Keltner Homes offers spec, custom building

by Jan K. Allen

SBJ Contributing Writer

Home construction brought in about $3 million for Keltner Homes Inc. last year but building houses is just the tip of the iceberg for the family-owned Keltner Enterprises.

Keltner Enterprises began as Keltner Oil Company in the early 1950s, according to Ken Keltner, who does the buying and selling for the auto supply side of the business. His brother, Tommy, and their dad, Kyle, started the business with a Skelly Gas Station at the crossroads in Nixa.

In the late '50s, the father and sons acquired a Nixa lumber yard, which they owned and operated until 1974. During the early years, the family partners also bought tracts of land and built subdivisions.

By 1974, the lumber company was sold, and the business had become Keltner Enterprises, moving to a building on South Scenic in Springfield.

Brothers Ken and Keith Keltner graduated from Drury and joined the family venture before the 1974 move. After moving to Springfield, Keith Keltner left the family business to start his own company, and Tommy's sons, Kim and Kurt, both Drury graduates, joined Keltner Enterprises, Ken Keltner said.

Kurt Keltner eventually assumed the position of general operations manager, while Kim Keltner took over the building end of the business, Keltner Homes Inc., in 1985.

The automotive supply side of Keltner Enterprises supplies car dealers, oil distributors, grocery stores and auto parts stores with a variety of products in 25 states, Ken Keltner said.

With 14 full-time telemarketing agents, the auto supply business has grown to a gross income of more than $40 million last year. Operating a fleet of trucks that comprises 20 tractors and 40 trailers, the company represents more than 125 vendors and delivers to customers weekly in the 25 states they service.

To maintain the fleet, Keltner Enterprises has its own maintenance shop and full-time mechanics on duty, according to Ken Keltner.

As the company continued to grow in the '70s and '80s, it moved from the first Scenic street location, just south of Sunshine, to the 100,000-square-foot building they now occupy farther south on Scenic, across from Dayco Industries.

Of the 80 full-time employees from all segments of the business, about five people work in the construction end, headed by Kim Keltner.

Tommy Keltner has given up his active role in the company and Kim Keltner said he expects his dad to be fully retired by the end of this year.

Kim Keltner said he works with a number of subcontractors and engineers on various stages of the building process, with his own people working in supervisory positions.

Keltner Homes builds primarily single-family spec homes in the $150,000 range and up. The company has built custom homes on request, but this is not the business' main focus, Kim Keltner said.

The company has built 300 to 400 homes in Nixa and 300 to 400 in Republic, and has homes in the Kickapoo Prairie, Sugar Tree Meadows and Primrose Place subdivisions, Kim Keltner said.

The latest project for Keltner Homes is phase III and phase VII of Chesterfield Village. The phase III project has 19 or 20 homes completed or near completion, with 12 of those sold, Kim Keltner said. Phase VII is platted, with one custom home already built and occupied, and 40 more lots available, he added.

"We like to close about 25 or 30 houses per year," he said.

Keltner added that he expects the Chesterfield project to be completed in about two years, at which time the company plans to start a new project in another subdivision.

The Keltners said they believe that working as a team has contributed to their success in all phases of their business.

"If you don't have the team concept, you won't be successful," Ken Keltner said.

While Keltner Enterprises is a family-oriented venture, younger family members are welcomed into the company under the same conditions as the applicant off the street. They must want to work and be willing to do their share, Ken Keltner said.

The construction side of the business grossed more than $3 million last year, and the Keltner team expects future earnings to equal or surpass past performance.

As long as this area keeps growing and interest rates stay down, home sales should be good, Kim Keltner stated.

Keltner Homes Inc. works from 12 basic designs, which Kim Keltner said he sometimes varies, occasionally adding a new design to the selection.

The philosophy of the company, according to the brothers, is to not be overpriced or undervalued.

"We want people to get the best value for their dollar," Kurt said.

Homes built by Keltner Homes Inc. are not offered on the Multilist Service, although Kim Keltner said he works with any local real estate agent who brings him a buyer.

He also sells the finished homes himself. Finished units are held open daily for prospective buyers to view at their convenience.