Fitzpatrick Landscaping and Fencing

Please take the time to read!
I was in need of a fence at the rear of my Pleasant Hill property and proceeded to get three bids. All of the estimates were within a few hundred dollars of each other. Of the three Fitzpatrick Landscaping and Fencing was the cheapest and John Fitzpatrick seemed to know what he was talking about. I am a licensed contractor that works for a local firm but did not have time to do the work myself. So I shopped for a qualified contractor that could build approx. 140 ln. ft. of post and rail/​wire mesh fence. I decided to choose Fitzpatrick based on the cheap price and a fence at a nearby neighborhood that looked OK when I would drive by.
I met with the owner John on a Friday to walk the site and review the scope. We even marked exactly where the fence would be built and looked at a neighbors fence to qualify exactly what would be build. John Fitzpatrick said he may start the following Monday but would call over the weekend to confirm starting on Monday. I did not receive a call, text or email so when Monday morning came I left for work. A little while later I was contacted by my son who stated that the fence company was on site and getting started. I returned home that evening after work and although it was getting dark I could see that the posts had been set. The following morning while leaving for work I went to place some debris in the outside garbage can but it was full of construction debris. I had to place the construction debris in an empty garbage can that Fitzpatrick had on site. I should have known at that point this was not going to end well. Fitzpatrick had the crew return to construct the fence and when I returned home from work I could see that the fence was built but just did not look right. Again it was getting dark so waited to judge the fence until I could see it in the daylight. I stayed home the following morning to look at the fence and I was appalled at what the Fitzpatrick fence crew had built. First, the fence was not built where I had discussed with John Fitzpatrick, wire was loose, posts were cut bad and had shims placed in the voids, some posts were cut short, the top rails sagged because he did not place two top rails that were needed, and there was not one section of fence that was taller than 5′-6″ of a fence that was to be 6′ high. One post was loose and 10 of the posts were out of plumb by as much as ¼″ per foot. The bottom portion of the fence angled and the top angled and also had stepped areas, no consistency.
I met with John Fitzpatrick at approx. noon on the third day as he was anxious to get paid stating that he was finished. We walked the work that day and he stated that he built a quality fence per all the stipulations of the contract and that he demanded to get paid. I stated it was of poor workmanship and that he would need to make repairs. At that time I paid him upwards of 80% of the contract and stated that I would pay the balance when he returned to make the repairs. I also told him to schedule the work with me so I would know when a crew was there and so I could monitor the work and make sure everything got completed. I went back to my office and he promptly sent a crew out unannounced and attempted to make repairs. The only thing he did was try to tighten some of the wire by stapling it to the inside part of the posts. Now the wire was tighter but not in line. John Fitzpatrick then stated he was complete and expected to be paid in full for the fence that was built. I stated to him that there were lots of defects still and I suggested sending the photos of the poor workmanship to the California State Contractors License Board. He laughed and stated they would do nothing and that if I did not pay within two weeks he would place a lien on the property. I have since filed a claim with the Better Business Bureau. He continues to state that he built the fence per contract and of top quality. He has stated that I changed things after the contract was signed. Nothing was changed by me. He changed the location, he changed the height to a shorter fence, he forgot about a gate that was discussed and then is saying it was added after the initial walk.
Take the time to read all his reviews. Fitzpatrick has good ratings until 2013, after that the reviews are all bad. Be extremely careful when choosing a contractor especially if you decide to use Fitzpatrick Landscaping and Fencing. Thanks for reading.

Got an estimate — 4 unanswered voicemails later to schedule the work, I gave up trying to work with him.

****DO NOT HIRE FITZPATRICK’S****. These guys are an absolute joke! They use the cheapest material both wood and hinges, can’t seem to make my fence level, left a huge gap at the bottom that my dog can now get through… And doesn’t even secure without moving some loose pieces around to make it latch! I selected this company over another large corporation to try and support a local small business! What a mistake! When I called today to discuss it he said he gave us what was in the contract. The contract I’m reading doesn’t say leaning fence made with cheap wood, a gap at the bottom that won’t close due to cheap hardware! We pointed out the fence our neighbors across the street built at the same time and what a quality product it was! John became defensive and rude and said stop comparing the two! NEVER USE THIS COMPANY! Next time I’ll go with A&J Fencing… They do great work with quality materials at the same price! AND stand behind their work! This company is an absolute piece of sh*t!!!

