Valley Home Finder September 2014 by Specialty Publications

Quality Custom Smart Homes with the Customer’s Needs in Mind Leader in Custom Home Building: Grupe Custom Home Over Delivers By Charleen Earley

Visionary and cutting edge is what The Grupe Company is all about – ever since its inception in 1966, when 28year-old Fritz Grupe Jr. and his team began building 4,000 homes in Stockton’s Lincoln Village West. “We were the first covered slip marina in the Delta with 650 slips, the first lake community in the entire region, the first to use underground utilities in San Joaquin County, first condos in the county and one of the first to use cable TV in the county,” said Fritz Grupe, Jr., married to Phyllis

for 54 years with four grown kids, 18 grandkids and two great grandkids. Fritz Grupe, who first sold homes to make a living, learned early on exactly who the key decision-maker was in the family; therefore, when he moved into the construction aspect of building and designing homes, he knew exactly who to cater to. They also built those first sets of custom lake homes in Lincoln Village West with female designer Bernice Nichols. “This was in the ’70s when women were not in the construction arena; they weren’t selling, building or designing

homes,” said Fritz Grupe, Jr. “At that time, we had four full-time designers headed by a woman, Bernice, who designed houses.” Building and designing quality homes for their clients goes far beyond the four walls of their home; for Grupe Custom Homes, it extends to the landscape, hardscape, custom street signs, light posts, custom crosswalks and more. “Some of our streets are what we call single-loaded, which means houses are on one side of the street, with no houses on the opposite side,” said Mark Fischer, CFO of The Grupe Company and President of See Grupe, page 20

Grupe, continued from page 16

Grupe Construction Company and Grupe New Home Sales. “Where most developers will try to squeeze in as many units as possible into a community, we consider the overall aesthetics for the look and feel.” Grupe’s cutting edge mantra continues today in the 21st century with their Zero Energy Smart Homes, keeping our carbon footprint in mind and securing a healthy environment for our children’s future. Traditionally designed to reduce

high energy bills, improve comfort, and help protect the environment, Grupe’s homeowners do not have to trade comfort and beauty for energy efficiency and smart-home technology. A high priority for Grupe Custom Homes is saving money for their clients by designing energy-efficient homes with cutting-edge, smart-home technology. “Grupe’s mantra is to reduce rather than produce,” says Fischer. “With this mantra, the homes are not required to use more solar in order to create a zero-energy home. The comprehensive list of energy-efficient features work together to create a $0 electric bill.” Also leading the way with innovative design, Grupe gives homeowners have the ability to control security, music, lighting, unlock doors and control realtime energy monitoring – all from their smart devices – which speaks

volumes on added value. Let’s not forget WiFi and cellular boosters too. “We deliver the best product and value to our customers by keeping them current, so they can live in the world today,” said Fischer, of Stockton, who has been with the company for 25 years. “We build custom green homes with the latest technology and design.” Most of Grupe’s custom homes and business developments span north Stockton with Lincoln Village West, built in the ’70s, Quail Lakes in the ’80s, Brookside in the ’90s to 2003 – today they’re building custom homes in Northern California and the East Bay. They also have satisfied homeowners in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Florida, Georgia and Tennessee. “In addition to being leaders in this industry, we are also known for our quality and attention to detail, which has placed us among the top 5 builders in homeowner satisfaction,” said Fritz Grupe, Jr.

iOne Home - Multiple (Effortless) Transformations!m

Remodeling your Home: Planning is Key By Charleen Earley

Who says remodeling your home is anything but joyful? It’s certainly someone who has not hired a contractor with as much knowledge, experience and know-how as Bob Leonard of Bob Leonard & Associates. A veteran General Building Contractor since 1964, and one of the most respected contractors in San Joaquin County, Leonard was one of the original Grupe Company men. He “left the band” and went solo in 1977, and has been helping business and homeowners find the joy in remodeling their homes and businesses ever since. “I always tell my clients to design around their needs, desires and budget,” says Leonard, who knows full well how skirting a well-thought-out design plan can add up to big bucks. “The first thing is to have some idea of the items you want to put in, whether it’s for the kitchen or bath – and also the motivation for doing it. Many people have no idea why they want to remodel. Remodeling can be expensive, if you don’t have a clear direction of what you want to do and why,” he added. The budget is another serious area remodelers have to be honest and upfront about. “People are not honest about the budget because they feel as though they’re

giving money away,” says Leonard. “But it’s important to build trust with your contractor.” Leonard advises people to get three bids, make sure to compare apples to apples with each bid, and get bids from licensed and bonded reputable contractors with references from previous jobs. “Have the contractor come up with drawings, or hire someone to do it, because every penny spent on good drawings is going to save you at least that much in the construction – you will get every penny back!” says Leonard. With a crew of nine employees who have been with him upwards of 30 years, Bob Leonard & Associates’ team has done small to large jobs, including remodeling the interior of Central United Methodist Church of Stockton on Pacific Avenue, five buildings for Oakdale High School and an outdoor kitchen for a homeowner in Lincoln Village West that won an award and found its way into Better Homes and Garden magazine. Leonard started out studying to be a pilot at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, but when he got an offer to start a construction crew in California, he hitchhiked his way to Stockton and has never looked back on his career change. “In this business, I love the daily challenge to coordinate everything,” says Leonard, married to Mary with four

