1. THE HOME BUILDING INDUSTRY JOURNAL
DFW METROPLEX EDITION
In Its 53rd Year,
Sandlin Homes Will
Focus on Affordability

2. Matt Speight, Scott Sandlin, Terry Sandlin & Mike Sandlin
Sandlin Homes Reflects on Founding Principles
to Develop Its New Cornerstone Series By Beverly Smirnis
The founding principles of integrity, honesty, quality, and superior customer service have guided Sandlin Homes
through 53 years of consistent growth. Upholding these basic principles and being adaptive to changes are the
very backbone of the company's longevity, positioning it as a leader during the times of peak marketplace
opportunity and a survivor in spite of each of the market challenges.
When J.B. Sandlin founded Sandlin Homes in 1957, his goal was to legacy—affordably priced homes targeted to first-time and move-up
give every family the opportunity to own an affordable, custom built buyers. But the question was—how to bring costs back down to
home. J.B.'s accomplishments and leadership contributions to the the price level they were selling homes for in the 1990s without
homebuilding industry are nothing short of legendary, and continue sacrificing the unique features and amenities that buyers had grown
to earn him recognition posthumously. He was named as an accustomed to in more recent years. The right combination of
inaugural inductee into the Texas Housing Hall of Honor and most value engineering and new building technologies was the answer.
recently to the Greater Fort Worth Builders Association's new
Housing Hall of Honor. “It took about a year in planning to fine-tune and develop the new
Cornerstone product,” said Rob Wetli, Construction Manager for
When signals began to point to today's challenging market Sandlin Homes. “We found that by implementing new building
conditions, the question that many in the industry pondered was, technologies, any extra costs of these were offset by the elimination of
“What would the legends like J.B. have done in our current waste and over-engineering. Increased speed on construction time when
situation?” The answer for the Sandlin team was to reposition its utilizing the engineered products was another cost saver.”
focus back on building the very product that launched the company
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3. Photos by Doug Handel, Doug Handel Photography.
Wetli explained, for example, that using engineered roof trusses
allows slabs to be engineered exactly to accommodate the required
load. Use of wall panels eliminates excess lumber and waste and also
cuts down on losses due to jobsite theft. Both of these examples also
reduce jobsite time and chance of error. Pre-engineered structural Delivering value was the goal not only in the engineering design but
products play a significant role in Sandlin's ability to bring the also in the exterior and interior design of the Cornerstone Series
Cornerstone Series homes from permit to closing in 70 days. homes as well. “Our years of experience in custom building helped us
identify the options that most people want and come up with a
Construction cost savings and increased energy efficiency were standardized list that gives our buyers the biggest bang for the buck,”
both realized by moving ductwork out of attic spaces and dropping said Terry Sandlin.
ceiling heights in closets and laundry rooms, instead, to conceal
the ductwork. Positioning plumbing and mechanical systems Standardized options include 42-inch cabinets with crown molding,
back-to-back in the core of the home was another change that smooth glass top stoves, tile backsplashes, built-in microwaves, raised
saved on construction costs while increasing efficiency. six-panel interior doors, garden tubs and separate showers in masters
and plenty of stone accents inside and out.
The Sandlin Homes Cornerstone Series deliver the coveted features
of their award-winning custom homes in six new designs attainably
priced from $119,000 to $180,000. Sandlin currently offers ten
Cornerstone Series neighborhoods: Big Bear Creek Meadows,
Innisbrook Place, Lake Vista Estates and Parks at Willow Ridge in
Fort Worth; Country Lakes in Argyle/Denton; Garden Heights in
Mansfield; Heather Glen/Ivy Glen in Grand Prairie; Mountain
Hollow in Dallas, Paloma Creek in Little Elm and Twin Mills Farms
in Saginaw.
All Sandlin Homes, including the Cornerstone Series, are built by
seasoned builders. Surely one of the most distinguishing
characteristics of Sandlin's builder team is the fact that 30 is the
average number of years of experience they have. When asked,
anyone on the team will tell you that's simply because nobody
leaves. This speaks volumes for the workplace environment of the
company. The “Sandlin family” encompasses the veteran employees
as well as the immediate family— Mike, Terry and Scott Sandlin and
their brother-in-law, Matt Speight. Now that several of their
children are also involved in the business, Sandlin can be called a
third generation family business.
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4. Photos by Doug Handel, Doug Handel Photography.
“When you have customers that are three, four and five time repeat buyers,
you could say they are part of the family, also,” Terry Sandlin added.
But don't think for a minute that the veteran team settles for doing
things “the way they've always been done.” Alan Sladek, who just
joined the Sandlin Team as Marketing Manager in January 2009
commends the team not only for its flexibility in adapting the
product line to suit a changing marketplace, but also in recognizing
the need to adapt to other changes, including Internet technology.
He has played a key role in advancing Sandlin Homes into what he
terms “a virtual company.” Everyone involved in the construction
process, including the subcontractor team, is required to have enough
savvy to adhere to the company's streamlined business model in
which the Internet plays a key role.
Traffic on the company website has increased by about 40% this
year, and Sandlin Homes also has a network of Realtor friends and
partners who follow their activities on Facebook, Utube and Twitter.
Sladek estimates that Internet marketing efforts accounted for about
50 additional sales last year, but emphasized that having on-staff
Internet sales counselors committed to back end tracking and
follow-up and the team's consistent attention to their feedback and
analysis was essential to the increased sales.
“All of our efforts are focused on the things that bring value and
affordability to our customers,” said Sladek. “Value and affordability
were the cornerstones of the foundation that J.B. Sandlin laid. Now it
our responsibility to identify new ways for furthering value and
affordability in today's environment.”
For more information,
contact Sandlin Custom Homes at
817-281-3509
or visit www.sandlinhomes.com
GREATER DFW METROPLEX BUILDING SAVVY MAGAZINE