical or plumbing!!). Work included bathroom(s) renovation, kitchen renovation, lanai waterproofing and tile replacement, replacement of rotting exterior stairs, complete interior painting (w/20' vaulted ceilings requiring scaffolding), and exterior painting of lanai parapet and exterior gates and the carport/garage door. All work was done in house with NO subcontractors which is amazing these days. Maika'i has large staff of workers including all disciplines (electrical, mechanical, plumbing, carpenters, painters, etc) that are expertly managed as they rotate work amongst multiple customers. David and Mr. Q (the PM and Owner) are a pleasure to work with. All work completed exceeded our expectations and they will be our first choice for any future remodeling work.

Maika'i installed damaged/ defective floor tiles in both my bathrooms and tried to say the…read morescratches were part of the "design" of the tiles. One bathroom had 18 scratches and the other had 14. The scratches are between 3-5 inches in length and are very noticeable on the polished surface. First they tried to say it wasn't noticeable then they said it was part of the design. They will not replace it or refund me enough so I can hire another contractor to replace it. The work supervisor jun sent me pictures of another customers shower walls that had the same scratched tiles with red arrows pointing out the scratches and said it was "not noticeable unless you looked at it at an angle." This means they are installing defective/ damaged material in other customers homes too. I saved many years to afford this remodel and I am devastated by their poor work and materials. They also did a bad job of grout on the shower floors and bathroom floors and when I asked why pipes they installed for my tub to walk in shower conversion were off center they said they always do it that way. If they had told me they planned to install the pipes off center before they did it I would have hired a different company. Communication is very poor with this company. None of the workers on site speak English and their "supervisor" is rarely there so the workers are left on their own and they have poor judgement and little common sense. The owner Q never answers e mails or text messages when you have concerns and the supervisor Jun tries to charge you extra to fix problems they caused that should have just been done right the first time. They were supposed to install shower doors I bought from Home Depot but on their first attempt the doors were askew and not aligning parallel to the shower walls and they only glued the door jams on instead of following the instruction manual and using the provided wall anchors and screws that came with the kit. Then they threw away the box. I sent them a video from Home Depot showing them how to do it. The supervisor Jun assured me that he and the workers had watched the video and would do it correctly with screws the next day. The next day I called Jun and he said he was there when they put the screws in. I told him that the door jams peeled off the walls because once again they only used glue and no screws. I had to hire a different contractor to put in the doors even though in our signed contract Maika'i was supposed to provide the labor to install the doors and I paid them to do it. The owner Q said that it wasn't necessary to follow the instruction manual for installing the doors because his office worker who used to work at Home Depot said it wasn't necessary. I would guess that this worker has never installed a Delta Contemporary sliding shower door in their life. They put so much grout on the shower floor it obscured the floor tiles and you couldn't pry out the shower drain if you had a clog that needed to be snaked. Then they chipped the tile when the chiseled off the excess grout off the drain cap. Other red flags to watch out for: they want most of the money upfront or halfway through with only 5% due at completion of work. This gives them little incentive to finish in a timely manner or do a good job the way a 50% at completion would. They wanted me to buy flooring from their store for them to install but it only had a 10 year warranty. I told them my brother's flooring from Bougainville had a lifetime warranty for residential use and Jun said they could make theirs a lifetime warranty because they worked closely with the manufacturer in China. I needed popcorn ceiling that had asbestos in it removed. Although the contract I signed with them said if the ceiling had asbestos it would have to be professionally abated, Jun told me they could remove it even though it had asbestos and "we do it all the time." I told him his workers didn't have protection from breathing it in and I didn't want them getting mesothelioma. I also didn't want me or my family to get mesothelioma from their contaminating the whole house and the abatement company said it is illegal to be dumping that stuff in regular trash. I could go on but this is getting pretty long. My advice to you would be to know they are not accredited with the Better Business Bureau but you can still file a complaint against them with the BBB and the BBB will work to mediate for you, you can file a complaint with the Hawaii state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, but most importantly do not hire this company! Save yourself the stress and sleepless nights. They are cheaper than most other companies but there is a reason for that. Sometimes you get what you pay for and sometimes you get even less than you paid for...

I purchased elastomeric roof coating but did not have the time to power wash and coat the roof…read moremyself. I was dabbling around Angie's List and my information was sent to several roofing contractors who contacted me. 2 were very poor with their communication, the 3rd company was Pacific Island Construction. I was put in contact with Richard Ramos and he was great from the start. Great communication, phone calls, email and text. His proposal was a little higher than the other 2 but I went with Richard because I shouldn't feel like I am pulling teeth to get a contractor to take my job, which was the case. Richard did a fantastic job. He removed our leaking and deteriorating sky lights, sealed everything up, pressure washed, applied primer and 2 coats of the elastomeric coating in 3 days. In the month since, we have had 3 heavy downpours in Manoa with absolutely no leaks and the house is about 10 degrees cooler since we don't have an attic and the ceiling is open. Excellent in all aspects of the job, highly recommended.

