My wife and I originally contacted Olson Defendorf (ODCH) in the summer of 2015 to build our custom modern-ranch-style home in Leander, TX. We worked with a separate architect firm to design a set of plans which we presented to Eric Olson at the initial meeting. His courteous professionalism in meeting with us, clear experience in managing complex projects, focus on customer satisfaction during challenges, ODCH’s shared-accountability business/profit model, and their consistently positive feedback from recent clients really differentiated ODCH from other builders we explored. Yes, we interviewed our builders before we selected one!
Eric quickly and effectively led us through an initial selection and bidding process with an expert designer and we were able to have an approximate scope, duration, and cost for the project in about 45 days. Due to our financial position at that time, we decided to postpone the start of construction so that we could get the home we wanted rather than sacrifice features or square footage. That decision was after multiple discussions with Eric about potential ways to reduce cost. He was consistently patient and accommodating as we explored what were probably even silly options and he brought creative ideas to the table. He managed our expectations and was transparent and forthcoming the entire time.
We ultimately delayed the start until the summer of 2017 (2 years), and while we knew that we would continue to use ODCH when we were ready, we didn’t expect them to be available to us in the interim. To our surprise, Eric reached out periodically and remained available for us to ask questions and even crunch numbers on occasion. When we started discussions up again, we were immediately impressed by how prepared he was to resume our project, even having all our original documents and notes in mind (from meetings 2 years ago). We felt like we picked up where we left off, rather than started over. That gave us even more peace of mind that we picked the right team.
When we officially broke ground in November 2017, Troy Defendorf became our primary contact as our project lead. He proactively reached out a minimum of once a week – usually a lot more than that – with status updates, upcoming design decisions, issues and resolution ideas/options, plans for the week and the following week, etc. We felt informed and that we were doing this together throughout the entire process.
The total construction time was approximately 16 months, which is to be expected with the complexity of a custom project and duration was in-line with the initial estimate Eric gave us when we started - not to mention, we had a wet 2017/2018 winter which delayed foundation, and had repeated challenges with the city (permitting/inspections) which caused weeks of delays over time that were outside of ODCH's control. Regardless of the obstacle, ODCH worked behind the scenes to expedite resolution to keep the project on track.
Throughout the project we brought friends and family over to see the progress, some of whom are in the residential and commercial construction field. They consistently commented on the high quality of building materials used and the cleanliness of the project site.
Custom projects are complex and will have changes and challenges: The wrong component is delivered or installed. Vendors/suppliers don’t do things according to expectations. Selections are discontinued and must be re-selected. 2-dimensional architecture plans don’t necessarily work in 3-dimensional space and certain trades may collide. In a custom project, it all comes down to cost, time, and the homeowner’s final decision. Troy and Eric were always available if we had concerns or weren’t happy with a particular result and would work with us and the related suppliers to meet our expectations. We always felt heard, that they were our advocate and partner. One of the many things I appreciated about Troy is that when things came up that needed a decision, he would present refined options with pros/cons in a timely manner, and ultimately let us decide on what we wanted and then coordinate everything needed to reach our desired outcome.
Kathleen, who manages the accounting, communications, etc. for ODCH projects always ensured we had an accurate running project cost/budget so we could make cost-conscious decisions during a project that is inherently fluid. Additionally, ODCH uses BuilderTrend.com for their projects so we were all on the same page every week and could anticipate any impact to cost or features when changes arose. We even received weekly pictures and status recap emails showing the site progress so we could check in if we were traveling and informing us of what we needed to be doing (i.e. next selections). They really gave us peace of mind at every turn and we knew what to expect.
Even long after the project completed and we moved in, ODCH is still checking in on us to make sure everything is meeting our expectations and, if anything comes up, they are quick to coordinate suppliers and/or punch crews to remediate an issue.
In summary, after nearly 4 years from our initial meeting, we are still 100% certain that we selected the right team to build our home. In this day when accountability and ownership are rare, it’s so wonderful to find a firm that really delivers. In fact, we are planning a pool expansion next year and will definitely give Eric a call when we’re ready!
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