General Contractor reviews in Cincinnati, Ohio

Not sure if they are really in business. One man show who is trying to find help to do the job? Can't get a quote after initial visit within 30 days. Past performance in reviews may not be an indication of present or future performance. Something must have seriously changed within the company.

We went under contract with the Finished Basement LLC on 17 Sep 2018 with a start date of 10 Oct 2018. The project was supposed to take 6 weeks. The project was completed on 18 Dec 2018 due to continual engagement by us as owners to help manage the completion and continue to push the owner to get the job done correctly. There were too many issues to name them all, but here are the top ones:
1. Overall, our project did not seem like a priority for the company. The onsite manager admitted he was overwhelmed with the number of projects he was overseeing and unable to provide adequate oversight of our project. This caused the project to take several weeks longer than contracted, several breaks in work of a week or more, and for us to be dissatisfied with the level of service and how we were treated throughout the process. We would not recommend this company to anyone from a management perspective. They were disrespectful, unengaged, and unprofessional. The actual workers that were contracted out were excellent, but it was overshadowed by the management.
2. The owner was reluctant to give us an itemized bill for the project. Once we forced the owner to give us an itemized bill by withholding the last payment, we recognized 2 accounting mistakes that charged us for work that had not been performed. We do not believe it was malicious, but the accounting was not accurate and the company made no effort to fix it. We had to find and fix the accounting errors on our own. The “itemized” list was not really itemized. There was no breakdown for supplies or labor. It was a flat fee for items, even when the work had not been performed. We never received notice that our final bill was paid. The owner cashed the last check and never visited the project to see if it had been done, did not ask us for any feedback, and has made no contact.
3. We ended up having to manage the manager. There were two of them and they were not very effective at organizing the correct support and coordinating with us for access to the home. The onsite manager was not honest with us about whether or not he had scheduled appointments with the county. He had something personal going on with the county inspector and it caused our project to be delayed. He was replaced by the owner. However, the replacement onsite manager was fired from the company about 2 weeks after that and we received the same dishonest onsite manager from before. We asked for a schedule of the work to be completed and the projected schedule since the project timeline was busted. We were told each week that this would occur and never received anything in writing. The onsite manager would promise to be present and not show up. He would tell us there would be no work on a particular day and then workers would show up. One of the onsite managers even asked us who the workers were and what they were working on that showed up one day.
4. The workers routinely stored trash and supplies in our garage and in our storage closet without coordination or permission. We had to engage the owner in order to get them to remove the trash because too much had piled up.

Hired The Finished Basement (FB) company for a basement remodel in November 2020. My neighbor had used them and found there work acceptable. My opinion is different. If you are looking for a contractor to just finish your basement and do not care about quality or how it is done, then this company will do that for you. If you are concerned about getting what you want and making sure it is done right, then keep on reading. Things you need to know before hiring this company:
1. Contracts are vague and do not provide details for work. I had my three pages of requirements added as an addendum to the contract.
2. Told that all people working for FB were employees. They used contractors.
3. Their project manager only schedules work crews and handles county inspections. Does not review contractors work and make sure requirements followed. Makes excuses every time here is an issue. You must force them to fix issues by withholding payment.
4. You must make sure contractors are doing the work correctly and to your expected quality level.
5. FB does not review contractor’s work. Only care that it can pass inspection.
6. County inspectors doing permit reviews virtually (not on site) miss issues because they only see what the project manager shows them on his phone. He will skip over known issues to get the inspection passed because they do not care about quality.
7. Project manager does not read work contracts signed by owner.
8. FB may use cheaper products that what they tell you they use (i.e., Spray Foam)
9. FB does not honor their warranty and will not fix issues after final payment. I have had an electrical issue with some of the new breakers tripping after a power outage. Been trying to get FB to fix the issue for a year. Cannot get them to come fix the problem.

