Zander Homes Garners Custom Homebuilding Awards

    HOUSTON, TX, October 25, 2016 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Custom homebuilder, Zander Homes, launched in 2010 with what owner Justin Henry called a singular focus on building homes and building relationships with its homeowners. It wasn't until four years later that Henry decided to submit the company's custom homes to the Texas Association of Builders (TAB) and the Greater Houston Builders Association (GHBA) for their annual homebuilder awards. He has always strived for perfection in custom homebuilding with his relatively young company, but the esteemed recognition the homebuilder has received thus far even surprises him.

Over the past three years, Zander Homes has either won or been a finalist for 19 GHBA or TAB custom homebuilding awards, with this year bringing the most accolades with 12 (four winners and eight finalists). Henry is thoroughly excited about the progress of his company and he explains his enthusiasm, why he believes this is just the beginning of Zander's success, and how starting with the right business foundation has elevated the company so quickly.

Q: Zander Homes was named by the GHBA as a 2016 Grand Award Custom Builder of the Year Finalist. Your company also won three GHBA Houston's Best Prism Awards, a TAB Star Award, and was a finalist for four other Best Prism Awards and three other Star Awards. Are you surprised at how quickly your company has risen in recognition as a homebuilder?

A: Absolutely. When I first started our company in 2010, we never thought about any type of recognition or awards. We were just singularly focused on building homes as well as we could and taking care of each homeowner in the same fashion. It really wasn't until a few years later when we started to step back from our projects and not only appreciate what we were building, but also view how our homes were measuring up to the competition.

Q: What does it mean for Zander Homes to be recognized like this by your peers?

A: To be mentioned in the same regards as a lot of great homebuilders, big and small, in Houston, as well as builders from all over the State of Texas, is great in and of itself. I've always considered Texas the homebuilding hub of the nation and with Houston being on top of that list. We understand we're still a relatively small and young company, and that gaining notoriety in our local industry is something to be proud of.

Q: What separates Zander Homes from other custom homebuilders?

A: Generally speaking, most companies have good attributes about them, which is why they're still around and successful. But it's a culmination of little things that we do well, which has collectively helped us stand out from the crowd. Being pliable is a big one for us. We're not afraid to try new things, experiment with what we are building or the styles and designs that we build. You can see this in our work history, as the last few years we've built one-story to four-story homes, country cottages, and $1 million-plus homes.

We offer the best of both worlds when it comes to quality and affordability. I worked for large production builders as well as small custom builders before starting Zander Homes, so I like to think we've taken good things from both spectrums and combined them into our company. We have really good trade and vendor relationships and competitive pricing, which trickles down to the consumer. This really affords us the opportunity to truly customize a home to fit the personal needs and wishes of the homeowner and do so at a very economically sound price. Economical customization is a great asset.

Lastly, and maybe more importantly, is transparency. There's been a lack of transparency in the homebuilding industry for some time. I am a student of my industry, so I want all my buyers to understand the ins and outs of their home.

Q: From the beginning, you've focused on building Green and have become an active member in GHBA's Green Built Gulf Coast initiative. Why have you done that and how has that helped your business?

A: With Houston's climate being hot and humid almost year-round, I thought why would I not pursue energy efficiency? Not only to save money on operating costs, but to enable our homeowners to live more comfortably in their new homes. It was only a few years earlier that big name homebuilders started utilizing the Energy Star programs or using Tech-Shield roof decking in their homes. What I learned was that it really came down to cost. To this day, most builders won't spend the money to achieve these Green Building initiatives, but we've deemed it important enough to pursue from the start.

We started with our green building programs, called "Live Efficiently", almost from the beginning. This program installs whole house spray foam insulation, tankless water-heaters, high-performing HVAC units, synthetic roofing materials, and other energy saving techniques. About that same time, a new program by the GHBA arrived called Green Built Gulf Coast (GBGC), which is an independent third party that tests homes to ensure they're performing appropriately. The program also focuses on the importance of energy efficiency and how that differs per region. The idea is to build with the climate and region in mind.

Building energy efficient homes is extremely important. The rules on what and how to build have become harder and more expensive for homebuilders, but it's achieving a higher performing home for the consumers. Being part of the GBGC has helped us stay up to date with these changes so we can build better homes. We're proud to say the homes we built even a few years ago that have our "Live Efficiently" package meets or exceeds today's code requirements. While there's always something new and improved coming out, we want to be forward thinking when building homes, not only in design and style, but also in structure and efficiency.

Henry points out the importance of raising the bar in homebuilding for the homeowners' sake. He finds it troubling that, in Texas, homebuilders are not required to be licensed by any specific organization. The electricians, the plumbers, the HVAC contractors must be licensed, but homebuilders, remodelers, and general contractors do not have to be. For this reason, he believes that it is imperative to be a good standing member of a homebuilding organization, like the GHBA and TAB. He also prides himself and his company on being intricately involved in the training classes, and the code and building practices of the GHBA and GBGC. He said that being a member of these organizations allows the consumer to know the validity and reputation of the homebuilder. Being a homebuilding leader in energy efficiency has its benefits too, as made obvious with the numerous awards Zander Homes continues to compile.

ZANDER HOMES is a Houston-based homebuilder that focuses on constructing homes that are environmentally friendly and energy efficient. Our homebuilding business was founded in 2010 and was recently named a finalist for the 2016 Grand Award Custom Builder of the Year by the Greater Houston Builder's Association. To discover all Zander Homes has to offer homebuyers, visit our website at ZanderHomes.net.

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