Outdoors & Beyond, Inc.

If you are looking to convert your back yard into paradise, LOOK NO MORE ! On a scale of 1 to 10 Outdoors & Beyond is a 15 ! After interviewing and receiving bids from six companies, Sol demostrated an artistic talent and fair pricing that surpassed all the other companies. I knew instantly when we met him that he was the one and I am grateful and blessed to have found him. My husband had been wanting to replaster our pool and convert our back yard into an oasis for us, I was resistant but after meeting with Sol, I knew we met the man to make our dreams a reality. Sol and his team went above and beyond--totally suits the name of his company. He has transformed our backyard into a garden paradise. His design suggestions and capabilities are outstanding. His crew is professional and always on time, he delivers all promises that he makes and then some. Sol even surprised us with a few extras at no extra cost, because that is the type of business man he is, always striving to make the customer happy. He truly is a gem. We still have approximately 3 weeks before the project is completed and I will post a before and after picture so that you can see for yourself. Outdoors & Beyond is a welcomed addition to our family--thank you Sol for being you. more

From the moment of inception to the very final details at the end, Outdoors and Beyond delivered and went beyond the imaginable. Sol more

We just wanted to express our feeling and appreciation for the work you have done at our property.\r Your design team has studied our lifestyle and taken into consideration our hobbies, architectural and natural surrounding. They incorporated the recommended amenities into a comprehensive design that answers our needs and pleasures.\r Your installers clearly have the passion of what they do and it shows through everything they have done.\r \r Thank you again and we are so glad to have found you.\r Eric F.\r more

For thirty years my husband would get home after eight in the evening or later. Many of those evenings, he would have his dinner on the road due to long workdays. Following the completion of the backyard, my husband started to come home at 4pm, asking in advance to heat the spa and heat the BBQ. Dinners are almost always at the backyard and the backyard has changed our life for the better. Thank you for your work that changed our life while surrounding us with beauty and serenity. V and C – Tarzana, CA. more

For years we were reluctant to do construction. We had heard so many horror stories about it. Then Sol said the magic word, ""Construction can be fun and exciting."" We somehow believed him and were are so glad we did!\r \r It took twelve weeks to comlete the project. Daily, we couldn't wait to get home to discover what new things were shaping up in our new yard. The construction process wasn't just painless, it really was fun, and the outcome fabulous! Thank you Sol and the crew of Outdoors and Beyond. Thanks for making us believers. Thanks for your talent and professionalism. more

To all the team at Outdoors and Beyond, Thank you so much for all the promises that came true. Thank you for all the assistance by sharing your design room and selecting materials, for changing our plans so many times and never loosing patience with us, and for making so many samples... And thank you for the outcome that surpassed our expectations. Please feel free to show your (our) masterpiece at anytime and to anyone. We love you all. more

It is our delight to thank the Outdoors and Beyond team for giving our new home the pizzazz it was so ever lacking on the outside. This was our first professional landscaping job and our proposed budget wasn't realistic for the Roman Spa envisioned. Unlike some of their competitors Outdoors and Beyond were up for the challenge. From the initial consultation with Rich to the second meeting with Sol I felt we were in good hands. With their patience and guidance we learned the many aspects involved in creating spectacular grounds and increased the budget voluntarily. Not once did we ever feel pushed. We are confident it was a wise investment. All of Outdoors and Beyonds staff were a pleasure to work with. Bill was always prompt and professional. Rosa did an outstanding job with bookkeeping. The 9 change orders were handled efficiently. Scott's plant expertise and design is phenomenal. I love my plants and look forward to giving them plenty of TLC. Rich's idea to bring the indoor travertine out was brilliant. the 3rd level flows nicely and somehow looks like it was designed with the original construction. We are especially impressed with the artistry of the fireplace, precast, patio cover, columns and stonework. It definitely enhanced the existing pool/spa. Much appreciation goes to all the men that walked up 3 flights of stairs many mornings to make all of this possible. We have been showered with compliments from our neighbors and guests. We've grown accustom to cars slowing down while passing by. Living in a development with similar properties it was important to stand out. Another goal accomplished because of Outdoors and Beyonds efforts. I've never been one to enjoy the outdoors until now. We will indeed enjoy the sanctuary they have created with palm trees, beautiful flowers, massive fireplace, barbecue, outdoor lighting, patio & stone flooring. It's absolutely breathtaking and resembles a Five Star Resort. Without a doubt we are pleased that we chose Outdoors and Beyond. Thank you for your diligence, fantastic implementation and treating us like million dollar clients. Our outdoors is beyond our wildest expectations. more

