We were extremely pleased with Falcon Heights. Their cost estimating, scheduling and budgeting process was highly accurate plus the quality of the build is definitely top decile. Working with Dave and his very practical team made the building experience enjoyable, educational and seamless. We would definitely recommend Falcon Heights to anyone interested in building a high quality home in Victoria.
Jacqueline Pyke and Evan Hazell
After a rough start with a builder we had to let go, we were so thrilled to find Falcon Height’s amazing team.
Very quickly you were able to step in and sort out our dilemmas with Permits, surveyors, engineers and suppliers. You provided an accurate and detailed budget and schedule promptly and readily provided design and sourcing suggestions. Wow we were thrilled! You have built an amazing team who work so well together and create fantastic results. You and your team are so well respected in the construction community; the best sub-trades and suppliers jump to attention when you call and it was a treat to work with such dedicated and talented people.
Your budget and schedule system with bi-weekly updates were just perfect to help us know where we stood at all times. This was essential for us after the previous builder’s unrealistic budgets and sketchy billing practices.
We could not be more pleased with the results! Our new home is so well built, low maintenance and beautiful. The entire staff were so patient and ready to work towards our design vision and budget, yet also politely presented interesting alternatives and suggestions, we learned so much from you.
Falcon Heights Contracting is the best contractor I have worked with in my more than 25 year career of corporate and residential Interior Design, which is really saying something! You and each of your staff are so knowledgeable, polite and creative. It was truly wonderful to have such a happy, engaged group of perfectionists to work with. Punctual, organized, helpful and committed to client satisfaction, everyday without exception!
We have and will continue to unconditionally recommend Falcon Heights Contracting to anyone who is considering building.
Marilyn and Allen Poutanen
We have been extremely satisfied with our experience with the Falcon Heights construction team. Right from our initial meeting with Dave Mackenzie, we were impressed with his passion and enthusiasm and these qualities remained a constant throughout the build. In fact, when he realized that we could take our energy efficient design to the ultimate level, he embraced the challenge wholeheartedly and worked conscientiously with everyone involved until we received the ultimate goal: a net zero luxury home on the waterfront, with no shortage of windows!
Communication throughout the build was seamless and every question, from minor to significant was answered promptly and thoroughly. Equally as impressive is that the entire crew conduct themselves with the same level of integrity and dedication to excellence. They are respectful, highly skilled and very attentive to detail. We have been most impressed with the high level of professionalism and accountability demonstrated by each and every member of the team and have received numerous compliments by our neighbours as well about the cleanliness of the job-site during construction and the friendliness of the workers.
Falcon Heights Contracting really do deliver superior quality in every aspect of the build and we would highly recommend them to anyone wanting the best in the field!
Proud & Overjoyed new homeowners,
Chris and Barry Buchkowsky
Our home, built by falcon Heights Contracting, was completed in 2013.
Since then, we have been tracking our gas consumption. Despite its larger than average size, our home consumes 25% less gas than the average smaller per month.
We attribute this performance to several factors:
- The quality of build with Falcon Heights’ effort to prevent leakage as born out by the blower door tests.
- The decision to add extra insulation in the ceiling as per Dave’s suggestion.
- The choice of top quality windows. We feel they are a major contributor to our low heating costs despite the presence of a lot of glass. We virtually cannot hear the 70knot storms outside as they rage on.
- The decision to place the utility room in the middle of the basement. We find that by closing off the suite when not in use, the heat from the utility room rises to the main floor. Each morning, the main floor is a comfortable 20 degrees and we do not even go near to switching on our main floor heating at this point (November). Seems like there is enough retained heat generated by living on the main floor and the utility room to keep the main floor warm.
- The decision to go with the 95% efficient Valor L1 fireplace was a good choice. We use it occasionally to add a few degrees of warmth and some esthetic value. The Valor raises the main floor area temperature by about 2 degrees per hour. With the timer, the unit is perfect to add a few degrees in the early mornings.
The energy efficiency of our home might allow us to not use any heat between late February and late November!
