American Building Construction

My husband and I hired Paul to fix the foundation on our 100 year old house in Willow Glen.  We were in the process of selling the house, and wanted the foundation to not be an issue for any potential buyer.  Paul and his crew did a very good job replacing the foundation, his experience and workmanship led to a smooth process with the city permitting and inspections. We were very satisfied with the quality of the foundation work.However; be very careful when reviewing any quotes/proposals from Paul.  Understand exactly what is included and what is not.  Understand exactly what potential "issues" there will be and the associated cost.  Paul provided a quote, then two months later, with the work scheduled, presented a contract that was 10% higher than the quote, for the same work.  He claimed the cost of materials had gone up significantly over the two months.  He then "discovered" that the mud sill would need to be replaced, at an additional 10%.  It was apparent from the visible sections that the mud sill would need to be replaced, and my husband and I had assumed it was part of the work contracted, wrong!  He offered to install replacement lap board that we had purchased, with no mention of a charge.  When his crew had completed the installation he demanded a truly outrageous price for the work, even though he had not provided a quote or had approval for a charge.
Nov 7th, 2019

Paul and team did a fantastic job on our foundation.  His method of supporting the house while replacing the foundation allowed us to stay in the house while he did the work.  This in itself saved us a ton of money for not having to move out for 3 months.  I had him quote the work previously a year before and when he came back the following year (when we decided to do the work) his quote was exactly the same.  Very reasonable pricing.  Though there were a few additional items that needed to be added which I could see and agreed they needed to be, he stayed on the budget that I had set for the work (and no he was not aware of the budget I set).  The guys were on time and clean...well as clean as can be when ripping up and replacing a foundation.  The work they performed for me was on to replace the entire foundation on a 1000 sqft 100 Year old house in the Rose Garden.   I also had him do some patio work after he completed the foundation.   He also gave me fantastic contractor recommendations for a roofer, stucco guy, and an electrician that all did great work.   I would highly recommend working with Paul and his team....btw Lalo is amazing and I am fairly certain there isn't anything he can't do.
Jul 10th, 2019

One of the markets  "American Building Construction" has tapped into is repairing older homes with unlevel floors and poor foundations or without foundations.   Basically, they jack your house in sections and put a wall of concrete around the perimeter and promise to level your floor.  Please be careful when working with this company specifically, the owner, Paul Ketab.  Another Yelp reviewer summed it up well:  "the owner Paul is incredibly dishonest."  I give people the benefit of the doubt, but I would only warn prospective customers that the man is teeming with dishonesty.  It's remarkable to me to witness another human try so hard to separate you from the contents of your pocketbook.  He will quote you x and later say it was y, (quoted 8 grand to demo a fireplace, not a typo--later changed it to 6k--don't worry, I paid 1,500 with another company). He will find things to do along the journey that will cost you more $$ as he holds the job hostage.  As mentioned, he will promise to level your floor and later when it isn't, blame the age of the house and not his shoddy work.  I wasn't expecting perfection, but at least a flat-looking floor.   Worst though, is the fact that before the contract was signed, the primary selling point was that the floor would be repaired and the dips not noticeable. The concrete foundation has visible, subtle dips and rises in parts. The floor was actually made worse:  the main space of my living room, for a length of about 15' has been pushed up  and bows up at least an inch measuring from center to the sides.  It amounts to a very long and noticeable hump in the middle of my floor.   I still don't know why he let this happen and would not fix it. It doesn't matter, it was like talking to a wall, when he's not talking over you.  He has 0 integrity.  I have never before as an adult been so disheartened by the prospect of working with someone.  I was trapped and still chose working with him and I'd like to suggest to people here:   avoid my mistake!   I will be more than happy to discuss how this guy operates via email or a call.  You will be lured by the comparatively low price--if your project can wait (mine couldn't), please do what you can to avoid this company.  He comes across as cheerful and benign but he is insidious.  It was simply repugnant to witness another human behave the way he did throughout the project.  I should not have paid what I did and will be filing a complaint with the CA Contractors State License board.  Tread carefully.
Apr 27th, 2018

He fixed my foundation crack in timely manner and good price. He also gave me several options that can save me money and keep my house safe.
Dec 4th, 2017

I spent a good amount of time searching for a contractor to replace our foundation. Per the suggestion of the structural engineer that created our blueprints, I obtained a quote from Paul at American Building Construction  The quote and timeline were both very reasonable.Paul's team started a few weeks later than planned, but once they got going they stayed right on schedule.  Paul was always approachable and easily reachable by phone or text. The crew were efficient and made good effort to avoid damage to plants, fencing etc, although there was some expected/reasonable collateral damage.All in all, everything looks very well done. We have a very solid foundation and people have commented on how straight our house looks now. I'm happy that I found these guys.Side note: We have plaster walls. The six inch correction caused cracking throughout the house and large pieces to pull away from the lathe in our living room. Regardless of who you hire, be prepared for this, and If you have young people in the house you might consider getting your plaster tested for asbestos. Typically the results will come back negative.Good luck,Seth
Feb 11th, 2018