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Mid Grade Builder in Brazos/Grimes County

4,962 Views | 21 Replies | Last: 1 yr ago by GrimesCoAg95
Texasclipper
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AG
I own a 3 acre lot in King Oaks that we were planning on building on and moving to at retirement, however I'm 100% remote work and rarely have to drive into Houston so nothing is keeping me in the suburbs. We currently live on 4 acres that is becoming less and less "in the country". The rural quiet of KO is very appealing as is no longer sweating out hurricane threats, so we are strongly considering moving the time frame up.

Can someone recommend some quality builders for the area that will build a mid-grade home? Most of what I'm seeing built in the area are pretty high end. I don't need coffered ceilings, crown molding, and 8 inch base boards. I'm looking for mid-grade cabinets, mid grade granite counters flat 9 foot ceilings, etc. I'm thinking around 2500 square feet for the main house and a separate workshop for me with a 1000 sq ft apartment for my parents.

I've looked at Tilson and they seem ok and they're lack of doing construction loans is appealing, but they have a 18 month build time right now and can't handle building a separate shop/MIL apartment. Yes, I'll have to move my elderly parents too, so that complicates things.

Any thoughts or recs?
AgPT06
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16-18 months is pretty normal right now for rural. So much so some of the construction loans have extended to 18 or 24 month interest only completion time. We looked at a ton of builders and most said from the signing of contract to move in 16-18 months due to lag of materials and subcontractors. It's going to take 2-4 months just for permits, utilities, and septic/well these days and then 12 months to actually build. Maybe different in your area but was out findings in Hill Country
aggies4life
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I'd call Gary Emola construction. They have done a good amount of houses in king oaks.
Wvpd0707
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I would contact KD Homebuilders, Angel Cacho-Negrete. Established builder in the Bryan/College Station area. He has established subs and has build several homes in King Oaks.
Win At Life
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I'm not sure if they will build out where you are, but Precision Homes is the cheapest build on your lot builder that I know.
SickAG02
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Not sure how to take the whole "mid grade" thing, but I'll indulge . We'd be honored at the chance. Could be sooner than the 18 month timeframe we're currently quoting. After all, if you consider our business model - the fact that we don't get paid until the home is completely finished because we're not requiring a construction loan - it behooves us to complete the home as quickly as possible, as long as quality is properly executed. Our team is simply trying to set proper expectations given the current macroeconomic struggles.

Eric Alarid '02
SVP TIlson Homes
Keeper of The Spirits
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Tell Andy I said sup
Orlando Ayala Cant Read
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Whoever you choose make sure they aren't building more homes than they can reasonably handle. Ask how many jobs they are doing and how many jobs your assigned project manager will oversee. Anything more than 10-12 homes being overseen by a project manager is too much imo and your project will have mistakes.

Go with a builder that gives your project the attention it needs.
TXCityGirl
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Check to see if there is a thread about builders in King Oaks on the Aggieland board.
FILO505
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I've got a builder that's in the 10-ish month range from dirt to key because they're only working 7 homes right now. They've built 3 in King Oaks. Lemme know if you're interested

Also, King Oaks HOA has turned into "we did what we wanted when we moved here, but now you can't do the same" people. At least, that's my info from current builders
Txag17
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Texas Clipper,

I am a rural builder based out of College Station. I would be more than happy to help you out. Give me a call! 979-324-8123
www.gascustomhomes.com
Furlock Bones
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their HOA is something else.
Texasclipper
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Furlock Bones said:

their HOA is something else.
Care to elaborate? That is a concern as I'd like to have a workshop and oversized garage. I like to work on classic cars.
BR549 Junior
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We recently built on acreage we own between Anderson and Carlos.

We used a local builder out of Anderson, Leon Kimich Construction. Has a good reputation and has built a number of homes in the area.

Let me know if you're still looking and would like me to share his contact information.

P.S. He also built our barndominium/shop a few years before we built the house, so he should be able to handle both for you.
PapaCow
wonderhill
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To say it behooves you to complete the construction process is a little disingenuous in our current environment. With Tilson providing the permanent financing, you are now incentivized to NOT complete the structure and allow mortgage rates to climb yielding significantly more interest income over the life of the loan for Tilson. My daughter is currently building with Tilson and is having a nightmare trying to get the house complete. The majority of the time the house is not being worked on or their is one or two people on site. Catching the superintendent ON the project is very difficult. At this point the insulation has already started to mold with the house not being dried in.

Both my father ('69 Architectural Construction) and myself ('94 Construction Science) are Aggie grads and have been in construction our entire careers. I warned them that Tilson is 100% dependent on the team that builds your specific house. Get a good superintendent, who is a pusher, and they are fine. My daughter is not working with one of those. My biggest regret is not building the house for her as I completed ours in 5 months and they are well over a year and not dried in. I ran a quick calculation on the 3.06% interest rate when the signed up with Tilson vs. current rates as they will be lucky to get into the house under 6% now. Calculate that on a $350k note over the life of the loan. The delta in the total interest expense is a large number for first time home buyer/builders with a growing family.

