Customer Testimonials

Jayco construction added a 400 sq foot additon and a deck on the back of our modest ranch house. The construction matched the rest of the house with full foundation.

We contacted several contractors to bid on our project.  The architect who drew the plans (excellent job and reasonable by the way) suggested contacting Jacyo Construction when I asked for other names.  Jay, the owner, promptly returned our call and looked over our project and plans and prepared an estimate. His estimate was, in our opinion. very fair. Although there were a few unexpected, yet thoroughly explained, complications the final payment was only a few percent over the original estimate. Having an estimate this accurate was just one indication that this is a quality operation. Jay was on the job site daily to be sure the work was being done and done correctly. We exchanged e mails regularly and any concerns were promptly addressed.There were no communication issues at all.  The addition and the deck show excellent workmanship. His subcontractors did excellent work. They worked hard and kept the jobsite picked up and safe. They were there when Jay said that they would be.

During the project we had a chance to talk with Jay regularly. He obviously cares about the quality of his work.  Jay has been a contractor for years, He has built large custom homes and modest additions like ours.  We have no doubt that if you have the need for any home repair (due to storm damage or just time), remodel, or new construction, Jayco Construction would be an excellent choice.  We highly recommend him and would hire him again for a future project.

April 14, 2011

Complete lower level from an open concrete slab area (approx 1600 SQFT) to 6 rooms and 1.5 bath including a bedroom suite, exercise room, home theater, bar and game room and Utility room.  The work included deconstruction and framing new layout, plumbing, electrical, custom cabinets, granite tops, tile floors... complete turnkey operation.

The quality and appearance of this area matches the rest of the house, looks like all done at same time.  Fit and finish of all fixtures is first class.   Everyone who sees this area is blown away by it.  We are extremely pleased and proud of this project. Although very easy going and engaging Jay operates at the highest level of professionalism.  There were no major items in the punch list for this project, even so Jay was quick to respond.  I would not hesitate to use Jayco again, we have strongly recommended him to friends.

February 10, 2011

Custom home construction, approximately 6400 finished sq. ft.

After interviewing several custom home builders, we selected Jay Guilford based on our perception that he would give our project the most personal attention.  Our engagement included utilizing a home designer / architect Jay recommended and an interior designer Jay recommended.  The prject started with clearing our lot and will finish up soon with our one year punch list. The simple short summary is that there is no comparison between a custom builder and a production builder, and among the custom builders that remain in business in the area, I highly recommend Jayco without any reservations. Jay's considerable experience in home building and remodeling led to many suggestions for improvements or alternate ideas in our home design, and with his help we avoided some pitfalls during construction.  Jay was also instrumental in guiding us to expenses that were "worth it" and those that weren't, especially in the areas of green construction, energy efficiency, usable space vs. unusable space, expensive vs. "inexpensive" square footage. Jay has what are clearly long and positive relationships with most of the subcontractors he uses which allows him to obtain favorable pricing and outstanding quality and workmanship at the same time.  He definitely went to bat for us, obtaining multiple quotes for big ticket items to be sure we were receiving competitive pricing.  However he was also careful to recommend when a quote looked too good to be true, when he thought corners might be cut, and when companies might be underbidding out of desperation.  Overall, I believe he worked hard for us to get us the best quality workmanship at very reasonable costs.  We haven't had many construction issues, especially for a project this large, and the few we have experienced have been dealt with immediately by these subcontractors. However the most positive experience with the build process was the fact that Jay was at the site nearly every day, and most of the day for the many days he was there.  It's not unusual to find Jay with broom in hand cleaning up the site some evening.  Compare that service to the production builder foreman who has 5-6 projects going on and might stop by your lot once or twice a month. When I tell others who have built houses that I am good friends with my builder, they are mostly in shock.  Yes it can happen.

