John Russell Construction Co.

We contracted with John to do a complete tear-out and remodel of our master bathroom as well as a the construction of a closet with built-in drawers & shelving, paint, lighting in our master bedroom. (See photos that John uploaded-Master Suite remodel) I was impressed with John from the start and his pricing was above average as compared to the other Lake Jackson General Contractors from which we received bids. Pros John is very knowledgeable, a good communicator and very detailed oriented and when there are points in the project when you hit a snag, something unexpected happens (always does) or specific client input is needed on materials and finishes, John is very consultative and never rushes through that part. He has a good relationship with Houston-area and local suppliers and showrooms for tile, fixtures, etc. John is also very adept with autoCAD and his projects renderings were excellent. John uses subcontractors as do all the other GCs in town and for the most part they were quite good except for the drywallers. Overall we were pleased with the attention to quality and detail and John's willingness to correct things that were not right. In fact John does detail work himself when he wants it done really well. Cons Like some of the other reviewers here, the time overrun became a real issue. We were new to town and had just purchased the home and couldn't really move into our master bedroom until the project was completed, and so it was extremely frustrating to return home during the week and see that nothing had been done when you are waiting to sleep in your own bedroom and have just moved into your house. In fact John even took summer vacation himself for a week in the middle of the project! Even though we complained about the overruns, John didn't propose a solution or really seek to reset our expectations, and at one point at the end of the project it even got heated because it seemed to my wife and I that John was either unwilling or unable to get his subs to have any urgency. So, John is not going to do anything in a hurry. BE FOREWARNED - you'll get quality and attention to detail but it will come at the expense of significant time overruns. John is using the same subs as many of the other GCs. Additionally, even though change orders were clearly addressed in the contract we signed, we were only presented with one change order during the project on a change we made that wasn't in the original scope of work. We made other changes as well, but those change orders didn't arrive until final payment and he charged us for small stuff like floating walls smooth rather than texturing it which takes more time and labor but which should have communicated to us at the time instead of lumping it all in with end-of-project change orders. That said, I would use John again. His work is very good. I would just make sure that change orders are submitted at the time so there are no surprises on the back end and I would add additional time to his timeline, so as not to be frustrated when he overshoots it. (4 out of 5 stars for project time overruns).

We used John Russell Construction to remodel our 30 year old kitchen. John met with us and discussed our ideas and he also made some great suggestions. He provided us with brouchers and web sites to choose tile, backsplash, countertops, cabinets, pulls, appliances etc. His attention to detail was great and are very pleased with the final product and have had many favorable compliments from friends and family. It may have taken a little longer than we planned, but would rather have a great finish than one done on time that we were not happy with.

We contacted John Russell to give us a bid on a master bath repair and remodel. We scheduled an appointment. We met, he looked at our bathroom, he gave us a rough estimate and time frame. This meeting took place on a Friday. He told us that by "Monday at the latest" he would email us pictures. We didn't receive any pictures and we haven't heard back from him since our initial meeting. Very poor business practice. If he wasn't interested in the job, he should have just said so.

I recently suffered the loss of one leg as a result of an accident while working abroad. My wife and I wanted to remodel our home to be handicap accessible as well as making other major modifications to create an open floor plan.We contacted John Russell Construction after we became disenchanted with another builder we were working with on our initial design. As part of the open plan concept we were told that the theme we wanted was not possible or practical. After John visited the site he returned with anew design which incorporated a remodeled master bedroom, closets and master bath. The changes being suggested were not only ADA compliant but also esthetically pleasing. Additionally he also agreed that the open concept we wanted in the main living area was absolutely something that he could make happen.Our living room was separated from the kitchen and dining area with a full structural wall which John removed by installing an engineered beam in the attic to support the roof and ceilings and eliminating the need for the dividing wall. Now we can use the entire home without restrictions and the work performed by John Russell Construction is very well done and our home is both functional and beautiful. The work included flooring, sheetrock, plumbing, tile, cabinets and other elements which all blend seamlessly and is impossible to distinguish the old from the new.The project was a major undertaking and the job went very well. I would use John again and would recommend him to tackle any substantial remodel. My wife and I love our new home! Murray H. and Hope Griffin

John, remodeled our kitchen and two bathrooms. Work was good quality but be prepared for significant time overruns, we agreed to 16 weeks which was plenty of time and it took 23 weeks. After exceeding the due date he would not commit to a date when it would be done. Surprised us with a cost overrun on the flooring selected, we thought we selected what was in our budget and only after he started installation 2 months after we selected the tile he told us it was a $2500 overrun. He could easily have told us within the 2 months between the selection and beginning installation so we could select a different tile. He is difficult to communicate with and at one point refused to talk to us face to face or on the phone only thru email which complicated the project.

