Modern Home Builder. Winter 2016

124 Pages·69.513 MB·English

BUILDING LIVING WELL
MEMORIES
61#"/7'8%#9"#*)/:%'
!"#$%&'()*+,&'-"*%$' 2)$';<='>+4+/7'
./0%#$1)/0$')'2"*%'+$' 8"$+1+"/%0'9"#'
)'*)3"#'+/4%$1*%/15' :"/1+/.%0'7#"?125
Page 56 Page 78
!"#$%&'("!$')*+,#$%
WWW.MHB-MAGAZINE.COM WINTER 2016
LUXURIOUS
LIVING

!"#$%&#'()%*+),-'.%/'"0'$%11",,+2',%'3+"#4'"##%56,"5+'
6#2'167"#4'3+,,+)'$%118#","+0/'PAGE 18
BUILDING A TEAM
>"&),1&'#.,%$'12%'#%,)1+"/$2+8$'@6('
A#"8%#1+%$'2)$'?+12'+1$'$.B:"/1#):1"#$'
)/0'0%$+7/%#$5'Page 30

L
E
T
T
E
R
SUNNY SIDE UP

F
R
O
according to the Solar Energy Industries Associa- M
tion (SEIA). Additionally, SEIA notes that the cost

to install solar has dropped by more than 73 percent
T
since 2006.
This is good news for homeowners, utilities and H
contractors that are focusing on this segment, and
E
innovation continues to bring more solar to the

