For 50 East Remodeling, Every Job Is the Most Important One

The 50 East Remodeling team doesn’t cut corners.

Based in Arnold, the team takes pride in being efficient, being clean and making sure customers are satisfied with their home improvements whether the project is a roof, siding, kitchen, bathroom or outdoor space.

“We’re not just sending the guys,” said Stephen Wheatley, who opened 50 East Remodeling in April 2015. “We want the leadership onsite at least at some point during the day … every customer wants to feel like they’re your only customer. They are paying for that, and they should get that.”

Wheatley assembled his team from family members and friends who were skilled in their respective trades. A friend from elementary school is the lead painter. Wheatley’s brother, who has 20 years of experience, works for 50 East. Their mom answers phone calls.

“We’re definitely a family-run business,” Wheatley said.

Operations manager Daniel Stefany is the son of Wheatley’s high school principal.

Stefany believes 50 East Remodeling is different from most companies because it’s all-encompassing.

“I speak with a lot of people, friends in the trades, and if you want a bathroom done, you call [a company] and you get a demo team, a framer and got to get the plumber in and the electrician,” Stefany said. “[Then you hear], ‘The tile guy is held up. I need my drywall finisher and my painter. Oh, the tub is leaking. Let’s get the plumber back.’ And then what we, [50 East], can accomplish in seven days takes three, four, five weeks for some people.”

The electricians, plumbers and other contractors 50 East partners with are all from local companies with licensed workers.

Wheatley prefers to take jobs around the Ritchie Highway corridor so he can stay in the community where he lives, building relationships through referrals.

“By doing local work, we are currently finishing our third project for a family,” Wheatley said. “We have done work for the uncle, we have done work for the aunt, we have done work for the children.”

Most importantly, he wants homeowners to be able to control their budget. And while the 50 East Remodeling team recommends certain materials over others — such as not using glass tile in the bathroom because it can be slippery — they leave those choices to the customer.

“I’m not going to sell them my cabinets and then give them a design, because I’m not a dealer for Wellborn Cabinet,” Wheatley said. “You can … find the cabinet that you want rather than me trying to sell you something that I have.

“Tile is the same way,” he said. “We can transform your entire bathroom. You get to pick the colors, the thickness, the size, and the shape of your tile. We can set you up with a designer at one of the local shops who can help you pick out some really nice stuff that your neighbor doesn’t have, and then we are going to put it all together.”

At 50 East Remodeling, the team uses real porcelain and marble tile. For siding, they utilize multiple teams.

“For the siding team, if you’re doing vinyl, if you’re doing Hardie Plank, or if you’re doing LP SmartSide siding, or if you’re doing cedarwood, they’re not all put on by the same people and you definitely don’t want the same people putting them on your home,” Wheatley said.

Regardless of the job, it may take a few days for an estimate when homeowners call 50 East Remodeling. Wheatley attributes any delay to his team wanting to do the best job for every customer. When 50 East responds, customers will not get a sales pitch, just an answer to their problem, Wheatley said.

“I apologize in advance to a customer who calls our company and doesn’t have a salesperson respond within five minutes with an estimate,” Wheatley said. “Honestly, Dan is probably on a roof, or I may be in a crawlspace.”

It’s a rewarding job for both Wheatley and Stefany, who treat every job as the most important one.

“I also take pride in work, and the work I enjoy gives me instant gratification,” Stefany said. “When I am doing a bathroom, which I have done probably 200, day one is demo. ‘Alright, here are the bones. Here’s what I get to work with.’ I feel good about that. I go home and I share a picture with my wife every day.”

To learn more about 50 East Remodeling, call 410-500-2266 or visit www.50eastremodeling.com. The company has a near-perfect rating on Google with 4.9 out of 5 stars.