We contacted Hope's Landscaping in July 2018 for an on-site consultation. We had an aging deck that was getting little use and wanted to know what was possible if we were to replace it with a brick paver patio. They promptly set up a visit and Ernie came out and checked out the area. A day later, he came back with a vision for what was possible (we literally had no idea what to do and were relying on the opinions of contractors). He explained what would fit the space best, what sorts of things would detract from the space, and the best "bang for our buck." He was open with his pricing, laying out all the details of what was included, discounts, etc. We decided to go with them to: 1) Remove the deck 2) Remove two older raised garden beds 3) Remove an area of pea gravel separating the raised garden beds and deck. 4) Create a two-tiered patio, with curving edges, that steps down to a built-in fire pit and a half-moon style stairs leading up to the adjacent sun room. 5) Put in garden beds edging the patio with custom plants. 6) Finish the area with sod. What followed is the only "less than 5 star" part of my review. We were told a start date of August 25, contingent upon rain and other projects; we completely understood. Late August came and for a couple weeks the communication about the project progress came to a standstill. It took about 3 weeks of voicemails and emails to finally get a response and explanation about the delay (health issues with crew members and some weather delays). I expressed my concern about simply improving communication and from that point forward, we had no issues with the office folk, Ernie, or anyone at Hope's. I think it was simply that they were overwhelmed at the time. Because of the delays, our project ran into a winter "pause." The deck was torn out late fall in 2018, and then in April, the work on the space truly began. One thing that we were VERY impressed with was the thoughtfulness each and every day by the work crew as they packed up to leave. They would pick up the area, organize any tools or bricks, blow off the patio, etc., just to make it "look nice" until the next day, even if the area wasn't even close to being ready for use. When the project got close to being done, Ernie met with us regularly again to discuss the garden beds, finishing the project, and other details. We were given a list of plants to choose for the garden beds (custom listed and appropriate for the shadiness of the areas), and Ernie was receptive to my wanting to create (on my own) a small in-ground strawberry garden (in the pictures, this is the rectangle of bare dirt not covered by the new sod--Ernie gave his opinion on the size and placement of that bed so as to not detract from the appeal of the patio and other beds). All-in-all, we would hands-down recommend Hope's Landscaping, especially if you "lack creative vision" like we did. Ernie has a talent for creating a project FOR YOU and FOR YOUR SPACE. read more

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Ernie came out on time. Work was done professionally and expeditiously. Communication was outstanding. I would hire them again. (they graded, laid sod and made planting beds in our back yard after we had a pool removed and deck replaced) read more

Hope's Landscaping - Rest of back yard and grading - Landscaping Near Me - Aurora, Illinois

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This isn't a review of this company's work, just of their communication/response abilities... I sent a detailed email off requesting someone to come out and give me a quote on a yard job. It took a couple days to respond, fine, they asked for my name, address, contact info, I gave them that right away. Its now been almost 10 days and they have never responded or sent someone out to look at the property. Needless to say we will be going with another landscaping company. Update: I did get contacted by this company after my negative review of their ability to respond to me. They appear to have had an honest mix-up in their office with someone with a similar name as mine. I kind of just got lost in the shuffle of the busy day to day life it seems. I was called, texted and messaged on Yelp. I did reply to the text but then they said they didn't get that too after I hadn't heard back from them. So I don't really know what the issue is here. But I believe they are just busy and not trying to ignore work. I personally won't be going with them after 2 different issues with responses to me and the defensive nature they responded to my review here, but I imagine they are a fine company based on their overall reviews. read more

Hired Hope for cleanup work around our new driveway and to install brick walls around our landscaping and they did an awesome job. Will be hiring them again. Would recommend. read more

Due to the need to spend more time at home, my wife and I decided that we wanted to update our backyard, which included removing an old beat down deck, and adding a patio. We received a couple different quotes, and felt that Hope's Landscaping was the best deal of the bunch, so we went with them. I have to say, it was the best decision we made. Ernie and his team did a fantastic job on our patio, tree removal, and bush removal. Ernie made sure that everything was up to our expectations, and more importantly, his expectations as he was able to spot some things that needed to be fixed that we didn't catch. When we need any work done again, we will make sure to go back to Hope's Landscaping. read more

