We hired Alan (also known as Alec, he will go by a different name with different people depending on what negative comments he has online about him at the moment) for a major project over the past year and paid him more than $450,000 in total. He completed his final project with us yesterday. Per our contract I was supposed to withhold 6k until the project was fully completed and we did a walk through. Against my better judgement I agreed to pay him $4300 of that payment early because he was low on funds. I felt bad for him what can I say. So at that point I still owed him a remaining balance of $1,700 that I fully intended to pay him once he finished the final touches on some trim and other misc. things. After about 4 weeks of no progress on those misc. items, I had to start bugging him every day for updates on when things would be completed. Fast forward another 2 weeks or so, he finally completed the last item. As soon as the work was complete Alan/Alec called me 4 times in a row. I was busy at work so didn't have time to answer. I got off work that evening around 7pm and we had some friends over for a baseball game, so I didn't have time to call Alan/Alec back yet. That same evening, Alan showed up at our home unannounced around 8 p.m., demanding payment. He arrived with an angry and confrontational attitude, and when I answered the door, the situation quickly escalated. I was rightfully frustrated that he showed up requesting to get paid in cash right in that moment, I tried to close the door, Alan shoved it back open and attempted to force his way inside. I pushed him back. The confrontation that followed was witnessed by multiple people and captured on our Ring camera (posting the video here so people can see what Alan/Alec looks like in case he changes his name again in the future. He also brought his son with him, which suggests the visit was planned and deliberate (what a sad decision on his part as a father) Throughout the course of our projects, Alan proved to be unreliable and difficult to work with. He frequently made decisions without our approval, even after we clearly asked him to confirm with us before proceeding. He ignored instructions, made careless mistakes, and overlooked details that any attentive professional should have caught. Despite these issues, we continued to pay him on time and treat him respectfully. At one point, due to a mistake made by his own office transferring funds into the wrong account, we had to double pay him ahead of schedule to keep the project moving. A $60,000 payment temporarily became $120,000 because he said he couldn't wait for the transfer to resolve. We also lived next door to the project site, and it quickly became clear that without our daily oversight, the home would have been a complete mess. His team often lacked direction and made careless errors when left unsupervised. Alan can be very friendly when trying to earn your business, but that professionalism disappears once the contract is signed. His behavior at the end of this project was completely unprofessional, inappropriate, and unacceptable. We've always paid him promptly and treated him with respect, so this incident was shocking and deeply disappointing. We strongly caution anyone considering working with him to proceed carefully, get everything in writing, don't deviate at all from the contract even if he tries to make you feel bad for him or play on your empath. read more

Alec and his team performed extensive drywall repairs, new flooring and baseboards for our entire first floor and a re-done second story bathroom. The work quality was outstanding. As with any big job, there were a few corrections at the end (not many!). What is important and appreciated is that they addressed these immediately and without question. In addition to the high quality work, Alec also made some excellent design recommendations for tile and flooring materials and colors. We ended up going with his choices and the results look outstanding. We couldn't be more pleased. Throughout the process, Alec was always responsive and answered all of our questions thoroughly and honestly. He made what could have been a difficult process very easy. In short, I'd highly recommend Alec and American Renavatu to any homeowner in need of a reliable general contractor. read more

Had a very positive experience with Alec and his team to have my bathroom shower replaced. I was updated throughout the process and consulted when needed for materials. The team was always professional and I felt like a priority despite them having other jobs going on. I will use this team for future renovations I may need, and have already recommended to a friend. read more

American Renavatu Builders - New shower - Kitchen & Bath Near Me

Back story: My neighbor's toilet leaked onto my bathroom which forced me to redo the entire space, including repiping. I was not prepared for something like, including the time and money I had to spend. Alec and his team were great to work with! Full disclosure, the previous contractor was unresponsive and note transparent but once I connected with Alec, it was like night and day. His response time and professionalism was a breath of fresh air! Alec paid attention to detail and was sensitive to the timeline that the previous contractor did not respect or meet. His team was kind, on time and came back a couple of times based on some changes I requested. Friends and family that have visited are stunned by the work he did! I will be happy to recommend Alec and serve as a reference to anyone that needs a space remodeled. read more

