What do the words "custom made" bring to mind? Made to order? The notion of quality and craftsmanship? Or does it conjure up images of a unique product that stands alone?

Production homebuilders (those who build a number of homes with an already specified and city-approved set of floor plans and exteriors with standardized homebuyer options) must be extremely careful in their use of the word "custom" or even "semi-custom", using instead, phrases like "custom feel" or "personalized homes." Why? Because they know that when they use the word "custom" by itself, they must be held to a different standard, willing to do, within reason, what the homebuyer is ordering them to do.

Enter the true custom homebuilder. He is the guy who may only build anywhere from 5 to 15 homes a year, but puts his name on every single one of them. He is the guy you call with your dreams and hopes and plans for the home that has been in your mind forever--one that reflects you and only you --even if you've blended and "borrowed" ideas from several other prototypes.

Keith P. Rogers is one such custom homebuilder. When asked why he builds homes, first and foremost, his reply is, "Because building is in my blood." Indeed, as with many other notable contractors in the industry, Rogers comes from a long line of building craftsmen. His grandfather was a carpenter, and his father is a civil engineer who specialized in industrial construction. He was raised in a family that he considers the "construction equivalent of army brats," moving constantly while growing up, taking them wherever work and building livelihoods were in demand.

Finally settling in 1972 while attending Wake Forest University in North Carolina (the 13th school Rogers checked off attending in his young life), Rogers graduated with a B.A in Economics in 1979. After dabbling in the commercial brokerage and management world for a few years, Rogers went into the homebuilding business in 1983, when he joined the team of an up-and- coming South Carolina-based production homebuilder first as an Assistant Area Manager, and then the Charlotte Area Manager. Rogers was now on the road to a homebuilding future laden with challenge and destined for change as the second millenium was drawing to a close.

In 1992, Keith Rogers Homes, Inc. was born. With his brother, Mark, as his construction manager and only staff person, Rogers specializes in building custom homes for empty nesters in their own courtyard home communities. Using all neo-traditional design concepts emphasizing community park space, pedestrian traffic, and the de-emphasis of garage fronts and automobile-oriented lifestyles, Rogers builds only 11-15 homes per year. This is his third such custom home community. He could build more. He could get bigger. Why does he choose to stay small, you may ask?

Says Rogers, "At every step of my homebuilding career, I have chosen to do fewer homes and be closer to my buyers in the process of building their homes. I love helping my buyers design their new homes, and then building them to their specifications. There is a special, tangible satisfaction to viewing a home and a community and knowing that you created them."

According to Rogers, American society is placing a higher value than ever on customized unique goods and services. A small example he cites illustrating this is as simple as a cup of coffee. Where we used to be satisfied with a drive-through McDonald's variety or a stop at the 7-11, many of us now frequent $3-a-cup coffee houses, giving us the choice of dozens of varieties of custom made blends. Rogers describes custom homebuilding as an answer to those wishing to create a home that specifically meets their needs, based on their own decisions.

Building a custom home doesn't necessarily mean getting everything you want, however. Every price range has its limitations and trade-offs of space versus features and amenities. Rogers believes that people who are on the journey to a custom home purchase have a lot of legwork to accomplish before putting pen to paper and placing deposits. "Get started by educating yourself about available homes and products," instructs Rogers. "Tour "spec" homes and models, go to home shows, go on builder-sponsored home tours, and look at home product vendor showrooms. Start a notebook and keep records of what you liked and didn't like and why. Clip floor plans and pictures from magazines, newspapers and builder trade journals, and, take every advantage of the newest all-encompassing form of research - the World Wide Web."

Deciding your own set of custom home needs may take some time as well. Organizing your needs and putting together a game plan are a big start. Make decisions about space design, appearance, the site plan (how your home will sit on your lot), and products you'll want to use. "Start with the big picture in each category and don't get lost in the details," warns Rogers. Listing the "can't live withouts" first will be a good step in the right direction.

How does one choose a custom homebuilder? You must, of course, develop a strong affinity to the types of homes he builds, have a good idea of his philosophy and commitment to quality homebuilding in the area, but you must also like the guy! After all, you will be working with him on an almost daily basis for a minimum of nine months or so; possibly even a year to two years depending on the scope of your dream home project. Once you have determined that this is someone you truly want to spend time with, don't shy away from calling references and previous clients. Don't expect perfection in their comments, rather; look for feedback on how the builder met their expectations, the perceived quality of their work, and whether they would use him again.

According to Rogers, success is truly in the details. Detailed plans and specifications lay the groundwork for a good relationship. Whether you are doing a design/build with plans provided by your builder or a competitive bid, it is vital to the entire process that you and your builder have a common understanding about what you are going to build together before you start. "More problems arise from a failure to spell things out and understand what has been spelled out than by any other source," Rogers admonishes.

Rogers has his own theories on how to get the best job from a custom homebuilder - how well one works with him and how knowledgeable he would like to become about the entire process has a lot to do with it. In the end, however, the finished product and the years of enjoyment custom homebuyers will spend in their creations is what it's all about. At every turn while touring guests around their new homes, these homebuyers can profess to tell a story on how each and every item was painstakingly selected and why. They can tell of successes and setbacks, triumphs and tribulations, as with any journey they have taken. When it's all said and done, however, both they and their custom homebuilder will have given birth to yet another testament to the American Dream, making it all worthwhile, in a place called home.

Published: March 17, 2000

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A veteran of the real estate and homebuilding industries since 1986, Dena Kouremetis first joined Realty Times as a new homes writer in 1998. Since then, she has authored four books, written consumer columns on new homes issues for websites and newspapers all across the country, contributed to builder trade magazines, appeared as a guest expert on several radio shows and even created a ten-chapter podcast for LendingTree.com’s homebuilder website, iNest.com, now available on iTunes, entitled Uncharted Waters; Navigating the Purchase of a New Production Home. Kouremetis recently joined her local Folsom, CA Coldwell Banker office as a broker associate while continuing to write for the real estate industry. For the past three years, she has been training real estate agents for both the resale and new homes industries, putting her experience, research expertise and gift of expression to work to help others entering the business.