One Star - Would Give Zero If Possible Review for: The Basement Men (The Creative Approach Builders & Remodelers, Inc.) We were referred to this company and initially spoke with Steve. During early phone conversations, we were told the job was usually around $1,000. We scheduled an appointment for 10:00am. Steve called after 10:00am to confirm the appointment, but did not actually arrive until close to noon. When he later came to see the space in person, the price discussed was $1,500, which we agreed to. We paid a $750 deposit via Zelle to schedule the work and signed the contract. We had agreed that we would purchase the exhaust fan ourselves. After we purchased it, we were then told there would be an additional $200 charge to install the fan we had already bought. We were also separately asked to send an additional $75 via Zelle to complete HOA paperwork and provide insurance information. No work was performed other than the site visit. Before anything even started, and after multiple additional costs were introduced beyond what was originally discussed, we decided to cancel. At that point, we were told the deposit would not be refunded. The end result was paying $750, having no work completed, and being asked for more money than what we initially agreed to. Only after this situation did we take a closer look at the full contract, including the fine print on the reverse side. Based on our reading, there are several provisions that future customers may want to review very carefully before signing. These include language related to: - Broad limitations on responsibility - Little or no warranty protection - Attorney fees and collection costs being shifted to the customer - High late-payment penalties - Significant cancellation penalties - Permit-related responsibility being placed on the homeowner - The ability to remove materials if payment disputes arise In our opinion, when no work has been performed, it's reasonable to expect at least a partial refund of a deposit, possibly minus a small scheduling or consultation fee. That was not our experience. This review is not written lightly. We understand that home improvement projects can be complex and that misunderstandings can happen. However, from our perspective, the combination of shifting prices, additional fees introduced after the deposit, strict contract terms, and refusal to refund any portion of the deposit resulted in a very negative experience. We would not use this company again. Anyone considering them should read every page of the contract carefully, confirm all potential costs upfront, and make sure the terms align with their comfort level before proceeding. read more

Extremely greedy and wants money prior to completion. Steve puts the pressure on to keep writing checks despite shoddy work and non completion. Be forewarned read more

I'm ungrateful. I'm an idiot. I'm a f***er. At least according to the owner of The Creative Approach Builders, Steve Lauer, the Concrete Man himself. Throughout the process of our front porch project, Steve proved emotional, unreliable, and a pain to work with. The first sign of things going south is the 6 week delay at the start of the project because of the permit. Nothing to do with the city. The permit application was just never filed by Steve's architect. That was just one example of Steve's failure to properly project manage. He would often say one thing in a meeting, but not follow through. He would follow the contract, only when it benefited him, otherwise saying "that's not what that means." His best, most consistent communication came when asking for a progress payment. I could share story after story Steve's poor project management and poor attitude. But instead, I'll leave you with this. As I was driving my daughter to day care yesterday morning, more than six months after the project was complete and final payment was made, Steve Lauer slows down in his car to flip me off. I'd recommend avoiding him at all costs: The Creative Approach Builders, The Concrete Man, The Basement Men. read more

I would stay away from using the Basement Men. The owner, Steve only shows up during a project when he wants another check. In addition, when I had a problem with his multiple change orders he argued with me and we ended up in a yelling match. Strike 3 which caused me to write this review is because a couple items went missing from my house during the project. I'm 100% sure one of his guys took it. While its possible it was accidentally mistaken for the workers tools, Steve acted like he could care less that my items were missing. Probably because the job was already paid in full. read more

