Provider profile
Kustom Disaster Restoration
Provider snapshot
What this listing says
Lynnwood and greater Seattle homeowners who need mold remediation handled alongside water or fire damage reconstruction by a single national restoration firm with 50+ years of operation.
Best for
- Seattle-area homeowners dealing with mold that developed after water damage who want one company to handle remediation and rebuild under a single contract.
- Insurance-referred jobs where you want a firm experienced at working directly with adjusters — multiple reviewers mention Kustom coordinating the claims process.
- Commercial property managers who need a pre-arranged disaster response plan through their InstantAssist program.
- Homeowners facing combined damage (water + mold, fire + water) who need demolition, drying, remediation, and reconstruction handled sequentially by one team.
- Situations where you need 24/7 emergency response — Kustom staffs a round-the-clock line and multiple reviewers confirm fast initial response.
About this company
Kustom Disaster Restoration runs a Lynnwood, Washington office serving the greater Seattle area as one branch of a national, family-owned restoration company with 29 locations across the U.S. Their primary identity is disaster restoration — water, fire, and storm damage — with mold remediation as one piece of a larger service offering. They handle both the remediation and reconstruction phases under one contract, which means you hire one company instead of two.
On the mold side, Kustom follows ANSI/IICRC S520 methods. Their mold page describes assessment, moisture mapping with thermal imaging, structural drying, dehumidification, selective demolition, and full reconstruction after remediation. They do not perform mold testing — they note on their mold page that they work with separate environmental companies for air testing. They also offer a commercial disaster preparedness program called InstantAssist for businesses that want pre-arranged response plans.
Kustom describes itself as family-owned and operator-run, with over 50 years in business. The company holds licenses in 48 states and lists multiple Washington locations (Seattle/Lynnwood, Tacoma, Spokane, Yakima, Pasco). Corporate headquarters is in Florida. Jeremy Howe runs their National and Large Loss Division for commercial clients.
4.7 stars on 119 Google reviews is solid, though recent complaints reveal a gap between the field crews — who get strong praise — and project management and scheduling, which drew the majority of negative feedback.
Services
Service area
Kustom's Seattle-area office is located in Lynnwood, Washington. They also operate Washington offices in Tacoma, Spokane, Yakima, and Pasco. The company claims coverage in 48 states through 29 locations and mobile warehouses, but reviews for this listing reflect the Lynnwood/Seattle office specifically.
Review consensus
Field crews draw strong, specific praise. Mario (also listed as Mario Lyse) appears in at least six positive reviews for clear communication and project management on water damage and restoration jobs. Juan Melchor gets called out for creative problem-solving — one reviewer credits him with devising a plan for an unusually tight crawl space. Mina Hanna receives praise for keeping homeowners informed and handling details. Mitchell is recognized for attention to detail and finishing work. Kevin, Luis, and Waldo form a mitigation crew that multiple reviewers name together for respectful, thorough water extraction work. CJ Daniel gets mentioned for initial assessments. The consistent theme across positives: crews show up, communicate, and treat homes with care.
8 found across 119 total reviews at 4.7★. The most detailed complaint comes from Katherine Buschlen, a Local Guide with 27 reviews, who describes paying a deposit for sewage backup repair and receiving nothing for over a month — Kustom admitted to losing her work order. Patrick Ross describes six months of inaction on an insurance-referred project. S G paid a deposit after the 2024 bomb cyclone and was ghosted for months, then had to agree to forfeit over $6,500 to recover the remaining deposit. Nathan McKinney had a positive initial experience but overheard an employee named Mario making vulgar, disrespectful remarks on a phone call outside. Four text-less 1-star reviews from late October 2025 (WillsWorld, Theresa Schmock, Brenden Barker, Kevin Foster) all received identical owner responses stating no customer record could be found, suggesting they may not be from actual customers.
The negative reviews split into two distinct categories. One group (4 reviews from late October 2025) consists of text-less or single-word reviews where the owner cannot locate customer records — these look like a coordinated attack rather than real customer experiences. The other group (Patrick Ross, Katherine Buschlen, S G, and the 2-star from Chris B) tells a consistent story: insurance referral, deposit paid, then weeks or months of silence with missed deadlines and unreachable project managers. This suggests a capacity or project-management bottleneck at the Seattle office rather than a workmanship problem — the crews themselves are well-reviewed. Owner responses to legitimate complaints follow a template pattern ('escalated to area managers for review') without engaging with specifics, which contrasts with the more personalized responses to the suspected-fake reviews.
Mario / Mario Lyse (project manager — praised in 6+ positives for communication and knowledge; named in 1 negative for vulgar language overheard on a phone call). Juan / Juan Melchor (mitigation technician — praised in 5+ reviews for service and creative problem-solving). Mina / Mina Hanna (project coordinator — praised in 3 reviews for communication and detail work). Mitchell (restoration technician — praised in 3 reviews for attention to detail). Kevin / Kevin G (mitigation technician — praised in 4+ reviews for respectful, thorough work). Luis / Luis M (mitigation technician — praised in 4+ reviews as part of crew). Waldo (technician — praised in 2 reviews for follow-up and reliability). CJ / CJ Daniel (estimator/inspector — praised in 3 reviews for initial assessments). Kyle (technician — praised in 2 reviews for problem-solving). Bryan (technician — praised in 2 reviews). Marko / Marco (technician — praised in 8+ reviews, though many are from single-review accounts on the same date). Galindo (tradesperson — praised in 1 review for finish work quality). Dan DiAngelo (reconstruction — praised in 1 review for roof rebuild). Carlos (drywall — praised in 1 review for texture matching). Lynden / Linden (painter — praised in 2 reviews). Amy (office staff — praised in 2 reviews for answering questions). Anna (office staff — praised in 1 review). Rocio (staff — praised in 1 review). Brady (project contact — mentioned in 1 review). Melinda (project manager — named in 1 negative for being unresponsive and stopping calls). Marcos (estimator — praised in 1 review for damage assessment).
Kustom's field crews do good work and communicate well — ask for Mario, Juan, or Mina by name if you can. The risk is on the project management and scheduling side: get a written timeline with milestones and a specific project manager's direct contact before paying any deposit. If you go more than a week without hearing from your assigned PM, escalate immediately to the office rather than waiting.
Keep in mind
- Multiple recent reviewers describe paying deposits and then waiting months with little communication. Katherine Buschlen reports Kustom lost her work order after cashing a check, and S G describes being ghosted for months after the 2024 bomb cyclone. This pattern of post-payment delays appears in 5 of 10 recent complaints.
- Kustom is a national company, not a local shop. Staffing turnover at the Seattle office shows up in reviews — Chris B notes multiple employees quit or were reassigned mid-project, and new hires arrived with less than a week of experience.
- The mold page promises reconstruction, but Jazmin Torres waited four months for reconstruction that never started after a bathroom demo. She gave up and hired someone else. If you need reconstruction after mold work, get a written timeline with milestones before signing.
- Several reviews mention being connected to Kustom through their insurance company. Insurance-referred contractors can create a dynamic where the company prioritizes insurer relationships over homeowner communication. Patrick Ross and Katherine Buschlen both describe this exact frustration.