Calgary General Contractors

We entered into a contact with CGC in July 2015 and commenced in Sept 2015, to renovate our ensuite bathroom, new laundry room and new doors, baseboards and window trim in our home. We were thoroughly disappointed every step of the way. Our project manager James was never one phone call or email away, and took zero accountability for his or his hired subtrades' incompetency. We had delays for weeks as a result of unprofessional subtrades who wouldn't show up and if they did it was for 2-3 hours at a time and left the job incomplete for weeks at a time. CGC lacked critical knowledge of the permit process and misleads clients from the start with claims in design features that will never come true.

This company is now claiming insolvency leaving other clients and ourselves with an incomplete renovation and liens on our property as a result of their failure to pay subtrades with payments collected.

If you are looking for a renovation company who values honesty, quality and execution of time lines DO NOT DO ANY BUSINESS with CGC or its affiliated companies (VANCOUVER, OTTAWA) under the Canadian General Contractors Group.

Don't believe any of the good reviews about this company. They make a great sales pitch and will lead you to believe they provide a great service. Incompetent doesn't even begin to describe them. We spent a fortune on a home renovation that was supposed to take 3 months. After 9 months and a failed building inspection from the City of Calgary we eventually fired them and had to spend more money fixing their mistakes. They tried to offer us a deal that involved us not going public about the problems they caused us. We felt it more important to tell anyone smart enough to listen to stay well clear of this company. You have been warned. It's your choice, but to give you an idea of their quality work, take a look at the door handles they installed for us. They didn't even notice - we had to tell them! Be prepared for poor quality work and to project manage the work yourself. They have no communication skills and are incapable of coordinating trades. Some of their trades were good, but as far as we are aware, they all refused to work for CGC shortly after we fired them. One of their trades had to approach us for final payment since he wasn't being paid by CGC. Calgary General Clowns.

We hired CGC to renovate our kitchen. It certainly needed an upgrade as our home is 60 years old. The finished kitchen truly looks amazing and it’s finally functional! The new modern updated kitchen has truly changed the look and feel of our entire home. We liked that CGC manages the project for you, meaning that they hire, book and schedule the trades needed for the job. Communication was always quick and that was appreciated. There will be issues with any major renovation, especially in older homes, and that is just realistic. It’s how those issues are dealt with that truly matter. James, our Project Manager was always quick to respond, always an email away, and always quick to offer alternative solutions and/or explanations which were always appreciated. He was at the house almost every day to check on things. The material section provided by their in-house designer (thank you Gwen!) was amazing. Her keen and trained eye brought together ideas and colors that we simply wouldn’t have come up with on our own. The floor looks amazing as well and the countertop and cabinets are wonderful to enjoy and really do look stunning. Most importantly, the entire project came together a full month ahead of schedule and to the dime on budget. Overall, a great experience. It is stressful, for countless reasons, to undergo any type of major renovation but it is worth it. We do truly love our kitchen and have lost count of the compliments we have received in the past 6 weeks. Thank you Team CGC!!

The process of our renovation with CGC was nothing short of a nightmare. To begin with, the salesman (who also coordinated the design phase) made unrealistic promises, including fancy renderings that never materialized, a design including 26” deep drawers (when drawer rails only come in sizes up to 22”) and a promise that stacking our washer and dryer would be a “simple” matter of moving the dryer vent.

Most importantly, the salesman said CGC had “all its own people” so the demolition and build phase would take only 3-4 weeks in our home, but in reality it took four MONTHS.

On the day that the on-site work was to start, the site manager failed to show up or even call. My husband took a day off from work for nothing. The initial 2-month long schedule that CGC provided allowed week-long windows for each phase of construction. Some contractors were only present for 1-2 days, so nothing more would happen during the rest of the week. Then we fell off CGC’s radar and sometimes 2 weeks would go by before anyone showed up to work. Worst of all, the job site manager would tell us contractors were coming without actually notifying the contractors that they were scheduled to come.

During the build, we discovered that changes had been made to our design without our knowledge. We ended up with substantially less storage space than what was originally planned. Bulkheads that were supposed to be removed had to be left in place. Slotted storage for baking sheets was forgotten, as was the spice rack I had requested. It was ordered later but ultimately did not fit into the cabinet.

We were initially charged $2670 for a design change when we were told that moving the dryer vent would be difficult and expensive. We later negotiated a reduction, but still paid $1000 for what was a design error by CGC.

There was damage to a hall wall that was sloppily patched by CGC. CGC offered to paint only over the patch but the hall had a textured finish so it would not have matched. We had to hire someone else to paint the entire hall. Deep grooves in our hardwood floors from contractors dragging wood panels around were attributed to our dog. Most of the time, the job site was a filthy mess. And somehow, a box containing $500 of Denby stoneware managed to disappear from our home during this renovation.

In the end, our cabinets are attractive and of good quality but the counter obviously differs in height by 1/8” on either side of our range. The refrigerator barely fits into its surround and the dishwasher could not be properly attached as it did not initially fit into its enclosure. The grout in the backsplash was never sealed so now I am struggling to remove grease stains from behind my stove and will have to seal it myself. And finally, the leftover paint I used to do my own touch-ups somehow does not match the wall.

I believe CGC has grown too fast and taken on more than it can handle. Our job site manager was juggling 17 renovations at once. Until they hire more people, I would not recommend this company.

We completed a kitchen/home renovation with this company in April. We are still waiting on finishing things with little to no communication unless we harass them. There are aspects of our project that are amazing, such as the flooring. Other work was done very poorly, in fact our builder did a better job as I am still cleaning paint off the outlet covers. The communication was terrible despite all the promises. Jean did the best that he could but with so many projects we felt forgotten a lot of the time. We would not use this company again.