I was referred to The Basement Men from a local moms group (it turns out his wife is all over promoting their company). After briefly looking at Angie's List and seeing mostly positive reviews, I went ahead and scheduled him for an estimate. We had just purchased a new house and was on a tight timeframe for several projects. We wanted carpet pulled out and vinyl plank flooring installed in the basement and Steve provided a quote at $7k. We also discussed removing a wall in the kitchen and adding some lighting as well as tile removal. His quote was $3k but was a guesstimate since he couldn't see the property in person (as we had not closed on the house). I went ahead and gave him a deposit ($2,500) for the basement floor but asked to hold off on making a decision for the kitchen. In the end, after doing some more research on Angie's list, and talking to a few people personally about their work, we decided to hire someone else for the kitchen. We just weren't comfortable putting all our "eggs in one basket" with one contractor. The day the basement work started, I gave Steve another $2,500. he indicated his installer would be done in a week and asked that I be ready to pay him in full on that day which I said would be fine. Steve was pretty upset we didn't hire him for the kitchen work and said he only gave me a great price for the basement as he assumed he'd get more work from us. He asked us if they could skip painting the quarter round finishing trim since the carpet removal was thicker than he expected and because he gave me a great price, expecting other work. We agreed to this. His contractor, Martin, was great. Unfortunately, as we had other work happening simultaneously in the house, two workers needed to access some plumbing in the basement. Martin could have worked through it but chose to take the day off to make things easier on him and those plumbers (which I was totally okay with and appreciative of). I called Steve right away to give him a heads up to let him know the work would be running a day late. He still insisted I pay him on the original completion day even though the work wouldn't be finished. That day we were supposed to meet for the final payment, I was running very behind at the doctors office due to being pregnant with twins and experiencing complications. I asked if we could meet a day later (once the work was complete) to make the final payment and this is when Steve lost it. He was screaming at me demanding that I hold up my end of the bargain and that I was wasting his time. He accused me of not wanting to pay him. At this point of being berated and screamed at in an unprofessional manner, I was totally not comfortable paying him for a job that hadn't been completed. He threatened to pull Martin off the job. He was completely irrational, not willing to listen, etc., and I had to hang up on him. I was still at the doctors when this phone call happened and my doctor became very alarmed as my blood pressure had skyrocketed. I ended up having my husband call him and Steve was much calmer with him. We agreed to give him 1/2 of the remaining $2k. Then the next day, when the job still wasn't complete as they needed to wait for more flooring, he asked for the other $1k. We gave him $500. Then when it was finally complete the next day, we gave him $500. I see now from reading another review here that this is a familiar tactic he uses demanding payment before completed work and only shows up to collect a check. Steve did apologize but his apologies were full of excuses saying he had given us a good price that cut too far into his own margins as he was relying off other work he thought he'd get from us (and that the flooring material costs had increased which was an extra $200-$300). He also was concerned i would start bad mouthing him. Well, if you want other work, behave professionally. I also had not bad-mouthed him up to that point but I finally decided to write a review so any one else contemplating his company know what they are dealing with. In the end, the work was nice that his contractor did, but not worth dealing with the owner of company whatsoever. read more

The Basement Men - Flooring being installed - General Contractors Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

We had a company come out to repair the awful floor tile install job, they just reached out that they could not give us a quote to fix our floors because it is THAT bad. We need to call a tile or floor specialist. read more

I used Steve for several projects for my house and my rental houses and everything went perfectly!! Steve was constantly in touch and worked around my schedule so I didn't have a thing to worry about. I would highly recommend his services. read more

Steve and his crew did a fantastic job on our basement gym remodel. They transformed a completely unfinished space into a beautiful workout room, and could not have been friendlier, more accommodating, or easier to reach! The cherry on the top is that their prices are reasonable and fair. Thank you, Steve! read more

The Basement Men - before and after of our gym! (not pictured: mirrors) - General Contractors Near Me - Highland Park, Illinois

I worked with The Creative Approach/ The Basement Men one of my investment properties. They were hired to do interior work around the home; painting, bathroom updating, tile work, vinyl plank flooring in the basement and carpentry odds and ends. Steve presented a professional contract with very competitive pricing and was responsive with changes and budget concerns. They were attentive to the project, easy to work with, communicated well and finished everything in a timely and professional manner. I was very happy with the results and the experience - I would use Steve and his company again in the future. read more

