Final Answer

After talking to a dozen references, we finally chose Olde York Homes as our new contractor. In the end, it wasn't the references, but the attitude -- Gary was so open and matter of fact, we couldn't help but trust him. (Of course, if his references hadn't been impeccable, he wouldn't have even had a shot.) It also didn't hurt that his assistant, Toni, was a pleasure to deal with. We let Gary know today, and he's already scrambling to get subcontractors so he can put together an estimate. This is a good sign.