I would love to discuss her project directly with someone from Tilson that might actually be able to make a difference. To date I haven't found that person. At the end of the day, I will be very vocal in how disappointed we are in Aggie Owned Tilson Homes.

SickAG02
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There's seems to be a misunderstanding in how the process works. I'll clear that up, publicly, and be happy to discuss your situation privately. TIlson does not provide the permanent financing. We do not carry any mortgages. We are not a mortgage lender, nor do we do in house financing. Our customers get approved for the permanent mortgage (FHA, VA, TxVet, Conventional) by a licensed mortgage broker or mortgage banker. We have a couple companies we recommend with whom we have no affiliated business agreement. We recommend them simply because those companies are intimately familiar with the process of building a home on rural land without a construction loan. We are funded by the customer's lender upon completion of the home when the customer closes on his or her permanent loan. You or your family member are welcome to call our front desk at 713-802-9887 and ask for Eric Alarid. I'll be happy to listen to what's going on and help in any way possible.
MTTANK
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Texasclipper said:

I own a 3 acre lot in King Oaks that we were planning on building on and moving to at retirement, however I'm 100% remote work and rarely have to drive into Houston so nothing is keeping me in the suburbs. We currently live on 4 acres that is becoming less and less "in the country". The rural quiet of KO is very appealing as is no longer sweating out hurricane threats, so we are strongly considering moving the time frame up.

Can someone recommend some quality builders for the area that will build a mid-grade home? Most of what I'm seeing built in the area are pretty high end. I don't need coffered ceilings, crown molding, and 8 inch base boards. I'm looking for mid-grade cabinets, mid grade granite counters flat 9 foot ceilings, etc. I'm thinking around 2500 square feet for the main house and a separate workshop for me with a 1000 sq ft apartment for my parents.

I've looked at Tilson and they seem ok and they're lack of doing construction loans is appealing, but they have a 18 month build time right now and can't handle building a separate shop/MIL apartment. Yes, I'll have to move my elderly parents too, so that complicates things.

Any thoughts or recs?

I am not sure the HOA will let you build what you want. Any accessory structure has to be under 40% of the heated sqft of the main structure. So if you build a 2500 sqft house, 1000 sqft total is what you can build for the shop and parents combined. I could be wrong on that, but was investigating recently for myself.
GIG 'EM
Aggie_Steph
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BR549 Junior said:

We recently built on acreage we own between Anderson and Carlos.

We used a local builder out of Anderson, Leon Kimich Construction. Has a good reputation and has built a number of homes in the area.

Let me know if you're still looking and would like me to share his contact information.

P.S. He also built our barndominium/shop a few years before we built the house, so he should be able to handle both for you.



I just met Leon recently- and attended a birthday party at a home that he built- it was STUNNING! So definitely i would say he is worth a call.
Sgt. Schultz
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I have experience with a couple of the builders mentioned in the thread. One builder was good, the other was so-so to good. Its hard to catch everything when there is no drywall up and then once its in, they do a decent job of hiding their mistakes. Unfortunately, the house we live in is the "so-so" house and are having to consider on how to clean-up things I missed during construction - things like walls being out of whack, ceilings not level, etc....

Regardless of who you get to build your home, make sure you try to visit at least every 2-3 days to make sure they are doing things correctly. Take a "square" with you to make sure walls and ceilings are correct. I did not do the latter and its why I am saying it now. *** It is easier for them to fix things right then and there versus a few weeks later. ***

I visited my job site at least 1 a day and sometimes twice, and caught A LOT of shoddy workmanship. However, I did not take a square with me or I would have had had proof. I pointed out things that looked out of whack and they kept saying "no, its good." Even on final walk-through, I said, that looks out of whack, but my wife and superintendent didn't say anything, and it felt like I was a lone voice. Turns out I was correct and it was really off. We have since added a fireplace and shiplap, which was like shining a spotlight on how out of whack things are.

Our house isn't going to fall down but right now, I am pretty pissed off at my builder. That said, I am pretty sure we are past the point of where of them fixing things as we moved in 2.5 years ago. I haven't contacted them yet so....... I am also pissed off at myself because I didn't trust what I saw. I guess we could file suit because the things we are finding is beyond what the typical consumer should be expected to to catch (drywall, tape, and floating hide things). But, we may be past that point as it is 2.5 years later. I still think the superintendent should have caught many of these things but if they have several builds going, it can be tough to stay on top of things.
JP76
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Sgt. Schultz said:

I have experience with a couple of the builders mentioned in the thread. One builder was good, the other was so-so to good. Its hard to catch everything when there is no drywall up and then once its in, they do a decent job of hiding their mistakes. Unfortunately, the house we live in is the "so-so" house and are having to consider on how to clean-up things I missed during construction - things like walls being out of whack, ceilings not level, etc....

