Ant Builders

Shy Nair of Ant Builders was the general contractor/​designer for a gut renovation of our basement apartment bathroom — — and as we moved forward, she agreed to squeeze in the complete replacement of the kitchen as well. The work was done in September of 2015.
The price agreed was neither the highest nor lowest of many quotes but the work was «high-​end» as advertised. We expect the quality materials, fixtures and workmanship to be economical in the long run. Shy was forthright about schedule and how the work was to be done and it proceeded quickly with delays only as required for permits, delivery, and necessary breaks as materials needed to dry and cure. Very high quality work with close attention to detail. Unusual feature for this contractor — she did not want a down payment and, in fact, did not bill us until the very end.
We came to rely heavily on Shy’s experience and good taste in determining design, materials and color — — we had our ideas but her depth of knowledge was extremely helpful and much appreciated. The firm’s contacts with knowledgeable suppliers were important as we needed to move quickly. Shy was always available by phone and e-​mail — sometimes we could hardly keep up with the pace. Workers were clearly skilled, courteous, quiet (for construction), professional in manner, and neat with daily clean-​up.
Construction is not generally a pleasant experience but we truly enjoyed working with Shy Nair of Ant Builders would highly recommend the firm.

This review is long-​overdue as Shy and her team completely remodeled our 2^nd floor row house on the Hill in January/​February this year and did a phenomenal job. Shy was recommended to us by our neighbor who had Ant Builders come out for roofing. Our project was much more involved: building a new bathroom where one did not previously exist, demolishing the existing bathroom and turning it into a guest room, creating a new closet and storage space under our stairs. We received three bids and Ant Builders was right in the middle.
From start to finish, Shy was extremely responsive and did a superb job of executing on the design that we wanted. We basically gave her some rough sketches of where we wanted things to go (vanity here, shower niche there, etc. etc.), and she listened and even offered some solid suggestions to maximize our storage space or enhance our design. One idea of hers was to use frosted glass on the pocket door to the bathroom, which helps us brighten up our hallway/​staircase. Aside from her ideas and vision, her crew was really friendly and courteous, and did a thorough job cleaning up at the end of each day.
Overall, we really enjoyed working with Ant Builders, and Shy specifically. Once we’re ready to tackle projects on the 1^st floor, Shy will be the first person we call. Check her out on Facebook for pics of her work!