Constraction reviews across the US

My wife and I used Big Monkey for a renovation project this summer. I was delaying providing my feedback in the hopes that I'd be able to provide a 5 star rating. I rely on these type of reviews, so I know what to expect when trying to find a contractor and I wanted to share my feedback, so you can make sure your expectation are met if you plan accordingly.

Pros: Jared is a very nice guy and in person he was great to work with.
The quality of the work performed by Kevin (Jared's bathroom specialist) for our bathroom renovation was excellent. His work went well beyond our expectations. We had a tile shower installed and it looks like it could have been from a showroom floor. He also worked very hard to make sure we were happy with the results of his work. Very happy with this part of our project.

Cons: I'd recommend getting a detailed estimate of your project to ensure your satisfaction. There were some details that we spoke about in our initial consultation that were not completed as we spoke about and the summary estimate provided for the work was too high level for us to make the point. Unfortunately we ended up not getting exactly what we had discussed. This is partially my fault for accepting the estimate without the details about what we discussed. Also the work was suppose to be warrantied; however after I made the final payment and tried to have an issue addressed my concerns were not addressed an I ultimately ended up fixing the issue myself.

Jared and his crew just did multiple jobs for us. New deck, rot repair, fixing things another contractor screwed up, and a new Master Bath. Wonderful job all around. We already have another job for him on the books. Jared is amazing to work with and his crew is top notch! Such a friendly and hard working crew! You can't go wrong hiring Jared and his crew. We are so happy we chose Big Monkey to help get our house ready for market!!

Jared was very thorough and explained exactly what was wrong with my shed windows from a prior builder. He showed me how they should work and how easy of a fix it will be. He said he'd have some workers out soon. He saw my veteran flag in the yard and offered a veteran discount. This is solid appreciation for veterans and n awesome work model. Thanks Jared!

What an amazing job Jared and his team did on remodeling my shower! Beautiful work! I’m so glad Jared was able to fit me into his busy schedule on short notice. The team was hard working, completed all work in a timely manner and left the place clean. Jared takes pride in his work, and kept in close touch with me to make sure everything was progressing as it was supposed to.
I highly recommend Jared and his team for any project in your home. Saadia H

Great work! Brought my inspiration picture to life! Thanks so much - the team of guys were amazing and so kind.

We’re thoroughly happy with the work that Big Monkey Renovations did to redo our backyard deck. They replaced the deck surface, added new railings, extended a section and built new stairs. Co-owner Jared Watson is great to work with, along with his crew who completed the work with no delay. The workmanship is top notch.

Another good point is that Big Monkey Renovation is that the homeowner pays for the supplies. There is no markup on supplies.

We’re already planning on BMR to redo our siding and windows.

Highly recommended!

So very thankful for Jared and the crew. We needed to install 2 windows in an exterior wall ---- meaning we were cutting a big hole into our home to add two windows. Jared's crew actually came to our home for the project while we were out of town on vacation. To help us feel comfortable with the project, they would send pictures during the process.....but to be honest, it only took them 2 days start to finish....when we came back our house looked amazing. Project completely done and cleaned up. Highly recommend Big Monkey Reno.

I can't say enough good things about the entire Big Monkey team. They have done a TON of work for me this summer, fully renovating my kitchen, hall bath, and laundry room, removing popcorn ceilings in the whole house and installing crown molding, rebuilding a balcony, and installing two sliding glass doors, both of which required changes to walls and exterior work to match the house. I straight up love these guys. The crew have been a pleasure to have in my home, have gone above and beyond for me, improvised adapted and overcome on countless challenges, got me thinking about the things I hadn't considered, and were kind and patient with all my questions. Jared and Tracy are attentive thorough and highly responsive. Seriously don't bother calling anyone else. This is the one.

The scope of work was a backdoor replacement. The installation was fine, but scheduling communication was very poor and they never came back to finish painting and staining.

Big Monkey repaired two exterior doors. One door the frame was too tight and the other frame was too wide. Both doors were fixed and painted like brand new. This was our fourth Big Monkey project and have been very satisfied with each one.

