Blog

There’s a cultural shift now from the “conspicuous consumption” to the desire for enduring practicality, efficiency and functionality. While the descritption of today’s home buyer is much greater than a simple Blog can handle, in short, today’s buyer has learned to become more frugal due to the economic downturn, witnessing the struggles of others, etc. They are applying economic realities and lessons learned from previously owned homes, and are now out to build their new homes “Smarter”. It’s no longer about keeping up with the Joneses, but rather out-smarting the Joneses by attacking energy costs and reducing wasted space. More »

As we navigate through the low points of our current economy, we have taken notice that many people have quickly turned to defining “value” as simply accepting the “lowest price” for their goods and services. For those who are ready to build new, or reinvest and undertake a remodel or addition, it seems that the “lowest price” has now become the benchmark in which to measure “best value”. It’s a trend that has quickly risen and become too commonplace throughout many markets. More »

A question we get all the time is “how much does it cost to build a home?”, or, “how much does a remodeling project cost?” The presumption is that there is standard prices for any given new build or remodel project that we can simply quote over the phone. More »

It’s been said, “The soured after-taste of a poorly executed project lasts much longer than the sweet taste of a low bid.” In this struggling economy, formally trained and qualified designers and builders understand the allure of a low bid being offered by lesser builders and remodelers. So, it’s very important to discern the overall price from the value you seek. Since most qualified builders pay about the same for quality products and services, what you get when you pay less is usually ‘less’. It may be less material or an inferior product. For example, if a builder says he is including sheathing between you and the outdoor elements, he probably is… but is he planning to install something like “T-Ply”?… a product that is nothing more than compressed cardboard. Sometimes it’s less labor, or even the use of sub-contractors with less or no formal training or experience. More »