Making homeowners smile for over 17 years

Delivering outstanding home remodels that transform lives.

What’s a Mensch?

A Mensch (pronounced men-ch) is someone with the qualities one would hope for in a dear friend or trusted colleague. In the Yiddish language (a mixture of German and Hebrew), it’s used to identify someone with integrity, honor, and a sense of what is right. Being called a “real Mensch” is the highest compliment one can receive.

What gives us the right to take on the Mensch title?

We’re often asked this by new customers enquiring about our remodeling services. It does take a bit of Chutzpah (another Yiddish word meaning audacity) to claim the title, but we look at it differently. 

It sets a level of expectation with our customers that we have to live up to every single day through honest, professional, and high-quality work. This means giving you the best advice even when it means less work for us.

Meet the Chief Mensch

Lenny Berger- Chief Mensch

With over 35 years of prior business experience, Lenny founded HandyMensch Home Remodeling in 2007 to meet the growing need for a reliable residential design-build remodeling firm that helps clients with their home remodeling projects.

Lenny has many years of hands-on experience with remodeling projects, including extensive design and project management. In addition, Lenny has been a house leader for the Fairfax County Chapter of Habitat for Humanity, where he supervised volunteers in framing, drywall, tile, cabinetry, and trim work.

Don’t be surprised if Lenny is the one knocking on your door for your sales appointment or stopping by your house during the project to check on progress and quality. He stays involved in all aspects of our business to make sure that we live up to our name.

You can learn more about how Lenny became the Chief Mensch by reading his Profile in Success Interview. An ongoing interview series of successful entrepreneurs from around the country. 

“At the end of the day, I always want to feel that we’ve done good work and we’ve built a great team. We have clients that like working with us, and that is what’s important.”

Our Process

Instead of adding new space, we re-imagine the space you already have and make it work for you and your family. Coupled with our award-winning design team, we can remodel your kitchen, bathroom, or basement into the space of your dreams. We’re a design-build firm that guides you through the remodeling process, from creating new layouts to connecting you with showrooms to make selections that are a reflection of your style. 

First we want to know your pain points and how you want to live in the space: Are you a baker and struggle with a lack of counterspace? Are you working from home? Do you love to entertain? Are you tired of hitting your elbows on the walls when you take a shower? Do your kids need a place to play that is not in the middle of your living room?

From there, we create a design agreement with the high-level goals of the project and an estimated price. Our design team takes over to turn those goals into a detailed proposal with all of the layouts, selections, and other updates needed to make your dream a reality. We spend from 20 to 60 hours on your proposal. When you sign off on the proposal, you will know exactly what you are getting for your money.

Then it is time for our production team takes charge to make it a reality. They show up with a modified version of your proposal in hand so you know, that they know, the details of what needs to be done. Home remodels run smoothly with HandyMensch. We believe that executing a home remodeling project is like conducting an orchestra. Our Production Manager acts as the Conductor, keeping your project on track, managing the team and regularly updating you. We always supply the materials and fixtures you need to control the flow of the project and resolve any issues - so you don’t have to.

Our highly-experienced team includes all the trades needed to pull off complicated projects. Examples include an electrician, plumber, mason, custom cabinet maker, flooring professional, tile expert, wallpaper, painters, carpenters, countertop fabricators, structural engineers, and more.

Where we do it (and don't do it)

Our primary service area includes the Fairfax County, Arlington County, and Northern Alexandria sections of Northern Virginia. We will go to Eastern Loudoun County or Prince William County for larger opportunities.

Please note:

  • We do not work in DC or Maryland.
  • Our home remodeling projects typically take from a few weeks to several months. The price is dependent on your specific goals and best discussed during a phone consultation.
  • We are not staffed for handyman repairs such as drywall repair, swapping out a light fixture, etc. As a general rule, our smallest Mini-Remodel projects start from the $20,000 mark upwards. This does not include kitchen, bathroom or basement remodeling which have a higher starting budget.
  • We only perform residential work - no commercial projects.
  • We do not build additions, pop ups or accessory buildings.

Should you remodel, sell, or both?

Most clients think about resale value as part of their decision to remodel their homes. This tends to take one of the following paths:

  • Over-investing

You might be worried about spending too much on your remodel in relation to the value of your home. If you love your neighborhood and plan to stay long-term, why not re-imagine your existing home and make it work perfectly for you? Over the long haul, it will likely pay off with the increasing real estate values in your area.  

  • Selling in a few years

If you want to remodel your house, but plan to sell in 3 to 5 years, we can help you balance your priorities while guiding you on what buyers look for. We’ll firmly (but nicely) push back if you fall in love with hot pink tile or a layout that won't make sense to a new owner - that's why top Realtors refer their clients to us for their home remodel.

  • Selling soon

We’re generally not a cost-effective fit for getting your home ready for immediate sale unless the situation demands a high level of project management, design work, or to resolve a structural deficiency.

  • Buy new or old?

You might wonder whether it’s best to buy a new home or an older one and remodel? In our most popular towns, the cost of new homes is skyrocketing. If you want to live in the inner suburbs, new homes or tear-downs will top $1.5 million. So remodeling is typically the most cost-effective option. Why not buy a house at a lower price point and then have us turn it into your ideal living space?

What people say about us

I am a US diplomat living overseas and needed to replace my deck. I went with HandyMensch Home Remodeling because out of the companies that looked at my deck and quoted the job, HandyMensch was the only outfit that immediately noticed that my deck was not built to code. And after they explained to me why, I was shocked that other outfits hadn't see the telltale signs. Once the work was done, HandyMensch workers were polite and courteous to my tenant. I could not have been happier with the work. 5 stars.
- Byron S

HandyMensch Home Remodeling re-did my 40-year-old kitchen.The design was great. The resources he provided were excellent. He and his workers kept me informed throughout the tear-out and rebuild. Everything went together well and the final result is lovely. Along the way the workers were conscientious and polite. An excellent experience for me. Never for a moment had a doubt about Lenny's company. Again, it is a lovely room!
- Eva K.

HandyMensch Home Remodeling did a wonderful job renovating our master bath - from the design and selection of fixtures, through demolition and completion of the job. Every aspect of the work was professional and beautifully done. Lenny advised us how best to utilize the space to make the bathroom functional, but without spending a fortune. We relied on Lenny's experience to help us select the vanity, granite, and plumbing fixtures. We needed a lot of help with selecting these items, and especially selecting the tile. Lenny referred us to a wonderful tile designer, who made that process simple. The crew cleaned up carefully at the end of each work day. The finished bathroom is even better than we imagined.
- Jen C.

Can't wait to get started?

Now you know more about us, let us get to know you.

3949 Pender Drive
Suite 301
Fairfax, Virginia 22030
703-431-2731

Areas We Serve

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