Testimonials

David Morgan at D.R.M. Design Build recently renovated our kitchen. Our home had a small, outdated kitchen and breakfast area that was not in keeping with significant updates we have made throughout the home (most constructed by DRM). David and his team helped us conceive and design a renovation plan. We stared with several different options, encompassing slightly different extents and price points, and he helped us choose the most appropriate for our needs. We worked closely with his colleague Dianne Aucello of Edesia Kitchen and Bath Studios, who assisted us not only in design, but in making cabinet, countertop and appliance cjhoices and purchases for the project. Once demolition and construction started, David handled all the details. The renovation was carried out in the midst of the Covid pandemic, and David and his team did not miss a beat. They handled difficult aspects of the project such as engineering, permitting from the town, and an unexpected break down in the home’s A/C system. Ultimately the project was completed on time and according to budget. And as in any renovation project, there were minor “punch-list” issues to be attended to, which David (and Dianne) handled seamlessly. Our kitchen looks fabulous, it is a dream to occupy, and it has added to the value of our home. We will continue to refer D.R.M. to our friends and use them for our next projects.

David and crew are a team of seasoned professionals who take great pains to achieve excellence in both their workmanship and the customer experience.  They are the rare type of “purist” that home owners, particularly those with antique homes, value greatly.  I have used DRM for three projects.  The first was the restoration of the front porch of an 1890s colonial revival.  Every other contractor wanted to simply remove the old porch and build new.  David was the only one who recommended a more surgical approach.  This was both less expensive AND preserved and greatly improved the look and feel of the home.  The second project involved replacing the clapboard siding on one side of the house, most of which was curved.  Once again DRM made things “better” than new.  Most recently, DRM completely a 3rd floor dormer/addition, this time to a 1904 Arts & Crafts style home.  Unlike cases where dormers serve an important function, but perhaps do nothing to enhance the appearance of a house, my husband and I agree that this new dormer has made the house more beautiful.  We are extremely pleased with this new office/den space, complete with fireplace and en suite bath.

David Morgan of D. R. M. Design Build, Inc. came to us through the recommendation of friends and has been our general contractor now for many years.  During this time David has guided us expertly through many rennovation projects in our 275-year-old New England farmhouse.

David has always given us sound, knowledgeable advice and has been able to offer creative solutions for difficult problems.  Budgets and schedules have always been easy to negotiate.

Not only does David provide outstanding design and building expertise, he is willling to go the extra mile for his clients.  Just recently he assisted us with a complicated insurance claim and was able to successfully navigate the labyrinth of insurance company requirements on our behalf.

The crew of D. R. M. is top-notch and lives up to David’s high standards of exemplary workmanship.  Not only are the crew members very professional, they are also extremely pleasant and personable–just the kind of people you enjoy being around.  And they have been very patient and kind with my nine active Labrador Retrievers!

My husband and I cannot recommend David Morgan highly enough.  He is an absolute pleasure to know and work with.

It has been a true pleasure working with D.R.M. Design Build on our renovation projects. We initially worked with D.R.M. on a small project in our family room, and ultimately hired David and his team for a large-scale renovation that included a master suite addition, the renovation of 3 existing bathrooms and significant exterior updating.

We came in with a strong vision for the desired outcome, and David and his team helped us shape that into something better than we ever imagined. They brought great design ideas, acted as a nice sounding board for our ideas, and kept us honest with respect to budget.

It was a great collaboration, and David and his team were true professionals from Day 1. They were extremely courteous and respectful of our time and space. They were organized and clean — especially important since we lived in the house during the renovation! They showed great attention to detail, their work was always spot on, and in the odd case where we weren’t happy with the product, they were more than happy to work with us to find a great solution. We truly enjoyed having David and his team in our home, and even today stop by to say hello to them at other local projects.

We would highly recommend David and his team for any renovation project — large or small. Our home went through an amazing transformation, and while we have been extremely happy with the results, the most satisfying outcome has been the feedback we get from friends, neighbors — and strangers — who stop and tell us how nice the home looks. And when they ask, “Who did you work with?”, we proudly say, “D.R.M. Design Build!”

David and his team remodeled our sun room this past spring. The room was in such bad shape that they ended up basically building it from scratch, and yet they still finished in time for our hard deadline, which was the due date of our first baby! (she came 1 day early!) David was very responsive and detailed oriented. We received a detail floor plan, and timeline that was very helpful when we were purchasing furniture for the room. He was also very respectful of our budget. His team was also great! They showed up at 7:00 am on the dot every day. Both me and my husband were working full time, and when we would come home from work, you would never even know they were there, except for the great progress they would make every day. We liked them so much we recommended them to my sister who just had their kitchen remodeled this past fall. They did an excellent job for them as well! We can’t wait to use David and his team for our next project!

The time had come to undertake a major kitchen remodel and one our largest fears was finding the right company for the project.  Luckily we were put in touch with David at DRM design and our search was over.  We truly appreciated David’s consultative approach to our project and recommendations based on his years of experience and understanding of our end goals.  We were also able to work with DRM’s kitchen designer who has some excellent recommendations.  A full scope of work was delivered and we were able to get underway in a short time.  The DRM team that did the core work of the job was always on time, courteous, and great at getting out feedback on any little decisions or modifications. All of the other speciality contractors like the electrician were up to speed and knew exactly what they needed to do based on our SOW.

