Golden Acre Renovations

Jay and his crew did a great job on our master bedroom renovation. He was easy to communicate with if ever we had any questions or concerns. The work was done on schedule and we were always made aware of any additional costs--of which, there were very few. Jay has a lot of experience and was great at working with our designer to make sure our vision was delivered. My wife and I will most definitely work with Golden Acre Renovations on all our future renovation projects.

Golden Acre turned our typical suburban house in to a wonderful, modern home. Jay Doty and his team of subcontractors worked well with our design team prior to and throughout the renovation. Golden Acre's subcontractors were a great help in helping us understand all their work scopes as well as (in numerous occasions) helped us reduce costs and stay practical while maintaining the high level of quality we demanded. We also upgraded a number of features (such as lighting, some bathroom items) using Jay's recommendations while staying within our budget plan. We used Golden Acre's suppliers for the bulk of our materials without any reservations. Some of our flooring requirements were supplied by alternative vendor as the material was not available elsewhere. We appreciated that Jay and his team was able to work outside of his normal vendor selection without complaint or additional challenges. Prestige's cabinetry work always get our home compliments from visitors. Golden Acre delivered a full home renovation on time and within our budget. Due to the needs of our children, Jay was pressed to complete the work in a firm time frame. The home was delivered within one week of our commitment date made prior to any work. This more than reasonable completion time kept us from exceeding our budget and negatively affecting our family life as we moved out to rental accommodations during the project. We only had 1-2 unplanned costs arise during the project. We were able to manage these as Jay had prepared us ahead of time as some unknown issues when we started (condition of sub-floor etc. - which had to be replaced). To be honest, we added a number of features we had never thought of during the project. Jay helped us keep us grounded and not get off track. In the subsequent year since our renovation, Jay has always been available to discuss and rectify any concerns that arise (all have been minor, such as a cabinet door replacement, shower head alignment and the odd paint touch up etc.). It should be noted that we had an independent, 3rd party review of the work prior to accepting the home back and no significant issues were identified. Minor corrections to paint and some cabinetry was made and we still turned the home over back to us within 24 hours. We expected more issues and are happy to be wrong on this. For what it is worth, Jay had promised up front that his goal was to not just deliver our renovation but to ensure we were friends at the end of the work. Jay was right. I do consider him a friend and highly recommend his services on whatever project you might have.

I guess we took a risk in hiring Jay because we knew almost nothing about him, nor about Golden Acre, beforehand. We chose him to do our kitchen and laundry room renovation just based on meeting him at the Calgary Home Show. Well, we got lucky. In short, we ended up with a gorgeous, professional new kitchen virtually on time and on budget. No disappointments. No conflicts. No cost overruns. No delays. No corners cut. We couldn't be happier. Jay knows his business. I was impressed with how he coordinated his sub-trades so well. They were all highly-skilled craftsmen who did excellent work and were good, trustworthy people who were a pleasure to have working in our home. I also appreciated that Jay's experience allowed him to recommend options when we were not sure exactly what we wanted, often giving us the opportunity to save money. Jay seems to have great relationships with suppliers such as the cabinet and granite people, so he was able to seamlessly schedule them in. The job progressed right according to schedule and there were hardly more than a few days when no one was at the house working - no big gaps with no progress while he worked other jobs. This was our second renovation, so we are not new to this, yet as hard as I try to come up with even one small complaint about this job, I can't do it. My recommendation is that if you choose this company you're very likely to be completely satisfied with the job when all is said and done.

Jay took over the renovation of my home after the previous contractor suddenly went out of business. The renovation consisted of refinishing hardwood floors on both levels, a complete revamp of the kitchen, two new bathrooms, new paint, interior trim,doors, etc. Golden Acres took over just after the demolition stage and Jay provided a lot of good advice and design tips to help fill in the blanks where design details were not yet finalized. A big factor in choosing any contractor is the quality of the subs that they use. The people Jay works with are excellent. I regularly get compliments on the finishing of my home, particularly the floor and tile work. Jay and his people were always professional and courteous. Pricing was quoted ahead of time in detail and there were no surprises when the bill came. He helped turn around what had started out as a disaster and I would have no reservations about recommending Golden Acres to others.

