It's unfortunate that I need to contribute a review to the two included here but I believe it's…read moreimportant to contribute a review that will inform others interested in engaging this business. I can confirm that both those reviews are accurate assessments of Rick DePalma and Westchester Carpentry because I have had the exact same experience. Rick is a jolly, slick talker. He initially comes across as very accommodating which I mistook for good customer service. Seems like he knows how to play the game. Lack of communication: he's non-responsive and dances around scheduling saying, "I have to see what my scheduler says" after which he doesn't respond for weeks and weeks and now months. The excuses noted by the previous reviewer were all things he told me as well as reasons for delays. Non completion of work: I engaged him almost a year ago in April of 2023 and he has not finished the work. He told me 3 to 4 weeks from start to finish and it is now 1 year. Lack of presence on site: I can confirm that he does not come to you unless he is coming to collect a check, which for my job was twice. Again, he talks a good game saying how he will complete the job but does not follow through. Here's how it works. He gives you a pretty good estimate, does some work, and then doesn't finish. He facilitates this by having you give a substantial amount to start and then another substantial amount halfway through. Then he leaves about 10% for the final payment. That 10% is inconsequential to him. He's already baked in his profit and doesn't need that 10%. Net net, he does most of the work and then leaves the punch list of items incomplete and walks away from the 10%. Your satisfaction is not important to him.

Rick Depalma is, to put it politely, a scam artist…read more I engaged him two years ago to redo my mudroom, to make some custom cabinetry, and to finish my basement. Two years later he still has not finished the work, he does not respond to calls or emails, and he makes excuse after excuse for blown deadlines. Worse, he has been through multiple subcontractors because he consistently fails to pay them and they walk off of the job. I am now getting frequent calls and messages from multiple sub-contractors saying that Rick owes them more than $10,000 and asking me to to cover those costs. A huge part of the problem is that he never shows his face on the job site. The only time you will ever see him is when he wants a check, and at those times he is all smiles and is full of apologies and promises to change. He never does, and it is a nightmare. He makes excuse after excuse, I have lost count of how many times he has claimed to have caught covid, broken a bone, had surgery, had a medical emergency, been on vacation, had sick kids, had a broken down truck, etc. The list goes on and on and on and the excuses never stop. Without anyone on site the work is done in a sloppy fashion and often has to be redone (which I had to pay for out of my own pocket just to get it done). There is complete disarray on the job site. His workers left food in my basement and, because no one showed up for weeks, went rotten before we noticed it. We were left with THOUSANDS of maggots and flies, which I had to clean up. I am now in the position of preparing complaints with Westchester County and preparing a lawsuit. Stay as far away from Rick as you possibly can. And note that he operates multiple companies as he runs from bad reviews. Do not work with him.

Just had my first floor repainted with tons of stress cracks and nail pops repaired. Carlos and the…read morecrew did a great job. They were neat and clean as possible with a job as messy as this. I would definitely recommend them for your next job. I also liked that the crew stayed on the job until it was completed and cleaned up on their way out. What a pleasant surprise for a do-it-yourselfer. Thank you!

I hired Carlos and his crew in the past to have our basement repaired due to a flooding. I really…read moreliked his work. processional and knowledgeable. I have hired him to paint our living room, stair way and hallway.also installed the hallway light fixture. It was a lot of work and crew did a fantastic job. His prices are good for the service. I have been referring his services to anyone who needs his services.

Excellent, prompt, personable and professional. Prices are high but competitive for the area and…read morethey deliver quality, clean work in spades. Dynamic duo of Sammy and Flood did a fine job. Only complaint, prefer to be left with an invoice on completion, not the case with GH. Absolutely recommend.

These guys are great. They arrived exactly on time to re-mount a heavy shutter (between an…read moreupstairs bedroom and our main floor living room) that had fallen with a crash, scaring the cat (and us) half to death. They repaired the damage to the panel door corner, and re-hung it. No muss, no fuss. They even take off their shoes to avoid tracking in any dirt from outside.

Gary runs a great company. He is honest, warm and does amazing work. He's transformed my house.read more

Our home is close to 100 years old and our front porch showed its ago. I showed Gary a photo of…read morethe porch we wanted. The result was PERFECT in every sense of the word. Gary and his crew were amazing and a pleasure. Our project was reasonable priced and completed in a timely fashion. Gary's advice and guidance on some of the decisions my wife and I were making was spot on thanks to his vast knowledge and experience. We are so happy we selected Bruzzese and highly recommend.

I have owned several (five) homes in my life time, and undergone any number of extensive home…read moreremodeling projects. This was without doubt THE BEST experience I have ever had with a contractor! Mike and his team were hard-working, efficient and highly professional at all times. Mike did everything he said he was going to do, in all cases on time and on budget. He started the work the day he said the work would be started -- and he completed the work two weeks later, the very day he said the work would be completed. He worked long hours to make it happen, in spite of inclement weather outside his control, and even went above-and-beyond to protect our property as if it were his own home during the bad weather periods. Our good experience started with Mike's quote, which was far more detailed and well thought out than the competing quotes. It was by no means the cheapest -- but it was competitive, and it was very clear that Mike had taken the time to think through the project in detail where others hadn't. Mike was very clear about what was included in the quote, and what would be additional -- should there be additional work needed once the team got into the job (in fact, once he pulled up our roofs, there were indeed a few sections of support beams that had rotted and needed to be replaced --- but because of Mike's clarity up front, there was no question that this was outside the scope of the original quote). Both the quote for the job, as well as the hourly rate Mike quoted for any additional work needed, was more than reasonable... especially considering the quality of work that was done. Mike also went the extra mile to point out areas of future potential problems or concerns as he found them -- but without trying to "sell" us that more than was necessary should be fixed right away. We appreciated feeling that he was truly "on our side" in understanding that we had a set budget, and prioritizing what was urgent vs. what could wait for another day. Finally, I can't speak highly enough about the quality of the work done. I have worked with many contractors who will press and cut corners to get a job done quickly, or who will realize they have under-quoted a job and then try to cut corners to make up the time on the back end. Not Mike. Mike is as meticulous as they come. His preparation is thorough; his measurements are perfect; and his final work is flawless. When the project was complete, we could not find a single seam, gap or ill-fitting joint anywhere -- it was PERFECT! As you can tell, we are very, very satisfied customers and we will definitely be using Mike and his team again and again for our future projects.

From the owner: Top Notch Carpentry & Remodeling is a premium quality builder offering services in the…read moreinstallation, repairs and replacement of roofing, chimney flashing, siding, windows, doors, decks, porches, kitchens, cabinets, bathrooms, libraries, built in cabinetry, finished basements, drywall, sunrooms, screen porches and masonry including chimneys, patios and walkways. For a beautiful finish that will last we offer premium quality painting including interior and exterior house painting, power washing, deck cleaning, staining, sealing and refinishing. We will work with you throughout the entire process of a project including planning, budgeting, design, permitting, project management, inspections and execution of work all the way through to the Certificate Of Occupancy.