With a 35 year old flat roof that developed problematic ponding, we called on Richard Ramos and the…read morecrew at Pacific Island Construction. It was a big job and they had to create significant slope build up to eliminate the ponding situations. Probably the best way to describe it is that Richard and his crew worked our roof just like it was his own home! If you need any residential roof or waterproof deck needs, do yourself a huge favor and call in Richard Ramos and Pacific Island Construction. He'll treat your home like it is his own!

The crew was excellent and did a great job of painting my 3-story house. The work was thorough and…read morecarefully done. The crew went to extra effort to make sure the surfaces were properly prepared and they patched some areas of wood rot and explained to me how the repair was done so it would last. I was impressed with Jason, the foreman, who explained many things to me and offered options that I could choose between. The house looks great and I couldn't be more pleased.

Needed some wallpaper removed from a bedroom then repainted…read more Owner Rodd was so nice when he came owner for an estimate. Felt the quote was fair so I decided to go with them. Alvin and his helper came and was super nice and explained everything they would do. mid way through the job Rodd informed me some unexpected issues had come up. he told me it would be $300-$400 additional cost. I o.k.'ed it. The finished result was perfect. Not only that, Rodd texted me later and said he would honor the original quote. I highly recommend calling Raymond's painting for your household painting and wallpaper removal needs.

Diamond Head Construction handled a full renovation of our 1959 home, and they were great to work…read morewith from start to finish. This is a really belated review; we actually started working with them nearly two years ago. The project took several months to complete. I did the demolition myself and brought in my own plumber and electrician, but Wen, Xiao, and the rest of their crew handled everything else: a full kitchen, two complete bathrooms, all fixture installs, drywall, insulation (including the attic), paint, trim, new doors, ... plus more that I've likely forgotten. Basically the whole house, down to the kitchen sink. Wen was extremely helpful and full of great ideas in the planning phase. He worked with us through several rounds of different options, layouts, etc. He took us on a show-and-tell shopping trip to Home Depot to get ideas about many of the available choices, guided us through choosing kitchen cabinetry, helped us pick out shower pan design/style, etc. Xiao was great at handling all carpentry work as well as the tile, cabinetry, bathroom/kitchen detail work, etc. He had great insight into how we could take out a couple of small non-structural stub walls to make our living room feel bigger. He and his assistants worked very diligently and we really appreciate his effort. Communication was easy throughout the project. Wen responded very quickly to all messages, even my dumb questions. He also entertained my bad ideas and then gave me more reasonable alternatives. Really appreciated his calm and levelheaded approach to everything. On top of all this, the cost was very reasonable and comprehensive--we didn't have to do a lot of messing around with change orders. Other than some materials we agreed to supply at the outset, they built everything needed into their initial quote. They did not consider the project complete until we were happy with every last detail. The work was done well, and we highly recommend Diamond Head Construction for anyone tackling anything from a small project up to a full renovation. We have some more projects that we need help with and I'm sure we'll be relying on them again soon.

I am thankful for Wen and team, they did excellent work and made sure that everything that we…read moreneeded (even some small side fixes) were completed in a timely manner and professionally done. Wen changed out our old jealousy windows for new custom made awning windows. He helped to replace a security door and our bad outlets along with some outdoor projects. All for as reasonable price as he could get it!

DO NOT HIRE- THIS MAN IS A COMPLETE FRAUD! We hired Joseph Henry Louis ("Contracting Hawaii") to be…read moreour contractor at our newly bought house in Waianae. We currently rent in Honolulu and go back and forth to our property in Waianae. From October 2020 until yesterday, he has not finished his work and has been given over $180,000 for RENOVATIONS. This morning (Wednesday May 19) we arrived at our house at 7:45AM to find that Joe had cleared out his tools, along with our items that he had bought with our money under contract. We have come to find from other employees that he has in fact been stealing money- for example, telling us he paid his workers $250/day and them telling us they only got $150/day. He also had ONE PERSON finish the entire drywall in our home after lying and saying he had several people do that job. Along with the money laundering, we came to find that the work he did at our house was no where near up to code and was done extremely poorly. We had a few licensed guys come in to assess the work that needed to be done to finish our house and they all said the work had to be RE-DONE because of the terrible job he had done. I want everyone to be aware that this man also apparently does not have his contracting license. He presented us with seemingly legitimate paperwork but found out today everything was forged. He has taken money and materials straight from us. A police report has been filed (21-213041) and we are of course taking him to court. I would just like to inform the public that this man is not to be trusted. He also had his spouse enter our property without permission. She made herself at home smoking cigarettes & bringing their dog over to poop in our yard (all caught on camera of course). I am attaching photos so you can see these crooks for who they are. The wife's name is Malia Munetake-Oili. I am 37 weeks pregnant and was supposed to have this home to live in with my husband and newborn, and now I can't because we have to find others who have to redo this man's poor work. He was the seemingly "Yes Man"- saying that he could do any job throughout the house. The electrician today said "do not touch the breaker box- these are all live wires and can electrocute someone at any time". The plumber said "whoever did this was downright stupid and had zero idea of what he was doing". The man who looked at the countertops said "I can salvage what I can but the counters aren't even level and the cabinets are all hung with a huge gap from the wall and are hanging with the wrong materials". This man not only robbed us of our money and hardware but our peace of mind as well. I am going through so much emotional distress since J had to also personally finish outdoor projects with my husband that Joseph said he would do. Please note that we have plenty of video footage so we should be able to catch this crook and his wife, but I want to share this so people won't get caught in his web of lies. Also, please know that Joseph is the ultimate "talker". He will make you feel comfortable over the phone, and even in person! But, his work shows for itself. Plus, the forged license as well. My mother was robbed on Halloween of last year, my father has cancer and has been moved to the mainland for further treatment, and we have been waiting to finish this project so that we can move over with him and now this has happened. PLEASE be aware and DO NOT HIRE THIS CROOK! PLEASE help me to share his photo- he still has not returned our items and is going around doing other jobs so that he can get money. This man and his wife do not deserve to live in such peace while we are struggling like this. Joseph, if you see this, SEE YOU IN COURT.