Steve was very professional and honest with us in providing a quote, as well as working within our budget. All throughout the process he and Tony were open and helpful. They knew that we were looking to stay within a fairly restricted budget, but still worked with us to build what I needed while still being within what we could afford. They made the recommendation of adding a drain system, which was not part of the original plan, but we're glad we had them add it. The only other additional cost was that I wanted more electrical work done than what was in our original plan. We had: concrete removal, a drain system installed, new concrete poured, and a room built in the new space. Steve and Tony worked hard to accommodate my crazy ideas, including hooking up HVAC silencer boxes that I built myself. In order to help out with the budget all woodworking and painting was left to me, which I'm still in the process of finishing. I found everyone's conduct to be very professional and courteous throughout. Steve estimated that the project would be about a month, and they were finished in 19 days. So awesome. The next time that I have a home project I'll definitely be calling Steve again. I had a great experience working with them. read more

Similar to other experiences on yelp my interaction with Steve started out well but quickly turned. He is proving himself to be quite unstable and I would highly warn everyone to stay away! Steve provided me a competitive quote and I signed a contract for multiple different jobs. Over the course of a week I communicated with Steve via e-mail typical questions to get ready for the contracted work. Steve eventually terminated our contract the week the job was meant to begin due to what he calls, my preference for e-mail communication. Although this was frustrating enough seeing that Steve had only called me once during this time he then verbally attacked me when I called him in an attempt to make arrangements to pick up my deposit refund. After asking if I would be able to pick up the check Steve proceeded to yell at me, call me names, and threaten me. I was stunned with his behavior and was physically shaken after getting off the phone with him. I will never understand what nerve I hit for Steve to become so vile but it does not appear that I am the first one he has accosted and so I am sure I will not be the last. Stay away from this loose cannon. read more

DISASTER, worst contractor I have ever experienced. The owner Steve Liar is the most unprofessional person I have ever dealt with. The work was dangerous and poor quality. Once the demolition happens he demands more money "first it's whining about how"he's not really making any money on this job" If you refuse his threats then BEWARE, he has tantrums and becomes abusive. We even had to threaten to call the police to get him to leave our home. He then started groveling about having to make his payroll. When I informed him that if he was under capitalized I couldn't help him...he blew up and started sceaming "I have more money than you, I could retire today, that's how much money I have" Sounds pretty normal, right? Well, I infomed him I would not comply with his threats and ended the call. Later that evening he called and when I again refused to accelerate the payments he informed me his men would be by in the morning to pick up their tools and that he quit. Overall the work was poor quality and several matters were actually dangerous related to gas lines and electrical. The list of poor workmanship is quite lengthy. Our new contractor hired to fix the issues actually discovered multiple issues hidden by the basement men. Not only was the owner abusive but his workers were as well. If you asked questions they would berate you. And then do it there way even if it was against your wishes. Every day of having them in our home was sickening. They left the jobsite (our home) a mess every day. Not even an attempt to clean up on Friday for the weekend. Additionally, it was unnerving that they refused to follow COVID protocol - workers would not wear masks and would yell at my wife and I without masks. No social distancing either. It was horrible. Think twice before engaging with this man. There is a common theme of unstable behavior and poor workmanship. Beware!! read more

I hired Steve to help get my basement back in livable conditional after a recent flood. Steve and his team completely transformed my space and the end result is amazing. You would never know I flooded and now I even have an extra store room. MY kids love the carpeting and have made their own gymnastics center. Before my basement was wasted space. Now it is my kids favorite space in the house plus I have the extra storage that I needed. Steve really was great to work with and made some excellent suggestions that I never thought of. We even were able to add a small bathroom at a very reasonable price. I plan to use the Basement Men for concrete work in the spring. Contact him, you'll be glad. read more