Bob Leonard

grown kids and five grandkids. “I enjoy helping my guys, and helping them make a living and be happy. Working with them is like being married – if my guys are happy, then I wind up being happy, too!” One of his most interesting jobs was building a tree house in Ripon for a farmer’s grandkids. “It was the coolest thing – a two-story tree house!” says Leonard, who is now on AngiesList.com. Planning, Leonard says, is the key to any remodel. “The speed of the job is directly proportionate to the amount of time and money that goes into planning,” he says. “I’ve got a customer I’ve been working with for a year! Decisions are critical and it affects delays and timing – so planning is crucial.”

Bob Leonard & Associates General Building Contractor California License 347290 www.Bob-Leonard.com 209.931.4625 BobLeonard@Bob-Leonard.com

Clever Climate Control

These temperature-control tricks can help keep your HVAC system in tip-top shape, maintain a comfortable temperature in your home and save money on utility bills. By Erik J. Martin CTW Features

Running your HVAC system regularly during the cold and hot months of the year can be expensive but often necessary to achieve comfortable temperatures indoors. However, cranking up the thermostat doesn’t always result in a just-right temperature. Your house may suffer from drafty spots and thermal inefficiencies that are not only uncomfortable but can lead to high utility bills. Luckily, these issues are simple and relatively inexpensive to fix without having to replace your furnace or air conditioning system. “Thermal inefficiencies are much more common in older-construction homes built prior to the 1990s,” says Jason Hite, president of DIY Heating and Cooling Supply in Clermont, Fla. “Drafts are caused by many things, such as gaps or small spaces under doors, older inefficient windows, faulty seals on newer windows, poorly sealed attic access and basement doors and air infiltration from a crawl

Weatherstripping and caulking eliminate the gaps in door and window frames that cause drafts during the winter. This means the furnace doesn’t have to work as hard to keep the home warm.

space into the living space. Old, deteriorated attic insulation can also let heat in or out of your home.” Justin DiPego, senior editor at DoItYourself.com in El Segundo, Calif., says hot and cold spots in your home may also indicate little or no insulation in the walls and damaged exterior siding. “First, to check for air leaks, use a smoking stick of incense around your windows, exterior doors, power outlets and light To improve air flow, ceiling fans are great and inexpensive. They should spin clockwise in winter and counter-clockwise switches,” says DiPego, who in summer. Turning vents down by one-third can also adds that you can confirm a improve system efficiency. leak if the smoke is sucked programmable thermostat, if you don’t out or blown into the house. already have one, which can better “Windows and doors can easily be regulate your home’s temperature while resealed with new weatherstripping or you’re home and away. paintable latex caulk, and the outlet covers “Other practices, such as shutting and light-switch plates can be removed so off vents in parts of your house that are that gaps can be sealed with spray foam, seldom used – like basements and guest latex caulk or spackle.” rooms – will help heat and cool other Next, keep your furnace filter clean. areas of the house more efficiently,” says “As the filter gets dirty, the air isn’t Dave Quandt, vice president of field distributed as efficiently as if it were clean. operations for American Home Shield, a You should be changing your filter every home warranty and protection company. one to two months, but sometimes more “If you use the whole house, it’s often is required,” Hite says. recommended that you turn down all the Adding extra insulation within your vents by one-third to balance the static attic and walls can significantly improve pressure of the ductwork and system your heating and cooling efficiency. You and help even out the temperature in can buy batts or rolls of blanket insulation the home,” he adds. “If it’s still uneven, that you can apply in floors, ceilings and a professional can often add dampers attics; in closed areas like finished walls, to push air to parts of the home lacking you can opt to have cellulose or foam airflow.” insulation blown in by a professional. Additionally, ceiling fans can improve It’s also wise to upgrade to a airflow and have switches that allow the

fan to spin in either direction. Fans should spin clockwise during winter months and counterclockwise in the warm months. “Homeowners should also consult with local utility companies. Often, they will conduct free energy audits for customers and recommend ideas specific to each dwelling that can make heating and cooling more efficient,” Quandt says. Quandt says the right combination of do-ityourself caulking, insulation and weatherstripping can be completed for $300 or less, in most cases, which is much more affordable than replacing the entire HVAC system. “The only thing a new furnace or air conditioner is going to get you is more efficient operation. A new system can’t fix draft problems and hot and cold spots,” Hite says. “But by making these other improvements … a homeowner could expect to save a significant amount on their utility bills – maybe as much as 10 to 15 percent.”

