Ottawa General Contractors

They built me a dream custome home after the horrible stories from big builders, and during the unpresdented time (Covid) however in timley manner some contactors werenot availbe to work, but they managed to get it done via thier inernal inhouse team. Few items a rised after a year, and the project manager Abdull was very knowledgable to pinpoint the issues and educated me that they are covered under Tarion, and the project manager with the OGC team managed to resolved all the issues within two weeks after reaching out, and I also bought a rental from a well known builder and still dealing with the 30 days tarion and it's been 4 years and they not done. I would use them again and highly reccomend OGC

We hired OGC Ltd to construct a home for my daughter and her family. The new house is attached to our main house and OGC did a great job navigating the approval processes and providing options and solutions when unanticipated issues arose; as building an addition to an old home can be very challenging.

I am very pleased with the work of all OGC staff involved in the project. Everyone was professional, knowledgeable, responsive and very client oriented. The contractors OGC hired did terrific work and our project and construction managers kept us well informed throughout and did everything possible to ensure a smooth process.

I am very pleased with the excellent work of OGC and highly recommend OGC for any project.

OGC did our main floor reno in January. Despite the weather and unforeseen issues that popped up, they managed to complete the project in a reasonable amount of time. Bryan Sim did a great job pricing our package and being candid with us about unforeseen possible costs. He was very accessible and tried to work within our budget. Rebeca was dedicated to our vision and applied her expertise in choosing our materials. By having OGC manage the materials, any issues from a materials standpoint was handled by them and they pursued solutions. Murad was a dedicated project manager and was available to us daily throughout the project. He juggled a variety of contractors always focused on getting the job done to our satisfaction. Being outside of the city required a lot of travel on OGCs end, but they made it work. Jennifer kept the financials of the project organized and Fatima made sure that we were able to provide regular evaluations through bi-weekly project reviews to catch issues as they presented. Renovations are stressful, especially with post-COVID delays and shortages. OGC had the experience to navigate the unknowns, the infrastructure to manage all aspects of the project, and were always responsive to our needs.

I had a complete basement renovation done in 2019 on my 1953 home and it was so beautiful when it was done! I never dreamed it would look like that! I recently needed some baseboard work and it was covered under my warranty and they were quick to ensure it was all taken care of! They continue to show me what a great company they are and are so helpful and responsive! I am so glad I went with them!

OGC recently did a full main floor renovation in my home, opening up the kitchen and living space, while creating a beautiful bedroom and bathroom for my mother. My project manager Jim went above and beyond to help me through the entire process. Everyone was wonderful to work with, the different crews in my home were fantastic and my designer Reem was amazing and so helpful steering me to pick out the right selections.
My home is beautiful and I just can’t get over the difference!

I am delighted to write a five-star review for Ottawa General Contractor, based on my experience working as a contractor with them. Ottawa General Contractor is an exceptionally organized, professional, and skilled construction company that creates a pleasant working environment for contractors to work in.

From the very beginning of my work with Ottawa General Contractor, I was struck by their professionalism and organization. They provided me with clear instructions, detailed plans, and all the necessary information and resources to complete my work effectively. This allowed me to focus on delivering quality workmanship and meeting the project's deadlines, knowing that I had the full support of the team.

Throughout the project, I was continually impressed by the level of organization and communication from Ottawa General Contractor. They always kept me informed of any changes or updates to the project, and they were always available to answer any questions I had. This level of communication and transparency made for a smooth and enjoyable working experience.

What impressed me most about working with Ottawa General Contractor was their commitment to creating a pleasant and collaborative working environment for contractors. They were always friendly, approachable, and respectful, and they went out of their way to ensure that everyone on the team felt comfortable and supported. This created a positive and productive atmosphere that made the project a pleasure to be a part of.

Overall, I would highly recommend Ottawa General Contractor to anyone looking for a professional, organized, and skilled construction company. Their commitment to excellence, attention to detail, and pleasant approach make them a pleasure to work with, and I would not hesitate to work with them again in the future

Very pleased with the results of our renovation project, which included the gutting of both our kitchen and an en suite small bathroom (with shower unit). Workmanship was excellent and the various crews were very nice to deal with. The project manager came by virtually every day to monitor progress and address any questions or issues that arose, the latter being dealt with quickly and with good humour. A very happy experience. Highly recommended.