Steve from The Basement Men is a consummate professional and a rare find in general contracting. He's from a long line of GC's, learning the craft from his father. My job scope involved adding some walls and doors to open space, built-in dining nook, built in bookcase and entertainment wall, refinishing wood floors, new carpets, new paint for about 2200 sqft, kitchen tiles, crown molding and wainscoting finish work. I asked a few highly regarded GC's a request for proposal and Steve's came back on time, on target and very professional. I met with him weekly, sometimes more than once a week as work progressed. He's proactive and helpful, suggesting things that will help you add value and suggesting where you can probably cut corners and do without. The subtrades he used were all A+ guys. I will be calling him next time I need work done. read more

Steve and his guys helped me out when I got in over my head thinking I could just paint a couple rooms with the kids home. They did a beautiful job and responded quickly so I could get my home back together - Thanks! read more

I would like to thank Steve and his crew for the wonderful job they did for me. They had the best price and they cleaned up beautifully afterwards. read more

The Basement Men finished our basement 16 years ago when our kids were small, after years of fun we decided to change the layout a bit with a small office and TV area and Steve's folks did another great job. Very satisfied with both jobs some 15 years apart. Helpful, creative and reasonable pricing with a top down GC style management to keep the worries at bay for homeowners. Highly recommended by us. read more

Scheduled an estimate three weeks in advance, They didn't come at agreed upon time - had called early and decided to leave the area because i didn't respond quick enough. Why did you schedule appt? I even told the office I thought it was too far for them to come, but the insisted they could handle it. If this is an indication of how they do business - steer clear. I was offered the opportunity to call again, take another day off work and maybe get an estimate. And here's a news flash - the concrete is OUTSIDE. You could have driven by since you were here so early. you would have seen my car and the concrete. Thanks for showing you unprofessional approach before the project took flight. I see form the Yelp and Angie reviews , I dodged a bullet read more

Once Steve took our first check he only ever came over to ask for more money. Before he even started any work he asked us to give him a positive review for a $200 discount. We declined since we didn't think it would be right to review something in advance of any work being completed. He never looked over the work that was being done, checked progress, or even bothered to check for quality. He was so disorganized in his work that there was never any schedule made or even a punch list of tasks to be completed. The work that should have been finished at the end of February was not completed until mid-March. I've been on job sites before where things may go wrong but it's usually up to the project manager, in this case, Steve, to check over the work and have things fixed or redone the right way. The reason Steve doesn't do this is that once he has your money he doesn't care about anything else. I can also tell that he's never done any work himself so he wouldn't know how to fix anything or direct any work anyway. If you think you're hiring an expert when you're hiring Steve, think again. This man has no experience or any interest in doing the job right. The guys he subcontracted seem to figure things out as they went along, coming and going as they pleased with no regard for our work schedules or the fact that we were living in the condo at the time of the renovation. To say that I regret hiring him would be the understatement of the century. I've worked with many different groups of people and contractors and never have I been treated so badly or verbally abused like I was with Steve Lauer. I should have known when I saw Steve's work contract, thrown together in  Microsoft word, that he was going to be very unprofessional. When we met him he showed up with a picture binder and seemed very nice at first. He chatted with my fiancé about how he inherited the business from his father and being business owners ourselves, we thought we would give Steve the opportunity. What I should have done is researched a lot more and asked him for references in addition to digging up a little more information on him myself. We made the mistake of paying for everything upfront and because of all his irrational behavior we were scared that he would never finish the job and just scam us out of our money. When all was said and done is was a horrible experience that I would not wish on anyone. It looks ok at a first glance until you actually use the bathrooms and notice everything that's wrong with it.  Our first bathroom has an uneven floor, missing tiles, uneven grout lines, everything was very messy and uneven. There are tiles sticking up where they shouldn't, they also wasted tons of material and filled in mistakes with grout so we wouldn't notice. They were very very deceptive.  We paid for them to paint the ceiling with a moisture-resistant paint and they painted it with regular paint instead of what we specifically asked and paid for. They damaged the door and millwork/trim and left us a sink with a missing stopper. Any time we gave Steve any feedback, made suggestions, or asked any questions he became extremely agitated. Having been on the other side of this kind of job before I can say that asking for the work to be done the right way is by no means an unreasonable request, a good remodeler always should be willing to make things right for their customer. I doubt that Steve ever gets any referrals or repeat clients, he preys on naive homeowners that expect him to know what he's doing and once he's done with one he moves onto the next unsuspecting victim.The tile work in our kitchen by far the easiest job on the list was also done wrong. The contractor installed broken tiles and tried to mask his mistakes with grout. He also cut our kitchen faucet and refused to replace it or take any responsibility. Once the kitchen and hallway bathrooms were done I called Steve to ask for a meeting to go over all the work that had been done and everything that we would do going forward. He would not give me a date or time to meet over the phone and kept trying to evade the topic while getting very agitated and raising his voice to me repeatedly. I maintained my calm through the conversation but eventually had to hang up on Steve since he got more and more disrespectful. Unfortunately, that wasn't the last of it because after our phone call ended he called me back to yell at me once again. All of this is documented and recorded. In the video, you can clearly hear how he antagonizes and screams at me on the phone. In the end, he didn't even bother to finish the job even though we paid for it. We've since had to hire other people to correct his "work". read more

