The Reno Coach

Amazing Experience!
We were originally hesitant about doing a renovation because we had heard of many bad experiences by friends and acquaintances. We are thrilled to report that not only was our renovation a success in terms of the outcome, but it was a surprisingly positive experience. The Reno Coach was instrumental in helping us throughout the entire experience. This included helping us get drawings, obtain permits, find and select our contractor (who was fabulous too). The Reno Coach was our partner all the way to the end of the reno, ensuring we were happy with the process and outcome. We are very happy customers, and highly recommend the Reno Coach!

We'd been living in our 1920's-built house for 15 years, with all of the associated problems: no insulation in the exterior walls, not-even-6-foot-high basement ceiling, no weeping tile, and so on. We decided it was finally time to fix the place up properly, and we were very lucky to find The Reno Coach on Homestars.

Reiner helped us from the start, when we weren't even sure exactly what we wanted to do, all the way through to the end. He guided us through getting prices for options, setting the scope of the project, putting bids out to contractors, selecting the one we wanted to work with, and then keeping things on the rails through to the end. We were on time, and we were on budget, and everyone I've spoken to about that can hardly believe it's possible.

I've already recommended him dozens of people asking about our reno. The thing that blows their minds most? You can get a contract where your contractor pays you $100/day if they're late finishing! Yes, it can happen, if you get yourself a Reno Coach. So do that.

We originally hired The Reno Coach to help us sort through some complicated HVAC and plumbing plans. We live in a an unusual hard loft space. He was quick to get people in but we let the planning process lag and ultimately decided it would be far too costly with little upside on the ultimate value of our home. So we ultimately did a 180 turn one week before heading out of town for a two month span and decided to do more practical renos - upgrading our stairs to solid oak with industrial glass railings, adding some modern storage space to a very high ceiling room, upgrading some flooring etc. In just a few days he was on it, connected me with the right reliable trades people and we had a plan in motion. He helped supervise the reno while we were away, staying in contact and sorting out design plans via email. He also inspected the work regularly before releasing payments to anyone and always kept us informed. While our trades people were great anyways, we wouldn't have connected with then without him - he only connects you with good people. In fact he even restricted certain installations to very specific employees - as he knows who does certain things the best. No reno is without stress and in the beginning you may wonder what value The Reno Coach can add, but I assure you when you are in the middle of it you will be thankful you have him involved and at the end you will have no doubts about the value add. I would absolutely hire The Reno Coach again. On a side note he is also quite helpful even during your initial reno planning stage - he's been in the business for a long time and is quite up to date on more recent technologies and often has ideas for things you may not have even considered. I think one of the other challenges is being comfortable with any trades person quote you get - how do you know if it's reasonable? He does and can give you comfort so you don't feel like you getting taken advantage of or alternatively cutting costs so close to the line that quality will suffer. Finally - once completed his followup to ensure our satisfaction was fantastic. He'll come by to look at even the smallest concerns and then do the followup with the trades person for you - so you never have to get into any heated discussions about workmanship or quality.

In the fall of 2017, Reiner led us through the process of applying for zoning review and variance approval for the construction of a new home on our property. From the beginning, he demonstrated his expertise and experience in bringing together the right stakeholders from his network of professionals to efficiently put together the required application documents. Hiring Reno Coach turned out to be the best decision as we navigated challenging feedback from neighbours in what became a less than straightforward Committee of Adjustment meeting. This was a big shock to us as we had very positive relationships with our neighbours for years, and had been open and transparent in our plans to request reasonable variances as well as confirmed support of the majority of neighbours. We learned the hard way that you can never predict how people are going to react. Having anticipated this possibility, Reiner provided us with recommendations to manage the relationship with our neighbours and the city process, including making use of a pilot arbitration process. He worked directly with the architect to make the appropriate variances to suit our needs while anticipating what the Committee would be comfortable with approving. At the meeting, he represented our views clearly, respectfully and directly while putting forth our best effort to address the concerns of our neighbours. We felt very grateful to have his knowledge and guidance, and the meeting went flawlessly resulting in us having all of our requested variances approved. We know that if we had not used his services we would have been lost in the city process, and had to deal with months of delay to negotiate and navigate.

My wife and I recently completed a major extension and renovation of our 60 year old house and couldn’t have been happier with the support and guidance we received from Reiner.