TL;DR - We would not recommend OGC. We hired OGC in early 2022 to renovate the back addition on our house, bathroom, and basement rec room. Though generally satisfied with the look of our spaces, we were let down in each of the so-called "OGC advantages" that were sold to us at the start. Despite OGC’s attempts to ameliorate our situation with “good faith” gestures, it did not offset the months of stress and frustration endured by us throughout, and after our project finished.

Design: We felt the initial design consultation went very well. We had debated foregoing the main bathroom reno due to cost, but their proposed design would make the space much more functional, so we decided to go ahead with it. It wasn't until we had completed demolition and started discussing millwork that our carpenter pointed out that the proposed design was not going to meet code. At this point our bathroom was demolished and we had no choice but to proceed with a face lift. Had we known this up front we would have not undertaken this costly addition to our project.

One aspect of the OGC workflow that we were excited about was having a dedicated material selection coordinator. The process of selecting materials felt like it went smoothly, but our coordinator left mid-project and very few of the design decisions were communicated to, or followed up on, by our project manager. There was also little consideration to the finishes and transitions between spaces during the design phase and the whole design and materials selection process felt super disjointed and created confusion.

Planning: this was our biggest point of frustration. We hired a general contractor because we had hoped that having a dedicated manager would make our lives easier - in fact, the opposite was true. It quickly became clear to us that our manager was overwhelmed with projects, and did not have the experience, time or resources to perform her job as she (or we) would have hoped. This led to a lack of meaningful oversight, disordered operations and continual delays, and frustration for us, and the trades involved.

A few of many examples. OGC brought in an external drywaller with whom they had no previous experience working with. He did a very poor job and took more than twice as long as expected. Rather than properly addressing the issues, an endless rotation of internal trades tried to patch up the drywall with fixes ongoing 3 months after the drywall started. Our vinyl flooring had to be re-laid 3 times because of uneven existing subfloor (deemed a non-issue by OGC after demo). In a rush to install the cabinets, the flooring was installed improperly, and when removed the cabinets were damaged, causing several weeks delay awaiting repair and re-install.

Customer service: We were encouraged to submit bi-weekly reviews of the work, schedule, safety, and questions/concerns. As the schedule continued to slip, we began raising our concerns and frustrations in these reviews. At this point we had negative experiences with their quality assurance person. They completely lacked empathy, provided a long list of excuses, and they told us they didn't see any way we would incur additional cost from delayed work because we had a working kitchen! Moreover, when we posted the original version of this review, we were repeatedly persuaded to remove it or change the wording to be more favourable to OGC.

Cost certainty: We liked the idea of having an element of fixed price structure because of the uncertainties that come with renovations. However, we did not fully understand what the 'fixed pricing' was going to translate to. In our case, we unfortunately had our basement flood just prior to construction and so we asked to expand the scope in the basement. This was not formally addressed or scoped like our initial contract discussions, and instead was managed as a series of change orders. This meant we were in the dark about the total cost until the change orders came through, which ended up very costly! Be wary of the scope definition and 'fixed' pricing offered by OGC.

My mother's roof was destroyed by a fallen tree. We hired OCG to complete the repair. They were truly amazing to work with. Everyone was professional and courteous. It was a very major job that meant replacing all of the roof trusses. They replaced electrical, drywall, roof trusses, roofing, insulation, etc. They worked with our insurance to make sure everything went smoothly and it did. They finished exactly on time and on budget. Adam Radmore, Bryan Sim and Fatima Abbas were absolute rockstars at their jobs and amazing points of contact. When OCG was finished they left the house spotless and immaculate. This is a company that truly follows best practises. If you are considering hiring them, do it. If I could give them 100 stars I would. Thank you OCG for making this a painless process!

OGC delivered a beautiful, high quality result and we could not be happier with the results. The great client service started with an accurate estimate and carried on from there through all the trades they used. Our project manager Kevin was a pleasure to deal with and incredibly helpful. He visited the site every day and his sense of humour and expertise made for a stress free experience. OGC has a very collaborative team focused on delivering the best results possible for their client. I would not hesitate to recommend them.

Really appreciated the professionalism and great communication for our warranty work. The warranty team was very quick to respond, site visits and great communication. Thank you Fatima and team.

We chose OGC for our major renovation project over a few other competitors and Kijiji contractors for one main reason and it was the service. From the first point of contact with Nick all the way through to the warranty calls, the service being provided by the team has always been effective, especially around timelines, milestones, materials, costs and their contractors. I loved the app that kept us updated as well. I'm glad we made the right choice and will be recommending you to my neighbours and friends.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! We love our new dream kitchen, bathroom and living room. Just in time to start entertaining again! Nick and Abdul you rock!