Everything went extremely well and the projects stayed on schedule. Steve's handymen were always right on time each morning and were courteous throughout the process. The work that was completed was top notch and exceeded my expectations. I wouldn't think twice about who i would call for a contractor after the work the Basement men did. read more

SCAM!!!! Gave me a quote. Wouldn't email it to me or email me a final proposal so I can review it. Wasted my time and tried to scam me

Steve was honest, professional, kind, reliable and a complete pleasure to work with. The workers were excellent. Precise, clean, responsive, amazing craftsmanship. We highly recommend the Basement Men as an example of how work should and can be done!! read more

As a lot of reviews here we got a bad experience with Steve. I truly doubt the good reviews since before the final discussions he wanted to offer us a $200 DISCOUNT FOR A GOOD REVIEW. Just be aware and read carefully all the F reviews there to learn ahead who are you dealing with. After getting big money from us in a period when this business is very slow, he has decided not to finish the job unless we consider a part of it a different job and we pay extra. This was the installation of handrails and spindles that he was looking again to rip us off with. He started before Christmas and after they got the $$$ thousands in down payment and dogged in the basement, Steve decided not to continue the job without extra money. He threatened me with living the job, if otherwise. In the end he tried to intimidate me with his lawyer. I feel cheated and deceived by this individual and I warn everyone to watch out. Here is what we were asking him for and he didn't done: *credit for services that we no longer needed and were included in the contract: **laminate countertop installation **removing and moving kitchen cabinets from upstairs kitchen to the basement **Installation of a storm door *Credit of the extra work for ejector pit (he had charged us with extra money without a legitimate explanation. He had threatened me to leave the job if I don't pay. With a young toddler in the house, all the debris resulted from digging and an open foundation, I paid him to have a peaceful Christmas. Moreover, there were thousands of dollars given to him in the down payment). *Credit for the extra payment for can lights. The contract states 15 can lights, and he had installed 16 and he charged us for 2 extra more plus about $100 for the kitchen's can lights without a legitimate explanation. *We wanted a full replacement of both WASHER and DRYER machines. His subcontractor has scratched and damaged our appliances. Patching them up is not good enough for us. They were brand new and we have all the paperwork from ABT and pictures to prove it. *We wanted 4 of the 6 panel doors installed to be replaced with flat panel doors because they have been cut and we are not pleased with the look. *We wanted the toilet paper holder to be replaced. It was installed in a wrong place *The entrance door needed to be painted and finished inside and outside plus the walls need to be painted. *The wall by the stairs needed to be painted up to the ceiling *Kitchen cabinets, faucet, sink and appliances need to be installed/ connected per directions given in the contract *The mechanical room needed to be cleaned of all the debris left there *The small access door from the electrical box needed to be finished and painted *Some wires in the living room are exposed and needed to be covered so they don't become hazardous *The bedroom and living room walls needed some touch-ups *Door handle installed at the bedroom door *Proper cleaning of the job site. I am very disappointed with the outcomes especially because we were so fair in dealing and paying him We had made 9 payments for him instead of 3 major ones, because he has asked us for money to pay his workers or materials. Each time he asked us for a payment, we were right on time and pleased him. We even paid him half of the final payment without completing the job. Moreover, we have paid for the delivery of floor, cabinets, vanity and doors to make it easier and faster for his workers. We have made 2 extra trips to Lowes for floor since some miscalculation occurred. Steve refused to do any of those above, blaming us for everything. His subcontractor left us on a Friday without power in the living room, and Steve considered this our existent issue and he thinks that we should have paid for his subcontractor's services. Basically, this individual will not take the responsibility at the job and all he will try to do is to rip you off. I have learned about poor business ethics, no moral integrity or professionalism with this individual. I am not sure what YOU are looking for?!? read more