I would absolutely recommend Big Monkey Renovation & Repair and already do to my personal contacts. We've had Jared and his team out for a few jobs and have more planned for the future. We needed our kitchen ceiling job (adding textured boards to the ceiling and other wood work) finished out that we started and crown installed all over the downstairs and they did a great job. Next, I noticed our front porch pillars were rotting and Jared made sure to get out right away due to the issue at hand and also helped me identify we had other exterior siding issues and even a hole in the chimney, so we had his team fix and repair exterior siding and other issues. Because it was a water issue, they fit us in the schedule ASAP to ensure no further damage was incurred. I was so appreciative of the care he took in scheduling us in right away and was clear in estimates all along the way. Next, we'll have them out to help with a small bath remodel that we've already discussed.

I appreciate the straight forward and transparent nature in which Jared and the team do business and they've ensured that each job was done to their and our standards. I won't call anyone else at this point to do repair or renovation jobs because I already found someone we trust. Thank you Jared and the whole team!

Jared and his team at Big Monkey Renovation were great! They were quick to respond for a quote, the pricing was very fair and the workmanship was detailed and well done. We had more than 15 lights and ceiling fans switched out and a patch of drywall repaired and repainted. Everyone we worked with on our job was knowledgeable and professional. We will definitely be using Big Monkey Renovation again.

Big Monkey recently completed a whole house renovation of my mother's home who passed in March of this year. I was a little nervous going in to this as I have had bad experiences with contractors in the past. Jared and his team relieved me from this stress by providing excellent service, timely communication, attention to detail and quality of workmanship. They showed up when they said they would. They were prompt with completing the 30 day punch list. As to be expected with a renovation of a 40 year old home, unexpected things popped up. Jared handled these with extreme professionalism and compassion. Special shout out to members of his crew. Alex, Angel, Kevin, and Christina were amazing and takes great pride in their work. Jared also referred me to Bianco painting, D&D Trees and Churchill glass who also were fantastic to deal with. I am so thankful I found Big Monkey.

Where do I start. Bought a new house here after escaping California over 8 years ago. One would think a 'new house' would not need much inspection or repair etc. Big Money found 30 pages of builder defects and mistakes - protected me before contracts were signed. Before we moved in, Big Monkey had ceiling fans & crown moldings. Installed. I asked them if they could match the existing wood flooring into the master bedroom including walk in closet - DONE. They upgraded out shower, out vanities, out lighting. Big Monkey built a custom screened rear patio with tile floor and lighting. Big money turned the upstairs loft into a big home office / 4th bedroom. Garage shelving installed, squared off wall-ceilings turned in to arches, pantry door replaced with etched glass door, soft close cabinets with pull-out storage, exterior fencing and more. each time work done as promised on time and at or under budget. Nuff' said...

Fair pricing for our shower renovation, competent crew, friendly, on time, considerate of homeowner's property, cleaned up after each day and had the job done in a timely manner. When there was a small issued it was attended to promptly. This review was made on the day the job was completed--so far we are pleased.

Big Monkey Renovation and Repair just completed a big project for me. I had my entire back wall with two windows and a door taken out and replaced with a 3 pane glass slider door. Jared Watson, the owner, listened to what I wanted, gave me a fair quote and stayed in constant and transparent communication throughout the entire project. His crew arrived every day at 8:00 am and worked constantly until 4:30-5:00. They were very efficient and made sure my property was clean and tidy before leaving for the day. Alex and Angel led the crew and made sure I had all my questions answered every step of the way. Christina and Joe, the cleanup crew, made everything sparkle before turning it back over to me to enjoy. "Jared, thank you for all you and your company has done for me. It has been an awesome experience."

I highly recommend Big Monkey Renovation and Repair!!!

Job: Demo prior owners DIY small ground level deck and build new larger ground level deck.