June 04, 2010

We hired Jay Guilford of JAYCO Construction to do the remodeling work on our 22 year old kitchen. It was dated and needed a significant update. We also included in his work some repairs on the outside of the house, removal of wallpaper and painting of the entire first floor of the house, and removal of cabinetry and reconstruction of custom paneling in our family room.  We separately hired Charles Cabinets to build a new section of cabinets and got our appliances from Garner Appliances but Jay managed the overall work, selected and managed all the subcontractors who were needed, and even did much of the demolition and carpentry work himself. The work included in the task involved replacement of the countertops with granite, installation of all the new plumbing, re-venting of the downdraft vent, installation of the tile in the kitchen and laundry, installation of the new appliances, overseeing of the painting work (extensive), and all the necessary carpentry and finish work to make it all come together.  I should note that we got competitive bids from other contractors too and JAYCO was right in line with other quality contractors that we reviewed.

We could not be more happy with the process and the result. We now have a 21st century kitchen that is truly beautiful and functional. All the pieces fit together and the quality of the work is first rate ++.  We caused some delays because of changes in our selections but Jay was kind and helpful in moving us along. At one point, we really needed some counsel on selections and he recommended Joanna McGann who he had worked with building new homes. She was wonderful and really helped to give us and Jay a coherent picture of what the final kitchen would look like. Jay and Joanna helped move us along more quickly and with some confidence that it would all work out well and indeed it has. I cannot complement Jay Guilford and his team enough for paying attention to the details and being kind and professional with us even though this was a difficult and new process for us. Jay was always upbeat and positive and had good ideas on how to solve problems that we encountered. His decades of experience in building high end homes paid off for us in that there was no problem or issue that we uncovered that he had not seen and dealt with before. He instilled confidence in us that we could do this and helped us move from being overwhelmed to moving forward with our choices and decisions.  I recommend his work highly to anyone who needs remodeling or home construction work. I have no reservation in offering his services.

April 15, 2011

Built beautiful screened porch with stone fireplace on back of home. Very professional, attention to detail was exceptional. Addition that doesn't look like an 'addition'.   Would use him again and highly recommend. Was not the least expensive bid, but considering the quality of the work, it was certainly the most cost effective. 

Showed up on time,  very professional, worked with us to make several changes and offered  some  great suggestions. Finished ahead of schedule and under budget.  Left area spotless when completed.

May 19, 2011

Jayco Construction helped us build a wheelchair-accessible home in North Raleigh. From the beginning, Jay was always willing to walk different lots and talk about house plans with us. He made us feel that our project was his main priority even though we knew it wasn’t the largest or most expensive home he had built. We dealt directly with him throughout construction and could not have been more pleased with his high level of customer service.

Gaines and Sandy McMillan

After three or four years of attending the Raleigh Parade of Homes, we knew we wanted Jayco Construction to help us build our first custom home. We recognized the excellent quality of work spent on each of his homes and were impressed with the number of unique designs available. While building a custom home requires hundreds of decisions, Jay made the process manageable even with my busy work schedule. He incorporated our ideas into the design and was willing to accept changes during construction without any problem. We had the pleasure of working with both Jay and Susy and found them both to be true professionals, always focused on making us happy, satisfied customers.

Mr. & Mrs. Jerry Coates

We interviewed three North Raleigh builders to help us build our first home and found that Jay really listened to us and understood exactly what we wanted. He gave several excellent suggestions throughout the design/build process and was very helpful at guiding us through each phase. We now have a beautiful home that was completed on time and within budget! We continue to work with Jay as we develop landscaping plans and are very pleased with the excellent customer service he provides us even after we have already moved in.

Leo and Nina MacDonald

Our architect, Steve Cluggish of Residential Design, highly recommended Jay to us as we began our search for a custom home builder. Jay is a very friendly and knowledgeable builder who makes things happen. He moves the process along extremely well and is very responsive to his client’s wants and needs. Jay has provided us with a detailed list of costs and materials for each phase which has enabled construction to remain on time and within budget. If we ever build another home, we will definitely choose Jayco.

Sam and Marie St. Clair