Issues with contractor’s work:
1. I had to explain design plan to contractors when they arrived on site.
2. Contractors never asked you to review work, they just leave when done.
3. Framers did not allow for extra thick drywall (for soundproofing) when framing soffits causing cabinets to not fit correctly. Cabinets had to be modified to fit in space and doors open into walls since 1” spacing between wall and cabinets had to be eliminated.
4. Framers did not properly secure many wall 2x4s.
5. Framers incorrectly installed floor joist bridge blocking and left some out.
6. Framers incorrectly framed out soffit so cabinet would not fit under it.
7. Framers installed framing touching hot water line so rubbed and squeaked when hot water used.
8. Electrician forgot to wire for a row of can lights in the ceiling.
9. Electrician did not allow for double thick drywall for ceiling light boxes. (set to deep)
10. Plumber wanted to install sink drain venting that was not up to code.
11. Plumber moved a waste line and put it right next to a hot water line causing them to rub together and squeak when hit water used.
12. Plumber did not install nail plates on 2x4 with pipes through them.
13. Spray insulation installer sprayed code at a thickness from ½ inch to 4 inches in depth when code requires 2 inches of foam for insulation. Did not spray behind 2x4s in corners and missed other spots. Manager tried to fill areas with fire block foam.

Good things:
1. Framers’ laser leveled and squared all walls to near perfect.
2. Framers listened and worked well with me as design requirements were explained. We discussed how they were going to build something before they did it to try and make sure it was what I wanted.
3. Nothing good about the plumber.
4. Drywall crew did a really nice job with only a few fixes need before painting.
5. Finishing crew (framers) did a nice job fitting cabinets into shortened space.
6. Finishing crew did nice job on baseboards and laminate flooring.
Overall I’m happy with the basement now that it is done, but I had to do A LOT of work to make sure I got what I wanted. Cost without cabinets, countertop, flooring, lighting, and painting: $24,970.

Can’t speak highly enough about the finished basement. We recently had an issue with water getting under our finished vinyl plank flooring (my fault for forgetting to clean out the gutters last fall). I had to remove pieces of the flooring to dry it out underneath. I let them know that I would need help replacing the pieces of flooring that were removed. Mind you this is a couple months after they completed our basement. Matt responded promptly and they came out the next day and replaced the damaged flooring. Wally, Matt and Aaron have been amazing though the whole process. Me and my wife are very satisfied.

If a 4.5 was possible, I'd go with that. But I grade tough, so 4 stars it is. Nobody's going to be totally perfect with a project of this size, but these guys were darn close. Overall, excellent service, craftsmanship, attention to detail and the communication was fabulous (let's hear it for Matt!). There were a few subs used that weren't totally up to par, but I blame them, not the Finished Basement core crew. Those guys were awesome!Any problems with the subs, they rectified for the most part. We are very happy with the finished product and would recommend this company to others. They met or exceeded our expectations along the way. We now live at our new bar and drink more than ever because it's just too nice not to :) Give these guys a call!

If you are thinking about finishing your basement, contact "The Finished Basement" company! From the initial consultation with Wally, who explained the process and set the expectations, to the Project Manager, Matt Herriot, who was able to coordinate the entire process and quickly respond to any questions even on weekends, to the talented craftsmen Tommy and Troy whose expertise and work was flawless, to the outstanding, precision painting by Silvano, his wife and Romeo, expert electrical work from Dan and his son, as well as the hard work by Hunter, everyone that worked at our house was professional, cleaned up everyday and were very conscientious about not disrupting our everyday routine. They added a bedroom, bathroom, hidden office and game room to the basement. They also added a mini hockey rink. They also renovated our bathroom on the main floor. We do not usually make comments publicly, but wanted to spread the word about this outstanding company, and the individuals that made our house into the perfect living space! Thanks to all of you!

My experience with The Finished Basement was great from start to finish. The communication was excellent, the contractors coming in/out were great, and everyone was very pleasant to work with. Matt did a great job answering all my questions and keeping me informed. I highly recommend them.

Great experience with Matt, Tanner and crew. Clear communication, on time, on schedule, and beautiful finished basement! Thanks so much for a great new space in our home!

I used Finished Basement in early 2019 on a new construction home in the glendower subdivision. Once we settled on the design and signed the contract they started work the following week. Communication was great, Matt the project manager would let me know what work was going to be done over the next 2-3 days. They said the project would take 6 weeks, and was spot on with their timing. the contractors they used were friendly and respectful of the job site. They cleaned up everyday before they left.

