Cross posted from RE board:

I'm just doing some research into working with a home builder and wanted to get recommendations on reputable home builders (Ags are a plus too) in the NW part of SA.

I'll be using Arete Custom Homes soon, you can see their work on Facebook. My cousin owns the company

Thanks!

Is there a typo on the name? Couldn't look them up anywhere.

Sorry, auto correct messed it up and was not paying attention. Here is link for my cousin company, if you reach out tell them James sent you

https://aretecustomhome.com/

Sorry, here you go

https://aretecustomhome.com/

Jim Boles, Tray Garner, and Mattern/Fitzgerald is who I'd start with.

I have heard good thing about Keith Wing

Some great Ags run Mattern & FitzGerald, known the FitzGerald's since since the 80's. Wonderful wonderful people.

We used Mattern for our home 10 years ago. Building process went smoothly but they really dropped the ball at the end. After construction was complete, we did a walk through and pointed out things that needed to be fixed. Most of it never got addressed. What made things worse for us is that our home in SO sold quickly and our apartment lease was up. We closed and moved in trusting they would clean everything up. I suspect they got their paycheck and it wasn't important to them anymore.

There are various levels of custom.

Most of the builders mentioned in this thread do custom homes - meaning they have in-house drafters that can dial up your plans without venturing too far from what the builders core strengths are. But these builders still do quite a few homes every year, so ask that question - number of houses they start every year over the last 3-5 years.

What's the typical price per square foot for a regular custom home (not talking about million dollar types)?

I work for a custom builder. Our prices start in the low $130 a sqft and drops some if your over 3000 sqft. Just to give you an idea.

What company (if you don't mind saying on here)?

Check out Colson Custom Homes and Trey Garner.

Both are Aggies.

I am looking to buy a lot in the area but not build for a few years. Should I get a builder out there to look at it before I proceed even though I am years away from building. For some of you that have built custom, is there anything you wished you would have asked about the lot or anything specific to look at.

I would say look for a lot that has minimal grade change. If it is hilly, you will pay a fortune for your foundation as more concrete will be needed. Additionally, you will have to landscape to deal with drainage and run off. Secondly, pick a lot with the backyard facing south. SA gets Summer winds from the South/gulf coast all Summer. You will bake on your patio in the Summer if you don't take advantage of that.

We spoke with an architect first and paid for our plans. That gave us the ability to bid those plans when we interviewed multiple builders. If you go straight to the builder for a design/build package, you may save some money but will be stuck with the builder who would own your plans. Good luck.

Wife wants a view so pretty much accepting a good bit of concrete work when it is time to build.

How did you go about picking a certain architect to work with. Did you know a certain model or floorplan you wanted to go with.

If bdiesel or any other builders want to contact me I wouldn't mind having general discussions at this point. Username at yahoo.

We used MSA Architecture based off a positive referral we had been given. Additionally, we discovered that they had designed several other homes we liked. We had been to quite a few Parade of Homes type events and brought pictures of what we liked. We also brought various floorpans of where we could show things we liked and things we didn't. We worked with Leslie and she nailed the design on the first go. I was really impressed with how she incorporated the things we had discussed. We only made a few changes to her original layout and we are still very happy with the design and layout of our home.

We are using MSA currently. Very impressed with Leslie. Have heard great stories all around on how great she is and she backs it up.

For those of you that have gone through the process, what builder did you choose?

Big Aggie family: Jack Uptmore custom homes

Who are the go-to builders for a house in River Chase in New Braunfels? Has pricing changed much since this thread was started?

milkman00 said:

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Who are the go-to builders for a house in River Chase in New Braunfels? Has pricing changed much since this thread was started?

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I used River Hills Custom Homes and had a somewhat mixed result.

Pluses:
Lee is a heck of a nice guy - stands behind his work and his word and has helped to make things right
Truly a custom home builder - they'll build whatever you want
No surprise costs - Lee uses a spreadsheet which calculates and updates any changes on the fly which you have access to throughout your build

Minuses:
The project manager I got had begun to show signs of Parkinsons. My home was his last job and he might should have retired beforehand.
The quality of the subs wasn't always too hot.
1. Painters painted the inside of my house the wrong color twice. Also used matte paint rather than satin so it is impossible to remove dirt from the wall now.
2. The electrician didn't connect the ground wire in any of my lighting. An independent electric
3. The concrete guys built my retaining wall incorrectly
4. The metal fabricators for the stairs got overspray on and ruined the first flooring that was put in
5. The 2nd flooring wasn't installed correctly and may also have to be replaced
6. The tile work in the shower is awful
7. Cabinet guys painted cabinetry satin instead of semigloss that was requested
8. The stair railing fabricators had to be fired and a new sub hired to redo the job

Flooring and tile was done by CW Floors installers so avoid them at all costs.
My project manager retired so we were assigned a new one to help with fixing all the things that were screwed up and he's been way better.
There are a million other small things that were wrong and have had to be fixed or replaced, but nothing out of the ordinary for a new home build. It is a stressful process so good luck and welcome to River Chase!

Ag doc - we aren't there yet, but working toward finding something in Hoffman Lane elementary district. After looking at homes this week, it seems like I can build new cheaper than buying one of these listed homes.

Have heard Havenwood water bills are sky high, but like the access to 35 from Hunter over there. The traffic at 306/35 scares me some. The low HOA dues of River Chase seem like a bargain for the amenities offered.

Bringing this to the top. It seems construction prices are outrageous right now and the smaller guys are struggling to get bids from contractors as the huge builders take priority to finish out the 4th quarter.
Really wish we would have started 6 months ago. May have to hold off a while. I am Open to other Custom builders.

Just found this (I replied to a different post asking about your experience).