We thought we would share these comments to help when initially discussing energy usage and building design with potential customers. We customers tend to focus on initial building cost per foot and not so much on the longer-term payback.
Peter Simpson
Dave is an excellent general contractor.
We met Dave and family when they came to our land to buy a Christmas tree. We told Dave we were going to build a house and pointed out the location. His eyes lit up. He gave us his card. We met and discussed our ideas and hired Dave as our general contractor.
The crew broke land on May 22, 2013. Six months later we received our occupancy permit at the end of November. Working with Dave and his crew was a pleasure. In fact, the house progressed so quickly it was like Christmas everyday.
Dave’s skills are many and varied. He is a clear and organized thinker and an excellent communicator. In my view, this plays a central role in what makes the house building process run so smoothly. He explained each step of the process; the how and why of how things work in plain language. He arranged meetings for us with building material suppliers who were knowledgeable and very helpful. He and his right hand man Clint quickly grasped our ideas and our values and creatively translated them into structure.
Dave has excellent leadership skills. He has high expectations of his crew and the sub-trades respecting safety, perfection in craft and cleanliness of the site. They lived up to his expectations. Of note to us was the cooperative spirit and pride of work among the crew and sub-trades.
And let us not fail to mention that we found Dave to be a warm, sensitive person of the utmost integrity.
Our house is full of light, clever angles, and beautiful wood. It was awarded platinum for green building. It is a work of art and a place of comfort.
Mark Montgomery
We began year-long construction of our Langford Lake home in July 2009, and it has been our great pleasure to have Dave MacKenzie and his crew at Falcon Heights Contracting work with us from beginning to end. Dave handled the foundation, framing, siding and general interior finishing. We have found Dave and his crew to be prompt, courteous, friendly, professional, and attentive to every question and detail. Dave’s knowledge and experience with timber frame homes has made a great contribution to our west coast contemporary style of home. Our home would not be the same without his involvement. There have been times along the way where Dave has had to read beyond the blue prints to find creative and workable solutions to unexpected problems, and he has done so with great skill and care. We wholeheartedly recommend Dave MacKenzie and his crew at Falcon Heights Contracting for any project that you are contemplating.
Kam Brar and Michelle Monahan-Brar
The job has exceeded expectations – You and Chris E. have made a totally unplanned and very expensive catastrophe far less stressful that it could so easily have been. The finished product is such that it will far outlast my life expectancy!
Mike Wagnell
Shortly after receiving a recommendation from a relative in the construction industry, we met with Dave to discuss building our new home. Within a few days, Dave had developed the initial budget and began getting quotes. As soon as permits were obtained, site prep began. The great sequencing became apparent as the procession of suppliers and tradespeople commented on the orchestration resulting in very few days when there weren’t at least a few different sub-trades on site working alongside Dave’s competent and friendly crew. Neighbours were pleasantly surprised by and commented positively about the crew’s friendliness, professionalism, tidiness and respect for the local residents; in fact two of Dave’s crew were hired to do work on some small projects after hours on neighbours’ houses.
Budgeting by Dave was excellent; costs which exceeded estimates were due to items we chose or changed after the initial pricing. All aspects of this complex construction project were coordinated in a timely and professional manner; Dave’s expertise with the technical aspects of questions around design challenges often proved to be the critical factor resulting in great solutions. We had wanted to build as ‘green’ a house as we could afford while maintaining a reasonable budget. Local materials and suppliers were sourced and we’ve just received notification that our home has received a platinum rating, the highest rating provided under the BC Built Green Standards!
Dave was honest, trust-worthy, honourable, hard working and very engaged in making this as easy a process for us as possible. He was a neutral sounding board when the stresses of two opposing views seemed larger than life. Despite the very tight timeline we requested, Dave got us into our new home exactly six months after the site prep was completed. We know that he sounds ‘too good to be true’—that is the comment that several friends have made when they’ve heard about our positive house-building experience. All we can add is that Dave McKenzie cannot be more highly recommended.
Good luck with your project.