I spent a couple of days researching cat trees online before I ordered this one. I had also looked at a few at pet retailers. This is excellent quality, sturdy, attractive, and the price cannot be beat! The cat furniture in the stores were nothing in comparison, and twice the price, at that! My husband put it together without any trouble, and we placed the tree in front of the slider so she can look outside. A little catnip on the posts got her going. I had to pick her up and put her on the top level, but once there, she spent hours just lying there, checking out the world from new heights and sleeping. I would definitely purchase from this company again, and would recommend this cat tree to anyone. My only suggestion would be that the two upper levels be a little larger. Abby is about 7.5 lbs, and she fits nicely, but I don't see how a very large cat would be comfortable on them. That's the only improvement that I would make.