testimonials

I’ve never written a Yelp review before but given our situation, experience and incredible outcome my husband and I both feel we owe Richard a deserving review for all that he’s done to help us with our home renovation project.

We began a ground up construction project in Ross in 2018 with a contractor who, in hindsight, was a much better salesman than builder. He started our project with a series of construction errors, which then evolved into a complete breakdown of communication, organization, trust and overall competence. My husband and I stopped sleeping and eating and sat up nightly until 2am researching construction procedures to check our contractors work (most of which was being done incorrectly). The stress was taking a financial and emotional toll on us and we realized our project had become a major sinking ship.

Hitting our breaking point, we turned to our architect and structural engineer on what to do. Richard was recommended by our structural engineer who had worked on several projects with him in the past. Within a few days of being engaged and assessing the situation, Richard took control of the project and systematically put it back together. He created a platform for clear and continuous communication, a process based on best practices for repairing the contractors errors and then used his resources/relationships to get the correct people on site to resolve the issues. Keep in mind, this was during a time when most tradespeople were in incredibly high demand.

Once Richard had a general sense of control over the project, he was able to evaluate the contractors ability to finish our house. With his encouragement we decided we needed to make a change. My husband and I were terrified given the competitive building market and the strict 18 month timeline the Town of Ross enforces. Richard, in his very calm and systematic way, asked us to trust him which we agreed. He created a contractor onboarding questionnaire, introduced us to a handful of contractors, interviewed each of them with us, asked all the right questions and ultimately helped us secure a new contractor. He immediately began transitioning our worksite to be ready for the new contractor (unbeknownst to the old contractor) and helped the new contractor get up to speed without losing any time on our project.

Approximately 3 months after firing our original contractor we are back on budget, back on schedule and my husband and I are not only sleeping but enjoying the process of building a house. We are in a much happier place now and would have NEVER gotten to this point had we not hired Richard. We certainly hope you are never in a position like us on your project but, if you are, you can find comfort to know that you have found the person you can trust to get it back on track.

In the fall of 2018, we encountered serious issues with our GC who was overcharging and submitting illegal change orders on the big home remodel project in San Francisco. Luckily, we found Richard Wodehouse who brought his extensive expertise in the construction business and a spark of humor to this process. We ended up terminating our relationship with the GC in the middle of the framing stage when no other GCs wanted to take responsibility for other contractor’s mistakes.

However, with Richard’s help and under his supervision we were able to hire a crew to finish framing and streamline the process of subcontracting for the interior work. Additionally, he gave us guidance on structural issues, framing, and waterproofing. Without doubt, Richard’s role in getting our project back on track can not be overstated. He even helped us to restore our faith in the profession.

It was great having you…you saved us thousands of dollars!

By the way, Jennifer and I have been delighted with your management of the project to date.

Your careful attention to my home allows me to give my full attention to all the meditation students as I am doing this entire 4 weeks. Therefore, you are serving these students just as am I, each of us in our own skill sets. It is a beautiful thought isn’t it. In Buddhism we call it either co-arising or interdependence, meaning everything and people are interconnected.

As mentioned, I am very happy to have you on board to assist me through this construction process. My main goal is to have you confirm that the information I receive from the contractor is accurate and that the charges he presents to me are legitimate.

Thanks so much for being here for us during this tumultuous time with our Sonoma construction project. I appreciate your level headed and fair minded approach to the situation.

We hired Richard as Owner’s Construction Project Manager for a major renovation of our newly purchased home in Marin County. In order to get the job done in the six-week period we gave him, he also acted as the general contractor. Richard performed all the work exceptionally well, on time, and under budget, allowing us to move into our beautiful home on the initially agreed upon date.

We hired Richard as an Owner’s Construction Project Manager for a renovation/expansion project at our home in Tiburon in Marin County that was rapidly spinning out of control. He definitely saved the house. He also probably saved the marriage.

In response to a complex remodel situation regarding my home in Belvedere, I hired Richard to act as an Owner’s Project Manager to oversee the contractor. Ultimately, I asked Richard to take over the general contractors’s job. Not only did he work through the complexities of the construction, he actually improved the entire project. Doing construction work in Southern Marin can have numerous challenges, Richard was very effective in dealing with all of them.

Richard was very helpful in terms of keeping us on schedule and saving us money during the builder selection and pre-construction process. Because of his breath of knowledge and his deep experience he always knew what questions to ask. In addition, he knew where to draw the line with contractors in terms of charges that were unwarranted or excessive. Finally, Richard allowed us to focus on our busy careers and still get a quality and cost effective design.

We have worked with Richard on multiple projects. He is overseeing a substantial house remodel in Sonoma for us, acting as our owner’s representative in dealing with all contractors, architects, and other service providers. He has dramatically improved the quality of the project, reduced the cost, and given us great ideas about how to improve the project. Richard also got our new “old house” in Belvedere into move-in condition. He oversaw all inspections and enhancements, found the right people to do work at reasonable prices, and even did some of the work himself to get it right. He has become an important part of our lives!

Richard was the general contractor for the renovation of our home in Belvedere. Richard did a fantastic job working with the quirks of the house; he was inventive in his solutions and you can see his craftsmanship everywhere in the final results. One of the most significant changes we ended up making — raising the ceilings in the kitchen — came directly from his suggestion. He was also a delight to work with; we were on a tight schedule but also kept tweaking our plans, and he handled it all with good cheer and responsiveness. We love how the house turned out, and we have Richard to thank for that.

As we wind down, I must say that it has been a pleasure to work with you. You are detailed and precise (as I am, for better or worse) and very efficient. I would be happy to serve as a reference.

Richard, Thank you for everything you did and for the extra hours you put in to make everything just right.

We hired Richard as an Owner’s Construction Project Manager for a renovation/expansion project at our home in Tiburon in Marin County that was rapidly spinning out of control. You know that part in the movie, Pulp Fiction where John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson get in trouble, make a phone call and the ‘Wolf’ gets sent over to clean up the mess? For a home construction project, Richard is the Wolf.

Your contribution has made my job (and life) a lot easier and positively impacted the project by keeping us moving forward in a timely fashion. The work you’ve been doing to get us this close to contractor selection has been key in allowing us any chance to meet our desired timeline. I agree with Doug’s statement that having you as an available consultant as we move forward could be advantageous to the project…. Again, thank you for all of your efforts!

I do have a deep appreciation for all of your efforts Richard. I wanted to state my firm opinion of you: Your are a perfect balance between an architect and client; always respectful, kind, open to new ideas/giving new ideas, curious, engaged in the work at hand, and what is turning out to be a truly talented problem solver on not just the bones level but the human relationship level!!!

You did a great job in managing this project and Sue, she seems very pleased. The timing and various contractors, your experience shows.

Polsky Perlstein Architects worked closely with Richard Wodehouse to construct substantial improvements to a home that involved transforming it into a beautiful contemporary residence. This involved rather complex structural, cosmetic and systems upgrades which required careful on-site supervision and management of scores of specialists in their respective fields of expertise. Richard was adept in providing the level of care necessary to ensure a beautiful finished product. This involved problem-solving at the highest level, including a home theater room, a special one-of-a kind wine storage room, special heating and cooling systems, folding door systems to take advantage of the views as well as many landscape and interior upgrades.
When necessary, Richard collaborated with us, the design team, to provide the final product that the owners could be extremely pleased with. We recommend Richard as a highly skilled project manager and problem-solver.