California Pools & Landscape

This is a true trash company. They have caused intense suffering to my family through their deceptive and moronic business practices. They have been working for nearly a year and still my backyard project is not complete. As soon as I paid them, they were uninterested in completing the work. They break promises and commitments with no notice. I have them on tape admitting their mistakes but still they refuse to be held accountable. I have complaints against them at the BBB and AZ ROC. I have reached out to AZ On Your Side. There are so many pool builders in the Valley. Do yourself a favor and steer clear of this one.

We made the decision to go for our backyard project in February 2016 when California Pools were having their pre-summer sale. The upside of this is that we got it done at the sale price, the downside is that a lot of other people had the same idea, so the crews working on your project had to rotate among other projects in your area therefore completion time was pushed back some. Kudos go out to Mike Lillis, the project designer who converted our ideas into the CAD drawing or construction plan. To Marcie, our liaison at California Pools who was very nice on the phone and updated us as to the scheduling of the different steps. 5-Star service from Sean Beavers, our construction foreman who I felt was on our side, looking after our interests throughout the project up to its completion. We peppered him with all sorts of questions and he answered each one patiently and to the best of his ability. Now, the negatives. When my house was built, I specifically requested RV doors because I knew I am going to have a pool at some point and I did not like the idea of having my fence temporarily torn down. Secondly we have a water feature on the side of the house so prior to the excavation step, I had the company who made the water feature mark on the ground using neon paint the location of the water pipes that supplied the water feature. Despite all these precautions, the excavation crew managed to rip off one of the RV doors from its hinges and dig up and damage the pipe supplying the water feature. Another problem occurred during paver installation. The crew assigned to us I felt was not very attentive to detail certainly not befitting one of the top pool companies in the region. There were mistakes and corrections that took a whole month to iron out. As great as our construction foreman was, California Pools should have paired a spanish-speaking foreman with the largely spanish speaking crew assigned to my project or vice-versa. I just did not feel the crew quite understood what the foreman wanted them to do and as a result the same sections of the hardscape needed to be redone multiple times. After I got visibly frustrated, only then did they send someone else to communicate with the crew and almost in a day or two, the problem was fixed. To California Pools' credit, all the above negatives were corrected. They replaced the RV doors with brand-new ones, they replaced the dug up and mangled water pipe and they eventually got the hardscape right. And for our troubles, they offered free pool maintenance service for the rest of the season. All in all, California Pools transformed our concept of a great backyard into reality and my family and I are ecstatic! But the reality is that the snafus and delays that occured practically shortened our swim season by a month.

Grace and Sydnee, front office support, were a delight each time I called, but that was the extent of my positive experience. I was first assigned to Joe McCoy by Grace, shortly after my first call. I was to expect an email to discuss possible meeting times for an initial consult and was never contacted. I phoned the office and spoke with Sydnee, again a delight to work with, who was kind enough to assign me to DJ McClanahan, who admittedly was great during our phone meeting on April 6th however the design he said he’d try to get out to us for review by end of week did not come. I emailed again to engage your office staff who helped by forwarding a communication I’d sent to DJ but again, no response. I realize that this is a very busy time of year for all pool companies but I expected their design/build consultants to be far more communicative. The company’s craftsmanship and design come highly rated, but unfortunately my experience at the design/purchase level does not justify the high rating. I’ve therefore offered my business to another company who were able to provide the level of service I expected from a highly rated company.

California Pools sent out Cal Plastering (subcontractor) to look at the cracks so they could give us a quote. When I got home and went to look at the pool, I discovered that a huge piece of the baja shelf had been removed. This area was nowhere near any of the spots they were supposed to be looking at. Clearly, they damaged it but we were given a long story about how the cracks weren't an issue but the baja shelf was so it needed to be fixed, too. I explained that it would have been appropriate for someone to tell us about the shelf and then ask us if we wanted to fix it, but it is completely inappropriate to begin work on something without approval. And then something interesting happened. There is an employee at California Pools with the same first name as I. Emails were being sent (they thought to her) that I was receiving and it was clear that the baja shelf job was a project at another house. They had gotten their wires crossed and messed up both jobs! But did they accept responsibility? Nope. And they billed us another $500 to fix their mistake. I have no problem with people making mistakes, but you own it and do what's right. Shame on you, California Pools. Shame on you!

California Polls - five star plus company! After six months of researching pool companies, we choose California Pools. Initially we were looking at a pool remodel, but after meeting with Dave (pool designer), we decided to sell our current home, build another and get the pool/spa and resort style back yard that we have always dreamed of! Being winter residents, we were not in Arizona for the entire build, but were kept up to date with every detail, including pictures as they built our pool. Excellent customer service is clearly a top priority of California Pools, as is quality and exceptional workmanship. Thank you California Pools!