If you've worked with the owner, you know why this review is what it is. The mostly finished project took over 2 and a half years and was fraught with issues, many involving personal issues from the owner -- one of which I mistakenly tried to empathetically help him with when I kept hearing he would need to file bankruptcy and other similar things. I do feel taken as a result. They ended up making good on most of the major work and it does look beautiful, but it isn't without its issues. Over the coarse of the project, I had 5 different "teams" of hardscapers, mostly consisting of one or two people, many weeks would go by with little or no contact. Some of the work was done poorly and, yes, there are stories and I won't get into them because I know the owner will respond defensively. I will leave two examples of many: the patio we were replacing was not properly excavated and set with proper paver base -- we see worms coming through the cracks after rainstorms and the patio is already starting to become unleveled in some areas. A wall was only given enough paver base support and wall brick on the sloping side of our yard to go halfway down from the patio to the ground -- which we couldn't gauge because the landscapers were piling all the dirt there and the patio work was dug into that dirt pile with no concern about the actual depth of the ground. When the dirt pile was removed, half of the foundation of the wall between patio and ground was paver base, not wall stone. Instead of tearing the wall down and rebuilding, we negotiated a retaining wall around all of this to keep it from collapsing, but this wouldn't have happened if it had been done right to begin with. It looks nice, but imagine the headaches on both sides. I had another team on site this summer repairing several areas that were poorly done and simply finishing the project, at additional cost. If you're looking to get your project done in a timely fashion with less frustration, I recommend looking elsewhere. read more

I was search for a landscaping company to do a spring clean up, place some mulch and pea gravel around the pool. After searching for few weeks and most company's schedules were full and unable to start work until late June. I put a call into Hope's landscaping in aurora. Ernie called me back immediately. Very professional and accommodating, as I had a timeframe I needed it completed by. Ernie came out twice to measure and make sure he had all the info needed as the job was detailed. I can't recommend Hope's Landscaping enough for your landscaping needs. The final project looked amazing, like it should pictured be in a home magazine. Friends and neighbors commented how great the front and backyard looks. Awesome job by Ernie and his team. Hard working, professional at a great price. read more

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We contacted Hope's because we needed an area cleared out for a new shed and then I decided to surprise my husband with a new fire pit which morphed into a whole yard upgrade of hardscapes, tree removals and new plants. Ernie was prompt and fairly priced. When there was an issue he fixed it. He was responsive to every request I made and fixed every issue that I brought to his attention. He showed that he was a man of integrity when he brought to my attention the recent review when he absolutely did not need to and answered every question that I had in regards to the situation. I never once felt uncomfortable with him or his team while they were on my property for this project. We loved the end result of this project and look forward to years of enjoyment. read more

3 words describe Hope's Landscaping - professional, reliable and proficient. We engaged Hope's Landscaping to provide sod services for our new construction home. Ernie reached out to us right away and scheduled time to meet onsite. While meeting onsite, he asked detailed questions that pertains to new construction projects - all great and thorough questions. I immediately knew Ernie had expertise beyond the level of "standard" landscaping and he clearly was knowledgeable compared to some of the other vendors we met that week. Ernie connected with our general contractor and architect to get any additional questions answered and set expectations on what his team would be accountable for based on what the contractors were supposed to do. Fast forward - the construction crew left our lot a disaster and failed to ever complete the underground piping work. After a couple weeks of fighting with the general contractor about it, I asked if Ernie could take on this additional work so they could ultimately get started. He said yes and put a plan together in place that was executed in a matter of days. A simple sod project now became a bigger project since he picked up our contractor's slack. As the work was in motion, we ran into a laundry list of demands from the village due to damages left behind from construction. Ernie came to our rescue dealing with the back and forth change requests from the village inspectors, constantly keeping me in the loop with all communication and mobilizing the proper crew to meet all the demands. Mobilizing crew is an art and Ernie is a master at it while managing other projects. Ernie and Hope's Landscaping went above and beyond to help us make the best of our unfortunate situation when they could have easily left us dead in the water. This simple sod project quickly escalated to an extremely expensive project we never thought it would come to but I can personally say is worth every penny because of how thorough each task was executed to the highest quality by the team, the transparency and professionalism Ernie has and most importantly the genuine partnership Hope's Landscaping demonstrated through this entire process to work with us. I look forward to working with Ernie and Hope's Landscaping for our future landscaping needs. They have definitely proven their worth through this experience and I highly recommend them for ANY of your landscaping needs - they will deliver the highest quality no matter how big or small of a project. read more

