Barry,

We think you should know that Bert and I couldn't be happier.

All our lives the only stories we had heard were how regretful it is to build or remodel and how horrid contractors are...headaches, fights, lawsuits and dissatisfaction were all status quo. Neither of us knew a single person who had an even halfway positive experience remodeling, so we braced ourselves for the battles ahead.

In amazement, we smile smugly to ourselves and say, "What battles?" We have no idea why God saw fit to bless us so wonderfully or how on earth we could have gotten so lucky, but we were, when you landed on our doorstep.

We had a simply flawless experience and it is 100% attributable to your skill and experience. There was not a single argument or disagreement. Bert and I are perfectionists, so you can imagine what a pleasant surprise it was to fine someone even more particular that we.

There are several issues which made this such a wonderful experience for us:

1. You surveyed our needs without our even knowing it during the meetings prior to drawing the plans, so that your first set of drawings was virtually perfect. You know that we sat with the plans for a week after you presented them, met with you to discuss our extensive list of questions only to find that you had thought things through far beyond our ken. And we were satisfied with your reasoning and opted to change nothing.

2. You added some surprises to the house...ones we didn't even know yet that we wanted...and we adore them.

3. You responded immediately and respected our concerns, even the teeny ones.

4. You built to specifications even higher than the code requires.

5. You gave us design and decorative suggestions that perfectly suited our taste as you have come to know it.

6. You re-did work if it was even just slightly imperfect--we love that!

7. You hired sub-contractors that truly reflect your perfectionist style and your work ethic.  They turned out to be nice people to have around the house for such an extended period of time and we found we missed each crew member when their finished their job and moved on.

8. You moved at lightening speed and finished relatively on time.  (We had some last minute additions to the work load).

9. You were personally on the job virtually every day.  The attention made us fee special, cared about and important.

Barry, we could go on  and on, but suffice it to say that we walk around our new house at night and sit in each room, admiring your work, pointing out all the little special touches you did that we love so much and reveling in what a beautiful, architect's "cottage" you built for us.

We are quite satisfied.

Thank you.

Bert Wahlen & Siri Kay Jostad