John’s crew built my fence, it went well and at a good speed. I especially apprieciated that he was able to put the new fence that borders both neighbors back in one 24 hour period so that we had privacy between us. He used low grade quality redwood material and posts. I selected and purchased my own wood that would be used for the front horizontal fence feature but John designed how wide the gate could be. The gate was built, installed but was left sagging and dragging and not at all functional. After 3 weeks of requests for him to come back to make it right, he returned without notice while I was at work, screwed on a 2×4 and turned my gate into a hack job. I explained to him that what was done wasn’t acceptable, requested a small refund so that I could find someone else to help me fix the gate. I was told he had delivered to me what was in our contract (a functioning gate) and that he would refund that portion of the bid but would first remove the entire horizontal fence portion in order to give any refund. I ended up accepting it as is without a refund. Today I found someone who knew the right way to counter the sag and make it functional, he also replaced the cheapest hinges and latch that John used with self closing hinges which are in fact code for homes with pools. I would never refer this company. I think most people expect more than what Fitzpatrick will deliver.

Did an okay job overall. However, he has shortcomings when it comes to following up and the detail work that includes repairing fencing mistakes and adjusting improperly installed drip systems.

Have hired John in the past on several projects that went well. The fence his team just built is not right. Quoted me 6ft fence length built 5ft. Removed retaining wall and did not put it back, told me there never was one when asked to it put back. Now that’s absurd. The fence of short length slopes towards the house. Visibly noticeable that a couple neighbors commented on it. Left holes in stucco from removing old fence. Got in my face and cursed at my neighbor who split cost.

I was dissapointed. I left several messages about bidding a fence job. He finally calls me back and says he will call me in a few days to set up an appointment. But he never calls. I followed up with him again the next week. He calls me back and says he will call again to set up an appointment. But he never calls. At that point, I move on. He seemed like a nice guy but apparently not interested in bidding my job.

Needed new fencing. John is honest and has a very talented team. Has restored my faith in good work at a fair price. Would recommend to anyone wanting top quality work.

John and his team were awesome! His bid was so low, I almost passed on him thinking it was one of those too good to be true things. I saw the Unilocal reviews, called a list of 10 references he gave me and decided to use him. So glad I did. He put in a beautiful flagstone patio, new sprinkler system, sod, cement planters, gate, stain and repaired fence and a new retaining wall. He made several design improvements along the way. My yard went from embarrassment to oasis in a few short days! I can not recommend him enough. He asked me to show the patio to a potential customer who wanted to see his work and I was more than happy to oblige. Fitzpatrick Landscaping will have my business in the future!

Had them replace a section of broken fence. They were extremely professional, did the work very well. I recommend this company for future work.

My husband and I were in need of a complete fence rebuild around the side and back of our yard. We contacted John and he was incredibly responsive and willing to work with us and our neighbors to get the job done. We received very reasonable quotes and John answered all questions promptly before work began. When work did begin, his crew was quick and efficient, and the end result is absolutely beautiful. We loved working with Fitzpatrick Fencing, and will absolutely call if we ever need work in the future!

I’ll get straight to the point. We had an UGLY back yard and have an AWFUL front yard.
We needed a lot of work done, but we weren’t going to afford all of it at once. So, we decided to get the pavers in the back yard done first since this would add an outdoor living area that we would be able to enjoy in the summer (should it ever decide to show up with all this rain).
I wanted to make sure that I was getting the best for my money (and I’m cheap). So, I called only companies that had received positive reviews. I had them all come and give me estimates not only for the pavers, but for all of the other jobs that we wanted done. Fitzpatrick Landscaping offered us one of the lowest quotes. John Fitzpatrick also broke down each job and made many good suggestions on how we can save some money. Can you imagine that? I also had the opportunity to go to a job that his company was finishing so that I can take a look at his work before hiring them.
Well, we ended up hiring Fitzpatrick Landscaping for our pavers. John explained that it would be two weeks before they would get started. Two weeks later they began the work and he explained it would take 4 to 5 days. They showed up every day at the time that they said they would. They were very professional and courteous. They were done in 3 days and the pavers look amazing! You know who I’ll be contacting for the other jobs.

Fantastic, professional, clean work with accurate estimates (both in terms of cost and of time). We had a fence repaired (three new posts) and our entire backyard leveled, weeds removed, and weed barrier laid. On top of that we had golden crushes granite installed, a planting area edged out, and new sprinkler system added. We had a tree removed and some old concrete removed as well. Everything done super fast, super clean, very pleased. Will be having more work done.

I got my backyard re-​landscaped by John and it turned out better that I could ever dream of. John, a lovely Irish man, came to my house to meet with me in person before giving me an estimate. He took down all the information he needed and within two days he provided me with an easy to understand, well priced estimate for my backyard. (I was getting new sod, a concrete patio, and a fence) John and his workers were very polite and courtesy while working in my backyard. I would recommend this company to anyone and everyone!