DES Home Renovations

DES just completed our kitchen and family room remodel. Stephen and Dwight did a fantastic job transforming our space into a contemporary minimalist design. The administrative team (Vince & Rose) was well-organized, timely, and easy to work with. I would recommend DES to anyone who needs a refresh to their home. I hope to use them again in my future projects. Thanks again to the whole team!

DES did an amazing job refinishing our basement. We were so happy to be a part of the design process every step of the way and Dwight was so thoughtful in his execution of those designs. He and his crew were courteous, timely, clean, and they did exceptional work. If any questions arose during construction, my husband and I were consulted. We look forward to contacting DES for our next big project!

Dear Stephen and Team, My delay is an indicator of my schedule and not a reflection on your work. Words can’t express the gratitude we have for your team and the stellar job that was done on our bathroom. The finished product is something I can’t capture in words. As you know, this is a room for our elderly guests and it truly is exactly what we need it to be and more; you and your team exceeded expectations. You all were professional, courteous, trustworthy and honestly felt more like family (even the kids enjoyed watching the work unfold). The use of technology was innovative and made things so efficient. Every contractor was a pleasure to work with. You all were always a call, text or email away and worked to get everything done on and ahead of time. We are so grateful for your craftsmanship and use of your talent. We look forward to working with you in the future and referring you to others we know. Best, Larissa & Julio Morgan

I would recommend DES Home Renovations to anyone looking to do a home renovation. We had our upstairs renovated to provide us with a primary bedroom suite including, new bathroom and walk in closet. We stayed within our budget and we're very happy with the final product. We live in an old house that provided some interesting challenges once demolition began and the DES team handled it all. From the pre-planning and design stages all the way through construction and completion, Stephen, Dwight, Vince and the rest of the team were wonderful. They were prompt, responsive, professional, transparent, and detail-oriented. All of this took place during the pandemic with two adults working from home and three children doing school from home! Everyone worked together well, worked flexibly and communicated frequently.

Great company. Transparent, dedicated, and they navigated COVID-19 well. They perform a quality job with a nice design aesthetic, and they do so for an appropriate price,

I would recommend DES Home Renovations to anyone I know for their renovations needs! We had our bathroom remodeled and I still can't believe what they were able to create compared to what we had before! Stephen and his team are transparent and highly professional. There were no hidden fees or expenses( no nickel and dime here). I knew from the beginning what my total expense would be, he even added a buffer just in case. Stephen and his team will also show you what areas you can save money. There was no obligation to pay for any fees or consultation prices before you signed the contract, which gives you freedom to shop around or find a second opinion if you wanted to do so(which is great). The only thing I paid for precontract was the 3D model of what the final product would look like, which I loved because I'm better with visuals. The renovation process was mostly smooth, the workers showed up every day on time and worked every hour that was specified in our contract. Truly professional and hard working. There were a few hiccups out of everyones control like bad weather and a shower door that was backordered. Even still I'm so incredibly pleased with my renovation and I will be using this company again for my kitchen renovation project next year. In conclusion I highly recommend DES Home Renovations!

Our experience with DES was outstanding. They worked within our budget, and pre-planning with Stephen showed an attention to detail which no other contractor provided. Working with Stephen and Dwight couldn't have gone more smoothly. They finished by the estimated time, and on budget. The quality of work and craftsmanship by Dwight and his crew was excellent, and they were friendly and conscientious. Stephen and Dwight worked with us on our ideas, and offered excellent suggestions to create the affordable kitchen we wanted. The finished product surpassed our expectations and when we look to do future renovations, they will be our first phone call.

The deck built for me by DES Home Renovations could not have turned out any more beautiful. The workmanship is superb, the attention to detail amazing and the job site was always left immaculate at the end of each day. I would highly recommend Dwight, Stephen and his team to anyone who wants a job done right with results that exceed expectations.

We had an outstanding experience with DES. They did a beautiful work in our kitchen and bathroom. The entire team is professional, friendly, and easy to work with.

We needed an additional bathroom on our second floor and moved our laundry room upstairs as well. Our house needed other renovations such as updating master bath and remodeling our kitchen. The complexities of multiple projects can be overwhelming. But DES was able to break things down and work through each component step by step. Communication was always excellent. Things ran smoothly and most importantly they are highly skilled from the design/planning component to the execution portion. Everything turned out fantastic and I highly recommend tha fabulous team for anyone who is considering making home changes.