I found California Pools professional and the work quality excellent. Like most contractors, they hired subs to do the work but the oversaw the work with great care and the subs they used died excellent work. My only modest complaint was that the work took longer than we were initially told but I have had few bigger projects that don't nearly always exceed their time estimates. I selected them after getting approximately 5 separate bids and Cal Pools was the second least expensive ; for the work done, I felt I received good value for money.

Very good work, according to schedule and budget.

We had our pool built by California Pools, and we couldn't be happier. We did a lot of research on building a pool and all the different contractors in Phoenix. We chose California Pools because they had a great rating. From the first contact with Tim J. thru all the work with sub contractors, everything was great. Our project coordinator, Kami was awesome. Scott, our project manager, was so responsive that we were shocked with how fast he responded to our issues and questions.

I would have been willing to even let them inflate the labor cost a little, but they refused that too. They may want to call it value added selling, but it really is a short sighted approach to getting new customers.

We bought our new home from Blandford Homes, and we knew we wanted to put a pool in it. Blandford Homes works closely with California Pools, and while our house was being built, we could also have our pool being built which was a huge plus so we would not have to deal with the pool construction after moving in the house. However, we talked with more pool contractors to have more numbers to compare, etc. We decided to go with California Pools. Their numbers were very competitive, and we felt very safe going with a company that our builder trusted, that had a ton of referrals and many happy customers on their backs. Dave was our project manager. He designed the pool for us, and you can tell that he loves his job. He had a ton of really creative ideas, and after a few iterations, we saw what our pool was going to look like in our backyard with their amazing 3D CAD software. Then the construction started .The whole process was great, starting with Ms Cindy who was informing us constantly of the schedule plan to all the contractors that came to work in the pool. Everybody was extremely professional. When the pool was completed and filled up, we had a couple orientations with California Pools so we could learn how to take care of the pool, etc. We have received nothing but compliments on the pool by friends and family. We are extremely happy with California Pools and we definitely recommend them to anybody that is looking for a pool construction company. They might be a bit more expensive than other companies out there, but I am a huge believer of and quot;you get what you paid forand quot;, and I rather pay a few extra bucks on a big project like this going with a company like California Pools than going with somebody else just to save a few bucks. Thank you California Pools! Keep up the good job!

Everything went well with only a couple of delays ( Due to rain ) I love the tile work as well as the pebble surface

California Pools and Landscape out did our expectations. From resurfacing our pool, adding new tile and painting of our pool deck all the way to landscaping our backyard. They listened to every word and knew our vision. Our salesman was great to work with and the staff - they are very professional and caring. They have a full service department too which has already been helpful. I tell everyone I know about this company! You won't regret it! My wife and sit around the fire almost every night!!

This being my first pool remodel I was unsure on what to expect. I contacted a few other pool companies but was left feeling unimportant like they were not interested in my business. I am so glad that I was referred to California Pools by my neighbor. The designer that came to my house was very knowledgeable and professional. He gave us solutions to some existing issues with the pool that I did not even think of. From day one I was impressed with their office and construction staff. I was communicated with every step of the way and the job site was kept as need as possible - there was quite a bit of demo work. California Pools made me love my pool again. I highly suggest that if you are in the market for a pool or remodel to get a bid from them.

I contacted this company twice and the 2 sales person they assigned me on 2 different times don't even bother returning my calls or contacting me. they want to build the pools that are 40k and above but if you want to do something around 25k, they don't really bother!!

When I called to set up an appointment and explained our need, the receptionist said no one was there to talk with me but someone would return my call that afternoon. No one did.

California Pools and Landscaping worked together as a team and were never and quot;No Showsand quot; on a scheduled work day. Every aspect of the pool construction was done with care and quality. California Pools did an amazing job. I highly recommend them. If you're even thinking about having a pool built call California Pools and landscaping. You won't be disappointed.

We felt almost like we were bothering them! The receptionist didn't even look up when we came in. No body offered us a bottle of water...unheard of in Arizona! The general feeling in the office was not welcoming. We won't be using California Pools, if this is how the sales people act when they're trying to sell us a pool, I can only imagine how difficult they would be to work with if there were any problems!

