Blog
Some things you should know about me
When you’re in the market for a contractor, builder, or remodeler, you want to make sure you choose someone reliable and trustworthy. We’ve all heard about the horror stories of homeowners forking out big money up-front for a project and the next thing they know their contractor skips town. While scenarios like that do happen, if you do your research, ask the right questions, and choose a qualified, registered builder, you should be just fine. That’s one reason why I wanted to write this post. I want to go ahead and answer some of those questions for you so you … Read more
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In today’s market, the kitchen sells the home
The majority of buyers today are looking for convenience. They want to purchase a house that is move-in ready. They are busy professionals with young families and not a lot of extra time to devote to renovations. Do you know what the most costly and time consuming renovations is? The kitchen. When buyers are looking for a new construction, the kitchen is the top priority. Professional Builder recently conducted a survey of home builders and found that eight out of 10 believe the kitchen is the most vital space when it comes to marketing and selling new homes. Focused around … Read more
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Perry on Homes
If you’re an HGTV fan like me, then you’ve probably seen the show Holmes on Homes. On the show, contractor Mike Holmes fixes houses that are a by-product of cheap labor, poor planning, and shoddy contract work. He totally revamps the home—sometimes gutting it if necessary—to meet code and cleans up the mess left behind by the previous contractor. His philosophy is simple and I tend to follow his way of thinking: Do it right the first time. So many builders cut corners these days. They take the fastest, easiest route possible to get the job done and forget about … Read more
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Is price the only thing that matters?
We’ve definitely seen business pick up recently and are ecstatic about the seven bids we currently have out. Some of the builders we’re bidding against are licensed contractors—but some are not. As more and more people start thinking about home additions, remodels, or custom builds this spring, we wanted to remind everyone how important it is to not focus entirely on price. Quality is just as important when it comes to your home. I wanted to list a few reasons why you should consider choosing someone like us, instead of the cheapest bid you receive. After all, you want the … Read more
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Covered porch addition
I wanted to share a covered porch addition we recently completed on a custom home we built. The buyers of the home called us back to add on a screened-in porch. We posted the complete process on our Flickr account so you can see the progression from start to finish. After the planning process and the finalizing of the quote, we started and finished this project in about five weeks. Some of our product had to be ordered from the factory so we would have no seams in the porch floor. This cost us a little time, but the end … Read more
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The 2011 Home Show has come and gone—our recap
Here’s how the Home and Garden Show fared in our eyes. On Friday and Saturday there were a steady flow of people just out looking for education and information. Of course, just like at any trade show, there were the usual “stuff grabbers.” You know the ones, equipped with two bags and looking for any widgets they can score. Most seemed to stop at our booth and take a DVD or a brochure. Some asked questions. Most of the interest we saw on Friday and Saturday was around remodeling or home improvements. The show was not quite as large as … Read more
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See you at the Home and Garden Show
If you read my newsletter this weekend, you may have noticed that I’ll be attending the Home Garden & Remodeling Show again this year. The show runs from March 11-13 at the Kentucky Expo Center and is produced by the Home Builders Association of Louisville. Exhibitors at the show will be offering information on any home-related topic you can think of. I’ll be exhibiting a full booth this year and will be talking to people about custom home building and remodeling. I’d love for you to stop by my booth and say hi. If you have any questions about home … Read more
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Spring Checklist For Your Home
February is over and March is ushering in waves of spring. This time of year usually raises some questions about issues that have popped up around your new or recently remodeled house. I usually comment that these issues not only happen around new or newly remodeled houses, but can occur in most any house, regardless of age. Here are a few I have already addressed this season: 1. “I turned my water hose on today and it sprayed water into my crawl space. It didn’t do that before you remodeled my bathroom. What do you think is wrong?” What usually … Read more
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Custom Basement Finish in Owl Creek Subdivision
Check out our latest video of a custom basement finish in Owl Creek. This home actually belongs to my good friend, Terry Kennedy of Middletown Opticians. Some of the unique features of this affordable remodel are the custom molding and trim work, the rounded arches, and recessed lighting. With Owl Creek being an established neighborhood, a lot of homeowners are looking to either finish their basements or make some other remodeling improvements. This video is a good example of how a custom basement finish can be accomplished easily and affordably when building new homes in Louisville is not an option. … Read more
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P.L. Lyons Wins Sales and Marketing Award
After 35 years in the building business, P.L. Lyons has won many awards. They range from Homearama awards to 2009 Remodeler of the Year. The latest award was for taking a leap of faith into the new world of inbound marketing, also known as internet marketing or digital marketing. “The President’s Grand Award” for Best Integrated Internet Marketing Campaign was given by the Sales and Marketing Council of the Home Builders Association of Louisville. We submitted to win the award back in the fall. The basis of our campaigns included content marketing via free reports and downloadable guides. It also … Read more
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Which home building group do you fall in?
We’ve put together some thoughts on home building and remodeling for this new year. Some of you are just surviving (we understand there is no business that’s been hit harder than builders these last few years) and the thought of buying a new home, building a home or even doing a remodel are far from your mind. We understand. Who would want to push anyone to do something to stretch themselves in this economy? If you’re being pushed— run! Some of you are not even surviving. You need help. You’ve lost homes to foreclosure, had to sell short or take … Read more