I highly recommend Golden Acre Renovations..They handled our renovations in a very professional manner, and were very accommodating to any changes that we had made . A. Ternes

I'm very happy with the results from Golden Acre Renovations. Jay and his trades guys really know their stuff and were able to provide sound suggestions and advice, which was important to me as this was my first major renovation. Jay was a good project manager and once started, work progressed smoothly and on time and only deviated from budget upon request of extra work. My only 'glitches' came right at the beginning, when I had some communication issues with another member of staff, but Jay sorted it out and after he stepped in, things went well. The finished product was great!

Jay Doty at Golden Acre provided material and labour estimates for a renovation that were thousands and thousands of dollars above subsequent industry quotes (which I unfortunately obtained after the fact). He took undisclosed margins on materials purchased from public retail stores. He took 21 weeks to complete a renovation which he personally scheduled to be done in 6-8 weeks. He took a high management fee to source and manage the trades, but left on vacation 3-4 times and had me (a mother of two) manage the trades. He wanted me to pay thousands for errors made under his purview. He did not complete the job to satisfaction (he would not paint the interior cabinets the same colour or finish a small piece of trim) and told me that I specifically asked for these defects. Then he said he would "fix" these, but for more money! It was only after the refusal to finish the job that I learned just how ripped off I was. I had professional general contractors come and assess my project. They believed demolition costs, mill work, plumbing, electricians, tilers, drywallers, even waste removal was over charged by 100-800%. They quickly identified approximately $10,000 in questionable unsubstantiated costs and suspected more regarding the granite. They told me to ask Jay about it. When I did Jay threatened to put a builders lien on my house if I didn't pay everything and would not discuss anything. I feel like a fool for having trusted Jay at Golden Acre. He took every advantage of my ignorance at the costs of these things. He made statements to increase my trust in him, while he was lying the whole time. Before I signed the original contract he said something like, "I went through each item three times trying to find anywhere I could to save you money, but..." One item he was referring to was padded by possibly $2,000 (demolition). Another by maybe $1,500 (plumbing). He was just lying so I would do business with him without too many questions. I wouldn't have done business with him if I knew the profits he had been planning to take. Educate yourself on how much items should cost (kijiji a few services for quick reference). Renovation companies are to be fixed-price businesses if they are registered under Service Alberta (make sure your reno company is registered with state/provincial bodies if possible!) That means they have to provide the total cost to the renovation in a contract before it starts and must be within 10% at the end unless any extra expenditures are approved (such as YOU requesting a large change in scope not errors or mismanaged labour). When general contractors tell you that's a real cost, DON'T just trust them. Ask for verification. Ask how much profit they plan to make. I agreed to $3,000 but it looks like Jay's plan could have been to keep more than $10,000. Be your own general contractor! With sites like Houzz, it's easier than you think. Renovation companies have bad reputations for a reason!

I renovated my townhouse condo with the replacement of the fireplace, replacement of the jet tub with an air tub, replacement of the carpeting, tiling of the bathroom wall, tiling of floors and repainting. I am very happy with the changes and the success of the project lies with having Jay at Golden Acres as my contractor. Jay is a man of integrity and was dedicated to make sure that every step of the project was completed right. His subcontractors that came to work at my place were respectful and knew exactly what needed to be done. Like Jay, the subcontractors worked hard to make sure I was satisfied.

We work with Golden Acre Renovations on a regular basis. We have always been impressed with the professionalism and quality of the projects. Working with Golden Acre Renovations is always a pleasant endeavor. Golden Acre Renovations are experienced, as well as proficient. We look forward to all future projects.

Golden Acre Renovations did a major renovation of my 32 year old house in Calgary, Canada. The job consisted of completely redoing the kitchen and 2 1/2 bathrooms, replacing the windows and doors, adding a small window and skylight over the stairwell, repainting the entire interior of the house and replacing most of the flooring, and adding a sun room and backyard deck. The majority of the work was completed on time. Some of the smaller items at the end of the job took a bit longer to do, but that was to do more with some of the subcontractors focusing on bigger jobs elsewhere at that time.

General contracting services for home renovation; scope included painting, flooring, trim, lighting, electrical, bathroom upgrades, cabinetry, drywall, doors, windows, fixtures. Jay is an honest, ethical contractor who provided accurate estimates and consulted with the homeowner when unexpected contingencies arose. Jay is a good communicator, always answered his phone and was pleasant to deal with. No detail was too small for him to deal with. Jay was very respectful of our home environment - we lived in our home during the renovation! I would recommend Jay to others seeking home renovation services.