Montgomery Robbins, Inc. - Alamo, CA

Bhavin Shah

John and team are one of the best in the San Francisco Bay Area. We recommend them to everyone who asks. In fact, since completing our project and home two months ago, over a 100 people walking by the house have asked for the names of our designers and contractors hoping to replicate our beautiful home and landscape. J. Montgomery designs and plans are exceptional. Every detail you can imagine has been thought through. We have a 9,200 sq ft lot and their design turned our front and backyards into an amazing retreat. Everyone who visits says they haven't seen a backyard and front yard like ours. My landscaper (who implemented John's plans), said in 30 years of doing homes throughout Atherton, Menlo Park, and Palo Alto, this was by far the most amazing work he's done for a lot of our size. Our general contractor who built our home (who has built some of the most amazing properties in the Bay Area peninsula) said our landscape is the best in a 20 mile radius. If you go with J. Montgomery Designs you will have to wait your turn in line to get their services, but the wait is worth it. The team's knowledge of trees, plant species, colors, materials, and space planning is exceptional. We didn't believe we could accomplish the seating, serenity, and vibe that was achieved with our landscape, but the team at J. Montgomery nailed it. Their use of stones, metals, woods, negative space, water fountains, pathways, and tons of detail and subtle choices transformed our land into a spectacular haven. Work with J. Montgomery and implement their designs perfectly and you'll understand what we're talking about.

Tamara Paradis

This project changed our lives. Our yard is now a perfect place to stroll and meditate, to wander and plan our business day (we own our own business and finding a quiet and beautiful area to think and be creative is special). We have a waterfall, Koi pond, ping pong/corn hole areas, benches scattered throughout, a hot tub, and beautiful plants/trees. This spring has been magical as I find new plants flowering daily!
The Montgomery team seamlessly worked with us throughout the project: the planning, the execution, the changes we suddenly wanted, the final tweaking. We are pleased that we did this for ourselves and glad we hired the right team to take care of us. The Montgomery team is an awesome creative team that listens; I recommend them with no hesitation. Your finished yard will be beyond your expectations and dreams.

Daniel J Sargent

My family worked with Montgomery Designs after purchasing a home in Lafayette with a yard of about one acre. Moving from the inner East Bay, we'd never before had to manage a yard of that size and need help figuring out what to do with a lush but overgrown yard. Working with Cynthia and John helped us to figure out a comprehensive strategy. After commissioning a land survey, John worked up a wonderful design that helped us to understand our new property, to get a clear sense for what the costs of various improvements would be, and to differentiate more urgent from less urgent tasks. While we ended up prioritizing interior renovations (i.e. a new kitchen) over exterior renewal, Montgomery Designs has given us a terrific longer-term blueprint for the renovation of our new yard. Learning from Cynthia and John about the varieties of contractors with whom we might work has also been enormously useful: we learned a lot about the costs of different kinds of solutions and have, as a result, been able to make much wiser decisions than we would otherwise have made about how to spend limited funds. If money were no constraint, being able to realize the vision that John developed over a 6-12 month timeframe would have been an exciting and transformative prospect. But working with John and Cynthia to devise a longer-term, budget-constrained strategy for the yard has been just as useful and exercise—and every bit as valuable a use of our time and funds. We'd highly recommend the Montgomerys to all kinds of prospective clients: whether finances are a constraint or not, their deep insight, knowledge, and empathy will be an immensely helpful source of strategic guidance for all exterior projects.

admin admin

It is hard to put into words what John, Cynthia, Teresa, and the entire team at J. Montgomery means to me. After having remodeled six homes, one of which ended up in a 3-year lawsuit with the builder, I can confidently say that I know how to spot competence and integrity. I initially reached out to J. Montgomery Designs because I was very obsessed with John's stunningly beautiful portfolio and work product. He has a keen eye, top-notch spacial planning skills, and immense knowledge on all things backyard (hardscape, pavilions, ADUs, drainage, sunlight, and ALL the little green stuff your heart can imagine). But honestly, none of that would have mattered to me if he and his team were not honest and good people. I have been in this industry far too long to choose talent over character. LUCKILY I DON'T HAVE TO!!!

John, Cynthia, and Teresa are not just amazing people with great hearts, they have become actual friends throughout the three-year process in which I keep adding and changing things! (They met all their timelines 100%; I met zero of mine). They are trustworthy, patient, calming, organized, great communicators, fun, and SO SO CREATIVE!! Seriously, they think of things you never will. I don't care how many inspiration photos you download. They will come up with something new to blow your mind.

I'm sure there is a word limit here at some point, so let me just say that J. Montgomery Designs, as a business, is a rare commodity. They have healed me of all my bad experiences and restored my faith in this industry.

Anshoo Zutshi