A General Home Repairs

Manuel did a good job overall. The project took almost twice as long as he estimated. This was due to a variety of factors - difficult soil to dig in, Manuel having some other commitments for certain days and partial days, as well as I believe a general under-estimation of the work on his behalf. Through all these delays he was very patient, flexible, and continued to focus on quality. I also had Manuel do several small things related to the fence that were not originally included such as helping me move the lumber, disposing of some other debris, etc. He was very flexible and willing to do this (at additional cost). In the end, although the project had been fixed-cost, he expected additional payment due to it taking twice as long. On the one hand I understood he had not made the profit he expected and truly deserved from this project. On the other hand, it was a fixed-price job and I did not change the scope so it really wasn't my problem to compensate him for mis-estimating the time required. We ended up agreeing on some additional payment and probably we both had mixed feelings about how fair it was. I understood in detail how to build this slightly unusual (though not that bizarre) fence design and I provided Manuel detailed instructions and feedback throughout. Overall he did a good job and was patient and flexible. I would hire him again for future work but would be sure to clarify the nature of the price and work very very clearly.

The company gave me an initial consultation where we examined the door and decided what to do; then they purchased materials and came back and did the installation. They were friendly and professional throughout the process.

Installing the door necessitated removing the existing trim and reinstalling it. Most of the trim was reusable, but one narrow side piece had to be replaced. It rained hard immediately after the installation and the exterior caulking washed out. Manuel made two separate trips to the house to look at the problem and then, after some dry weather, to re-caulk. The stairs are sturdy, and fit into the footprint of the original stairs. Overall the work took longer than originally discussed, but weather was a factor.

I was really disappointed. Speaking with Manual on the phone, I was expecting someone with a lot of experience on plastering walls. After starting the job, he "warned" me that the wall might not hold our drapery rod. I felt like I could have done just as well or better doing the work myself.

His price was a little high, but he did good and neat work.

Excellent, I was very impressed with Manuel.

They were fast, and very good! They did good, efficient work, and we are happy with their services.

He was very responsible and did a good job at a very reasonable rate. He was very friendly. I've used him on two occasions. He has always done a good job.

From mediocre work at a very high fee to a very scary experience when Manuel left my house in the middle of a job that he was unable to complete. First, I liked his responsiveness and friendliness on the phone. But when I met him in person I had some doubts about his competence. I am not very handy myself (that's why I was looking for a handyman) but I know it should not take 11/2 hours to change a toilet seat and caulk two sides of a bathroom. However, I did pay the bill and asked him to return after I ordered some missing parts for my dishwashing machine and a honeycomb blind for my bedroom door. He stated that he knew how to change the blind. After he left I noticed that he missed part of the gaulking and that what he had completed was of mediocre quality so I decided not to complete a report and to address it with him when he came back. Our 2nd appt was today late afternoon. He did not seem too happy when I told him that the caulking was incomplete and some of it was poorly done. He stated that it was because he was unable to remove the old grout (which he said would have taken him 1/2 hour to do) so I volunteered to do it while he installed the blind. In the afternoon I had already taken down the old blind and prepared the area with all the parts needed. 15 minutes later when I finished removing the grout in the bathtub, the blind project was exactly where it was when he arrived. At that point I realized that he did not know how to do it so I had to tell him. He became very upset saying that he did not like pressure, and he stormed out of my home. In doing so, he ran into the screen door at the front door and broke it (this is a $500 door that was very recently installed). He tried unsuccessfully to fix it and then he became very agitated and accused me of having the door in the way so that he would have to fix it for free. He was so irrational and crazy that I actually told him to leave the screen alone. He stormed away telling me that I was a "very sneaky lady" and that he did not care if I reported him to Angie's list. His behavior was so out of control that I wonder whether I should report him to the police department.

No surprises, satisfied overall, but attention to detail was inconsistent. The stair railings were generally well built, but in one section they meet a post at different angles, not a huge deal but annoying considering that it was easily avoidable. The landing was nicely done, as was the fascia, although there Manuel had to redo some sloppy work performed by his assistant.

Manuel did all the work himself, as promised. The quality was excellent. The work took slightly longer than expected, but the quality and reliability was worth it.

He was running late but called to let me know. He arrived, was polite, nice, quick. He seemed to really want to do the job right, and when the rods seemed to be a little bit low, he offered to redo it. Manuel didn't seem annoyed that I had him come over for such a small job, and was willing to pro-rate the second hour down as we only used 1 hour and 45 minutes. Oh, and he was super friendly with my 3 year old who kept showing him his bob the builder tools. I will definitely call him again.

Excellent service and results through and through. I hesitated to call at first since it was such a small project. I have to agree with the previous reviews...there is no job too large or too small for Mr. Vargas.

Manuel did a great job. He's a very nice guy and a very hard worker. He's just a one-man operation, but he was able to do a job that another company wanted to charge me two men for. I would definitely consider hiring him again for any odd jobs I might have around the house that I'm just not handy enough for. (And believe me, there's a lot of those.)

