Owner/Builder Network struggling to land do-it-yourself home builders

“This isn’t for everyone,” said Sutherland, whose company offers individuals guidance to be their own contractor on a home-building project. “But for the right person, it works. (Owner/Builder Network) has been around for 10 years, and it works.”

Sutherland said he has had a number of people show interest in his services, but so far he has not assisted any clients in building houses. He does, however, have two homes scheduled to start in the next 60 days and has five additional clients who are interested in beginning projects in the coming months.

Off to a slow start

Sutherland believes several factors have played a part in his lack of business during the first months of opening, and he believes he can overcome each of them.

Sutherland said fears of a slowing housing market and opening his business in June – after most housing projects had begun – worked against him, but he was dealt another blow when he was turned down for membership in the Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield.

“I’ll overcome it,” Sutherland said. “It’s just going to slow me down until I get started and people can give a testimony that it works.”

Of the 22 Owner/Builder Network offices in 13 states, those in Springfield and Little Rock, Ark., are the only ones that have been turned down for membership in their local HBA, Sutherland said.

Associate membership in HBA is available to companies in other industries, but for those directly involved with building, only regular membership is available.

Sutherland said he acquired workers’ compensation and liability insurance to meet HBA requirements even though he is not required by the state to have them.

HBA Executive Officer Matt Morrow would not comment on the Owner/Builder Network application specifically, but did talk generally about membership requirements.

“Every member, first of all, has to carry workers’ compensation and liability insurance; that’s non-negotiable,” he said. “We also require that all of our builders have been building in the area for at least two years and have built at least five homes.”

Experienced members inspect the homes at various stages of completion, Morrow said. The group also collects references from customers and creditors.

“If they are qualified to be a member of our association, we accept them,” he said.

From start to finish

Owner/Builder Network assists clients in every aspect of the home-building process from financing to design to finding vendors and subcontractors, said Sutherland, whose father was a general contractor.

“We show you exactly what steps it takes to build your house,” he said. “We have a list of contractors and suppliers that have signed on with us that have agreed to treat our clients as they would a builder. The same consideration, same pricing, same respect.”

And being a part of a national franchise puts Sutherland in the position to offer his clients additional perks, such as programs through Sears and Home Depot that are only available for the Owner/Builder Network. The network has five banks that work specifically with construction loans to fund projects of any size.

Whether a client has a specific set of plans or just a piece of land and a dream, Sutherland said the network can assist from beginning to end.

The fee for services – which starts at $2.45 per square foot of framed area – is based on square footage and has nothing to do with “how fancy you want to go,” Sutherland said.

Savings on a house are usually about 10 percent or better, depending on how much work clients do themselves and what upgrades they put in, he said.

Not direct competition

While HBA membership is based on specific requirements, Morrow added that there are other things the public needs to keep in mind.

“Generally speaking, most people in the general public are not qualified to act as their own general contractor,” he said.

The process is complex, and individuals should trust trained professionals to do the job, Morrow said.

“Some people may be qualified to do that, but it’s a very, very small number,” he said.

The Owner/Builder Network appeals to that smaller group, Sutherland said.

“My market, best-case scenario, is 3 percent,” he said. “That’s not a lot. But it’s a good number of houses and that’s hopefully what I’ll reach in a couple of years.”

Sutherland said he is not in business to slam builders or even to directly compete with them. Rather, he’s looking for that small percentage of people who want complete control over their project and are willing to invest the necessary time and effort.[[In-content Ad]]