All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

Thanks @John Blackman.  I wanted to step out and do something different but wasn't quite ready to reinvent the wheel.  I see you guys are crushing it in Austin.. keep it up!

Thanks all. 

@Derek B. and @Don Harris, this is in NoDA (the arts district) just outside uptown. 

@Dawn Brenengen, thank you.  This was me just dipping the toe into modern, and not going totally off the ledge.  In the past I was nervous to branch out and try different design ideas...What I learned on this house is there is a large market that will pay for "different." 

@Jon Klaus, thanks!  Our project manager hated the house up until completion due to the lack of trim.  We normally build a higher end craftsman project (most of our specs sell in the 500-850k price point), and we'd usually blow it out on trim.  I probably saved 10k on trim labor and materials alone, but it all pulled together nicely with the modern finishing touches.  That being said, although this came in under our normal budget, our window budget was more (some casements instead of hung), our railings were expensive (custom welded), quartz counters ran about 10/ft more than our granite, etc. 

@Account Closed, on this street, there happens to be a good bit of modern design.  I tried to show it in the first 2 pics, but I'm not a great photographer :)  We decided instead of forcing our craftsman design on this street, we'd try to blend in a bit. 

Below are photos of our latest spec house, and our first attempt at modern.  We bought the lot for 125k, and closed on the sale last week for 430k (under contract before completion).  This build took 8 months, which is 2-3 months longer than our normal schedule, but considering we had to find new suppliers for the majority of finishes since this was a new design for us, I'm pretty happy with the timeline. 

@Uwe S.  - good to hear from you!!  Hope you had a good Xmas and Happy New Year!!

Dang @Karen Margrave , where did I post that?? LOL

Thanks Jon, I'd like to do that but I'll really have to trust myself to keep at it for the whole project :)  BTW, your duplex project looks awesome.  I'm working a similar deal now, except hoping to get approval for 3 attached townhome units. 

Thanks Adam, good to meet you.  This is on Mecklenburg.  You probably know our projects on Fort as well.  Hope to meet you in person some time soon :)

I know you think the soil is sufficient due to an infill location surrounded by other properties close by, but I had a same issue in the middle of an infill neighborhood with a lot that had never been built on.  There was a reason it had never been built on.  It was a vacant lot for decades that neighbors had thrown debris and trash in.  We found this out once we excavated for footings.  It ended up costing around 12k extra in engineering, concrete, piers, etc.  I would definiltey get a soil test. 

I'd try every small, local bank I could find.  Talk to the head of the commercial lending side.  If nobody will play ball, then use private/hard money lenders for a year or two until you have the portfolio and tax returns to support bank loans.  That was my path. 

@Nasar Elarabi , I'll keep it in mind :)  Always here to help you work a deal..

@Don Hines , I've done some transactional funding, and lending to a rehabber in town, and also to a guy doing new construction specs.  With the new construction project, I'm getting some equity as well.  Happy to chat with you about my experiences if you'd like.  I really like the new construction right now since there seems to be less surprises. 

@Arlan Potter , you are spot on.  Just today I got a call about some rental properties from an off market deal that I'm now researching and very interested in.  This lead came from a realtor who I've done business with before and knows I won't waste their time.