John rebuilt our master bathroom in its entirety. This included removing a cast iron hot tube, a walk in shower, the lighting fixtures and the counter tops. He replaced these with a tiled walk in shower with glass doors and a sloping floor without a ledge, dual shower heads at both ends of the shower and a bench perfectly sized to 17 inches. The old shower stall became a new closet with 4 foot by 6 foot bifold doors and a uniquely designed cabinet piece with sliding doors for shoe boxes. Lighting is mostly recessed :LED fixtures except for 4 sconces with LED bulbs. The counter tops are now granite custom picked by us. A piece of the granite serves as the seating area of the bench. The tiles, granite, fixtures and paint are beautifully color coordinated to give a harmonious and pleasing whole. John, with his helper Lee performed most of the work. This includes the demolition, plumbing, electrical and all the tile work including pouring the new floor an perfectly sloping it to give good drainage. The construction is mechanically solid, well thought out and nicely implemented. Top Notch. Cleanup was through each day and dust was controlled by a 650 CFM ventilation van that worked beautifully. John is sensitive to the customers needs and desires and works to help him achieve his wishes. If John has a fault, and he does, its in his scheduling. He has no respect for schedules or customer inconvenience. John stated our job was a 30 day job but contracted to complete it in 60 days and then took 106 days to finish it Sadly John understood the work required. He simply did not put forth the effort to finis the job in a timely manner. Would I use John Again? Yes, I would. But the contract would contain a penalty clause for missed deadlines.. Pictures of this project are on the houzz website.

We originally contacted John for a repair of a leaking stand-alone shower that had been repaired twice before. He described the needed work which was almost a complete rebuild, but then suggested it would be much more useful/enjoyable as well as helpful to the home value to replace the old & unused whirlpool tub in the center of the bathroom with a new walk-in shower and eliminate the old, leaking shower altogether. He described his previous projects where he had done this and provided many details on how it could be done and various design features that could be utilized. We accepted his offer to provide a quote based on the new scope. He came back within days with drawings, a schedule, more suggestions and a bid. After considerable discussion about how the project would be managed, we signed a contract. The work proceeded well. John was regularly on site and kept a close eye on progress. He fully explained what was going on and how they were going to handle the work. Not only does John manage the work, but periodically he will do the work himself as he did on some plumbing and electrical. He has the knowledge of how to do the work which allows him to police how the subcontractors are doing. There were several Change Orders, some a result of unknowns which he warned us about and many others where we decided to make upgrades as we refined our design once we saw it unfolding. John was upfront about the costs involved and assured we were okay with all aspects of the changes prior to proceeding with them. John does not allow for substandard work. While he knows you can't get perfection, he insists that everything be done to the customer's satisfaction, if not his own. There were two measurement errors by subcontractors that required rework and caused substantial delays. John stayed on top of these to ensure the end product was correct as well as mitigating the delays as best he could. The project ended up taking 3 months versus the projected 2, but there was little that John could have done to stop that. Overall, we were very pleased with the work and the end result. What you get with John that is different from many contractors is his combination of project management and design skills. Not only can he coordinate the necessary crews and manage them well, he can provide design guidance based on his 30 years of experience and his innate design skills. He knows what works well together from a design standpoint and knows how to build the designs. His business mantra is "Residential Artistry" and that describes well the service he provides.

I have used John for several projects ranging from taking out walls, to replacing windows, to a complete kitchen remodel. His work is not done until he is satisfied. He knows my likes and dislikes and suggests products and finishes that work beautifully. I can trust him and his men in my home, even if I am not there. I feel that his work has increased the value of our home and made it more livable. I look forward to the bathroom remodel on which we are collaborating.

John Russell has done six projects for us over the past nine years. He is very particular that the work is done correctly and makes sure any of the contractors he uses meet his standards. He did a bathroom remodel ,kitchen update ,bedroom updates adding crown moulding and shelves. We also recommended John to our daughter when she bought a home in the area and she has been happy with the work he has done. I would recommend him.

Our project consisted of an three car garage addition, complete remodel of the master bathroom and the kitchen and some updating for the powder room. We were very pleased with the quality of work that John Russell provided for us and would hire him again for any future project. I believe he can do anything - his design work is outstanding and we knew exactly what was going on throughout the entire process. He really listens to what your want and works very hard to make it happen.