MJ Russo Construction, LLC

Two written reviews, three years apart, telling opposite stories — that is the whole public account of MJ Russo Construction, a Swampscott company that builds in stone. Mike Russo has run the LLC since 2005, according to its BBB page, with five employees and a second address on Endicott Street in Peabody. The work is outdoor living: stone walls, patios and walkways, bluestone and granite installations, outdoor kitchens and fireplaces, water features, plus excavation and drainage. Its Houzz page carries nine projects and a Houzz badge, and the BBB grades the business A+ while listing it as not accredited. The good account is the older one, and it is specific. A Houzz reviewer in January 2014 said they had worked with Mike on several projects, including their own home, described a crew that took pride in the work, and called the stonework at their house beautiful. The bad one came later and was blunt. In September 2017, a Houzz reviewer wrote that they were extremely unsatisfied with the workmanship and with the company's ability to complete the job on any reasonable schedule, and offered to talk with anyone who wanted the details. Those two reviews are the entire basis of the 3.0 average on Houzz. With the written record ending in 2017, the scheduling question is the one to press. If you are weighing them for a wall, a patio or a driveway, ask for references from jobs finished in the past year or two, put start and completion dates in the contract, and walk an active site before signing.