Roemke Electric

I haven’t quite had the pleasure of working with Mark… Yet. I called him to go to one of our stores in Capitola and briefly gave him a description of what the issue was. His integrity was such a breath of fresh air and he helped me get this resolved without him going to the store and charging a fee. That to me is the best customer service you can get. Mark, if I run into any more electrical issues at our Bay Area locations, you’ll be hearing from me.
Thanks again for your time.

I would highly recommend Roemke electric. Mark Roemke has handled everything from a complicated troubleshooting job to replacing our outside light fixtures. He is very professional and personable… actually answers his own phone too. Arrives when scheduled or calls if he’s delayed.

I needed to have a 220 installed for a hot tub. My area is a fairly simple location for the hook up. I first contacted Direct who quoted me over $ 1,700 for the job. I then called Mark at Roemke and boy am I glad that I did! He was prompt and super down to earth. He explained everything that he would need to do, threw in a few extras because of the ease of the job. He was friendly and made the stress of taking bids for a job a nice experience. All in All I paid less than half what I would have and his work is outstanding. He and another electrician showed up on time. In just a couple of hours they had the breaker installed all of the wiring and an emergency breaker box all added. I was up an running, they had me fill the tub and we tested the entire system before they left. He was honest and stuck to his bidded price. The work is nicer looking than I expected, with everything clamped away neat and discreet. I would recommend this guy anytime.

I was in a bind for an electrician and needed a job done quickly. After many unanswered calls to other electricians, I called Roemke Electric. I had not heard of this company and got the number on line. Not only did mark call me back in 10 minutes, he understood the urgency of my job (to me) and he made time the next morning between two other jobs, to come out and hook me up. Very professional and personable. Not the norm for Santa Cruz contractors! Spread the word.

Mark is an outstanding electrician, with an awesome team. Roemke Electric comes highly recommended.

Mark’s complete rewiring of our 1929 house has been an ongoing problem. First he had to come back and fix a lot of his own work as we discovered problems with the wiring (switches that didn’t work, dead outlets, etc.).
When the next batch of malfunctioning switches and lights became obvious, my husband was so frustrated with trying to deal with Mark that we paid another electrician to hook things up correctly.
Now we’re on round three of fixing his bad and nonexistent work! Mark had added a switch that he said would be all ready to go when we found a fixture we wanted to add to a room. This weekend we were ready to hang the new light, and we found that the wires hanging out of the ceiling and the wires in the switch box were NOT CONNECTED TO EACH OTHER.
Mark, I see that your website says satisfaction guaranteed. Would you like to compensate us for the billable hours we’ve paid to other people to fix and complete your work?
Sorry this is completely negative, but this has been a ridiculous situation. Mark is a personable guy and that made us think everything was going fine. It would have been nice to see you apologize and seem to CARE that you had to come back and fix stupid mistakes (not attaching wires securely enough to turn on the light, for one!).
I mentioned this was a whole-​house rewire. We got to pay big money for a bad job that we’ve almost paid for twice now.

We can’t say enough good things about Mark.
Our smoke alarms began to malfunction. He came the same day we called, tested the alarms, confirmed they were indeed not functioning properly, took them to the supplier to get replacements, and installed the new alarms.
His immediate attention to our safety concern and his professionalism are such a refreshing experience in a region where finding reliable contractors is challenging.
In reading other Unilocal reviews for contractors or just anyone to work at the home, finding reliability in Santa Cruz is a common denominator. Mark proves he is not like the others. He can be depended upon.

I spoke to Mark on Tuesday. He gave me estimates for what I needed done. He said he’d contact me Thursday to let me know what time he’d be here Friday. I let him know that I was planning on using the $ 150 for $ 250 Unilocal deal. There was no message from him Thursday, so I emailed and called to ask what time he’d be here Friday. He never got back to me. If he doesn’t want people to use the Unilocal deal, he shouldn’t offer it!

Marks the man. Extremely professional and trustworthy. He traveled all the way up to Vallejo to help me out so I am extremely grateful. He didn’t overcharge either. I would highly recommend to anyone.

Responsible, friendly, fast work! Highly recommend them to anyone!

Made an appointment on a Thursday to try to locate a short in our wiring. He said he would see me Monday at 4pm and asked me to text my name, location and time to confirm. He acknowledged my text with time and place to meet.
Monday, 4pm our scheduled appointment came and went with a total no show. Wow. I expect this kind of thing in Santa Cruz county, but based on the reviews here I thought Roemke would be an exception.
And after driving the 90 minutes from SF! Lucky I had other work to do on our family property, but I don’t have the time and energy to chase after «pros» like this. Lame.

