Ambar Builders Inc.

Huge thank you to Alex, Laz, Victor, and Jonathan for doing such a great job with our home! They were like family to us during our journey of transforming our home, and we were grateful to have them.

Our challenging project included converting our large attic into a 3rd bedroom and 3rd full bath, master bath remodel, and improving numerous things in the home. Finding a company to do this was not easy, as attic conversions deal with significant structural challenges which many contractors shied away from.

I interviewed about 10 contractors, and we decided to put our faith in Ambar Builders due to response time, experience, and confidence. His pricing was not the cheapest, nor the most expensive, but he never changed the price of the initial estimate which is amazing! We actually added on side projects along the way and he did a great job with those as well.

The project timeline took nearly a year from signing to completion, but the majority of that was due to the architectural engineering portion and waiting on the city of Oceanside to approve the permits. Once the permits were approved, the massive transformation of our home took about 17 weeks to complete, which was on par for the timeline Alex gave us. Below is a list of things he and his team competed (I'm sure in leaving some things out...)

Free estimate and follow up visits
Provide architectural plans
Structural engineering approvals
Submit plans to city
Convert attic to 3rd bedroom, which involved cutting into floor slab to add footings for post in the wall to support massive beam for floor joists..
Add 3rd full custom bath in attic
Add stairs to new 2nd story
Install custom stair railing
Re configure layout of master bath
New custom master shower
Re-pipe entire home / plumbing
New HVAC system (adding AC also)
Upgrade electrical panel to 200 amp
Install EV charger
Install new water heater
Install new ceiling fans
New flooring for entire home
New baseboards for entire home
Drywall/paint improvements
Change lighting in kitchen
New closet doors throughout home
Oh yeah, they cut a giant hole in my roof and added a 4' window!!!

This list goes on... The entire process was stressful to me and my wife as expected, but it was worth it in the end. We needed the extra space for our second child. Now the kids won't stop going up and down the new stairs lol. I wish I could post more than 10 photos, I have a couple hundred of the project.

In short, if you're having a hard time selecting a contractor for your home project, place your bets on Alex and his team. We will be going with Ambar to redo our kitchen in a year or so, the only thing left in the house to upgrade.

We are so happy we hired Ambar Builders to take on our kitchen remodel. It was an ambitious job, with serious structural work (wall removals, new framing and beam supports, etc.) in a funky space with angled walls, vaulted ceilings, etc. Alejandro presented a vision of what the kitchen could be and delivered. As with any job, there were unexpected developments, and he rolled with them and helped us through them without stress. His workers were reliable, of high quality, polite and neat. The craftsmanship was top notch. The kitchen now looks absolutely beautiful and is also highly functional. It's opened up our whole floor. Our only regret is that he didn't hire him for our bathrooms first!

I would like to publicly thank Alex and the whole crew for my new master bathroom. the process was better than expected. i felt like i took a chance going with a smaller company rather than the big names.
I am a thankful that i did go with Ambar builders.
Alex was so helpful , professional and trustworthy person. ( We both lived in Brooklyn in the same years).
My wife and i love the new space and would highly recommend to any friend or family.

Alex and his team did a great job helping us transform our cramped and outdated bathroom into a spa-like and spacious place where we can joyfully begin or wrap up our day. Alex was great at managing our expectations at every part of the project and made sure we were satisfied at every turn. His team was very supportive of our vision for our bathroom and did an incredible job of working with the inspector to make sure it was all to code. Once they wrapped up the project, they didn't hesitate to check in to make sure everything was working as it should. I am truly blown away by how life-changing this upgrade has been.

Using my Pinterest inspiration and their expertise, every detail they touched has made that bathroom a vastly improved experience. A space-inefficient sliding door/fiberglass shower kit was replaced with a tiled shower/tub/fixed glass panel combo that allowed my 6'6" husband to enter and exit without bumping his head. They installed an exhaust fan and tiled our bathroom floor to match our new shower. They fixed our water temp issues in the shower/tub plumbing. Replaced the old, giant, and ugly sink vanity the room had with one that was more appropriate for the size and style of our bathroom. They also patched and painted the walls and replaced the inward swinging bathroom door with a space-saving barn door.

All in all, it was no small feat and took a little over 6 weeks, but we look forward to hiring Alex's team again in the future.

If you're looking to hire a contractor, stop looking and hire Ambar Builders. Never in my life did I think I would have such an amazing experience from a complete home remodel. Our project was a full gut job and included a kitchen addition, city permit, and multiple city inspections. I've heard all the horror stories about nightmare contractors who do shoddy work, don't show up or who nickel and dime you. I can confidently say without a doubt that Alex is the most genuine, honest and stand up guy you'll come across not only as a contractor but as a person.

Alex was always on top of everything and his crew is incredible. I saw or spoke with Alex almost every single day and the communication was fantastic. I was kept in the loop on everything. A special thank you to Laz and Jonathan for all their hard work. There is nothing those 2 can't figure out or handle!