I do think their bathroom allowances were on the low end, with very few of the vanities and tile flooring being in the price range. So I did knowingly go above the allowance on a few items to upgrade the bathroom but it was worth it.

Also carpet installation is better priced if you go through home depot or lowes as they do free installation (current promotion) and you don't have to worry about an allowance.

EXCELLENT all around. Excellent quality work at a fair price. We got several estimates for our basement and Wally's was by far the most comprehensive and best value. The communication is very good and the project manager Matt promptly and patiently answered all my million questions. Our basement is lovely and we are all thrilled at the job well done.

We had these guys add two spare rooms, another family room and bathroom. We could not have asked for better workmanship. They were here when they said they were going to be and cleaned up every day before they left. The project manager was easy to get in touch with and answered all of my wife's questions. They completed our basement 1 week early and we could not be happier. I highly recommend this company!

It was a pleasure working with your team. they all did a great job making our new space Beautiful , The workmanship and all the detail, like matching the doors throughout the house, trim work . Etc… And to complete on time was amazing. I will miss the crew . Thanks again
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Had the finished basement come to my house to discuss a remodel. Spent an hour with them, was told there would be a follow up over the weekend with pricing and a few ideas. 3 weeks later, zero communication. Nice guy, but obviously not planning to start a project with a company that can't even deliver a quote on time.

Highly recommend these guys to anyone! They transformed our basement and couldn't be happier with the quality of work they did. They were very detailed, professional and had great communication during the whole process.

Wally, Matt, and their team did a great job on the project of finishing our basement on our home in Anderson. They were responsive to all of our needs and even redid a few small things we wanted changed after it was completed. They stayed loyal to the quoted price and were flexible enough to let us save a little money to do the painting ourselves. I would highly recommend them to anyone doing a remodel project, especially finishing a basement.

Wally and team did a wonderful job finishing our basement. We've worked with a number of contractors and remodelers over the years and Wally's team were particularly professional and experienced. They were helpful and flexible as we modified and expanded our plans over the life of the project. They listened to what we wanted, and when we weren't sure what we wanted, they had helpful suggestions and were able to guide us to a good decision. Most importantly, Wally and his project manager, Matt, were always responsive and in-touch and maintained great communication throughout the project. We're really happy with the final product and I'd recommend Wally and team to anyone.

The Finished Basement (with Adam as PM) remodeled our 600 sq. ft. basement. Among other things, our remodel included insulation/drywall, new flooring, moving a wall back, updated electrical/plumbing, and a built-in. They executed exactly what we envisioned and we couldn't be happier with it. They turned our cold/musty basement into an extension of the house where we enjoy playing with the kids and watching TV. The crew was great and I appreciated Adam's attention to detail - he genuinely cares about having the job done right. Also, the final cost was within the quoted price.

The Finished Basement was very well priced for the basement remodel job we recently done. We were quoted by 4 other contractors and they were the best priced. Our project manager was Matt and he was very friendly and down to earth. He was a pleasure to work with! The quality of their work is exceptional. I really liked how their contractors would clean up before leaving for the day; they don’t leave the place a mess. Our project took approximately 3 months to complete, finishing up an unfinished space and adding a had bathroom. Would definitely recommend them for basement remodel projects. Great work!

The Finished Basement recently completed our basement renovation project, which took it from an unfinished space to a beautiful new rec room. I can’t thank our project manager, Adam Bowman, enough for being so responsive. He communicated with us through every step of the process and addressed any questions we had quickly. We are also very happy with the quality, craftsmanship and professionalism of every crew member on our job. We would highly recommend them!

The Finished Basement was amazing to work with on our project. Our basement was completed on time and on budget. Tanner was our Project Manager and he was great at keeping the contractors on schedule and letting us know when things would be happening. He was always available to answer any questions that we had. All of the contractors were all very nice & professional and cleaned up any mess they made on a daily basis. Overall, it was a great experience and we are very happy with our new space!

The team came in, took our idea, improved and delivered a masterpiece. The craftsmanship was top notch. We are very pleased with the results and highly recommend them.