Any comments on Good Neighbor Landscapes
 

We want to have the pine needle mulching turned into rock with a "wall" border around our existing landscaping. This is a small CYA lot.

Good Neighbor Landscapes showed up (door knocker) today and quoted me $2300 to do it. Sounds a bit high, but I am new to the area.

Comments on price and/or the contractor. Any recommendations to use instead? I want someone to handle ARC approval etc.

The only warning "ding" I heard was when I asked if they take care of applying to ARC, he said they can do that after they are done. DING DING DING...

We use Choice Maintenance for all of our yard work and we are very pleased.

I think you should apply for ARC approval yourself. I would get 3 estimates. Choice Maintenance and Jamies are both good, but they won't be the cheapest. Make sure that whoever does the job installs a heavy black mat under the stones to prevent weed growth. Buy the best mat they offer. They should also be capable of making sure the irrigation system works properly after installation. Also, never, ever, ever pay for any of the work in advance.

When we moved in the wife noticed the neighbors landscaping that Good Neighbor did for them and really liked how it looked. While she was talking to the neighbor about the landscaping the owner of Good Neighbor stopped and talked with her and took her for a rife to see his other work. Next thing I know I'm writing a check to have similar work done. They did a good job, well done and looks very nice. The problem? He said there was a 1 year warranty on plants but he won't honor it. We had 3 plants die and have made numerous calls to his office about the dead plants and have been told repeatedly that we are on their jobs list. Last call was about 2 months ago, must be a long job list. Find someone else.

Better do the approval so you know what has to be installed. Get quotes. Since you are new give yourself 6 months before you do anything major.

Good neighbor is service smart under new name. Would stay away.

Thank you everyone for the good advice. I will be avoiding Good Neighbor Landscapes.

Frank

Good Neighbor has no Work Comp.
I would make that phone call on any company BEFORE I got an estimate to protect myself and my home.

For what it is worth, Service Smart had an "F" rating with the BBB, and, the new company, Good Neighbor, has a "D+" rating.

Years ago we had Stellar who did all-in-one landscape maintenance. The owner was related to the owner of Service Smart. Stellar merged into Service Smart, which didn't have a great reputation. From then on everything went down hill until we finally fired them. Now, apparently, they have reappeared as Good Neighbor and still are not behaving right.

Good Neighbor did a sub-par job, would not recommend.

So, it would seem that hiring door knockers is a bad idea, at least in this case. Maybe they are knocking on doors because they are not getting referrals.

After looking at another thread curretly on the board, you may want to sus out Mansfield Landscaping LLC.
Seem to have a lot of happy customers over the years.

Or, you may want to cross out Mansfield, due to the reputed temperament of the owner.

I totally agree.

Watch out for the guy who has "a few extra steaks" after a neighbor's delivery...………………………………… .

HAHA! YEAH, That one has been around everywhere for ever!

Ditto Thumbs Down for Service Smart, Good Neighbor, or whatever they want to be called this year. Not pleased with their work when I first moved in 5 years ago. Let of reasons. All the bad news about them is well documented here on Talk Of The Villages.

One caution on landscaping stone.....be sure to give the plants and shrubs lots of breathing room thru the stone by cutting back the black weed control mat around the plants. The stone gets very hot in the sun. This alone will kill plants. I have added an couple inches of small mulch around each plant. Works well, plants now healthy after one year. I learned this after losing many plants during the past three years.

Thank you, that sounds like great advice!

I used Terrascape in 2011 when my CYV was new and I just had them come and do a refresh yesterday. Four guys all experienced landscapers made a complete overhaul of my front yard. Rocks, new plants, new irrigation, power wash landscape boulders and retaining wall, trim two palms of which one Sylvester had never been trimmed, looks like a new tree. I couldn't be more pleased, price was $1900. They're on Hwy 301 just south of Rainey Trail. They have their own nursery on premises. Call and ask for Megan and she'll draw a layout and give you a free estimate.

Terrascape | Nursery and Landscaping for The Villages, Florida

Thanks for the recommendation. I will look into them

If you needed a $2000 overhaul 5 years later, it wasn't a well designed landscape. Good landscape designs get better for at LEAST 7 years, and should not need a complete overhaul for well past the 10 year mark.

Don't walk away from this wonderful deal - RUN FROM IT AS FAST AS YOU CAN! Service Smart aka Good Neighbor has a horrible reputation.

For sure! Stay clear of him.

Well just ask the folks on my street who spent almost as much with the company coming in after the good neighbor didn't get ARC approval to to-do the work with the setbacks. The approval doesn't come after the shoddy work.

No,no, no! Get it approved before you spend dime.

The major landscaping job was in 2013 done by McGowan for $4800. What started me on the redo was the Sylvester Palm had a lot of grown around the base and looked bad. I took photos and went to K&B Nursey and they directed me Jim Davis at the Sumter Ext of the University of Florida Master Naturlist Instructor. I emailed him the photos and he said it had just normal root growth and it just needed trimming.

I contacted Terrascape for an estimate because the front looked worn out. They trimmed two palms, I mean really took off about 10 feet of dead fronds off the Sylvester. The retaining wall was coming apart where the adhesive had dried out. The white rocks were dirty and the cooper rocks looked dull, the two smaller European Fan Palms were overgrown, and I wanted color by adding several shrubs.

They redid the retaining wall, added 15 colorful shrubs with individual sprayer heads connected to the existing system, which was installed by McGowan 6 years ago. Refurbished all the rocks in front and next to the front door area. Moved a large rock from the top tier to the bottom, power-washed both big landscaping rocks and retaining wall. Added grass shrubs in several spots with spreayers. It looks like a brand new job, and to go with it, I'm having Oscar repaint our house tomorrow. I'm happy with Terrascape and not so happy with McGowan for the reasons you state.

Here's how it looked in 2013 after McGowan finished. I'll take a photo later this week after the home is repainted.

https://scontent-mia3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...ff&oe=5E3B3F30

Good Neighbor (Service Smart) services the yard across the street. It is the worst looking lawn in the area.

Check with Seniors Vs Crime. Ask how many complaints have been filed about Good Neighbor and other aliases he has operated under. Run!

We had Good Neighbor stop by and quote us as we were moving in Ken the owner said the same line we will replace the flowers, shrubs for up to two years. Well at the time I couldn’t find any reviews except the work looked ok. So we had them do the landscaping and yard maintenance. Well 3 months later all of our plants are dead, numerous calls do no good. They don’t even return our calls or emails,texts. DO NOT USE THEM they should be put out of business. We have made a formal complaint to the attorney General of Florida what a shady company. Please pass this information on any new Villagers that purchase a home and need landscaping or mowing.

Seniors vs Crime is chartered and funded by the Attorney General and their mission is to assist law enforcement. I wonder why they have not been able to put this company and it's owner out of business in The Villages. Surely, they have sufficient evidence to take legal action against the company and the owner. I have to believe that someone is not doing their job.