We had someone come out on 9/25 to look at our backyard and discuss possibly using them for landscaping our backyard, along with building a pool.. He spent probably 30 minutes at our home and told us he didn't want to get into any specifics, but would take measurements and get back to us in a few days with a design. I followed up with him a week later and was then told we'd receive something in a couple of days. Two weeks later we've received nothing. If they can't meet the design timeline they set (and not even follow up when they're not meeting that timeline), I can only imagine how they are to deal with during the actual implementation. Needless to say, we'll be taking our large project to one of their competitors.

10/18/2014 My remodel has been complete for about a year. All of the work an equipment looks and runs like the day it was installed. I am very happy with the way their work is holding up 10/23/2013 Update The pavers, equipment wall and deck coating have all been completed. The quality of work is excellent. I am very happy at this point. There is a saying in the Northeast- Good, Cheap, Fast. You can have 2 of the three, choose the 2 that are most important to you. I have to say that my budget and quality were the most important to me. At this point I would say that I received very high quality work within my budget. With their guidance it looks like I am going to have a wonderful patio/pool area, within my budget. I will post before and after photos when the job is complete 10/15/2013 Well no work has been completed or started since my last up date on 10/15/2013. Asked for an update and received an email saying that my equipment wall was going to be built this Wednesday. A whole week of beautiful weather and not a thing was done on my project. For a project that is already 2 weeks past it's promised completion date this is so unacceptable 10/9/2013 update After my post on Angie's List and an email to Jeremy still not sure of Jermeys proper title. The situation improved greatly. The plumbing, electrical and pool tiles are complete. These jobs are done very well. I have to give California pools great credit in choosing excellent sub-contractors. Not only do they do excellent work, the tradesmen they sent to my home were very professional. This is a great comfort when there are so many people coming and going from your home We were also able to resolve miscommunication issues regarding what was included in the scope of work covered in the contracted amount, to my satisfaction. I will update my post again at the completion of my project. I can't give an accurate grade for overall, price and quality. There is still a lot of work to be done. on 8/31/2013. I have made 2 $4600 payments. My back yard is a mess. The job they said would start 2 weeks after I signed the contract and be done 2 weeks after that, is I don't think, even half way done. I selected California Pools specifically because they are a well-established contractor. And the most expensive bid. I thought they would know what they are doing. That would not be continuous change orders and delays. Every step of the s has been one change after another. The tile I selected, the pool light, the piping, the electric, the job Forman thought the pump selected did not have enough power, the gas contractor came out said the job had to be blue lined and left. I am in contractor h***. I don't really know at this point what this job is going to cost me. For a company that has been in business as long as California Pools I am truly shocked and disappointed by the amateur service and quality I am receiving. They are either truly armatures or pros trying to ring every last dollar they can from me.

I was quite excited to begin the process of having a pool installed in our Scottsdale home. We went to California Pools...my first choice of company based on reviews that I had read. Our designer, DJ, spent the afternoon helping us flesh out our ideas, and promised to have the plans to us by Friday ( this was Monday). Friday came. And went. No plans. Finally, on Tuesday , the plan showed up in our emails, and it looked good. DJ indicated that the estimate was attached to the letter accompanying the plan. The only problem is that there was no estimate attached to the plan. We responded to DJ by asking him to please send the estimate along. NO answer. None 2 weeks went by and we sent another request. No answer. BY this point, I was annoyed enough to search out another pool builder. California Pools does not deserve my business if they cannot even respond to simple emails.

Richard came to our house and met with my wife and I to give us an estimate for our pool and backyard remodel. He was on time and very professional. He had some great ideas for us and was very knowledgable. It's clear to me that they are an excellent company. That being said they are expensive, but they are up front about being the best and using the best materials which means they will likely not be the lowest bid. I would have been wiling to pay a little more to use them by our budget was 40K and they came in at 72k. We have 3 bids much closer to our budget that we will be choosing from.

My experience overall has went very well. The staff was very friendly and professional. The pricing was reasonable. I would recommend them to others.

my schedule. One week later, I still had not heard back from California Pools and Landscape regarding my in-home visit. I called their office on July 9 to follow-up. I told the lady that answered the phone that I submitted a request online for an in-home visit, had an email return to that request, but that I have not had anything scheduled to date. The representative took my name and looked up my information. She then told me that they have not responded and quot;because I submitted my request electronically.and quot; (I'm still not sure what that means.) She finally said that my number has been given to the guy and that I would receive a phone call. Well, it has been two days since my follow up phone call and I have not had a call to schedule this in-home visit.

Provider not selected based on cost.

California Pools and Landscape They were very responsive and they had the ability to provide 3-D images of what the pool and decking will look like based on our setting. So they had some really sophisticated tools to be able to get exact dimensions of property lines and so forth.