market. For the past 10 years, the U.S Department
E
of Energy has held a Solar Decathlon, where it chal-
D
lenges collegiate teams to design, build and operate
cost-effective, energy-efficient and attractive so- I
T
lar-powered residential buildings.
The 2015 winner was Stevens Institute of Tech- O
nology from New Jersey, which created the SURE
R
(sustainable + resilient) HOUSE. This solar-pow-
ered shore house is armored against extreme weath-
er and can provide emergency power in the after-
math of a storm.
“The SURE HOUSE is based on three principles:
use less energy through smart design, generate all
It’s not just a growing desire among the popu-
energy through renewable solar electric and be ca-
lace to be green – more and more homeowners
pable of providing power during electrical outages,”
are adding solar panels to their houses or buy- Stevens says.
ing homes with solar capacity because it makes As Greenbuild 2015 approaches in Washington,
D.C., Modern Home Builder would love to know more
economic sense.
about your projects, and how your operation is in-
In 2014, there were more than 195,000 solar in- tegrating green building. Share your stories with us
stallations, meaning nearly 645,000 homes and on Twitter @ModernHomeBuild and on Facebook
businesses throughout the country had gone solar, at facebook.com/modernhomebuilder.
Staci Davidson
MANAGING EDITOR
[email protected]
Winter 2016 www.mhb-magazine.com 1
EDITORIAL
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
John Krukowski
[email protected]
MANAGING EDITOR
Staci Davidson
MANAGING EDITOR, BOSTON
Eric Slack
SENIOR EDITORS
Stephanie Crets, Alan Dorich, Russ Gager,
Jim Harris, Janice Hoppe, Chris Petersen
ASSOCIATE EDITORS
Tim O’Connor, Robert Rakow
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Kevin L. Ramsier, Carl Taylor
ART
ART DIRECTOR
Erin Hein
DESIGNERS
Joshua Beaudry, Jonathan Lyzun, Vida Soriano
PRODUCTION
PRODUCTION COORDINATOR
Travis Garth
RESEARCH
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT Walter Sledz
EDITORIAL RESEARCH MANAGER Melvin Eagleton
PROJECT COORDINATORS
DeWayne Dupree, Ken Ellis, Ryan Finn
SALES
VP OF SALES
Steve Campagna
DIRECTOR OF WEB AND REPRINT SALES
Dash Blankenship
[email protected]
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER: @MODERNHOMEBUILD
PHOENIX MEDIA CORP.
79 W. Monroe, Suite 400
Chicago, IL 60603
ACCESS SUBSCRIBER SERVICES AT WWW.MHB-MAGAZINE.COM
Please note: The opinions expressed by interviewees, contributors and advertisers within this publication
do not necessarily coincide with those of the editor and publisher. Every reasonable effort is made to
ensure that the information published is accurate, but no legal responsibility for loss occasioned by the use
ON THE COVER
of such information can be accepted by the publisher. All rights reserved. The contents of the magazine
are strictly copyright, the property of Phoenix Media Corporation, and may not be copied, stored in a
retrieval system, or reproduced without the prior written permission of the publisher. BSF Properties is not a volume homebuilder, but instead
Modern Home Builder is published by Phoenix Media Corp., 79 W. Monroe, Suite 400, Chicago, IL, focuses on a few high-value properties for this affluent
60603. POST MASTER: Send address chan ges to Luxury Home Builder, 79 W. Monroe, Suite 400, Chi- market. PAGE 30
cago, IL, 60603. CANA DA POST: Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to Phoenix Media Corp.,
7496 Bath Road #2, Mississauga, ON L4T 1L3.
2 www.mhb-magazine.com Winter 2016
winter 2016 C
O
N
T
E
N
T
S
COVER STORY
Lincoln Property Co. strives to always make the next project
better than its last by keeping up with industry trends and
adapting to market demands. PAGE 18
Winter 2016 www.mhb-magazine.com 3
S
T
N
COLUMNS
E
T
8. INDUSTRY TRENDS
N
Smaller homebuilders are prime targets for
O mergers and acquisitions.
c 12. TECHNOLOGY
New constructible modeling methods
P. 8 help contractors build better projects.
16. DESIGNERS
A prominent Texas architect’s major
contribution to Texas Tech will help the
institute strengthen its Urban Design
program by supporting research and
other programs.
SECTIONS
28. HOMEBUILDERS
SolarCity, Habitat for Humanity and
the California Department of Veterans
Affairs are working together to provide
veterans with quality homes and low
energy costs.
P. 28
74. DEVELOPERS
Developers around the world are honored
by the Urban Land Institute for their
dedication to design, construction,
economics and planning.
120. LAST PAGE
Infinity Homes works hard to understand
the needs of the Pittsburgh consumer.
P. 35 P. 40
Winter 2016
HOMEBUILDers
30. BSF PROPERTIES
A large team of contractors and partners
provide the support BSF Properties needs
to succeed in the affluent Greenwich,
Conn., market.
35. BARONI BUILDING CO.
Baroni Building Co. has been a go-to
luxury homebuilder in Pennsylvania for
more than 40 years.
40. COSTELLO BUILDERS INC.
Costello Builders Inc. is celebrating
25 years in custom home building by
continuing to offer high-quality materials
and construction along with superior
craftsmanship.
43. APEX DEVELOPERS
Cousins have joined forces to make Apex
Developers a success.
47. BY CARRIER
By Carrier’s consistent focus on quality
and pleasing its clients has kept it going
for nearly 45 years and through multiple
market changes.
50. DIGREEN HOMES/
DIGRAM DEVELOPMENTS
DiGreen Homes and Digram
Developments build projects that go P. 30
beyond ‘cookie-cutter’ homes.
52. PARAN HOMES
Paran Homes has found success
in building houses on discounted
post-recession-era lots.
56. DORSEY FAMILY HOMES
Dorsey Family Homes understands that
purchasing a new home is usually the
biggest investment a family will ever make.
60. STONE HARBOR LAND CO.
Stone Harbor Land Co. builds homes that P. 40
families will enjoy for generations.
Winter 2016 www.mhb-magazine.com 5
S
E
L
I
F 62. BALFOUR BEATTY
O COMMUNITIES
Balfour Beatty Communities provides more
R
than homes for military families.
P
64. SPRING HILL PROPERTIES
LLC
Spring Hill Properties LLC maintains an
open-book policy with customers on their
projects.
66. SERENE HOMES
Serene Homes is building three large
residential communities in response to Fort
P. 64
Worth’s population boom.
68. INFINITY HOMES
Infinity Homes experiences rapid growth in
the Pittsburgh market.
72. METROPOLITAN HOMES –
AMBERLEY HEIGHTS
Metropolitan Homes’ recently completed
Amberley Heights luxury multifamily rental
development continues its 30-year legacy
of quality.
multifamily developers
78. ZOM LIVING
P. 72 Exceptional quality performance on
multifamily residential projects in a
number of markets has ZOM Living
positioned for continued growth and
success.
84. RBJ SCHLEGEL – VILLAGES
OF WENTWORTH HEIGHTS
RBJ Schlegel brings an independent living
facility to Hamilton, Ontario, and attaches
it to a long-term care facility.
88. ALLEN HARRISON COM-
PANY
The team at Allen Harrison Company
brings years of experience in multifamily
P. 92 development to meet the demand in
Texas.
WINTER 2016
92. JHM GROUP OF COMPANIES
Since 1991, JHM Group of Companies has played a major role
in turning urban blight into affordable, attractive housing
throughout its home state of Connecticut.
96. ESSEX PROPERTY TRUST INC.
Essex sticks to its strategy on the West Coast, and says that has
been a major factor in its continued success, as it continues to
meet the market’s high demand for housing.
99. THE EXCELSIOR GROUP
The Excelsior Group is building its reputation as a diverse,
full-service real estate firm in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area as the
result of the company’s focus on being smart, patient and willing
to quickly diversify.
P. 110
102. EPOCH RESIDENTIAL
Focused on multifamily real estate management and 118. GFO COMPANIES
development, Epoch Residential enjoys continued success GFO Companies had to reassess its portfolio to grow after the loss
throughout the Southeast and Sunbelt. of its founder, but its transition has made it a stronger and more
efficient operation.
105. LYON CONTRACTING
Lyon Contracting continues to build its reputation in Minnesota
by producing quality multifamily developments while focusing on
controlled growth. With these strengths, the operation strives to
expand throughout the upper Midwest.
108. THE TORRON GROUP
The Torron Group is building quality residential communities along
with managing commercial developments in the State College
area of Pennsylvania, which is one of the most highly rated
quality-of-life areas within the United States.
110. CWS CAPITAL PARTNERS
CWS Capital Partners specializes in the acquisition, development
and disposition of apartment communities in fast-growing cities
across the United States.
114. HAVEN REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS INC.
Owner Rick Glisson has worked hard to position Haven Real Estate
Investments to weather any market condition in the future through
hard work and years of experience.
116. EXETER REALTY/FRANA COS. – CUSTOM
HOUSE
The historic St. Paul Post Office and Custom House is being
renovated into luxury apartments, a hotel, a restaurant and a
storage facility in downtown St. Paul by Exeter Realty and Frana
Companies.
Winter 2016 www.mhb-magazine.com 7
S
D
N
THE HOMEBUILDING
E
R

