Quality architecture is custom tailored to the homeowner, not a spec house simply bought off the block. It begins with the desires and goals of the homeowner, and carries them through the design-build process.  To do this, the architect must have your best interest in mind. This is your design. We are your partner in the process, an extension of your imagination and technical tool of creation and realization.

A Custom Home Design

The last several years have seen a big shift in the housing market and in how we value our homes. At the height of the housing boom, the idea of home had shifted from the traditional role as a long term family asset to being a trading chip in the investor’s portfolio. Thanks to a painful (but necessary) correction in the trajectory that the housing market was on, most people have come to the realization that their home is still a valuable asset, but a large part of its value comes from the utility and functionality it offers. The concept of housing has returned to a vision of long term occupancy with an emphasis on sustainability, quality, and enhanced functionality.

The design of a home is as unique as the homeowners themselves. All aspects of the design culminate in a final product that is uniquely expressive. Materiality, light, space, all come together to affect the owners. Inseparably, a home represents those living within. We strive to make our living spaces, our offices, even our bathrooms, uniquely our own. We spend time designing a space to our taste, simply because we like it, without fully recognizing that the space ultimately represents us. Choice of paint and décor, fixtures and furniture, all contribute to the feel and expression of a room.

A Unique Custom Home for Individual Tastes

Modifying an existing home to meet your needs can be a viable option, but the expense of remodeling should always be weighed against the value added since most major remodels don’t pay for themselves in improved resale value. Sometimes it’s possible to find a great piece of property with a not so great house on it, and depending on the circumstances it might make sense to tear down an existing house to replace it with a custom home that better meets your needs. Before embarking on a major remodel or buying an existing property that needs remodeling, it is a good idea to consult with an Architect to get a professional opinion on the viability of your plan.

Why begin this customization with a completed building, seeking to make the house into a home, when the customization process begins before the architect’s pen even touches paper? From start to finish, custom architecture and building becomes an extension of your own unique imagination.  Schematic design exists not as a means to an end, but as a defining factor in the final product.  It is here that the building itself gains identity, where its expression begins. Custom design is large-scale and small-scale, the big moves as well as the small details. Architects are your partner in the design and construction process, helping your dreams become reality.

Entry Hall

A family that lives in a home designed for them is likely to live there for a long period of time. When the homeowner is able to participate in the design process and create a living environment that will complement and enhance their everyday life, they develop a lasting bond with their home that makes long term occupancy very appealing.   Many people come to us looking for home designs that meet their current needs, but they also want their home to accommodate them as they age and become less mobile. While it’s easy to design a home to meet an individual’s specific needs, most prebuilt homes are made to have mass appeal and rarely are a perfect fit for what a family really needs.

The value of a well-designed custom home can’t be overstated. Rather than settling for what a builder thought you might want or what the previous homeowners liked, when you choose to build a custom-designed home you get a unique creation that matches your lifestyle, functional requirements, and aesthetic preferences. Every individual or family has their own spatial requirements and personal preferences, and a custom home tailored to them will meet their needs without being cramped, awkward, or burdened by wasteful unusable space.

If a homeowner does decide to sell, a well designed custom home will attract more discriminating buyers, and will almost certainly sell for a significantly higher price than a production or spec home with the same statistics. Even though home prices have dropped, there are still plenty of buyers who appreciate quality and are willing to pay for it.

Custom Kitchen Designed To Face the Views

Hendricks Architecture specializes in custom mountain and lakefront homes that are designed to match the unique lifestyles of their occupants. If a new home is in your future, we would love to talk to you about turning your vision into reality. Contact us here.

Jesse Hart – Hendricks Architecture

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