Overall: Deck turned out okay, however forgetting to purchase and install weed barrier like in the quote did not go over well for me. For me, I just can't deal with Jared again for any project, he's too forgetful and scattered. I just don't think he does well on the business/administrative side of things which is VERY important for an owner. I would not recommend Big Monkey. I've captured some points below but there were more as well.

1. Like others have said. Jared promises during quote no payment (except materials) until job is done. Jared hit me up for checks every day his team was working (for labor). I was fully paid before job was done (big mistake, see below).
2. During quote process Jared promised me 20% discount for month of July being a veteran (he does 10% standard, but company was running a special that month). He forgot about it and it came to a head with him making accusations that I was using my own numbers and that's not the way it goes, also I should be lucky that I'm paying so little (he wanted originally $1125 more). Needless to say they were his numbers and finally after stressful communication he all of a sudden remembered. Jared his highly forgetful!
3. Jared forgot the weed barrier that's supposed to be installed over the ground (below the deck). Needless to say this was included in the quote. Personally this was very important to me. Highly forgetful!

Update 10/9/19: It only took a couple weeks for weeds to start growing through the deck flooring. It will have to be something we monitor and maintain for the duration of the deck. I would have picture but wife pulled them too fast.

4. The original plan was that my powder room to be done at the same time in parallel to the deck (this was via email & phone). Jared indicated all I would need to supply is the tile. A week before I told Jared that my wife and I would be out of town and wouldn't feel quite comfortable with strangers in the house. His response?........."I had only planned on doing the deck that week anyway so we're good there." I know maybe no harm no foul on that but it just goes to paint the picture how forgetful this man is. Highly forgetful!
5. His quote included the demo and removal of materials for my older DIY deck. They did not remove all materials (cement pavers are still sitting in my backyard). Jared did come to remove the newly purchased (leftover) wood and indicated he wasn't taking the remainder of the old deck materials. I said but your quote included them, he replied back that he would send somebody to pick it up. Obviously that never happened (since he already got paid in full) since it's not cost effective to him.
6. He and his crew left behind trash like empty liquid nail containers, water bottles, etc. in the pile of pavers they were suppose to remove. Now I have to clean up their trash. This especially makes me mad since Jared came out to pick up that extra (leftover) wood, he and I walked over to the pile where we discussed that the pavers were included in the demo/removal portion of quote and he just picked up what he thought was worthwhile stuff he could reuse and didn't bother with the trash his company left behind. I mean he was right there!
7. One of his crew members just decided to urinate in my back yard at the end of the day (this I saw first hand). I back up to woods, just take a short walk, knock on my door, something! I don't think people would appreciate crew members just urinating on their property as they see fit.
8. Crew left a hardened cement pile in my back yard, now I have to chip through it and remove it all.
9. Jared never came by the last day to do final inspection of the project like he says he does during the quote process.

My husband is battling brain cancer and is recently immobile. Big Monkey was able to widen our bathroom doorway quickly so that I can get him into the bathroom with his wheelchair, and it looks great. I will definitely be calling them for projects in the future!!

Proverbs 22:29 summarizes the Big Monkey renovation and repair team: "Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials of low rank." Big Monkey is a world-class renovation company right here in Fuquay! We love the custom made book shelves they build on site. The attention to detail, craftsmanship, and work efficiency was impressive. Worth every dollar spent!

Horrible experience. Would not refer to anyone. There are too many details to list on how Jared and his team at big monkey didn't satisfy the job they did. Based on their contact they state they will not request payment until they have finished the job and the customer is completely satisfied. At the end of the week, when the job was not even half way finished - they were requesting a check which was cashed. Since they had their money they did not make sure it was satisfactory work. The pictures I’m uploading are how they left the deck when they were done the first time. Not even nailed down. Second time they used a hammer and nail.

Jared and Tracy were very nice to work with during our home project. Jared is very knowledgeable and answered all of our questions. The job consisted of replacing our front door and exhaust vents on the exterior of our home. Kevin and Christina from
Jared’s team did an outstanding job. They were very nice to work with, personable and their attention to detail was appreciated. We would highly recommend Big Monkey and look forward to working with them again for future projects.