Back when I was thirty and was still sure I knew everything anyone needed to know about how to build fame and fortune, my investment partners and I bought a remaining un-built-out section of a famous north Houston subdivision.
Our plan was to keep about one-fifth of the lots to build for-sale spec homes on, and divide the others up among four well-known builders who had proven track records.
We thought that associating with the Big Dogs would bring us like-credibility, and prospective home buyers would quickly discover our homes and love them more than those of the Big Dogs.
No matter what your age, as you read this, you can see the overwhelming cockiness and idiocy of this plan, but at least remain sympathetic for the moment, because at sometime in everyone's life they do something just as silly, although hopefully not of this size or of this financial magnitude.
We hired the most famous residential architect of the time -- the guy who was inventing floor plans and designs that were being copied throughout the nation. His name was Barry Burkus, and he was from California.
So Barry sent us about eight different models with four or so elevations each. But before we began building them, I decided I'd make a few changes that I felt sure would make the designs better.
Then I instructed our superintendent, a fellow we called Matt Dillon, to build one of each. What a disaster! Prospective buyers hated them. So then Matt remodeled them to coincide with the original plans that Barry had sent us.
This was more than thirty years ago, now. And since then, I've been involved with the building of hundreds of homes and have listed and sold thousands of others. From experience, I've learned a lot about what works and what doesn't work.
I can't tell how often I am called to list a home and the moment I walk in I see the mistakes and errors that are the work of amateurs -- and it can be the homeowners, the architect, the builder or any combination. And more often than not, those quirks will cause no amount of pain in trying to find the next buyer for the home.
The facts are, the tract home builders -- the successful architects and the long-time custom builders -- have paid the price for knowing what will work and what won't work. Misakes cause them unwanted financial pain.
Unless a homeowner is planning to stay in the new home for many years, designing his own is usually a dumb idea. For my money, D.H. Horton home designs have about as much universal appeal as one can probably get. Patty and I bought one in South Shore Harbour, on the coast of Texas, and we still talk about how much we wish we could live in that exact home in Dallas.
BILL CHERRY, REALTORS
DALLAS - PARK CITIES
Our 45th Year
214 503-8563
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