I highly recommend Steve Lauer and the Basement Men. I contacted Steve after seeing a friend's basement and told him that I was motivated to begin the project immediately. Steve came to my home that same night and presented me with a bid just days later. The entire basement was completed from demo to finish in just 4 weeks and I could not be happier. His crew was extremely professional, reliable and hard-working. They were a pleasure to have in my home. Also, the quality of work is excellent. Steve's crew did not rush through the project and communicated with me frequently to make sure that everything was up to my standards. Other reviews have left negative comments about Steve, and I am completely shocked! Steve made himself available any time I had questions. He was always professional and kind, and I had nothing but positive exchanges with Steve throughout the entire project. I also felt that his crew is a wonderful representation of this company. These men arrived early in the morning and never left before 6:00pm! We were so pleased with our basement that we asked Steve to do our windows as well. I would not hesitate to use Steve again on other home improvement jobs. When you find someone great...why look elsewhere!? read more

Do yourself a big favor and hire a real company. Steve is a one man show who knows painters, carpenters, electricians, etc. They are not part of his company. Steve offers no design advice and he only shows up to collect the checks. Pricing is all lumped together (price for kitchen, price for basement) and costs were not broken down. Pricing for the work was high for what was done. He always wanted to make sure that the people doing the work did not know what I was paying him. I figure Steve added 20% to the overall cost and added no value. I regret doing business with Steve. The only times he was competitive was when I had other competing offers and then he complained that he wasn't making any money. On more then one occasion the workers asked for more money to do the work, arguing with him over what he was paying them, and on one occasion refusing to do the work unless they were paid more and then I had to write a check. It was overall a very unpleasant experience working with Steve. If someone is unwilling to say what costs are then they probably believe that it is too much. I have no problem paying someone when they add value. I have a problem paying someone that adds no value. Steve doesn't tell you what his fees are and he doesn't want his workers to know what you are paying him. Painters did a good job but otherwise the work was nothing to go wow about. read more

I heard about The Basement Men from a neighbor that was having their basement finished. Our project was not huge but they were very professional and did a great job. We now have a basement that we and the kids love to go hang out in and watch TV or even do homework. Steve and his crew are very knowledgeable, prompt, and clean - every day when I got home from work I could not tell they had been working around the house because the first thing they did is put down drop cloths everywhere they were working, and the last thing they did was clean everything up before they left. Our project had some special requirements for soundproofing and Steve's guys were very open-minded about helping us with it. They did such a good job on our basement we then had them remodel both of our bathrooms, and again they did an excellent job - the quality of the work is great, which was important since the main bathroom is in the center of the house and used by guests. It looks like a brand new 1920s vintage bathroom - clean and up-to-date without looking too modern for the house. It's great. I referred them to my sister and they did a great job on her basement as well. I would recommend Steve and The Basement Me to anyone looking to do some home remodeling! read more