Needed a reliable service to maintain my folks home, throughout all four season. Reasonable prices for lawn mowing, cleanup, mulch, and snow removal. Very prompt in communications. Friendly staff. Great work. read more

Ernie and his worker Matty(I don't remember if it's correct spell) did a great job with my front and back yard, price was competitive, and the work was pretty neat! They got it done in November last year, so the lawn and the plants are not done yet in the picture, they will be back this spring to tide things up. Ernie is easy to communicate and straightforward, he knows the code and provided suggestions that's for the best of our interest. I recommended him to my neighbors in my community. read more

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It snowed, they showed, but even better, they communicated, before and after. I really like their tiered pricing. We had just moved in and have lots of work to do. We've already talked about estimates for the Summer landscape maintenance. read more

Very pleased with price and final result. The entire team was friendly, hard working, and delivered exactly what we were looking for if not better. The pricing was very competitive and the product quality did not lack. Not only that, but their administrative team has been a pleasure to deal with and has checked in since the completion of the project to make sure we were happy with the service. I would definitely recommend. read more

We changed our plans, so we didn't get to use them for landscaping. But I wanted to give a shout out to say they were quick and courteous to respond to our inquiries. They didn't give us the run around about calling them when an email answered simple questions. I would give them a try next time just based on the direct and honest responses. read more

Ernie came out to give us an estimate this spring. With February already bringing 80 degree temps, I was anxious to get our landscaping done, and a new paver patio laid. We had a couple other companies out as well, but Hope's Landscaping was the most competitive. Considering the Rain we had in May, our project kept getting pushed back - and while frustrating, there was not much anyone could do about it - Mother Nature is a fickle one... Ernie was very responsive via text when needed and assured me that his team would do what they could to ensure the project was completed as quickly as possible. We did run into some bumps in the road (car accidents & a day of no shows) during the project, and I would have expected to be reached out to rather than having to reach out to them, which is the only reason I couldn't give a 5 star review. I appreciate that Ernie has so much of his time and heart poured into this company, and he took care of the issues as I brought them to his attention. In the end, I was happy with the work, however we do have some plants that were removed that seem to be sprouting back up that I really never wanted to see again (I'm talking to you fiddle head ferns!). If you're looking for a local company who is competitively priced - Hopes Landscaping should be your first call. read more

We booked two services with Hope's: weekly lawn cutting and paver walkway installation. We pulled out of weekly lawn services after 1 1/2 months because they were not picking up the clippings (which we were paying for). So at 9 months pregnant I had to take my dog across to the field since we couldn't let her into the yard because she loves fresh lawn clippings. While there are areas of the paver walkway that look good, it has been more of a hassle than anything. There are multiple areas where the edging pavers have become separated, the sodding was not attached properly and has come away from the walkway and died, and we were not informed that the downspouts should have been buried before paving. As new homeowners, we were counting on an experienced company to help us through our first home project. The paver work is supposed to come with a 2 year warranty, however, Hope's is saying that how our walkway was damaged is not under the warranty...but we have no idea how it became damaged, only assumptions can be made. The warranty that is stated on Hope's contract just says "2 year warranty", there is not a description or exclusions. According to Hope's, pavers can only support the weight of a person, any other weight will damage the pavers. If this is true we were not informed about this weight limit. We paid 3,400 for a paver walkway and now we have to pay another company 1,300 to come and fix Hope's work. Very disappointed! read more