Terrible communication. At first, however, I was very impressed with Mark. He answered the phone, showed up to look at a small lighting job and was very personable and professional. He seemed enthusiastic to do the job, and emailed me a very competitive bid the next day.
Then, after a couple emails, 2 voicemails, and a final text message, I get no response. Very strange, because he really seemed like a stand up guy to me and I wanted to hire him. Granted, he was in Hawaii (I think) for a couple weeks. No problem. But he never responded before leaving town, nor after returning.
Mark, all I needed to hear was, «my apologies but I suddenly got busy and I am just unable to do your job now.»

Very disappointing. After all the rave reviews on Unilocal,I was willing to wait for them to return my calls, emails and texts.
WEEK ONE: When I reached Mark on a Monday he said he was at lunch, but that I should text all my contact info and he’d get back to me. By Wednesday of week one, I’d had no communication, despite sending 3 text messages, and could not leave a message for him because his voicemail box was full, and sent an email. He said they were slammed with a job, and it would be next Monday at the earliest when they could get to me.
WEEK TWO: Here it is Thursday, and I have had no communication despite an email yesterday and another sent today.
How hard is it to send a text that says you are too busy and I should find another electrician? I’ve wasted almost 2 full weeks.

My sister lives in Capitola and needed electrical work to put in a new washer & dryer. As her Unilocal guru, I searched for Santa Cruz electricians, came across and contacted Roemke after reading the wonderful reviews. Having done such a great job on setting up her breakers and outlets months ago, she called on Mark again last week to put in a fixture. Both times, Mark and his staff provided my sister with outstanding work at a reasonable price; and more importantly, he made the effort to fit my sister’s jobs in with the short notice he had. I also got the impression (with just one phone conversation) that Mark is the «real deal» who truly cares about his customers. I plan on calling on Roemke next time I need a reasonably priced, quality minded and trustworthy electrician… just hope he isn’t too busy to do work on this side of the hill :)

Well, I waited 4 months thinking that I would get over the bad feelings that I had about the situation that occurred right before thanksgiving… but it didn’t pass… so hopefully this review will help save someone else some grief.
Our relationship with mark and roemke electric started earlier, in april 2012, when they came out and did some «rough in“work for a kitchen remodel. The guys did a good job and I had been quoted a price of $ 1200 – 1300 for the work performed at this time and then we would pay for the finish work when that time came.
I had to leave for work a couple of hours before they were finished and my wife would pay them that day when they finished.
When I returned home I found that my wife had been charged over $ 1800 for the work performed. The reason??? They had charged her $ 75/​hr x 3 workers (mark, his journeyman, and a fairly new apprentice… who cleaned up for the other 2 all day)
I talked with mark about it and told him that I had no problem paying him that rate, but that I would NEVER had agreed to pay an apprentice and a laborer that wage… with the original quote it was certainly never mentioned… except that I had told him I could’t believe they would be able to do the work for $ 75/​hr (meaning all of them together)…I was NEVER, at that time, corrected about the price.
We came to an agreement that mark would owe us a credit that would be put toward the finish work, when that time would come.
We finished the remodel in early November and hoped to get the finish electric completed before the holidays. Called mark and discussed what was left to be done.
I was told SPECIFICALLY (made sure that I asked this time, since I knew there would likely be unexplained grey area) that I would receive the agreed upon credit, would NOT be charged a markup on the needed supplies and would be charged the contractor rate $ 65/​hr instead of the regular rate. One worker would come out and the job «shouldn’t take that long» and that everything would be finished prior to end of day. When job was done, I would receive an estimate on the next job.
No show with no call the first day… finally got ahold of mark at 5:00pm and was told that he had a major problem at another job and that was the reason no one had come that day… they would come first thing 9:00am the next day.
Worker showed at 10:25a (started charging from 10:00a per the bill) stopped at 4:00 and then spoke with me for about 45 min about the next job. Charged me for 7hrs… uh…FREE estimate… uh…5hr 30 min actual work… then the big surprise… mark had charged me 2hrs for «picking up the parts needed at a the store» then they tried to charge me $ 30−40/fixture that they installed (not marked up though… nonsense)
When I showed him the SAME EXACT PARTS that I had purchased at the EXACT SAME STORE for $ 15−20/fixture. We replaced the overpriced parts and put the credit toward the bill.
I also let him know that with no experience, I had managed to pick up the parts in less than 30 min. for what it took mark (an expert) 2 hrs to pick up and charged me for.
I went ahead and payed him for the 7 hrs even though it should have been 5 ½…I also payed the 2 hours for marks time. Saved some money on the parts that were not «marked up» by replacing them and said good riddance.
In «7» hrs… the worker managed to get 8 switches, and 8 under cabinet fixtures put in… the problem… there were still another 4 switches/​outlets not completed and a vent cover (installed the first time out) that remained unfinished.
I tried to get over it, fool me once, etc., etc., but at a rate of 1 switch every 30 min. I couldn’t rationalize (or pay for) anymore of these guys time.
I (handy, but untrained me) managed to put in the other 4 switches in about 1 ½hrs…I was later told that 15 min per switch is around the time it should take for someone who is in that profession… but that the under cab lighting shouldn’t have taken anywhere near as long as it took him… whatever.
Still have the rest of the house to remodel… probably at least $ 8−10k in electrical work alone… could’ve been their job… but I just can’t stand being thought a fool.
Hey mark… did you really think none of your customers could add… or tell time… or expect the job to get done on time and on budget… no markups on your supplies?
Maybe this will be the review that helps keep someone else from making the same mistake I did.
For anyone contemplating using roemke electric, ask him for his references, and don’t hire him until he gives you one for a guy who remodeled his own kitchen in Sunnyvale… you’ll know me when you talk to me.
I expect 2 things to come from this review…
#1 — you will never be in contact with me… he’ll never give me as a reference… even though I WAS one of his customers… and
#2 — if you don’t get me as a reference, that should speak volumes about the kind of person you are about to do business with
Good luck with your projects!!!