When trying to get your business, they will say yes to all your requirements/requests and then they don't deliver. The renovation quote changed several times because the contractor did not do his research. The project completion estimate was 4-6 weeks. However, it ended 3 months overdue. Once they got paid, I had to "bug" them to show up to finish their work. The contractor/salesman we worked with was unprofessional: yelling and threatening to sue me (take me to court) if I did not pay the whole amount even if project was not complete. A final walk through was never done. There were plenty of mistakes: the desk height, the counter height, the plumbing and electrical. Had to hire people to remove and install appliances as they do not that. Hire at your own risk! read more

If their work is as horrible as their drivers than don't bother going to these people. No turn signals, speeding, and illegally using shoulder. Pls go back to driving school. Oh you got an ugly truck too. If you're gonna drive like 16 year old that barely got their license than don't have your company info on the ugly truck. read more

Short version: I paid Alec $1000 up front but he refused to do any work and refused to give me back my money. Long version: My experience is exactly like another reviewer from Foothill Ranch. Alec showed up and asked me to pay him my insurance deductible. He sounded very professional. At the beginning I have doubt, he kept on assuring me this is how insurance company works. Being my first time filing an insurance claim, I trusted him and paid him $1000 through Zelle. I asked him how much he is going to charge the insurance company. He said he will try to get $5000. I told him that sounds a lot for patching two drywalls and some paint. He said it costs more to deal with insurance company because he needs to pay someone $200 to write up an insurance scope. While we were dealing with insurance, I started having doubts. I told Alec if my insurance denies my claim, I want my $1000 back because I know someone who can do the job for much cheaper. He said no, he already bought the materials, he can not refund me the money. I said fine, just do whatever $1000 can get me. He said for $1000 the most he can do is patch up the walls. After two months of dealing with insurance, my claim got declined. I called Alec and told him my insurance is declined and I am going to pay out of pocket. I told him to patch up the drywall as he promised in our previous call. He said he will only patch up 1 drywall not 2. I said fine. I called him back the same day to told him don't patch up the wall yet since the leak hasn't been fixed yet. I will call him once the leak is fixed. He then told me, he cannot patch the wall for me because he already paid $200 for someone to write the insurance scope, and for the time he spends on my project is another $200. Plus, he already paid $400 for the materials so he already out of pocket $800. So, with $200 left, that is not enough for him to pay his worker to patch up the wall. I started getting furious, I dealt with many contactors before, and no one handles business this way. I told him I already compromised with him by paying him $1000 to patch a wall. Now he is telling me, he can't even patch the wall for me. I asked him what he wants. He said he can pay me $200, or I can pay him more to get the whole job done. I told him at this point, I don't trust him anymore. There is no way I will hire him to do the job. I told him, fine, if he can show me the receipt for the materials, I will pay him $200 for the scope writer, $200 for his time on the project plus the money he paid for his materials. Then he said how about the time he spends picking up the materials and the gas. I said I already pay you $200 for your time. I told him fine, I will pay him $50 for his gas. So at this point of conversation, I already agreed to pay him $200 for writing the scope to the insurance company, $200 for his time, $50 for his gas, plus the money he paid for his materials. Then he told me, he doesn't have the receipt for the materials anymore. I told him how he expects me to pay him $400 for materials when he doesn't even have the receipt. At this point, I even doubt if he is going to pay me $200. I told him fine, just paid me $200 but in cash. He said he can't. He can pay me in check not in cash. I asked him why. He didn't answer. I told him how I would know if his check were good or not. He said he will meet me at BofA, and I can deposit the check to make sure the check is good. I told him no, depositing a check does not mean the check is good. I insist he give me $200 cash. He refused. I said fine, lets meet up in a BofA, just tell me when and where. I told him I am going to write a review about everything on Yelp. He said fine, his business does not depend on Yelp, and he doesn't care. I said OK, just tell me when and where to meet so I can get the $200 check. He said OK, but I must sign a contract to promise I will not write a bad review on Yelp, otherwise he won't give me the check. I said, I thought you said you don't care about review. I told him, forget it. He can keep the $1000 and I am writing a review on Yelp. read more