I want to preface this review by saying that I have never posted a negative service review online, but feel it is necessary in this case. We used Hope's Landscaping to install a patio & bury the sump pump line in Summer 2017. It was the worst contractor experience of my life and I would NEVER recommend their services. Ernie told us that the work would take 1 week and would be completed before Memorial Day. Demo didn't start until June 9th and work was not completed until August 9th. While some of the issues we ran into could be bad luck, there's a lot that was within the control of Hope's. Positives: Office manager Meredith was great to work with. Ernie is quick to respond when you contact him (phone/text/email). Offered financial compensation for errors they made. Negatives: - Ernie is not proactive/does not follow up. Found I was the one calling him to initiate next steps. For example, we waited 8 weeks for the building permit to be approved by the village. When I finally called the village to inquire on the delay, they informed me the application was never submitted by Hope's. - Both inspections by the village failed (pre-pouring of the concrete & final) due to not meeting codes. I don't know much about construction, but I do expect my contractor to know. Ernie claimed the inspector didn't know the codes and was citing us inappropriately. - Ernie hired concrete sub-contractors that he personally had never used. The sub-contractors clearly didn't know how to properly lay stamped concrete (see photos). The entire job had to be pulled out and redone. - A second crew (again that Ernie never personally used) was brought in to re-do the concrete work. The rise of the stairs did not meet code resulting in a SECOND tear out and reinstall. - Buried sump pump line was supposed to be installed so that it could be disconnected in the winter. It was not and Ernie seemed surprised that his crew did it "wrong." Since we could not disconnect for the winter the line froze, pushed up to the surface and pipe cracked. We will now have to call in someone to re-do the work. - Ernie's communication style often became unprofessional. When I would talk to him about concerns he quickly became defensive often to the point of attacking towards me saying things like "you don't know what you're talking about." When the incident with the concrete subcontractors occurred, he berated the worker in my backyard using a plethora of profanities within ear shot of my children. Bottom line: Choose another company for your landscaping needs. read more

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Needed to replace cracked concrete on a porch and walk. Hope's gave a good price to do the job, and they did a very nice job removing the old walk and step, and replacing it with Brussels Block. All very nice. They chipped the porch repair doing it, and promptly fixed the chip. Excellent fix now and attractive new step and finish. They did contract out the concrete repair of the porch to another contractor, who also did an overall very good job repairing a crack near a support post, and refinishing with an epoxy overcoat. The only negative is wrt the neatness of the epoxy overcoat, which is overall a very good job. There is epoxy splash on the posts in the porch, and the line at the brick is a bit sloppy. Overall very good job. read more

I contacted Hope's to get a quote on a brick patio and firepit after seeing their positive reviews on Yelp. Ernie got back to me promptly and when we met to discuss the project he came prepared. His professionalism and positive attitude have me confidence that I was going to get a good outcome for a fair price. And that's exactly what I got. Ernie was very response and touched based throughout the entire project to make sure I was happy. His workers got started right away, couldn't have been more pleasant, and did a magnificent job. What's more they cleaned up at the end of each day. The pic I am posting is the finished job the same day it was completed! Very glad to give these guys a 5 star rating. read more

Hope's Landscaping - Landscaping Near Me - Aurora, Illinois

We just wanted a front wall to help fill out the front wall. Thx to Ernie and his lead Alfonso, we ended up getting a walkway, and full patio with a fire pit. All done at a VERY reasonable price! We are very pleased with the work done, and have sent some of of our neighbors to Hope Landscaping as well. due Ernie, Meredith as well as the rest of the team were very helpful in choosing our landscaping and even replaced some of the bushes that died due to the heat of the summer. We feel like we have started a lasting relationship with Hope Landscaping since they also do interiors and we all know that a house is never really done. (At least not until the wife says so!!) I'll post some pics once I get home. Give them a look, you won't be disappointed. read more

There are no words to describe the surprise and delight I received when reaching out to the good people at Hope's Landscaping. Ernie came out in the cold after a request the day before a big snow and made time to squeeze me in. That is the sign of good people and a good business! I am going to refer them to everyone I know and use them for my landscaping work this spring/summer. Thank you guys, you are truly the best and were a blessing to me on this snowy cold day!! read more

