Mattern & FitzGerald Announces New Model in Menger Springs

LaVillita on the River Walk 

Located on the south bank of the San Antonio River, La Villita was San Antonio's first neighborhood.   It's timeless architecture and importance to San Antonio's history have made it one of the top tourist attractions in town.  I'm proud to announce that Mattern & FitzGerald will for the first time open a model home that honors this style of architecture in the Menger Springs neighborhood located in Boerne, in April of 2011.  There are several elements that we will draw from when constructing the home, such as the stone work, windows and roof pitches, to name a few.  Moving inside, we will modernize and focus on cleaner lines with the latest in technology and efficiency that you would come to expect, and not expect in a custom home.  Trust me, we do our homework when we roll out something new and we truly feel like this is something that will hit home with many and offer both a timeless and up-to-date feel.   The official grand opening will be for the Homes of Distinction Tour that will open in May 2011.  You can get a sneak peak a few months early though.  

Wood on Ceilings

You've probably heard already about the "fifth wall" which is designer slang for the ceiling.  It's often overlooked, but as a custom builder we are always thinking about views, not only left, right and down- but up as well.  Oftentimes, we will introduce a wood detail such as tongue and groove pine on the porch, patio and balcony soffets (ceilings) and then stain them.  For a porch of average proportion, you are probably looking at a cost adder of about $2-3,000 for all materials and labor to install and custom stain.  If you subtract what would have gone there in the first place, then the delta may very well be worth it.  Before you install though, I would familiarize yourself with the different species of wood.  The reason you should do that is because pine can have knots, where as cypress or fir will not show knots as much.  There are cost differences, as well as inherent color differences between the species of wood, so do a quick lesson to become an expert before you try.  I think what you'll find is for pure craftsmanship and detail, it's relatively inexpensive to return a high visual impact for the money invested.  You can turn a dining room, or living room or study very quickly into a focal point just by investing in the ceiling.  There are numerous ways to make your home special and this is only one, so consider it next time you have the ability to do a project like this.

Comparing Builders

One of these days someone will invent an easier way to compare custom builder quotes to one another.  It is not easy.  I just had a prospect who asked me to help him compare the two bids because it was so difficult.  When comparing build contracts, it is always best to start with a good set of plans.  From there, you need to understand what comes standard with the home.  By standard, I mean what does the foundation consist of, what materials are used in the walls, roof, electrical, plumbing, windows, doors, sheetrock, etc.  Basically all the things that it takes to build a home before actual preference items come into play.  Preference items are often referred to as "allowance" items, items which you have a say in how they are finished out.  That would be things like lighting fixtures, plumbing fixtures, flooring, counter top materials, paint finishes, trim, hardware, etc.  Most builders have allowances that drive the budget, because most of the things that make up the home are driven by building code.  So the biggest trick for you the homeowner, is to somehow level the playing field by fully understanding your allowance items and the abilities you have to control those costs.  If I give you a 30K budget for flooring, and my competitor gives you a 25K budget for flooring- then one of us is off.  It's our jobs to make sure we crawl inside your mind and fully understand what's important to you so that you don't have a bad experience when it comes time to select your finish out.  That's why we take so much time during the bid process.  We don't want anybody cussing at us 6 months down the road after we've signed a contract.  So in summary, fully understand your allowances, make sure they are consistent with all bidders and make sure the baseline of the home is being built according to code and plan and you should be on your way.  Happy Halloween everybody.