Alec's team was very honest & professional. They were on time and got the job done. They helped rebuild after a pipe burst. We almost had a problem getting my new flooring back to original state. His team did not give up and figured it out to get the job done the same day. Alec was very helpful in explaining the whole insurance process and was always easy to get in touch with. I am very happy with their excellent work. Wonderful team to work with! read more

After I left my previous review, we called someone else to perform the work. Turns out the job actually costs $1600, not the $6400 Alec billed my insurance. read more

Excellent work done by Alec's team on some ceiling repairs. I didn't hire Alec directly, but his company was subcontracted out by another company that was selected by our insurance to repair water damage to the ceiling from a roof leak. Alec came and gave us a rough time for the repairs. His team, Luis and Cecilio, came every day on time and did a fantastic job, removing the old popcorn ceiling, replacing with drywall where needed, and repainting it. They also painted the walls as a bonus. Cecilio in particular was very meticulous and thorough, and really took pride in his job. The results really show. Also, unlike other contractors I've worked with, they didn't start the job and leave it to work somewhere else; they didn't leave until they were finished to my satisfaction. Very deserving of 5 stars. read more

I had a leak on my kitchen , I was referred to Alec, I know it takes few months for the insurance to get approve,luckily got approved ,the job was done in 2 days,happy with the outcome . They even put back my dishwasher for free. Thanks Alec & to your team. read more

Hi was told about American Renavatu company by a friend who had used them for their kitchen and bathroom projects. I checked there reviews as i usually do. Saw some negative reviews, spoke to Alan and Mike . They mentioned that they are looking to build the company image and that were part of a great culture that is fostering a client first based personal approach and have worked to build there image and so I decided to give them a shot. My project was a kitchen and 2 bathrooms. Master bathroom and a hallway bathroom. Why I decided to go with this company was that they were very professional and thorough with their knowledge information about my kitchen and bathroom ideas had apps where they can design bathroom via AI 3D on-site. I got to see my project completed before it started. This sold me 100%. The work was seamless and clean and fast. They definitely exceeded my expectations as far as quality goes. I've delt with a lot of contractors some are not on site and workers leave mess, and or they don't do good work. Or they don't do what they say etc. I have found my contractors moving forward. They offered me a 10% discount for future projects and even got to me a mug and a gift card for Starbucks with a thank you note. Alan and Mike are awesome. Definitely recommend them this company. Everyone deserves a second chance. read more

Alec caused extensive damage to my plumbing/entire home due to poor workmanship and negligence on a bathroom remodel. We have been living with mold in our home since this was discovered in March and forced to hire an attorney to remedy this situation. Alec is extremely unprofessional. We have hired licensed professionals, had our homeowners insurance inspect the home and regardless of all the documentation/reports he will not take accountability for his negligence. Avoid this contractor at all costs! We have already spent $10,000 to repair our plumbing leaving our remodeled bathroom torn apart and unusable with an anticipated $60,000 additional needed to open up our walls for mold remediation/repair. Buyers beware! read more