I used the service of Ottawa General Contractors to upgrade my condominium. They listened and understood my vision. I am glad that I chose them for my project. The Project Manager (Brigette) I worked with is awesome. She is very efficient, professional, communicates and listens well and went above and beyond to finish the project. Her caring attitude made me feel confident of her handling the project and I surely felt assured that I was in good hands. If you are choosing OGC, ask for her. She made it easy and less worrisome for me. She guided me each step of the way and provided solutions when there were obstacles to overcome. She explained everything in a simple manner which made me understand why there is a need to make adjustments on my vision. I was happy with the end result.

We contracted OGC to landscape our backyard, and add a wall into an existing room and build a bathroom in the unfinished portion of our house in Kanata South. Initially my wife was very impressed with the professionalism of this company. It became quickly apparent that this was a bit of a career

After a consultation with a designer where we explained the concept of our remodel we were told an estimate, and within days the estimated cost rose by roughly 50%. When this design process was inexplicable delayed we found out that the designer that we worked with was being replaced. Eventually we got through this phase and were assigned a project manager. That person was also replaced after a few weeks waiting for traction.

The designer that we ended up having was useless. We had to source all of our own materials except drywall and lumber. Not that we have a huge problem with choosing our own finishes but when checking with our designer if things would work, specifically tiles for our shower, and vanity, she told us it was good but the installer showed up and said there was no way he could work with that and we had yet another delay to find new supplies last minute. As well they told us that they had relationships with big box stores for discounts which was a lie. They also told us that if we arranged purchase of items there they would pick it up and store it until the work was done which was also a lie.

As this work was being completed during the pandemic we expected a certain amount of delay in the work because of pandemic the delays that we actually experienced were beyond tolerable. We were initially given a timeline to be done the work mid summer, as my wife was expecting in the fall this initially acceptable. They gave us excuses that the city wasn't doing building permits as a cause for delay which was a lie. They also had large gaps between doing any work which compounded the delays. What was supposed to have been finished in June July took until after the birth of our son in September. Following that, the cities building inspector determined that the plumbing had been incorrectly installed for the basement short and OGC had to send somebody to fix it in December. Just recently a pipe above the shower blew which flooded our basement. This may be a coincidence, however given their track record I'm inclined to believe otherwise.

Ultimately I found the work they did was acceptable, if not over-priced. I don't believe there was any added value in choosing this company over some dudes from kijiji who would have done the same work for half the price. Would never recommend this company.

My backyard is fairly large as it’s on an irregular lot. We are considering a mini house for the gym, office and for guests. What is the cost of a Tiny Home and does it matter if we are in the city or on well water?

My husband and kids love the new basement. We should have done it sooner thank you Abdul for all your hard work.

One of the benefits of going with a bigger design/build company over a GC is that you get a good warranty. OGC have been very good about coming back to repair issues. Also, driveway was damaged by the dumpster and after some back and forth they cut us a cheque to replace it. Good luck getting a GC to do that!

Oliver did a fantastic job with the warrenty calls. When you need to call in a warranty issue, call Murad and ask for Oliver as he pays attention to detail and corrects the issues.

The planning was a little stressful but the guidance we got was exceptional. Having a project manager made this project run smoothly. I'm looking forward to the final touches!

Our new kitchen is worth every penny. Wonderful job, especially the designers. We are now ready to start entertaining again and getting back to normal:)

Completely terrible and would tell anyone to avoid them.

Their subcontractor actually broke one of our windows and then blamed it on us, refused to pay for a replacement! Claimed that a ten minute visit by their HVAC guy where he literally did nothing required $700 extra for "adjustments". Scam!

The way they design their contracts also allows them to basically charge you more through the process as needed. Scam! I actually did some work myself just to save money after their bill went up by 20% - after they had already started. Avoid!

OGC gutted our master bedroom and bathroom. The outcome was spectacular. Converted an en-suite bath with roman tub into a large walk- shower, new built in seated vanity. Added a 16 foot walk in closet, better utilizing space in the master. Highly recommend OGC.

OGC did a total rebuild of my home from foundation to roof. I appreciated the level of professionalism and attention to detail of their staff. As issues came up they dealt with them in a timely and satisfactory manner. I would not hesitate to use them again.

We contracted OGC to renovate several different areas in our home. I was concerned about the functioning of our bathroom ceiling exhaust fan. I notified the warranty manager, Murad Driver, on a Thursday and he got back to me by Friday morning. He immediately dispatched "Ahmad" to look at the situation. I a short period of time my concerns were addressed to my satisfaction. I must admit that "Ahmad" was very pleasant and professional. Thanks R. P. M.