Joe has completed several projects for the rental properties I manage over the years. He's always…read moremade deadlines that are crucial for vacation rentals. His rates are always fair and transparent. I always go to him for his technical expertise on jobs that many contractors and handyman companies cannot solve.

I'd like to clarify the contractor's assumption that "modifications" we made to the bathroom caused…read morethe leak. The only change made after his work was installing a standard shower door on a walk-in shower -- something any homeowner would reasonably need in order to actually use the shower. Expecting a family to shower without a door is unrealistic. A shower door is a simple surface-level addition and has no impact on plumbing, waterproofing, or the behind-the-wall work that later failed. Multiple professionals have since confirmed that the leak originated inside the wall, not from anything we installed afterward. I'm adding this update so future customers are not misinformed by the business owner's assumptions. My original concerns remain the same.

We used IWR again for a larger rental remodel project and couldn't have been happier with the…read moreoutcome! Matt easily worked with us to expand the living and closet space in the Master Bedroom, renovated the bathrooms, created a new laundry area, installed new rain gutters, and did an excellent job creating an open concept kitchen/living room - all within our budget and timeframe! Matt always went above and beyond to communicate on progress, made awesome suggestions, and provided options for the overall design plan, flooring, tile, fixtures, paint, etc. That made it easy for us, provided a peace of mind that we knew we could trust his judgment. In addition, his positive vibe made it easy to communicate our ideas and vision - which he made it happen! Because of him, we were able to get the unit rented out immediately! Mahalo again, Matt! We will definitely refer our family and friends to you. Can't wait til the next project! ;) Note: I included both old/new photos to show the progress throughout the project.

Finally have time to write a review…read more 1 star-quick response 1 star-initial friendly interaction Total 2 stars I experienced a very quick response & positive in person interaction with Jay initially. Then the communication started to decrease, then it was sparse with me having to text requesting an update and to send an invoice & contract. This all happened June/Jujy 2024....Then no additional communication after....totally ghosted! So very disappointing. I was willing to working with their busy schedule too. The good thing is that we didn't pay any money yet so we were lucky. I wish I was given the courtesy of being informed that this company was unable to complete the job.

They were very quick to come out and scope the job, but since then we lost all contact from them…read more They haven't answered my multiple messages and phone calls for a status on our proposal. If you don't have time to kill from silence, don't bother with this kind of business.

We had badly water-damaged baseboards and door jams in two locations. I did a quote request on Yelp…read moreand got a few responses, but only Miguel at Five Star offered to come to check what the job required beforehand. I requested hard wood to replace the damaged sections. Miguel measured and took extensive pictures. To avoid the cost of replacing two entire door frames, he offered to cut out the damaged parts and fashion replacement parts by hand. Same for the baseboards as nothing 'ready-made' from Home Depot even came close. Two days later they showed up loaded for bear. A large power table saw mitre saw, power sanders a bunch of other tools AND one mahogany plank. What I thought was a fairly simple job was actually quite complicated. They did a fantastic job! Miguel is a licensed contractor with much skill and experience. I was looking for a handyman, but got lucky and got a pro! Bottom line is you get what you pay for. Other bottom line - wife was really happy with the work.

I cannot recommend Five Star Restoration enough! From the moment they arrived, the team was…read moreincredibly professional, courteous, and efficient. They handled our [mention project, e.g., water damage/remodel] with such precision--the craftsmanship is impeccable, and you can tell they don't cut corners. They also kept the workspace spotless every day, which made a huge difference. If you're looking for a contractor you can actually trust to get the job done right the first time, this is the team to call!