Overall the project was a huge success.  In addition to the amazing craftsmanship and quality of the work that was done, we finished up on the original project schedule and budget.  I would highly recommend looking at DRM for any considerable project that requires and experienced design build firm that is focused on quality and the overall homeowner’s experience.

My wife and I hired David to redesign a “bonus” room we had above our garage into a master suite.  We had about 500 square feet of essentially wasted space in our house that we wanted to make more practical.  David built a full walk-in-closet, double vanity bathroom with stand up shower, and master bedroom, all within the confines of a cape style house with difficult eaves to work around.  We’ve been living in the completed space for the past 6 months and I can say it was the best money I’ve ever spent.

I think the best way to describe the level of craftsmanship was that when it was finished the room looked more like it belonged in a magazine than our house.  The finish was impeccable, and we have had zero issues with any of the construction.  All of David’s contractors were extremely polite and professional.  They always made sure that the construction zone of the house was completely blocked off from the rest of the house (including taping any door seams such that no dust got into the rest of the house).  Also, I think it’s important to highlight that my wife felt very comfortable with the workers in the house when she was alone.

Our original plan moving into this house was to stay here for 5-7 years, but I can honestly say that I think we’ve extended that much further.  I’ve never been in a house that has the quality of master retreat that we have in our house and being in the room actually makes me a happier person!.  I have zero worries about being able to sell the house when/if we do decide to do so as this will be the defining characteristic for our house.

David and his team have done a number of projects at our house, including renovation and expansion of several baths, partial renovation of our kitchen, and building a new patio and pergola in our backyard.

During the design phase, David was easy to work with and delivered plans on time and with a level of detail that we could easily envision the final product.  David was also able to itemize his cost proposal so that we could incorporate cost considerations into our final design decisions (it takes an experienced contractor to do this accurately).

During the construction, David and his crew were outstanding, making every effort to minimize the impact on our family throughout several complex projects.  David’s crew were uniformly pleasant, respectful, and efficient while delivering top-quality work.  Communication during the project was never a problem, as both David and his crew were amazingly responsive to any questions or concerns that arose.

Like his crew, all of the subcontractors David brought into the project were excellent, and David did an impressive job of coordinating the various moving parts and making sure the work was done to the highest standard.  While the design/build aspect of David’s company simplified matching the planning of the interior projects to the end product, the outdoor project required a landscape architect.  The architect David suggested was also outstanding, and DRM’s execution of that project demonstrated their ability to implement designs from other sources equally well as their own.

Most amazingly given the complexity of several of our projects, David’s cost estimates were very accurate, and where there were deviations from the budget, David was very clear about the reasons.

We would highly recommend DRM Design Build to anyone.  Their work on our house was simply outstanding.

We hired DRM for a major renovation and addition project for our 1891 farmhouse. Our project included a two-story family room and master suite addition, a new three-car garage, and a complete exterior renovation, including replacing the siding, windows, historical trim work, and roofing. DRM came highly recommended from friends and they more than lived up to their reputation. The craftsmanship and quality of the work was outstanding and we are extremely happy with the results. Even more importantly, working with the DRM team was a true pleasure. They are always dedicated, professional and respectful, took great pride in their work, and communicated questions and concerns very effectively as they came up. We were able to live in our home while the work was being done, even with the whole family working or schooling from home during the pandemic. The DRM team worked hard to minimize the disruption from the construction and went out of their way to make sure things were convenient and safe for our family.

David Morgan is passionate about old New England homes and did an amazing job of improving and modernizing our house while still maintaining its historical character. He really understood our objectives and took great care to deliver results that we would love. We had an very successful experience with our project, would happily hire DRM again, and enthusiastically recommend them for any project.

“We feel very lucky to be working with such a talented, caring architect/builder… The results are just wonderful and your crew is terrific.”

“Thanks for doing a beautiful job on our new addition and for the consideration of your and your staff during construction.”

“I’d like to think we have some idea of all the hard work and special care you put into our house. We put our complete trust in you and that proved to be one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. Please know how thrilled we are and will continue to be for many years to come.”

“The personal time savings earned from the [design-build] process is priceless.”

“He was there once or twice a day. I kept a lot of notebooks on the way I wanted things to look in the house, and I was able to show David those. David was able to execute exactly what we wanted.

[Design-build] is a faster process, not having someone else involved in it. There are a lot of times where you come to a decision to be made, and if you have a [separate] architect, it could take weeks. We don’t lose any time.”

“The most important thing to say about David Morgan is that he is a master craftsman who takes great pride in his work. I am extremely pleased with my beautiful staircase. It came out just as I had hoped it would.”

“When things come up that you don’t anticipate, the design-builder has that intimate knowledge of the project. [He] is accountable for the entire problem from start to finish… You have less anxiety dealing with one person.”

“With design-build, you not only get someone who is an architect, but a person who is interested in understanding what the owner is looking for.”