We recently had approximately 1000 sq.ft.of our basement finished by OGC. This consisted of a living room, dry kitchen with cabinetry, bedroom, vanity, walk in closet, and bathroom c/w shower. When the plans came to life, we were very pleased with the results. The completed rooms are very attractive and exactly what we wanted. The company provided excellent materials and workmanship. The project was completed quickly, efficiently, and quite in line with the original schedule. All of the office and operations staff at OGC have been professional and extremely pleasant. As well, the contractors and sub-contractors managed by OGC were all friendly and accommodating while in our home. As with any such project, there were a few minor warranty repairs and adjustments required, which were all completed rapidly and to our satisfaction. Even now, a few years after completion, Murad and OGC management promptly responded to a few minor issues reported. We would not hesitate to recommend OGC to anyone requiring minor or major construction services to their home. They certainly are construction specialists. Our experience has been very positive, and we are extremely satisfied with our new finished space.

Rick and Judy Makinen

Review of OGC’s Warranty Work on Our Condo Renovation

After living in New Edinburgh for 22 years, last year we sold our house and bought a two-bedroom condo in the same neighbourhood. The unit needed a major overhaul, so we invited several contractors to provide a bid and chose OGP to do the renovation. It was an ambitious project, knocking down walls to open the living space and stripping the place back to the studs before rebuilding.

We love what’s been done, as does everyone who has seen it. The refit is comfortable, stylish, and practical. However, a couple of months after moving in, we discovered a design flaw in the main bathroom that we felt had to be fixed. Although OGP is bound by a one-year warranty on workmanship, we wondered if we’d be facing stiff resistance.

In fact, we’ve rarely seen more cooperation and goodwill from a contractor (and we’ve done more than a few renos over the years!). Andrew Jabbour, our main contact at OGP, has been courteous and responsive from the beginning – and this was no exception. He immediately had the bathroom inspected, then came back with a proposal that was both fair and reasonable.

Let’s note here that his solution required more than a bit of fine-tuning. The refit took a two-man team over a week to complete. But to OGP’s credit, we were never asked to pay for materials or labour. They acknowledged the problem, then swung into action to correct it. They made us feel like we were their clients, and they were going to take that responsibility seriously.

Moreover, all this happened during the COVID and Ottawa protest lock-down of January 2022, while many in the construction industry were off work and replacements were hard to find. Nevertheless, our Project Manager, Murad Driver, pushed hard to keep the project on track and on time. He was remarkably diligent and professional and in spite of the challenges got it done on schedule.

So, while we had doubts about how this phase of the project would go, OGP certainly rose to the occasion – and the finished product is both elegant and practical. We can’t say how much we appreciate the professionalism!

Thank you, Andrew, and thank you, Murad!

Best,
Don and Susan

OGC have done an extraordinary job both around the quality of the renovation they performed at my residential home and standing firmly behind their work. Murad Driver was particularly professional in the interactions we had following the work, was easy to speak to and, most importantly, made sure we were satisfied with the work. Thanks OGC and Murad for the excellent work. I will highly recommend working with them in any big or small project.

I had my kitchen completely redone by OGC. We took everything out, removed a wall, expanded the scope of work to include new floors in the dining room and remove the popcorn ceiling in the dining & living room. So we did a total Reno of the kitchen and some updates to the dining/living room 3/4 of my main floor.
Working with OGC from start to finish was easy, and having one point of contact was much better than dealing with multiple contractors.
The overall design process was excellent, I loved being able to source some of my own things or rely on the procurement from OGC
When there were problems it was easy to get a hold of the project manager by phone or the portal specific to my project.
I have already recommended OGC to friends, and I will with with them again when it is time to do my ensuite.

Imagine hiring a company that drives their red pickup truck 60km/h down a residential street filled with children. God forbid any children getting hit.

My family member used this company. DO NOT use them. Find anyone else. Save yourself the money.and the surprise thay come with them.expect to more when you have budgeted for $73,000. They will tear out your stuff and expect another $20,000.

OGC should have been an integral part of ourproject but due to the lack of reliability and consistency to maintain efficiency and productivity, there was no value-add to contracting OGC business to ensure the project was completed successfully and according to schedule.