Did a search, this electrician was highly rated on Unilocal.Called and owner answered phone himself (two days after Christmas). Made an appointment for same day. Arrived promptly and got right to work. That’s already astonishing in Santa Cruz! He analyzed problem and had it fixed in probably less than a half hour. I was expecting to pay a lot of money but he astonished me by only charging $ 80 for job and advice. He and his assistant were lovely, personable people and I’ll always use them from this point forward. He even had the capability of taking a credit card payment over the phone and that is just magic :)

I had 1940 knob and tube, needed entire house rewired; sparks from outlets, flickering lights. Asked 1500 FB friends for referral. Called 4, no return call from 3, Earle’s, from Oakland, was only one who responded. Said he would be here before noon; never showed, never called. Flustered and ready to go up in flames.
THEN…I got Roemke’s number.
Was expecting more flakiness, probably another no show since they were in Santa Cruz, and coming to Richmond annex would be quite a haul.
Glory be! Received call that crew would be here in 90 minutes. I’ll be damned if they didn’t show up exactly on time! Totally professional, friendly…5 guys snapped into action, working like a synchronized drill team. I was in awe.
They continued diligently until the whole house was rewired, 11 hrs. later. I was expecting a few days and a tremendous mess.
SURPRISE, SURPRISE, SURPRISE!!! No mess… in fact, a few areas were cleaner than before! They must have thought I was kooky as I couldn’t stop spouting out effusive praise and appreciation… I do believe I heard a choir of angels singing «hallelujah» also: oD
In this day of ambivalence, incompetence, poor quality and bad attitudes, my faith has been restored. Mark and crew are the exception – a model of how a business should be run.
In conclusion: punctual, friendly, skilled, finished on time and on budget, no lengthy wait for appt. and they were all dog guys to boot! Oh, BTW, the price was incredible!
Thanks Roemke, you absolutely rock!!! I give you an 11!

Mark (the owner) and Shane came out to my house to install some new outlets and a new circuit. They were very nice, and did the job quickly and professionally.
Here’s the best part though: I got several quotes from other local electricians before going with Roemke. Mark did the work for (no kidding) less than *half* the cost of the other guys. One quote came in at around $ 350. Roemke did the work for $ 167. I’m not sure how that’s even possible, but I’m not complaining.
I certainly know who I’ll be calling for all my electrical needs.

Called Roemke Electric based on all his good reviews on here. I was not disappointed!
Because we have a very high power bill at my house, we wanted someone to come and figure out what was going on. I called and he scheduled for that friday, which was not only the following day, but a holiday! I was happily surprised he was willing to work that day.
Mark was on time, friendly, and quick. He knew all the electric breaker boxes by name and model and knew the reliability histories of the different brands (a fun/​useful thing to know about!). He deemed our boxes in good repair, but he found a couple things that were on that shouldn’t be, and that was why we called him!
He also gave great information. Explained candidates for replacement to show the greatest power drop, and told us where and how to get them.
Definitely recommended, great service.

We lost power in several of our outlets this week, and so I came to Unilocal to research local electricians. Roemke Electric sounded very good and when I called they quickly set up an appointment that was convenient for me.
The owner, Mark, arrived a few minutes early (wow, what a surprise in Santa Cruz!) and turned out to be an excellent troubleshooter. He discovered that there were two GFIs conflicting with each other.
Since he resolved this issue so quickly, I mentioned another area where three outlets hadn’t been operable for some time. (Awhile back a different electrician had been unsuccessful in resolving the issue.) We didn’t really use those particular outlets. but were concerned that there may be a safety hazard. Well, to make a long story short, Mark resolved that issue… and then repaired an outdoor outlet, too!
Mark was punctual, professional, very knowledgeable, and willingly explained things to me in terms I could understand… definitely a real find in this area! And the work didn’t cost me nearly as much as I had thought it would. :)
Thank you, fellow Unilocalers, for leading me to someone who has pride in his work and provides excellent service.