Regardless of who you get to build your home, make sure you try to visit at least every 2-3 days to make sure they are doing things correctly. Take a "square" with you to make sure walls and ceilings are correct. I did not do the latter and its why I am saying it now. *** It is easier for them to fix things right then and there versus a few weeks later. ***

I visited my job site at least 1 a day and sometimes twice, and caught A LOT of shoddy workmanship. However, I did not take a square with me or I would have had had proof. I pointed out things that looked out of whack and they kept saying "no, its good." Even on final walk-through, I said, that looks out of whack, but my wife and superintendent didn't say anything, and it felt like I was a lone voice. Turns out I was correct and it was really off. We have since added a fireplace and shiplap, which was like shining a spotlight on how out of whack things are.

Our house isn't going to fall down but right now, I am pretty pissed off at my builder. That said, I am pretty sure we are past the point of where of them fixing things as we moved in 2.5 years ago. I haven't contacted them yet so....... I am also pissed off at myself because I didn't trust what I saw. I guess we could file suit because the things we are finding is beyond what the typical consumer should be expected to to catch (drywall, tape, and floating hide things). But, we may be past that point as it is 2.5 years later. I still think the superintendent should have caught many of these things but if they have several builds going, it can be tough to stay on top of things.


This is where it pays to have an independent third party inspect the framing stage of the house before systems are roughed in and it gets sheetrocked. City inspectors aren't looking for quality in inspection, just code violations. I can't tell you how many flaws I have found in framing stages in houses. Simple things that could have been corrected by a good gc or superintendent. Before covering up any job I pull string lines down centers of every wall to check for studs that need replacing/straightening. An old school way of how it used to be done where quality took precedence of just throwing it up as fast as you can and on to the next one.
Sgt. Schultz
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JP76 said:

Sgt. Schultz said:

I have experience with a couple of the builders mentioned in the thread. One builder was good, the other was so-so to good. Its hard to catch everything when there is no drywall up and then once its in, they do a decent job of hiding their mistakes. Unfortunately, the house we live in is the "so-so" house and are having to consider on how to clean-up things I missed during construction - things like walls being out of whack, ceilings not level, etc....

Regardless of who you get to build your home, make sure you try to visit at least every 2-3 days to make sure they are doing things correctly. Take a "square" with you to make sure walls and ceilings are correct. I did not do the latter and its why I am saying it now. *** It is easier for them to fix things right then and there versus a few weeks later. ***

I visited my job site at least 1 a day and sometimes twice, and caught A LOT of shoddy workmanship. However, I did not take a square with me or I would have had had proof. I pointed out things that looked out of whack and they kept saying "no, its good." Even on final walk-through, I said, that looks out of whack, but my wife and superintendent didn't say anything, and it felt like I was a lone voice. Turns out I was correct and it was really off. We have since added a fireplace and shiplap, which was like shining a spotlight on how out of whack things are.

Our house isn't going to fall down but right now, I am pretty pissed off at my builder. That said, I am pretty sure we are past the point of where of them fixing things as we moved in 2.5 years ago. I haven't contacted them yet so....... I am also pissed off at myself because I didn't trust what I saw. I guess we could file suit because the things we are finding is beyond what the typical consumer should be expected to to catch (drywall, tape, and floating hide things). But, we may be past that point as it is 2.5 years later. I still think the superintendent should have caught many of these things but if they have several builds going, it can be tough to stay on top of things.


This is where it pays to have an independent third party inspect the framing stage of the house before systems are roughed in and it gets sheetrocked. City inspectors aren't looking for quality in inspection, just code violations. I can't tell you how many flaws I have found in framing stages in houses. Simple things that could have been corrected by a good gc or superintendent. Before covering up any job I pull string lines down centers of every wall to check for studs that need replacing/straightening. An old school way of how it used to be done where quality took precedence of just throwing it up as fast as you can and on to the next one.
So true. Hindsight. Woulda, coulda, shoulda. I ****ed up by not doing that.
GrimesCoAg95
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AG
I do not fully know the plans of the OP, however, if the HOA is not easy there are ways.

You can connect it to the house through the garage or via the covered back porch. This allows you to easily get between the houses without uncovered sidewalks or stairs. I had a friend (the aging parent) that did this in High Meadow Ranch, and it was fabulous. the parents house connected in through the garage. This made doctor visits and such easy and when my friend had to stop driving, it was still easy.

With this setup, the whole home and parents' home is part of the main structure. So now the shop can be bigger since it can be 40%. Win-Win...
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