The following are key elements to our statement above:

1) Project Management – lack of a highly skilled project manager assigned to this project resulting in:

a.poor attention to details for each milestone

b.lack of site presence to manage progress and oversee work details/instructions

c.lack of understanding of the original SoW

d.not adhering to proper building code

e.lack of controlling time management / project risk

f.lack of activity and resource planning

g.lack of managing necessary project documentation

2) Communication – Due to the lack of communication, being the customer, we had to micro-manage and fulfill project management duties which was OGC’s obligation as per the SoW.

3) Skilled resources (incl.subcontractors) – OGC unable to secure skilled resources being internal/external to fulfill project and meet deliverables (i.e. Siding contractors)

4) Schedule commitments – project delays and follow-through with initial timelines. Continuous delays from anticipated close date being end of August to actual close date beginning of December

5) Understanding of SoW and customer requirements – resulted in multiple CO’s

6) Supply Chain – inability to secure material

Overall I had a great experience with OGC. The start was a bit rocky with poor weather and trying to line up everyone's schedules. However, after the first month things started moving very quickly. Special shout out to their carpenter JJ who went out of his way to ensure we were pleased.

The actual work that OGC did on my interior renovation was good and the finished product looks very nice overall, working with them was a good experience. I understand that renovations sometimes take longer than expected and our house is quite large but the end date we were told was the end of April

Kewl guys Andrew and faris are nice guys and the lady at the front desk was very welcoming polite impressed with OGC

We had a great experience building our home addition with OGC. The design and construction planning part of the project was well organised. Construction started great and it seemed like the structure was constructed really fast. Towards the end it felt like things slowed down by a bit, but I am told that the high detail to the finishing touch requires patience. All in all I'm so very pleased with all that was done. Without hesitation I will continue to recommend these guys!

I have recently hired OGC to design and build my large addition and custom detached garage project in Kanata. I would confidently recommend the team at OGC to take care of anyone's build from start to finish. Originally I had went through this process with a contractor who did not offer design, do not make the same mistake. The design process allows you to be in full control of your project. It provides you with details and information on how your project will come together. I have passed on my great experiences with the team to my friends and family and would not think to take the chance on another builder to work on my major renovation plans.

We Hired OGC To Do A Renovation In Our Office To Create An Events Space And A New Meeting Room. I really appreciated the design process. It provided me with direction and clarity on how my office renovation was going to come together. Everything was done accordingly to the project within the timeframe they stipulated at the beginning. They have a client portal that keeps you up to date with pictures and schedules. They kept our office very clean for the entire time, even with all the demolition involved.

My husband and I bought a dilapidated Campeau bungalow in the fall of 2018, and we basically had to gut the main floor and start over. OGC were the friendliest company we met with, and their budget came in among the most reasonable of the 6 quotes that we got. We started working with the architect on drawings of the new layout and couldn't believe what they were able to do. We ended up taking out two supporting walls, adding beams and completely redesigning the layout of the kitchen, living room and bathroom. Instead of a tiny window in the kitchen we added French doors straight out to the deck, which filled the kitchen with extra light.
Every part of the process, from design to finishing decisions and the work itself was handled with care, and the whole team were warm and friendly throughout. We're especially thankful to their carpenter JJ, who designed us a beautiful new fireplace surround to match the existing wainscoting, and created new window frames to match the existing ones from 1950 perfectly. While the renovation cost a lot of money, and took a little longer than expected, the work was excellent and we're over the moon with the results. I would happily recommend OGC to anyone:

I work at the Nepean branch of Royal Building Solutions, and I must say it is an absolute pleasure dealing with Deirdre Crick. She is kind, professional, efficient and friendly.

I've worked with OGC for the last 5 years as their cabinet supplier, and have worked with a few different departments. Deirdre and Karley from the Material Selection department are extremely organized and bring clients to me with developed ideas to work on for their kitchen, bathroom or custom millwork. They are very easy to work with and helpful with pushing the clients in the right direction for their designs. The project managers Allan and Paolo are very knowledgeable and execute the project with great communication with their trades and clients. I see a lot of happy clients coming out of their projects!

It has been 8 months since Ottawa General Contractors finished up the work on converting our very wet, damp Cold Storage space into a very dry and usable storage space. Both the inside and outside of the Cold Storage space and along the front of our house were sealed and insulated. It made an incredible difference in our basement. Warm and dry!
The deck that was built on top of the sealed and insulated old exterior concrete stairs on the front of our house is beautiful. From beginning to end OGC was professional, courteous, and kept us in the loop as the project proceeded. It was a pleasure having OGC handle this 'Little Big Project' from start to finish.