T
CONSOLIDATION WAVE

Y
R
T Smaller homebuilders are prime targets for mergers and acquistions.
–
S
U Kevin L. Ramsier
D
N There is no question that the U.S. homebuilding industry main source of capital for U.S. homebuilders. Today, it is
is being driven by a wave of consolidation, causing merger and ac- driven more and more by institutional investors. Institu-
I
quisition activity to heat up. As the landscape transforms, competi- tions demand liquidity in their investments, meaning you
tors and collaborators are rapidly buying, selling and merging into have to be large in order to attract that kind of capital. The
each other. Over the next decade, we expect to see 50 percent or fastest way to become larger overnight is through mergers
more of privately held businesses in the construction industry to and acquisitions.
transition ownership. It’s really Economics 101: larger companies enjoy greater
As consolidation builds, it is important to understand factors economies of scale, greater purchasing power and attract
driving the force. There are four areas fueling this trend: strong the most money from the world’s largest investors.
housing market fundamentals, need for scale, diversity and im-
WHEN COMPANIES JOIN
proved operating efficiencies.
The United States is in its fourth year of a slow recovery, as FORCES, THEY CAN ENJOY
mortgage qualifications remain strict and young buyers are stran-
gled with more student loan debt. Job growth and wage growth COST SAVINGS.
are also factors weighing in. More of the younger demographic is
renting, instead of buying, than ever before, and the market is only
at 70 percent of its 15-year average annual output. These companies understand the importance of having
Economists would like to see new home sales break 700,000 breadth and depth in your product offerings within your geo-
– and we are far from that mark. In fact, we are on pace to do graphical footprint. This was a big factor in the recent merger
just over 500,000, although it is continuing to look better as between Standard Pacific and Ryland Group, as Standard Pacific
the weeks go on. Job gains over the last year have buyers feeling built more upscale homes and Ryland built lower-end homes in
better, and the sales of new homes in the United States are now different regions of the country. This diversity not only impresses
over 20 percent higher than they were just a year ago. In addi- investors, it creates more operational efficiencies, more model
tion to that, median sales prices for a new home are 8 percent choices and better experiences for customers.
higher than they were last year. Had the merger been pushed until a later date, it could
This spark has homebuilders feeling more confident about have jeopardized Standard Pacific’s chances of choosing a
pursuing a more aggressive mergers and acquisitions strategy. company that they believe is a good combination for their
stockholders. The merger was a $5.2 billion deal that created
A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
the fourth largest U.S. homebuilder. This gives the compa-
Many smaller homebuilders across the country were wiped out ny more clout with institutional investors, land sellers and
during the financial crisis in 2008. Currently, there are a lot of lenders. Institutional investors tend to focus only on the top
publicly traded homebuilders. Many of these are smaller play- five largest builders so the merger will likely lead to more
ers that will likely end up as buyout targets. consolidation within the industry.
This business is about access to capital, and in today’s mar- Outside of the economies of scale, when companies join forces
ket, the larger you are, the more capital sources you attract. they can also experience significant cost savings. Standard Pacific
After World War II, the savings and loan industry was the and Ryland expect to save between $50 million to $70 million