Baronger Group

To put it simply … our experience with Baronger Group (also Oak Park Kitchen & Bath) was one of the worst experiences of my life. We hired them for a major home renovation in late 2013 and are finally (deep breath) shut of the project now. Along the way, not everything went wrong … but, eh, seems to me most things did. Yes, there was some good work here and there. I still like our kitchen cabinets and a carpenter did some lovely work. But beyond that, there seemed to be little that could not be fouled up, or subsequently damaged if it was not first fouled up. Expensive Anderson windows (sob) were handled and painted so callously they already look old and shabby. We have new hardwood floors that are uneven, splattered with paint under the finish and sport a large double vent in the kitchen that leads (surprise!) to nowhere. A radon system, we found, was quietly left disabled. New doors and trimwork were trashed, sometimes while they were being installed, sometimes after. A new stone countertop was permanently scarred by a can of solvent. It goes on and on. And the worst, most finger-​curling frustrating part of the whole process, for me, were the constant excuses. It was the subcontractors. Someone’s out sick. There were indeed some real setbacks, some crazy harsh weather and flooding, but that got spun into the reason for everything. I lost count of the number of requests, plans and instructions that were unheard, ignored or simply not followed. For days at a time, either no one showed up or maybe one small task got done. In the end, they just stopped showing up at all. This was just our experience; I know others have had good outcomes with this company. But awful, awful, awful.