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Testimonials

Shelter clients have much in common: They want a special home and value its relationship to the land and life in Albemarle County, Virginia.

Their home is an expression of themselves, reflecting their way of life, their hospitality, and their artistic sensibility.

They value nature, art aesthetics, craftsmanship, and quality. They know and love natural materials; how the house works, and how it respects the environment.

They know what they want in a house and want to work with the best professionals available to make it a reality. They are willing to enter into a trusting, collaborative adventure to get the house they want.

From Clients

From a customer to his Architecture firm, who hired Shelter: “I can’t really see how you could go wrong working with this group.”

“Although I’ve worked with Shelter on other client’s projects, I always thought they would be out of my own price range. I learned differently. I expect a lot and am difficult to please. You definitely get what you pay for when you build with Shelter. There is not one thing I could have wished to improve upon. Somehow Shelter overcame my budget restrictions and made it all look like there had been none.”

“Anyone who has built or renovated, or talked to anyone who has, knows that project management—getting the right people and supplies on the job in the right order, and managing the complexity of communication among everyone, is a key to success. Shelter’s project managers—some of the best in the business—make the process work smoothly.”

“… Inevitably Allan already had everything we could find on his punch list. He was so good it became a challenge for us to find something he had not already picked up on…When changes came up, he was always accommodating. He was not afraid to speak up if he thought we were making a mistake, for which we were most grateful. Allan made our experience a pleasure. If we were to build again, we would look for him no matter where we were.”

“I can’t say enough on Keith’s behalf. He is on the job every day as a working foreman. His abilities are across the board – carpentry, electrical, cement, plumbing, you name it. He is also a first-class motivator of his workers. He is the first on the job in the morning and the last one to leave every day. He also is very good at the hundreds of minute decisions that constantly have to be made.”

“Brian, as site supervisor, allowed us to enjoy the building of our dream house without any nightmares.”

“The people Shelter uses certainly know their jobs and, on top of that, they are inordinately pleasant to work with.”

“I recognize this was a small project but I feel that I received the attention comparable to any of your major clients. Scott, Dave and Will could not have made a better team…they always looked out for my best interests and worked as if they were working on their own home.”

“Bob did a marvelous job on the floors and the molding. Both he and Josh did spectacular work on the porches. Richard’s finish work reflected the craftsman that he is. He was quiet, considerate, gentle, thoughtful, hardworking, conscientious, and quite exacting in the fine details. He is truly a gifted woodworker.”

“Things will always go wrong in complex construction. What I appreciated about Shelter was how everyone was able to hold up the problem in full view for scrutiny, without wasting time blaming anyone. That let everyone dig in and come up with creative solutions.”

“Things always go wrong; there is no escape from Murphy’s law. What was most impressive was Shelter’s invariable acceptance of responsibility, its determination always to get it right in the end, and to keep its collective eye firmly fixed on the goal of building the house within budget.”

“With the unique character of Shelter’s homes it is inevitable that problem solving is among the most challenging responsibilities of the Shelter staff. The ability to find elegant yet practical and cost-effective solutions is Shelter’s greatest asset.”

From Architects

“Shelter Associates was chosen from the submittal of four proposals, not because their fee percentage was lower, but in evaluating the fee along with all other proposal information, they seemed to provide the best overall package for the owner. From the start of their involvement through the completion of the job, Shelter proved themselves over and over again. Having worked with a wide variety of residential and commercial contractors in the past, I am convinced that Shelter is one of the finest.”

See other recent architect testimonials in the Who We Are section.