I hired Hope's Landscaping this winter to remove snow from my parents driveway and sidewalk. They are very competitive on price. Which makes their customer service and communication an unbelievable value. Taking care of elderly parents house can be tough, but they make it easy by working with you on your needs. read more

I could not have been more impressed! Incredibly responsive. Came and did my yard 1.5 hrs after I reached out. The crew was excellent. They did an amazing job and such nice guys. Will use again with out a doubt. read more

Summary: deck building and landscaping project took 3 months with poor communication regarding delays, but was completed. See below for a detailed review. We hired Hope's Landscaping to build a deck and do some extensive landscaping in the backyard. Brief timeline of events: April 4, 2018: They cash a very large check (50% deposit). May 17: We send them the plat of survey (our fault this took so long, but for some reason they didn't order the material until they got the survey). They tell us they'll receive the material around mid-June or earlier and start building right away. June 1: They receive the building permit from the city (they didn't have a lot of control over this). So far so okay! June 2: They tear down our existing deck (and until they finish the project we can't use the back door of our house). June 25-end of August: Approximately every 2 weeks they give us a date they're going to start and finish the deck, and in reality they come and do a tiny amount of work 1 or 2 days in those 2+ months. We actually went through the emails, it was approximately 9 times that they said they were coming to start the work, and then they day came and passed with no show and zero communication. September: 4 more promised completion dates, and a final actual completion on September 26. (Everything in the contract was completed, and the work was okay). We were never once given any kind of (believable) excuse or explanation for any of this, at the end they told us they had a hard time getting the decking material (but they never once communicated that?), and mentioned Hurricane Florence (which happened after the material was delivered to our house). Based on the positive reviews here, we struggle to understand why we were treated so poorly as customers. For our "patience", they did some extra work on the yard that hadn't been in the contract, but didn't knock a dime off the price. read more

We hired Hope's Landscaping for a major backyard overhaul. From the start Ernie and the office staff were in contact regularly. With all of the April snow and rain weather held us up but they got right to work as the weather improved! Manny and Abel were the main guys on our project and they were professional and diligent in their work. We had two new patios laid and water remediation completed. The paver patios are perfectly level and symmetrical. Ernie went above and beyond for a vision with our project. Adding elements that improved the functionality and look of our yard. Communication is a top priority and all the crew will make sure you are completely satisfied before the project is done. We will absolutely use Hopes landscaping again and highly recommend them to all. Attached are a few photos of just one of the areas they completed. read more

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When we called Hope's Landscaping, our yard was a nightmare! When we bought our house, our backyard was a forest. Nearly the entire backyard was wooded and mulched. My husband had cut down the trees and removed most of the much but the yard was left looking like a bomb went off! Hope's Landscaping came in and gave us a yard we only could have imagined. Alfonso and Manny were amazing! Their crew came in here and went above and beyond to make our yard look like a million dollars. They tore out my concrete patio and extended it with bricks, sodded the entire backyard, seeded areas I didn't even ask them to, replaced mulch I didn't ask them to and cleaned up all the leaves and debris from the winter. They also installed a fence in between our home and the neighbors. It looks great. We could not be happier with the results! The crew is professional and hard working and weather permitting, fast. The pricing is fair and well worth every penny. I will hire them for all my landscaping needs in the future! read more

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I recently wanted the yard to be cleaned up of that leaves that fell after the city wan't doing yard waste pick up, as well as have the overall yard looking better. I reached out through yelp to ask for a quote. I received a prompt reply from the Office Manager, Meredith. She was very helpful. I also worked in unison with the Ernie via text messages, and we were able to set up a time that worked for both us. I liked the fact that they were on top of communicating with me. I even received photos of the maintenance being done, as I wasn't home at the time of service. I would definitely recommend Hope's Landscaping as a reliable Landscaping service. read more