We hired Steve to build an office in our basement. His price was the best out of three other contractors quotes in our area. My husband and I are very happy how the room turned out. We have other projects that we will hire him for in the near future. I would recommend him to relatives and friends. Honest guy. read more

I would not use this contractor again in the future. He is extremely unprofessional and verbally attacked me when I asked a basic question regarding timing. He threatened to quit the job and went as far to say that my $6,000 job wasn't worth his time (scope of the job never changed). He was extremely passive/aggressive and made managing the project a nightmare. The proposal/contract was extremely vague, therefore it was difficult to follow what was actually included in the project and how he arrived at the price. There is a lot of great talent on the Northshore, I would highly recommend finding another company that is reputable and professional. read more

Do NOT use this contractor. He was verbally abusive, calling me a f..b.. He threatened me. He raised the price on tiling my basement after they had already torn up the carpet because they had to take a thin layer of vinyl off the bottom. Then he didn't want to fulfill the contract by doing built-in shelves stipulated as $500 in the contract. I said fine, after the tiling was completed, I subtracted the $500 from the contract in the end, he went ballistic on me, and said that it was a package deal and he wanted more. Even though it said $500 for the built-ins in the contract. He was extremely irate, abusive, and unprofessional. read more

Similar experience with Steve at the Basement Men. He originally remodeled my kitchen in 2005 and did a really good job. When I needed some other work I called him back. He had agreed to do a number of things for me and we set a price and day that he would start - I took off work to be there. The day came and the time came - no Steve. I called him about 1/2 hour later - no answer. I called him three more times when he finally answered. Said he was busy on the other phone and he would send his guys. Waited for another hour and a half no guys - no steve - called him again. This time I got a different personality from Steve that wanted to know why I was calling so much and he really didn't need to be bothered with me calling him and that he wasn't interested in doing the job. I was shocked! It was like I just spoke to someone that was bipolar. He went onto say that I was a pain and he didn't need my business. I told him that I wanted my deposit that day since he had cancelled the job. He knew I was furious and told me that I would have to get it from his wife who would bring me half of it at the police station. My husband then tried to talk to him in a calm voice and save the day but Steve went off on him as well. I ended up having to go the police station to get only half of my money from his wife. I reported him to the better business bureau, but because no one else had, they said that they never had gotten a bad report about him. Steve wrote a letter in his defense to the BBB and made it look as though I was harrassing him and that every one of his other customers were happy with his work and he never had no problem with anyone else. Maybe some of you could contact the BBB like I did and let them know about your experience with this man. He is seriously bad news. I am amazed he is still in business. read more

Excellent. Basement Work was done in record time, and very professional. Steve was attentive, professional and did what he said he would do. Workers were knowledgeable and asking where I wanted things, making suggestions and cleaned up after themselves. Also had the crew put in sump pump with backup and blow insulation into attic. I certainly would highly recommed The Basement Men read more

I've worked with the basement men on a number of occasions, from remodeling and repairs of our basement post flooding to large painting, drywalling and electrical projects. Each time, the service provided was done on time, with exceptional quality and at a price that was highly competitive. And when the job was done, the workspace was left immaculate. It's truly a service that lives up to the standards of the north shore. read more

We have used the Basement Men twice and have been very happy with the results. The first time was nearly five years ago, when they rehabbed our kitchen. More recently, they did additional work on the kitchen. Steve's crew was always on time and it was very clear that they took pride in the work they did. Every day, when the contractor left the house, his supplies and tools were put away very neatly and he immaculately cleaned up any debris. As a mother with two young children, this was especially important to me. I think it's unfortunate that his other clients feel as though they had such terrible experiences with the Basement Men, but that was not the case in our dealings with the company. read more