When It’s Time to Replace… Last-minute service and replacement of HVAC systems is costly. Don’t wait for a disaster to spur you into action; here are some telltale signs that indicate it’s time to purchase a new unit. “Air conditioning and heating systems generally last only 12 to 15 years,” says Mike Donley, president of Donley Service Center Inc., Phoenix. “Signs that you may need a new air conditioner or furnace include the system running longer to cool or heat the home and its inability to hold temperature in extreme conditions.” Another sign is if any gas or carbon monoxide leaks are detected during twice-a-year maintenance visits by an HVAC professional. Brian Schutt, owner of Homesense Heating and Cooling in Indianapolis,

says the decision comes down to a cost-benefit analysis. “If the furnace is still under warranty – which usually lasts 10 years – and the malfunctioning issue is covered, then it is advantageous to make repairs,” Schutt says. “However, many times malfunctions happen after a furnace is past its warranty period, which is when repair costs can become expensive to the point that replacement makes more sense.” A new air conditioning unit or furnace likely will be more energyefficient than your existing equipment, which can help recoup the cost of purchase sooner. For more energy-saving tips and information on insulation, visit www.energy.gov/energysaver

Home Improvement

You want your home to stand out as your own, but you also want to be able to sell it down the road. Here’s what you should remember when you decorate, remodel – and even build. By Emerson Nagel CTW Features

It was a house of mirrors. But this was the kind you had to live in. “No matter which way you turned, you saw yourself reflected back. It seemed like the entire house was covered in mirrors. Every wall, the ceilings, even the kitchen was mirrored,” says Allyn Rawling, a real-estate agent with Coldwell Banker in Evanston, Ill. When Rawling and a group of real-estate agents walked through the house, they kept bumping into walls. “Sometimes you see mirrors on an entire wall, but this was something else,” Rawling says. Such is an example of a homeowner who is probably

not going to get his money back out of his investment in remodeling. As nice as mirrors are, few people would pay extra for a house that was quite so reflective. Hallie Howell, with Hunt Real Estate in Buffalo, N.Y., calls it “over-improving.” In moderately priced houses, Howell says, if you put a lot of money into an improvement that is outside the public’s basic taste, you may not get your money back when you sell the property. The bottom line is that if you are planning on selling your house within the next five or so years, avoid costly and/or nonstandard improvements. How far can you go? It really depends on the property and how long you intend to live there. Howell says you need to consider both “value in use” (what you get out of using whatever the improvement is) and “value in exchange” (what you’ll get for that improvement when you sell). Rawling cites a house she recently listed as an example of value in use. The couple who owned the house expected to be there for a long time, so they put a lot of money into a fabulous kitchen: fancy miniature Viking stove, Corian countertops, excellent layout, lots of storage. To them, the investment was worth it, regardless of the resale value. The problem Howell sees with selling that kind of a kitchen, or any other state-of-the-art big-ticket improvement, is that not everyone would choose to have a state-of-the-art kitchen: “When you improve your house, do it so that anyone who comes in can imagine living there.” Respect your home’s integrity Another rule that Rawling says she can’t stress enough is, “Don’t go against the style of your house. Maintain the property’s integrity.” Don’t remove all the beautiful hand-carved molding from an old Victorian and replace it with flat modern trim, as a couple Howell knew did. Whatever the style of your house, make sure your improvements are consistent with it. Big winners Certain improvements almost invariably improve the value of a property, Rawling says, as long as they are done tastefully, in the same style as the rest of the house, and without going to extremes. Some examples: an updated kitchen or an additional

bathroom, garage or fireplace. Also worth a homeowner’s while is combining two small bedrooms into a master bedroom suite or adding decks, patios or even an outdoor grill. When improving a kitchen or bathroom, she recommends spending 5-10 percent of the value of the house. Seventy-five percent or more of that can be recouped when you sell, Rawling says. “Curb appeal” is a big factor in how easily your house will sell, Howell says. Landscaping, for example, gives you enormous bang for your buck. Pitfalls to avoid Some things may be best to avoid, such as in-ground swimming pools and ponds. Remember, you want everyone who sees your house to be able to imagine living there, and a lot of people view the maintenance on a pool or pond with horror. Those structures also might make them concerned about safety. Don’t spend a fortune rehabbing basement or attic space, either, unless you get a lot of value in use out of it, Howell says. In most instances you can’t count the attic or basement as part of the square footage of your house. Large pet habitats and jungle gyms

fall into the category of things you might want to offer to remove when you put the house up for sale, Howell says. Someone might come along with a boa constrictor for that 7-foot reptile habitat you installed – but it’s not likely.

you’re planning on staying in your house beyond the lifetime of your improvements, Howell and Rawling both say. “Paint should be neutral, maybe cream or yellowy. It’s really easy to paint over cream,” Rawling says.

Maintenance improvements An area in which you can almost not go wrong is with what Howell refers to as “maintenance improvements”: putting in a new boiler, roof or windows; repainting (but not magenta with puce trim); buying sensible new appliances.

Bottom line Improve your house so you like it. Maybe talk to your real-estate agent first. But as long as you don’t go overboard and you maintain integrity of style, you should be able to get most of your money back when you sell.

Sweat equity One of the best ways to get a lot of value out of your improvements is to do them yourself. “You can do a lot to your house with sweat equity, and don’t worry how much you do because it’s not out-of-pocket,” Howell says. If you do some or all of the work (without cutting corners or going against code), you can usually recapture that value when you sell.

Stay neutral Keep your improvements classic and neutral unless

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