I hired this company from an advertisement in a local home improvement magazine. I meet with Sol and explained in detail what I wanted included. The first drawing came out within approximately three to four weeks. I asked where the detailed information was and he told me I only paid for basic design if I wanted ""working plans"" that I could actually use to construct the design, that was extra. I paid him another fee for working plans. After a few more weeks Sol returned the plans without all the changes that I requested. When I explained I was concerned about the delay of getting the project started and the changes not being made Sol told me I could get a permit for the pool on the basic plan I had and he would make the changes later. Sol offered to get the engineering for me at his cost, telling me it was his way of showing his commitment to wanting to work with me and get the project done. Unfortunately he was more interested in getting the $$$ contract for construction of the project than finishing the plans. Sol continually delayed the return of my plans with my requested changes. I felt very uncomfortable with his aggressive style. I wanted to get my plans done so I delayed responding to his request to hire his company for construction hoping that he would complete the changes I requested and return the plans and engineering which he had already been paid in full for. The changes I asked for were never completed. The cost for engineering was almost four times the actual cost. The engineering for the pool was incorrect and did not include the baja reef . The engineering for the patio cover was dated in 2006, obviously left over from another project and not the right engineering plan for the type of custom roof at our residence. Sol's bid was more than $125,000 dollars above three other bids I had gotten for the project. I never received a finalized plan with the changes I requested and had to hire another person to redraw the plans. I have been trying to get my money back for more than a year now and had to take him to court. In retaliation he file a counter suit against me claiming I owed him money for using the plans I already paid him in full for claiming he should of gotten a percentage of the construction costs. He had never mentioned this claim before I sued him. Pros: Start of planning OK Cons: No follow through/refused to complete design plans/changes more

On Friday of last week, we received ""final inspection"" from the City of Thousand Oaks. In speaking with the City Inspector, we both marveled over the transformation that our home has taken over the past several months. It's absolutely beautiful!!!! I know we belabored over the material selections for a great amount of time and fortunately my wife and I feel the correct decision was made in all aspects of the project.\r \r Please do not be strangers and feel free to tour our home with any prospective clients or contact us for a personal referral. We are all very proud of our home improvements and look forward to enjoying them in years to come!!! - ROGL more

We could not have been happier with the initial design we got from Sol. \r Hiring them to execute the job was the mistake we made. We hired a designer to help us foresee design issues but details were never mapped out and had to be decided at the last second (by us) on more than one occassion. Sol was never around to help when this happened. We never got a final plan that included even the proper measurements but were told to ""trust"" them.\r They 'completed' the job by laying stone and gravel without having finished the grading underneath so that we had a totally uneven area that was intended to be the ""flat area for parties"". It took a great fight (and withholding funds) to get them to pull it out and do it properly. The sinuous curves on the plan between our gravel and stone area and the planting area were mostly straight and choppy. I dug the area myself rather than deal with them any more than I had to. The footings on the deck are left out in plain sight next to the steps. (Or, rather, next to the extra step they had to build because they also put the deck in without grading so the last step was too high.) \r Now the deck builder won't come back to do the final sealing of the deck because he's ""too busy"" working for Sol.\r If you expect to get treated well, get the job you ask and pay for...this is a company to AVOID. Pros: Good general design plan. Cons: Communication. Details. Details. Details. more