Tl; Dr, version: Alec has a history of scamming people for a $1000 deposit and also trying to get insurance companies to pay out an obscene amount of money for low-cost repairs. First I will say that Alec may or may not have the ability to do good work, but actually seeing his work...it'll probably never happen. Alec came recommended by another company (who has since told us they have completely severed their relationship with him) after a pipe leak. We had a fairly small job, a few drywall patches needed to be done, putting baseboards back into place, some paint, not a big deal. Because it was a small job, we opted to go with the recommendation rather than call our usual contractor who has done much larger jobs for us in the past. Alec came, assessed the damage and immediately requested $1000 to secure the job and get us on his schedule. This seemed unusual and not how other people have worked in the past, but my wife wasn't terribly troubled by the request as he came recommended and figured she would deal with the insurance stuff later. Alec never showed up for the subsequent appointment for repair and when called made up a ridiculous excuse about not being able to get in touch with our insurance. A week goes by and Alec still can't get in touch with our insurance, so he won't start the work. Of course when my wife checked with our insurance company, Alec had never sent in an estimate. After 2 more weeks our insurance finally got an estimate for $6400 which seemed completely over the top. Two more days go by and my wife calls and asked Alec to just refund our deposit and we'd go elsewhere or rehire him once we figured out the insurance side of things. He said he could not do so because he already bought the materials. The following day our insurance actually approved the $6400. We decided anyway to just end the relationship but Alec called and apologized, was professional and agreed to do the work in 5 days time. Another appointment was set. The day of the work Alec was late, no contact from him so we reached out. Again with the excuses. He had an emergency inspection to do and would be 4 hours later than he said. At that point we were done and told him not to come, the relationship is over. He then proceeds to call and leave long, rambling voicemails about us being unreasonable and hostile clients, he didn't understand our problem, he had invested so much money into the job, etc. I called him back and said that we were definitely not going to allow him to do the work and we want the deposit back. Alec became hostile at that point and started with the yelling and that he had already canceled the "emergency inspection" and was on his way. That we would not get our deposit back. I told him we would file a claim in small claims court and leave appropriate reviews online. He didn't care and said he would win in court. I told him all further communication needed to be in writing, do not call back and if he came we would call the police. We received text messages a few minutes later stating that Alec had spoken to his legal team and he'd be suing us for $5000 and putting a lien on our house if we did not allow him to do the work. He then said he was 10 minutes away and offered to still do the work for a $500 discount. We didn't respond. A week later and my wife gets another text from him saying he is ready to come and do the work today. Again, no response from us. Our usual contractor has now assessed the work and called it a $1600 job (and that includes a few extra things we asked him to do that added a few hundred dollars to the total). The day he gave the estimate he started the work. How nice to work with professionals again! So on top of the just not doing work or bothering to show up, Alec appears to be grossly overcharging for his work by a factor of 400%. My wife called our insurance company to report it too and return the overage. Hopefully they'll be able to pursue action against Alec. Bottom line, I wouldn't let Alec do work for me at any price. He isn't worth the headache and not worth the potential of getting involved in insurance fraud. read more

I hired this company for a bathroom remodel. Spoke with Alec he was very thorough & made process very easy. Pleased with their services, I recommend. read more

I hired American Renavatu Builders, he was highly recommended. I had a pipe leak in the home, I went through my insurance, filled a claim and Alec came to my home took photos of the damages and he was a total professional I needed to re tile my shower wall and do some drywall repair in the leaving room ceiling and it came out great he also matched my texture finished and painted it and cane out like it was never damaged. He was on time and very clean. His crew was also great and very professional. I can tell they take great pride in doing quality work. They also do complete home remodeling and new construction . I will be hiring him in the future, definitely would recommend him to anyone regardless of the other reviews. I did asked him how much was he billing my insurance it his prices are very fare. Now a days everything is very expensive, I understand he needs to charge for his good service. Thank you Alec and team! read more

Alec, the contractor, gave me an estimate on a kitchen remodeling. He was able to finish the job promptly. Kitchen turned out beautiful. I would recommend to anyone needing construction services. read more

I hired American Renavatu to do a full gut and bathroom remodel. I expanded the bathroom by taking an adjoining closet, completely changed the floor layout and moved every plumbing/electrical fixture. Alec and his crew did not disappoint. I am beyond ecstatic with the results. My bathroom now looks like it belongs in a magazine! It's absolutely beautiful. Along the way, if I was not completely satisfied with a detail of the work, they always made the change I requested without hesitation/complaint. The end result was a new beautiful bathroom that I cannot stop looking at! In addition to the bathroom remodel, I also had them repipe my house with copper. I live in an older home that still had all of the old galvanized pipe. Again, another fantastic job. All of this was accomplished in less than 3 weeks which was honestly a shock to me. These guys work!!! Every single day of the project I was able to see real progress. Alec and his crew are very respectful and professional. I truly enjoyed working with all of them. It was a very positive experience which can be hard to find when it comes to contractors! I will be adding photos shortly! Thank you again to Alec, Salvador and crew! Great job!!! read more