I would like to share that this company made my kitchen dream come true. The renovation I had in mind wasn't a very big project, but the folks at CGC treated us with just as much care and respect as if it had been. They were extremely organized and transparent, detailing every cost and giving us lots of opportunities to make upgrades or changes, as we saw fit. There were no surprises. They ensured that each step of the process was planned so that the various stages could be completed efficiently and expediently. Claudia and Jean in particular were extremely personable and went above and beyond to confirm that everything done was to my satisfaction. I loved the finished product! I would definitely hire this company again and would feel completely confident in recommending it to friends, family, and anyone else in need of a trustworthy and professional contracting company.

My husband and I have been in our home for 25 + years. The house is 43 years old. We had wanted to do a kitchen renovation for about 2 1/2 years. This project included a built-in cabinet in the kitchen and the laundry room. We decided to have this project done by a contractor as it was a fair size project. Our thought was by having this done by a contractor the project would take less time. We attended the home and garden show in March of 2014 where we met Jonas, Sales Manager for Calgary General Contractors. Jonas came to the house to see what we had in mind. After a couple of meetings we took the plunge. All the materials, cabinets, counter top, flooring, appliances were chosen ahead of time. The demolition started August 5, 2014 and just over 6 1/2 weeks our renovation was complete. CGC offers an online chat so you can communicate with the team. Our project manager, Jean, was on site often and was right on top of things. We had a schedule to keep track of work to be done and date to be completed. Calgary General Contractors offered a great design-build concept that allowed us to feel comfortable with the process. We are thrilled with our new kitchen.

Hi, my name is Gabriela and we hired CGC to fully renovate our ensuite and master bathrooms in our house. I interviewed 4 separate contractors before making my decision, and although CGC was not the lowest priced option, I was attracted to their A-Z project management, design and construction approach. We are a busy family and have no time to deal with the coordination of trades, driving across the city selecting and picking up materials, etc (which I hated from a previous renovation we did on our own), so I was in heaven when they took care of all of this for me without having to miss time from work etc, very convenient. Having materials selection specialists and designers in house made my designing experience a dream. Their professionalism and knowledge gave me peace of mind at all times.

The final product is just like I envisioned. We knew from experience that no renovation project is ever without unplanned hurdles. CGC was very responsive when these came up and always provided us with the options for us to decide with sound technical knowledge. I never felt like their recommendations did not have our best interest in mind.

My main objective and/concern was converting a bathtub to shower set up in our ensuite. Our ensuite is very small, so I wanted to make it look as bright, spacious and modern as possible (without breaking the bank). The design team was excellent and they helped me make sure this came to life and worked very hard to find functional cabinets that would actually fit the dimensions of my bathroom without compromising quality.

If we were to offer any criticism it would be with the timing. We ended up having delays on the project. I knew from the start that reno projects are never finished on time, but I never anticipated a 2 month delay. Kudos to Jean, our project manager who was excellent and very professional in dealing with all the unplanned hurdles we came across. He was always available when I called. His attention to detail, technical knowledge and high standards for quality workmanship had the trades on their toes, and always made sure our best interests and investment were put first. He kept us informed, explained the obstacles and provided options and recommendations for best solution. At the end, our final costs were clear and there were not surprises or 'hidden' costs.

We would hire CGC for future renovations for the peace of mind, convenience, professionalism, high standards for quality work and complete A-Z project management.

I hired CGC to do complete a replacement of a 10-year-old sunroom addition. The existing sunroom had leaks and maintenance issues and the roof and walls had to be torn down and reconstructed but foundation and floor to be preserved. I was disappointed by a prior contractor who wanted more money and changed promised time of construction.

I found CGC online and worked with their Project Consultant Ron. Ron worked with me to ensure the project costs remained within my budget and was able to arrange the project on a very short timeline. Costs were in writing and included what costs were outside of the contract and recommended additions. No surprises!

My main objective was to keep firm on my budget and ensure that the job would be completed before winter. The failure of the previous contractor had left me with a slim chance of getting the work done before the snow came. There were some minor delays with the building permit (foundation needed to be checked), and weather, but CGC worked around the holidays and waited out the weather. It took a little longer than predicted but still finished before the bad weather.

Ron impressed me, as he understood I needed a firm agreement on both cost and construction date. He helped me find a way to stay within my budget but get all the essentials in a firm contract and he understood the urgency of replacement before winter.

If I need a future renovation I would use CGC. All costs are accounted for and I did not have to worry about expensive additions to my costs. Also, although there were some delays, I know that the work will be completed. My son and I have both passed along our recommendation to others looking to do renovations.

Our names are Andrew and Tracey and we hired Calgary General Contractors to renovate our Kitchen. We had not hired CGC before and overall it was a very good experience.

I had done a lot of research for building companies and went onto HomeStars and found it very helpful and CGC scores were quite high. When contacting the company Claudia was very positive and helpful, when I gave my budget she was honest, she came round with someone else and they gave me confidence and made me feel comfortable this was important as I was the sole person dealing with all the renovations.

The favourite part of the renovation was seeing my kitchen in stages, and also having a progress report on chatter. I had actually changed my renovation date to sooner due to travel and they was very accommodating and assured me that it would be done, so delay wise not much, maybe one criticism was that the tradesmen worked quite late without notifying me.

Any issues were dealt with via e-mail a lot of time, and were answered promptly with as much info as I needed.

The most important objective was that my layout was correct as it was quite unusual. Another objective was to stay on budget, which we did.

CGC seemed reasonable and didn't make me feel like my budget was not enough, they were very enthusiastic and we liked how many people were involved in the process.

I would definitely choose CGC to do another project, overall the experience was good and I felt comfortable.