It went well. He is very versatile and very honest and very punctual. I liked that he kept checking in with me on the phone. He did what he said and was very efficient, clean, and considerate of the tenants.

I found Manuel via A's List and initially called him for some help with a few mystery leaks in my San Francisco building. He responded quickly and quoted an hourly rate of $65/hour. He provided good suggestions for upgrades, which he said he could do himself, that would be a long term resolution to the problems. His suggestions were right on; we agreed on a fixed fee plus the cost of materials. Later, he complained that I was unreasonably demanding when I requested receipts for the materials to reimburse him. Lapses in professionalism plagued this job. Frequently complaining about money and telling me he was near bankruptcy. Frequently crossing the line between personal and professional in his demeanor and involvement of his "feelings"; workday was often 10am- 3pm. He failed to show up for several days at a time; claimed he did all his work himself but then he farmed some of it out to lesser skilled workers whom he DID NOT supervise for days at a time.

He came over and looked at the 3 jobs and told me it would be around 6 hours at $55 per hour. I thought this too be a little expensive and I told him that. But I agreed to try him out. He got great grades on Angies list and showed up on time to give me the verbal estimate. We set up a Saturday am start time which he did arrived for. So far so good. He then said that the 6 hour estimate was a minimum price and if he finished in less time I would still owe him the 6 hour of compensation($330). I told him that was not what he told me during the estimate walk thru day, but I agreed to proceed anyway. Telling him if he finished before our NOW minimum 6 hours that I would have him do a few more things to take us to the 6 hour mark. He said that would be extra. I called him on his changing the agreement, and his logic of charging me for 6 hours and not staying for 6 hours. He then looked at me sternly and walked out of the house. He does not operate honestly.

Everything went well according to the Tenant and she was pleased with his work. The job was done in the amount of time that it was originally estimated.

I was VERY concerned that this was too much work for one person (but Manuel understood I had a budget I was working within). I offered to be 2nd person assist but within minutes it was clear Manuel had a safe plan of attack. I am pleased with the work performed. Manuel was on time and had all necessary tools for the job. I am giving a price rating of "good" because I truly felt the price quoted was fair---I don't know if I'd give anyone an "A" unless it really was a rock bottom price.

Manuel showed up on-time. His work can be characterized by the following: 1. Careful with his repairs (put down protective paper, takes his time in approaching the problem to minimize damage to surroundings when removing doors, frames, etc.) 2. Communicative. When he ran into unexpected hurdles, he found me and explained what he will try to do. 3. Problem solver. My repair jobs involved dealing with original doors, windows, and hardware of a 1930s house. Manuel had to come up with solutions to fix my problems without replacing or compromising the doors and windows. The only complaint I have was that the work took much longer than he estimated (6 hours instead of 3). The jobs were more challenging than he anticipated. With that said, he actually worked closer to 8 hours but charged me for 6. I will hire him again for other jobs around the house but will ask for more accurate time assessment (for his and my sake).

Manuel is truly a house-saver. Not only did he keep me updated on his arrival time (he was only five minutes late), he was nice, had great attention to detail, cleaned up afterwords, and was great with all the little and big things I needed done to the house we just moved into. In fact, when something I installed fell down ten minutes after he left, he came back to do it right without any hesitation and saved my day. In fact, I am writing this review as I get ready to call him again for a second round of fixes and installations.

Manuel did a great job and he was very pleasant to work with . I thought the price was very good and I would use him again. I did have some trouble getting them to send me an invoice, but besides that everything else was great.

Appointment available quickly, arrived on time, fast assessment of work needed and did an excellent job of installing and grouting replacement tiles. Good clean-up when finished. Hardly can tell any tiles were replaced!

I called the number on a Friday and Manuel returned my call that evening setting up an appointment for Sat. at 4:30 p.m. He informed me his rate was $65/hr. Knowing that there was 1 posting on Angies that reported him as a no-show, I called him at 4:40 to check if he was still coming. He said he would be there at 5 p.m. At 5:15 I called him and he assured me he was on his way. I stepped out and got a sandwich for dinner and brought him back one to - if he ever showed. At this point I was desperate because the house was being turned over to the new owners and these repairs were in our contract...at 6 Manuel showed up, ate his sandwich and went to work - at this point, two fixtures were outside and now it was dark so it made them difficult to see. I held the shop light for most of the time, picked up the screws he dropped and cleaned up the two light bulbs he dropped and broke. For 2 hours work ($130) he wanted 200 (because the work was risky, "he could have dropped a light fixture").

Manuel came over when he said he would. We walked through the house and he took notes on all the different jobs. He was eager to have the work, it seemed, and thoughtful about his suggestions and ideas. He came when scheduled and did all the different jobs. It took him a little bit longer than he predicted (he thought 2 days, and it took 2 and a half days), but he didn't change his estimated price and everything was done well and thoroughly.