3D Rendering in Elmont.

“My husband and I bought a house with some problems that we didn’t realize were there, the biggest of which was an unpermitted finished basement. When we decided to renovate, we asked Ryan to come in and help us design a space which would both work for us and bring the house up to code. We did not make a mistake with that choice. Ryan came in and took a few measurements, then spent time talking to us about what we wanted in our basement. We had some vague ideas (a laundry area for me, an office space for my husband, and some storage). Ryan took our simple thoughts and turned them into a plan for an amazing basement. He found ways to maximize the light and storage space in our basement that we never thought possible. He gave us everything we asked for and more with those designs. It didn’t stop there, though. Ryan continued to help us navigate the insanely complicated permitting process with our local authorities. He handled all the paperwork for us, picking up forms and dropping off checks at the town. He was here for inspections to help us with the inspector. He worked with us, our contractor, and the town to help resolve the additional unpermitted work that was found in our house during those inspections. He made sure we got the safe, up to code, legal (permitted) house we wanted and reduced our stress level during the whole thing. He was a godsend! I don’t think we could have made it through that work without him. If we ever decide to do more work on our house, he is most definitely our first phone call.”

“LEAP designed our modern and green home addition. They handled much of the creative work on the project, as well as detailed renderings, bid consultations, and construction supervision. LEAP's work was very creative and responded directly to our needs. They found ways to get energy efficiency and modern design details into a "buildable" and cost-conscious project. They are humble, hardworking, and consistent. I would choose to work with LEAP Architecture again without hesitation.”

“Gustavson Dundes provided complete architectural and design services for a redesign and renovation of a 1950's Cape home , and transformed it to a modern colonial. The project was challenging in that the footprint of the house was narrow, and my wish list was long! GD excelled in ensuring the efficient use of small spaces. In particular, the family room includes a desk area and a small bar. They were flexible and listened to my concerns throughout the project. When I decided, rather late to flip a tub from the master bath to the guest bath, they made the change easily. They worked closely with the contractor and monitored progress through out.”

“Carmelo was easy to work with and did a great job. I would recommend him to anyone who needs to renovate their apartment.”

“Very helpful and organized. Helped walk us through designing a 2nd story addition. Drew up a few interior and exterior options and walked us through pros and cons before picking one. Assisted builder with question as they came up.”

“Lanny Lerner is an outstanding architect who listens carefully and observes astutely to produce design that is beautiful and functional. He recently worked with us on our Manhattan apartment--we are delighted. I highly recommend Lanny Lerner.”

“Niv is a patient, insightful and incredibly talented designer. He listens to what his clients needs are, and provides appropriate solutions that fit within their budget. Niv works equally well with contractors and other members of the design team. He is relentless in his pursuit of the precise and proper execution of his vision in the best way possible for his client's benefit. I have happily recommended Niv to my clients in the past and will gladly do so in the future.”

“Neil is amazing. I am a new developer and he was always available, explained everything to me and helped me make intelligent choices. As a result my four rental apartments always get rented within a week. They look like condo finishes but did not cost nearly as much as how expensive they look. In addition I ran into some structural and equipment problems. He helped streamline the repairs and helped me feel confident that I was making the right choices for my building. My project lasted for a couple of years because after I renovated two of the units two more became available. It was always a pleasure to have Neil on my team. He can tackle any project from small to large!”

“I can count on several fingers the times I have found a local business partner that I'd describe as a rockstar, and Brian Hopkins is on that short list. On Christmas Eve, my wife and I were out doing errands. We got a call from our teenage son, telling us that water was raining down from the upstairs bathroom, through our microwave and stove, into the basement, onto the furnace and water heater. There was some once-in-a-century rapid drop in temperature, we had some poorly insulated pipes, and one of those pipes ruptured in the floor of that second floor bathroom resulting in that disaster. Total nightmare. Thankfully, one of the other rockstars on our short list of local business partners is our general contractor. We already had a plan on the shelf to renovate that bathroom, our contractor was available, we were able to get all our tile and bathroom fixtures picked out and procured in record time, and shortly after New Year's our GC started the repairs and creating the bathroom of our dreams. Salvation! Everything was going awesome, until the building department showed up. In a rush, we neglected to get a building permit. We weren't being shady or playing games. We were just hasty and ignorant and didn't do the things we needed to do. We got an immediate stop-work order. And the only way to get back on track was to find an architect to do proper code-compliant architectal drawings for our already-in-progress bathroom renovation. I quickly learned that there are not a lot of residential architects hurting for business, certainly not at that time of year. I literally called at least 15 different places. Either people were too busy, or weren't interested in the project. I finally found one who couldn't take the job, but said "hey, we know this other guy in the area who is super good, that we refer people to when we're busy. His name is Brian Hopkins." Somebody directing business to a competitor?? I now understand why they referred me. Brian is only the second architect I've ever worked with, but as far as I can tell, he's as good as it gets. I was able to get in touch with him immediately, and he agreed to take on the work. He was incredibly transparent and clear about what he was going to do, when he was going to do it, and what it would cost. Throughout the process he was super responsive, empathetic, organized, patient, professional, and enjoyable to work with. He didn't nickel and dime us or play games; he was clearly focused on good customer service and outcomes. And from what I can tell, both the building department and my GC were very happy with the quality of his work. The entire ordeal we went through, particularly involving the building department and fines and delays was horrible. Had we not found Brian, had he not been so excellent, the situation might have been unbearable. He literally was our savior. It's absurd not to want to work with someone like this.”

“I hired XYZ Plans to help me deal with my brownstone renovation in Park Slope. The scope of work included: installation of AC system, terrace door replacement, stoop metal railing repair and new stucco finish, garden pavilion upgrade with new roof waterproofing, new heating system, and new concrete floor. Since it was not a big project we minimized the drawings to minimum details and prepared an elaborate written description instead. I had a fixed budget that would not be able to include some of work. However, Michal Grabowski, the head of XYZ Plans, was able to find a local builder who did it all for the price. I really appreciated the way the construction process was handled, with customized contract, weekly meeting and meeting minutes, work quality verification and progress checking. It was always great to know that I can call anytime and have a reasonable person arbitrating between me and the contractor. Renovation is not a nice process when you cannot vacant the house but without XYZ Plans professional help it would have been much, much worse. I sure know whom to call when I will be renovating again. Marion”