Extremely happy and impressed with Hope's landscaping! From price to quality of work to quality of plants and cleanup all 5 stars! Had a tricky area where a 30 year old maple had left its roots. The team literally went inch by inch over a good 20' x 20' bed went down 4 inches and removed them all! Turned a useless old dog yard into a beautiful spot for new vegetable garden. The other bed we challenged them to remove all the over growth as well as lava rocks placed by previous owner and hidden under mulch. Ernie was very pleasant, professional and communicated often with us throughout! Cost was less than half of a large long established landscaping company and Hope's did a lot of extras! read more

I'm thrilled with the job Hope's landscaping did at my home. Ernie Melsch helped me with my selections and explained my options. His crew worked fast and neatly. I would highly recommend their service :) read more

Needed to get my landscaping cleaned up and new stuff planted. Ernie came out and took the time to listen and understand what we needed. His crew was great, accommodating and did an excellent job. Very happy with how everything turned out. read more

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This is my second 5 star review for Hope's Landscasping. After being pleased with a job they completed a few months ago, I contacted them to replace an existing deck. They exhibited the same professionalism and attention to detail as in my first interaction with them. They showed up when they said they would and completed the job timely and neatly. The people at Hope's exhibit reliability and consistency and I would hire them again without hesitancy. read more

After expressing my discontent with my experience with the administrative office, Ernie reached out to me personally and interacted with me almost throughout the remainder of the project. The follow ups were prompt. Our patio was a Belgard paver from over 8+ years. Ernie worked with a Belgard contractor to make available the closest available paver that matched the older paver. Due to the weather, the work got delayed. However, as temperatures warmed up in early Dec, they quickly scheduled the work and completed it. The finished patio looks good so far. Hopefully, it will last a long time. After the initial poor experience, I feel they made a good effort to make up for their initial lapses. read more

We recently had a fire pit, patio & pergola put in and could not be happier with the job Ernie & Co. did! The communication was great, everything was to code and the recommendations were cost effect and practical. Will use again read more

I called them on Saturday we really needed help quick, they came on Mon. We had knee high grass that looked awful, they really improved our yard, it looks great! I really appreciated how fast they helped us. read more

We recently moved into a new home and needed a lot of work done to our backyard. We had half of the yard cleared of debris and bushes and had several trees removed. We had a portion of our yard that needed new grass so they installed new sod, which looks beautiful. Our flower beds were all spade and edged and grass seed was laid in areas that were sparse. We also wanted to extend our pool concrete. The work on the concrete was amazing and his crew paid close attention to detail when installing in. We had underground fencing put around our pool concrete to keep animals out. Ernie's crew did all of these jobs to our utmost satisfaction and we could not be happier with the results. Ernie was here to ensure that the job was completed correctly and checked in with us to make sure we were satisfied along the way. We appreciated the communication and dedication to our project. We have a lot more we would like to do to our yard over time. We will definitely be seeking out Ernie and Hope Landscaping for our future projects. read more

The owner is a very nice business person to deal with. Back office staff great service

We hired Hope's Landscaping to take out our existing concrete patio, put in a new one as well as basically completely landscape and clean up our yard. Once I figured out that text messaging was the best way for us to keep in touch I was very happy with his response time as well as his work. He was a bit short staffed which caused the work to take a little bit longer but the end result was well worth the wait. He even referred someone to us that built our shed which we LOVE. Ernie was very personable and I loved how important being to code is and doing things the right way is to him and his company. His prices were very reasonable and we are thrilled with our new backyard. read more

Hope's Landscaping recently completed a couple projects for me, which included installing 2 dry wells in my front yard to resolve a drainage issue I was experiencing and also various planting in my front and back yard. I worked with Ernie, who I found to be honest, communicated very well, was incredibly professional from start to finish and very pleasant to work with. The pricing was competitive and will definitely use Hope's again in the future for additional work when the time comes. Highly recommended! read more

Awesome service, awesome work. Our property looks terrific. The staff is very responsive.

Ernie did an excellent job with a difficult raised patio. His crew also did other work such as my raised garden, mulching and retention walls out front. He explained his plan for my landscaping project and his crew did an excellent job. I have to commend his employee Alfonso for making my raised patio look so good. I highly recommend Hopes Landscaping. read more