Next Step Builders

Billy was a pleasure to work with. We worked with Next Step on a bathroom remodel. Billy was extremely helpful in design work and helping us find our style within out budget. He's been great for follow up questions and kept us informed of even small details as we progressed through the project. Highest recommendation for Next Step!

My wife Erin an I had the pleasure of working with Billy (Next Step Builders) while remodeling our 50-year-old home. Billy was professional, timely, and cost conscious. We chose to live in the house during the remodel and Billy was courteous and accommodating to us and our children throughout. Billy kept us appraised of progress and was able to meet with us frequently, at our convenience, during the project. He continues to be available and helpful five years after completion when we have questions.

We have been involved with the construction of three homes and have done some major renovations along the way. Next Step Builders has completed several of these renovations for us. With this experience we highly recommend Next Step Builders. Owner Billy Cooley is a creative problem solver, follows through on his promises in a timely manner, delivers quality while being cost effective. On top of all this, he is easy to work with, a true professional!

We have used Next Step Builders for second floor remodels of not one but two circa 1920 'Tosa bungalows. The first, completed for an older relative in April 2017, turned a second floor walk up attic into four rooms of living space, including a new dormer, a full bathroom and kitchenette, a large multi-purpose room and two bedrooms. The second, completed in Dec 2017, was a complete tear off and re-envisioning of space which had last been remodeled (badly) in the 1970s).The added square footage and reconfiguration gave us an upper level with a master bedroom, two additional bedrooms, an open computer nook, a full bathroom and lots of storage. Both projects came in on time and on budget. We cannot speak highly enough of the subcontractors Billy used for both projects; all were knowledgeable, friendly, and completed the work on time and on budget. And, Billy is the consummate professional, with a love and knowledge of and respect for old houses. We recommend Billy Cooley and Next Step Builders to anyone looking to remodel an older home.

I have had the pleasure and privilege of working with Billy Cooley of Next Step Builders on what is likely to be his longest running residential remodeling project—through no fault of his own. In the 18 months we have worked together to restore a circa 1873 farmhouse that has had four generations of my family place their hands—for better or worse—on it, Billy has brought his vision, can-do spirit, and sheer common sense to leave an impressive and indelible mark on this small piece of Wisconsin history. Finding Billy: The hardest part of any remodel is finding the right contractor. Billy came as one of two contractors recommended by my architect, after I had previously screened 5 other contractors on paper. In our first meeting, he had a wonderful portfolio, exhibiting large-scale and smaller projects, in a variety of styles, from historical preservation to modern. What impressed me was the range with which his vision could move from one style and approach to another. I ultimately selected him because he had a “first, do no harm” approach to my remodel—meaning, preserve whatever he could in place, but be practical about modern needs. One half of the home, which included the breezeway and garage that had been planned and built by my father and his brother-in-law in the 1950s, was sagging inward. That half simply could not be rescued. Billy advised working carefully to anchor in place the other, still-stable 1873 half of the home for what would be a rebuild on one side, which needed to integrate seamlessly into the original home. Not too long into the project I knew I had found “the right guy” because Billy referred, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, to the home as “his home.” I admired this because it showed the seriousness and dedication with which he approached his work. He truly treated my home as if it were his own to make sure everything was done just right. Working with Billy: One of the joys of with working with Billy is his easy-going, yet fully dedicated style. He finds humor and a creative solution in just about everything, even when the invariable “oops” in a house remodel project happens. When major foundation work under the old part of the house was under way, original pine floors were “popping up” in one of the bedrooms. Billy pulled the planks and worked with me to have them mounted as ship lap as an accent wall above the landing of the stairs. History preserved with an amazing new look!

After experiencing the loss of my child care center due to a fire, Billy Cooley & Next Step Builders were able to rebuild it for me in record time with amazing craftsmanship. I had worked with Billy on smaller projects over the years and knew he was the only one I could trust for this huge job. Next Step Builders was able to guide me through the process in a way I understood what was happening, manage all aspects of the project, maintain professionalism, remain in budget, and get the job done to my satisfaction. Based on my several small projects and on the experience with the fire restoration and rebuild of my schoolhouse, I would highly recommend Next Step Builders for any project. Billy took care of me as a client and as a person. -Traci Fronk, Owner of Bright Ideas Learning Community, LLC

Billy got our kitchen remodeling job done very well, on time and under budget! The craftsmen he uses were highly skilled and friendly. See before and after photos

We have worked with Next Step Builders and Billy Cooley on a number of projects. Some projects were small and some were large, including a full strip down and remodel of an existing home which we are currently occupying. Needless to say, we are extremely pleased with the all the projects. This is why we have continued to use Next Step Builders for each phase of the project. The craftmanship throughout has been excellent. We are very detailed oriented and everything was as specified and in budget. Most important is the person and company we worked with during the construction. Mr. Cooley was attentive to details, promptly returned calls, had transparent billing, kept us informed of progress, and worked very hard to ensure we were satisfied. When the inevitable issue arose, he solved it promptly and fairly. We felt that our satisfaction was his number one objective through each project.

Next Step remodeled a kitchen and two bathrooms for us from 2011 to 2016. Billie has great design talent, his subcontractors are the best. People showed up on time, did quality work and came in under budget. Billie is the best contractor we have worked with. We recommend him without qualification.

We hired Billy at Next Step Builders for a main floor remodel. Although not a huge remodel project, Billy's attention to the project details was impressive. From communicating the scheduling of sub-contractors to the high level of detail advice were fantastic. All the sub-contractors Nest Step Builders used were curteous, knowledgeable and friendly. Our remodel project turned out perfect! It was a pleasure to work with Billy and highly recommend Next Step Builders.

Billy did an excellent job designing our complicated remodeling project. He was very thorough and made sure to keep to the time frame that was planned, even when we added extra work into the project. He was a pleasure to work with.

Billy at Next Step Builders did a great job on our house remodel. It was a very large project, every room touched. Our house was originally built in 1910, Next Step Builders was able to blend the old with the new and keep the feel of an older house with modern finishings. He finished on time and I can't be happier with the finished product. It has been just over a year since he finished and he has been very responsive to any little issue we have had.