Every single person and trade that came to my house was experienced, professional and took pride in their work. They showed up every single day, on time, and ready to go. They were super respectful and treated my home like it was their own. We lived in the home during the entire remodel and they did an outstanding job of keeping everything very clean. Making sure to clean up each day before they left.

I truly mean it when I say to stop shopping around for a contractor and just hire Ambar. They are the only contractor I would ever hire or recommend. I can't thank Alex and his team enough for everything and for turning my old home into the home of my dreams!

We contracted with Ambar Builders to do an almost complete remodel of our home. This was a large scale remodel. They took the entire 2500 square foot house's floors down to the concrete, and took most of the walls to the studs.

They removed an offit from our kitchen, created beautiful countertops and designed a new island for us. If I listed all the work they did this review would be 10 pages long. The short version is that Alex the owner was at the job site almost every day, and the same crew of workers was at my house EVERYDAY, Monday through Friday for 9 weeks. The crew was very respectful, friendly, and went out of their way to accommodate us.

During the course of our scope of work several other issues arose that we wanted taken care of and within a few days the crew was set to work on those areas we identified as well.

The team was helpful in assisting us in choosing the right options and combinations of raw materials to make sure the house looked great. Here we are at the end of an 9 week project, and I already have them scoped to come back later this summer to do another one.

The pricing was specific, and they stood by their price. There were no surprises on the bill. If I wanted an add on, Alex talked me through my options, and never tried to "juice the bill". Use them, you will be happy you did.

Alex (the owner) and his crew turned our 90's downstairs bathroom into a stunning guest oasis! We're not fancy at all, but we saw a couple of pictures in a magazine and Alex did a great job recreating what he saw.

The craftsmanship was great, his crew was courteous and professional, and best of all, Alex stopped by our house every day to check out the progress and say hi. We recommended Ambar Builders to some friends, and they were not disappointed.

There's always a trust factor when you bring a contractor into your home to make big changes. After this experience, we can safely say that we don't need to look anywhere else. Master Bathroom and Kitchen are next - we can't wait!!

I would like to thank Alex and Team (Laz, and Jonathan) for the expert renovation of my first and second floors. We shopped around from starter general contracting companies and high-end companies who gave us quotes from uncomfortably cheap to crazy high prices. Every company came in with a compelling and fancy sales pitch. When I first met Alex, he came in with nothing but a measuring tape. I am thankful that we went with his humble and very reasonable quote. We had Ambar removed and replaced our entertainment section wall, our kitchen island, and our downstairs floor as the three major items of our renovation. He also did a ton of work to include, paint upstairs and downstairs, replacing my second-floor carpet, all my outlets, switches, numerous light pendant and chandelier fixtures, installed lighting in every nook and cranny of my house, just to name a few. Most of the small items were added while the renovation was ongoing. There was only one concern that I had with contractors that I mentioned to Alex, and that was customer service. I didn't want to have to deal with being "ghosted" after the project started. He assured me that he was 100 percent reachable and he always maintained that up to this day.

A little bit about the conduct of the renovation. The renovation took about two months but it was well worth it. On day one, his team came in and started demolishing what they had to. They were quick but organized and they ALWAYS left the house clean. Alex and the team were always cognizant of every stage of the renovation always ensuring that we didn't have any issues or concerns, especially over the weekend. They were very flexible with timelines and would work around certain dates for us. As mentioned earlier, we added a lot of extras to the renovation and they took it all in stride.

I really can't say enough about how we love our new home. It is truly night and day from when we first purchased it and it's all because of the professionalism, expertise, and attention to detail that Ambar demonstrated. Sincerely, Thank you.

Rob

We got 4 estimates for a total bath remodel + kitchen cabinets and painting. #1 never sent his estimate. #2 was way too expensive. #3 was lowest bid, but didn't have his insurance/certificates in order and was slow to respond. Alex was a bit higher than the low bid but made us feel much more comfortable that the job was in the right hands. He didn't disappoint.

The bigger the job, the more you have to expect unforeseen events that can upset expectations or schedules. There was nothing major, but Alex and his team were able to adjust to the surprises and still get everything accomplished on schedule even when it meant working one Saturday. There were no additions to the final invoice despite a few "above and beyond" corrections by Alex and his team.

Alex used 5-6 different workers on this job and every one of them were as courteous and respectful as could be. They took special care to prevent leaving a mess and every day their cleanup left the area, including my garage, cleaner than they found it. Throughout the job Alex was always readily available to me by text if I had a question or concern. Most of the time he called me instead of texting.

Pride. From top to bottom Ambar Builders care about satisfying their customers, keeping their promises, and doing the job right. I'm famous for picking the slowest checkout line at the store, but picking this contractor was the right choice.

Great experience with Alex and his team. My kitchen remodel turned out great. His team was always on time, clean and masked up (COVID protocols). The project was finished in the time period that we agreed on. His attention to detail was exactly what I was looking for. All in all great service, great pricing. I would definitely recommend Ámbar Builders to others.