In Parts 1 & 2 of this Custom Home Design blog series, I wrote about the importance of identifying the budget, a recent survey of the property and the benefit of having the customer prepare a comprehensive wish list…
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The Serengeti Grand Opening. Serengeti is a one-of-a-kind property in Alva, just fifteen minutes from I-75 on the west coast of Florida. Its lush 31 acres are full of natural beauty. The Caloosahatchee River borders the southern side of the property, and will offer boating access for its residents. There’s a total of 15 acreage. . .
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Interviewing clients for a custom home design, either by phone or in person, is an invaluable process of discovery and we at Wright Jenkins Home Design appreciate the details our customers reveal.
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FGCU Students Meet Net-Zero Energy Experts — Fort Myers based Hi-Performance builder, Shawn Harvey of Greencastle Inc. and designer Dave Jenkins of Energy Smart Home Plans are almost done with the construction of a true Net-Zero home, the 711 Tavernier. These are the Net-Zero Energy Experts. The customers, Roy and Kathleen are very excited about. . .
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You are considering building a custom home, but you also see that a number of newly constructed homes have advertised monthly payments which sound too good to be true. You know what they say about deals too good to be true…?
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Devastating storms often bring out the very best in people. Texans continuing to care for one another in the aftermath of hurricane Harvey is just one example. On Friday the 8th, two days before Irma’s eventual arrival in SW Florida, I started receiving text messages, emails and phone calls from several customers (every client in. . .
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Buy the Best Green Home for the money – Right Now! We first wrote about the Eco Series 2500 model home in a blog titled, The Best Green Home for the Money posted on June 20th, 2016. At the time, builders Bob Hilliard and Jeff Gersh were about to start construction of their first Energy. . .
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What’s the connection between poor sleep and marriage? Statistics show that about 30% of marriages are impacted by lack of sleep. In fact, a Sleep Council study reported that one in six couples sleep in separate rooms. How poor sleep can affect marriages. The lack of quality sleep can not only affect relationships but can. . .
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We want to congratulate and thank Ashok and Ravi Patel and Dan Wigh on a fantastic open house. Developers Ashok and Ravi are making a great contribution to the Clearwater community with its upscale neighborhood, Breezy Meadows in Pinellas County, Florida. These homes will all offer super low energy bills at a modest price point. . .
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Why has the construction of residential homes not advanced as quickly as other things? If you were to transport a modern car back to 1950’s, car mechanics would be dumbfounded. It would appear as if it came from another world. The same can be said for watches, phones, televisions, radios, and home appliances. But not. . .
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When you buy bread do you have to sort through piles of old, stale bread to find a fresh loaf? No, no you don’t. When you invest in a new computer, do you expect it to use the most up-to-date technology? Of course you do! Then why do some home designers make you search through. . .
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Boca Grande Custom Residence by EnergySmart on Sketchfab We design custom homes for people all over the world. SketchUp and/or SketchFab are vital tools when it comes to showing our clients what we’ve created. Many people have a hard time visualizing a home from just floor plans. The most important part of designing a home. . .
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August in Florida can feel like living on the surface of the sun. They don’t call it the “Sunshine State” for nothing. To make it livable you need central air-conditioning. A swimming pool and a job indoors doesn’t hurt either. Keeping cool can be expensive. You can find the average electric bill in your area. . .
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There is no other part of a new home that will pay you back. Sure, a home is an investment, hopefully one that will pay off when you sell it. But there is one aspect that can pay you back the first year you live in it. Studies have shown that people stay in there. . .
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Hurricane damage from Hermine is just the latest in a series of natural disasters. There has also been the terrible flooding in Louisiana and unrelenting fires in Canada and California. While offering our thoughts and prayers to the victims of these disasters, we want to contribute in the best way we know how. When your home. . .
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Its HOT and getting hotter! While many will debate the whole climate change issue most will agree the temperatures seem more extreme. When it’s so hot out and the winters seem like they are getting more threatening, our homes need to be able to cope with it. However, we no longer have the luxury of. . .
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Changing attitudes since the Great Recession have driven home ownership down. Due to this the first quarter of 2016 has seen the rate that Americans own their homes fall to the lowest on record. All this while the interest rate has remained very low. Taking this into consideration, this seems like it may be the. . .
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From Preliminary Home Design to Construction Task 1 – Preliminary Home Design [floor plan, elevations, roof plan, site plan] Task 2 – CAD Design Development – [all sheets] Task 3 – Energy Calculations & Mechanical Design [optimizing your HVAC] Task 4 – Structural Engineering [signed and sealed] Task 5 – Coordinate [Builder, Truss Mfg., Energy. . .
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Energy Smart Home Plans customers are very happy to have built a custom designed, super energy-efficient home for less money than what they would have spent for a big-box builder’s, energy-hog, tract home. Good for our lucky customers, too bad for those that simply don’t know what they are missing! Our mission is to get. . .
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