From his extensive industry relationships Reiner was able to get us access to the absolute best professional services we required – general contractor, architect, designer, surveyor, cabinet makers etc. all to meet our exact needs and targeted cost. His guidance throughout the contracting process was invaluable – reviewing requirements, completing the contracts, skillfully resolving any issues throughout the engagement.

He had countless excellent construction and design ideas as we moved through the work, discussing with us and working with the contractor to make adjustments in real-time – many resulted in substantial improvements to what turned out to be a beautiful reno.

He and his team were also the most reliable and trustworthy service providers we dealt with – always organized, connected to the project at all times, on time for all meetings, quick to respond to requests and with a very focused, professional, calm personality.

His skill and knowledge on construction matters – legislation, zoning and by-laws – are probably best summed up by way of example. Our property backs on to a ravine and was subject to restrictive by-laws imposed by two separate municipal governing bodies including the Ravine & Natural Feature Protection (RNFP). Recent changes to by-laws, which Reiner had knowledge of, were going to compromise our ability to extend our house which was critical to the overall reno. After five months and numerous calls and emails between myself and the RNFP with no movement, I asked Reiner to get involved and within two days he had an in person meeting with a senior individual at the RNFP and by noon that day had an agreement in writing to the proposed variances to their by-laws which literally SAVED THE PROJECT.

Without Reiner efficiently resolving this matter we simply could not have moved forward with the construction.

In retrospect, Reiner was single biggest factor in both the successful outcome of our renovation and the low level of stress throughout the process. I would not do a major construction project without him. My wife and I felt so comfortable with Reiner and at all times could completely trust him to look out for our best interests above all else.

I cannot recommend Reiner and The Reno Coach more highly. Thank you Reiner for helping us build an amazing home that was so far beyond our expectations and perfect in every detail - in large part thanks to you.

I wanted to do a home renovation that included removing a wall and rebuilding a staircase. The Reno Coach helped me every step of the way, from finding the (excellent) contractor to the architectural designer, structural engineer, even movers. Reiner was a calming, intelligent and professional presence that I really appreciated and trusted. I'm very happy with the reno results and would recommend him in a second.

Reiner helped us through a very difficult renovation experience with a builder who tried to cut corners and provide subdivision quality on our custom home project.

He treated the project as if it were his own and was on top of the progress from start to finish.

His experience is second to none and he has the ability to come up with creative solutions to any issue that may arise during a renovation.

He is a man of his word and is a valuable asset to any project large or small. I highly recommend you contact Reiner for your next project.

We had wanted to renovate our 1950s-built bungalow not only from an aesthetic/update standpoint but also wanted an energy efficient home. Our biggest worry was finding the right contractor to carry out what we envisioned. Reiner provided valuable guidance during the planning phase, helped us find the right contractor to carry out what we envisioned, as well as quality control during the execution phase.

Aside from his experience and knowledge in construction techniques, Reiner keeps up-to-date with the latest and emerging energy-efficient technologies and products here and abroad. This enabled us to set the highest standards that our budget can afford. We are truly happy with Reiner’s contribution, integrity, and reliability. We highly recommend him.

We took over the vacant space next door which was occupied by Starbucks for 18 years.
After 23 years we felt that it was the right time to expand.
Having difficulties to find a reliable Contractor we contacted Reiner to ask for advice. (In fact it was Reiner who actually was the Contractor when we first expanded in 1997).
He put us in touch with Jay at J.H. Construction who eventually did take on the project.
Throughout the renovations Reiner spent countless hours to make the whole process as smooth as possible. Always on hand to guide us in the right direction or offer valuable advice whenever needed.
We can highly recommend the services The Reno Coach can provide.
A special “Thanks” to Jay for his hard work and dedication to this project. Our Customers are extremely pleased with the “New Look”.

I recently did a complete renovation of a 1200 square foot condo. I have used Reiner numerous times having used him for the 4plex income property I own.
While the condo seemed much more straight forward than an older house, he again added considerable value. Just one example, on his initial assessment of the property he noted that the ceiling could be lifted given the presence of older, larger potlucks. Something I would never have considered. You don't know what you don't know. As a result I have 10 foot ceiling in the combined living/kitchen, and a new apartment in the process. Recommended