I just introduced The Basement Men owner, Steve Lauer, to a client who was in need of a home repair.. From the initial phone call I placed to Steve to the bid to the client, the process took about 5 days. The proposal was thorough, allowed for variations depending on the client's needs and was under budget compared to the two other contractors the client contacted. I met Steve about 6 years ago after a recommendation from a friend. I had used two other contractors on other projects in the home and never used anyone else since meeting Steve. The Basement Men did a complete renovation of my basement, repaired a shower and surrounding floor and the room below (damaged from the leaking shower) and replaced an outdoor perimeter fence and replaced a concrete drive and added a brick paver apron. Each and every job was started with a detailed bid, a timeline of completion and a schedule for payments. I have never had a problem working with Steve or his workman or the timeline set forth for a job. Once the project started the crew was there daily until the project was completed, Steve was there almost every day to see the progress and to discuss any concerns I had, the job site was kept neat and clean and the project was delivered on time and on budget. I would recommend The Basement Men and Steve Lauer to anyone looking for great workmanship at a fair price. read more

I have never had anything but good luck with him and have even recommended him to other friends who feel the same way. His team is very professional and always showed up on time and worked hard. His attitude can be a bit salty but I can overlook that because of the quality of his team's work. read more

Wow, those negative reviews must be talking about some other company. We have had several jobs done by Steve and all were done professionally and in a timely manner and we love the results of all the work that was done, including jobs as varied as electrical work and refinishing floors. read more

We hired them to refinish our basement which hadn't been touched since 1977.. They made great suggestions, understood what worked and were 100% on time and honest with their pricing. Their estimate also came in a bit lower out of the 8 total quotes we received. read more

I have used this contractor on three different occasions and each time the project was completed without issue. Almost 10 years ago they finished my basement and it still looks great, an absolutely fantastic design even years later. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to anyone. read more

The relationship started out fine with Steve coming out to our house twice to help us figure out what we needed to do with our roof. Although he gave us the time, he had a hard time answering questions specifically related to roofing. We wish he would have just said he didn't know, or would check with his roofer, rather than make up some answer that obviously did not make sense. After signing the contract, we found out from our neighbors that we actually have a shared roof and whatever we do to our side, has to be done to theirs. Although Steve told us he went up to the roof, his descriptions were not accurate when my husband went up later and the fact that he didn't realize it was shared was also a red flag. Anyways, we called Steve to let him know about the shared space issue and that now we wanted to talk with him about working with our neighbors, and maybe doing the entire roof. At this point he became very unprofessional and rude. He said that we were wasting his time and that we were very indecisive and he didn't want to work with us if we were going to be this way. We were shocked that he wasn't willing to have a simple, calm conversation about how the next steps of the plan might change. He seemed very unprofessional and erratic. We ended up being very grateful to get out of the contract and to end our working relationship, as we wondered that if something would have set him off in the middle of the project, we would have been in a more difficult spot. Make your own choice if you use him or not, but please be aware that you may get this side of him if you have a few extra questions, or don't blindly follow what he says. Best of luck! read more

We had a wonderful experience working with Steve and his team. Good quality work for a reasonable price. Steve was always willing to talk through the project and resolved the two or three issues that popped up in the project quickly and effectively. The project moved along quickly and provided a very nice result for the price. We used a number of contractor grade materials, but our basement was not meant to be a showplace - just a great additional living area. Steve was open to my design choices and the crew was excellent. They were always timely, respectful and willing to answer questions as well. Our basement was a mixture of an old portion of the original house (c.1940s) and a newer addition. The work they did tied the old and new together nicely. Certainly one could nitpick little things, but the price point for the project was so reasonable and the crew's willingness to correct issues along the way was amazing. We are thrilled with our space and pleased with the overall craftmanship of the project. I think it is critical to know what you want from your basement before hiring any contractor... we did not want a Northshore showplace basement - just a comfortable spot for some family time and games. The Basement Men delivered on price and in just over 3 weeks. read more