We did a large scale renovation with DES. My wife and I went with them mainly for the following reasons: (1) We like to support local and small businesses, (2) the good reviews on this website were encouraging, and (3) DES had already completed a project similar in scope to ours. It is very interesting to note (and unfortunate timing for us) that since we started working with DES over a year ago, there have been almost no reviews since and perhaps some of the reasons for this are touched on below. In our initial meetings with the general contractor and project manager to discuss the scope of our project, Stephen assured us numerous times that DES would be able to work within our budget. When it came time to sign the contract, however, the budget came in at over $70k more. We were disappointed, but not completely surprised with the bait and switch because this is not an uncommon practice across the industry. When we called Stephen to ask about it, he fumbled through an explanation about the cost of wood going up and that he forgot to factor in workers' comp and extra profit costs (yes, seriously). At this point, we had already burned nearly a month waiting for him to even get us this budget, which was probably put together in a weekend, and being in a time crunch, we decided that we would be satisfied in the end if we could at least stick to the construction timelines and have the quality work done that the online reviews seemed to rave about. There was even language in the contract with a completion date guarantee ($100 per day to the client for every day that the project goes past the agreed upon date), which we were told was on the generous side to account for inclement weather, sick days, and other valid reasons. In the end, however, this was not honored, even though we had Dwight (Stephen's brother and one of the main contractors) scrambling to put together kitchen cabinets and installing appliances nearly two months beyond the date outlined in our contract. Another mess that could have easily been avoided with a competent project manager also occurred before construction even began. Given the scope of our project, we needed to move out of our house, for which we were fully prepared and expected. However, because Stephen didn't actually understand the zoning laws and permit processes of our town or didn't even care to ask someone about what it would take to start our project, we unnecessarily moved into a temporary apartment six months early, equivalent to well over $10,000. Based on Stephen's recommendation, we started our lease in May 2017, but construction didn't start until November 2017. What was done to rectify this glaring mistake? Stephen actually wrote in an e-mail that he was "maybe" partially at fault and graciously offered $3000. So before we even broke ground, we were out another $7k+ and had to prematurely uproot our family. Throughout the project when work was actually done, it became abundantly clear that you could fill a warehouse with what Stephen wasn't aware of, didn't know, or was "out of his control". Subcontractors would go missing for days or weeks at a time, inspections were forgotten about and missed, and poor quality work by subcontractors went unnoticed. I've actually had to show up to the house for inspections myself or unload kitchen cabinets and other materials upon delivery in the middle of a workday because no one was scheduled to be around. Had I not been able to do this, we would have potentially faced even further delays. Whether it was to work on his wife's salon, his pastor's kitchen or attending new client meetings, it became very clear that actually working our job was not a priority. Several times throughout the project, when work completely stagnated and it became obvious that we were not going to finish anywhere near on time, instead of trying to set things straight or take responsibility, Stephen would go out of his way to deflect blame to his subcontractors, the vendors (even though he himself is ordering the material) and even once tried to blame my wife for not coordinating with the tiler when she inquired about how long the tile work was taking. Even simple tasks like cleaning up the job site were poorly executed. In fact, we still have construction materials in our garage to this day and we had someone else to clean up the debris in our backyard. Honestly, this review could go on for quite a bit longer and in much greater detail, but the key takeaway of it is the fact that this company gave us very little assurance and made us anxious throughout the entire process, and rightfully so. Here's the bottom line: General contractors, project managers, and full service design-build firms (which DES claims to be) are paid to keep the budget and timelines in check and ensure quality work. DES over-promised and under-delivered in all of these aspects, lacked a real sense of accountability for things that went wrong, and we would not recommend them to anyone. If you need any further clarification or have any questions, feel free to message me.

I found DES thru Houzz. I contacted them for a time sensitive project - a loft to bedroom conversion for a nursery for our little girl. I contacted them less than 1.5 months from my due date. I had the pleasure to speak to Stephen, the project manager and set up a initial consultation for the same week! Within the first 5 minutes of the consultation I knew I wanted DES to take on my project! I was incredibly impressed with the customer service and professionalism/work ethic! I hired them within days and the process was so smooth til the end! Dwight and the team of contractors were so wonderful to work with! They exceeded my expectations and went above and beyond! They even left the site practically spotless every afternoon before finishing for the day! And get this - the project was almost complete even before the projected start date!! I have worked with many contractors and nothing beats or even comes close to the work of DES! I can't wait to hire them again for our next project!