Intelligent Design and Construction Inc. (IDNC)

I needed a contractor to get my bathroom renovated after water infiltration behind the shower tiles.

IDNC was recommeded by its parental company Home Depot. They proposed a good choice of materials and well-elaborated plan of action. Moreover, I liked the promotinal financing with no interest for 18 months provided by Home Depot Credit.

I would not say it went absolutely flawless; however, I have to admit the following.

I checked the estimation with two other renovation specialists who confirmed me that the prices were reasonable and proposed materials were on top-notch technology level.

Mr. Anvari managed the project personally. He was incredibly flexible when it came to scheduling or changes to the initial plan. I was never refused when asking for lower prices when I found the same stuff at lower rate.

We were still living in our condo during this project, and I let the door key to the guys who worked there. We could trust them.

When I found a small issue with new faucets, they efficiently organized post-sale service directly from vendor for free.

A few notes to consider.

- It is worth trying the stuff you are going to buy. I mean not just to see it and to touch it, but really to try it. Ask for a showroom just to see how your new faucet or shower column will be working;

- If you are going to buy some materials on your own, it is better to agree in advance how you will return it in case of overestimation;

- Control every step in the action plan to be sure that everything is done as it should be. If you don't like anything, you need to say it and insist on fixing;

- if you plan to live in your condo during the project, you'd better ask them for more proper cleaning in the end of each day of works.

All-in-all, the project was successfully finished. You can trust them: they know their job.

This was our second property that we fully renovated with IDNC. The previous renovation was done in 2009. Although we were fully satisfied with our experience at that time, our level of satisfaction was in a much higher level in our current experience with them. The project manager was able to stay on budget and deliver a very high quality work in a timely manner. I strongly recommend IDNC.

During last summer, my apartment was amongst the several that was impacted by the sewage backup due to the incessant rains. I hired IDNC to renovate my apartment after the incident (they were referred to me by a friend). They were very courteous and understanding towards by situation and proposed to complete the renovation in just over 3 weeks. The renovation involved changing all the floors, re-doing the walls and part of the ceiling, painting and we even agreed to re-do the entire kitchen. They provided me with a detailed budget and a comprehensive project schedule. Being a stickler for planning, I regularly visited the site to ensure work was proceeding as planned. IDNC did a fantastic job sticking to the schedule! The even stuck to the proposed budget, which was very reasonable compared to competitive quotes. Lastly, their design input was highly commendable!

Overall it was a very pleasant experience working with IDNC and its friendly staff. Their PM really knows building construction and offers insightful help. Their design consultant offers excellent creative input and works with you to get something that suits your style.

Highly recommended!

My experience working with IDNC was challenging given the circumstances. It is safe to say that the stigma of the word "contractor" holds true. In my case, my bathroom reno was a minor job (demolishing old shower stall and installing a new one), but was a major pain. I will describe my experience with examples. It is one individual in particular who brought this all down. Keep in mind that the project manager was absent the final days of the project, which I was aware of. He assured me that he trusted his employees and I took his word for it, however would beg to differ.

First, I would question how they mean by being "professional" when they insist on using MY supplies, step ladder, vacuum cleaner, ... Communicating with this contractor was difficult when I asked him to bring back my extension chord after he left with it. He then asked what an extension chord was. I had to act out the object that he took. Needless to say, English was not his first language.

I will give them credit for being courteous and somewhat accommodating. The Project Manager asked me for feedback recently, which prompted me to write this review. Here is my response:

- Were you satisfied the services you received? To some extent. I am still trying to fix up parts of your work (re-plastering a wall, repainting, removing the shoddy silicone job,…). My bathroom project was done end of November and I’m still working on this (June).

- What were the weak points of our services? I would say the carelessness of one of your employees in particular. If he represents your company, I would question his integrity and his ability to produce quality work.

- Would you refer us to your friends in the future? I would say no because my experience was just too aggravating and stressful.

-Have you had any problem with our work? I still don't understand why your workers had to use my supplies (sometimes without asking permission). This really irked me. Also, no one likes surprises like your telling me that I had to be charged for materials halfway through the project. This was not something that I agreed to. I did not know how to react to this besides frustration.

- Other comment? Your team needs constant supervision if they are going to throw garbage behind my walls. I would refer to this as the candy wrapper incident where the contractor decided to use the opening for the pipes as his personal garbage can.

I will highlight the things that went right: a licensed plumber was hired. Disposal of waste was provided at no additional charges. Overall, friendly staff… not sure if they were all licensed contractors though.

In the end, I got a new shower (which I have yet to use). I realize that this company had to fit my job in on short notice and did the best they could based on the fact that my bathroom project was not officially planned. However, the fact remains that they still took this upon themselves. I would say that I didn't feel rushed nor did I feel I rushed them. They did spend a lot of time in my house and went over different ideas with me, which I appreciated. The only part that was rushed was the wrap-up since the contractor just packed up all of his stuff and left. He didn’t tidy up properly and construction dust got all over downstairs (the whole floor) since they did not cover anything except when they used MY plastic sheets to cover the area on which they walked. The shower looks good from far, but then look closer and ask “what’s this? Is it supposed to look like this?”. When the PM returned, I showed him the final work. He listened to my concerns after I pointed out all the issues with work. The PM asked what would make up for the shortfall and we agreed that I would get a price break on the project (the cost of the additional materials). Overall, working this company could have been better. Of course, it could have been worse too. I got what I paid for. It was fair.