We’re heading back to the annual International Builders Show in Orlando Florida. Yes, somebody has to go to Florida in February, so we drew the short straw. We’re one of the Louisville Builders taking one for the team.

This show has been an almost annual event the last few years. We attend this show in part because I serve on the local HBAL Board of Directors, the HBAK Executive Board, and in part because even us older builders like to keep up with our industry. As we’re using Twitter, Facebook, and blogging, we have to keep up with all the latest products and trends in our industry.

Every year, we come back with new ideas and updates on the pros and cons of green building and developing, new regulations making home building more difficult, the state of the housing market, and the latest product enhancements that affect our customers. Those are all very good reasons to make the annual trip.

This year’s NAHB International Builders Show is February 8-11. Normally, this would be a perfect time for builders to take in a conference, although this year we actually have two, possibly three custom homes we’re starting in January and early February. We’re also finishing up a dental office addition for our friends over at A Winning Smile Dental Center in Okolona. If you’re looking for a Louisville Dentist, they are expanding and accepting new patients. We won’t complain about the activity, or the break to sharpen our saw.

P.S. If I can get my new iPhone 4 working before the trip, I will be live tweeting, shooting videos, and blogging about the show like in years past. Stay tuned for more.

We’re wrapping up 2011 having just completed a new home in Shakes Run Subdivision, six bath/kitchen remodels, three basement finishes, three sun room additions, three commercial office build out/renovations, several entry door and window replacement installations, and several other major types of renovations.

Currently we are carrying over into 2012 an addition for A Winning Smile Dental Center located in the Highview/Okolona area, just broke ground on a custom home in Shepherdsville, a contract to build a custom home in Finchville, and working on two more custom contract houses, along with some remodel projects to start.

We look forward to a great 2012 as we continue to design/build new custom homes, design/build basement finishes, decks, sun rooms, and almost any type of renovation—residential or commercial—in Louisville Metro and surrounding counties.

If your 2012 plans involve a new home, residential remodel, commercial build out or remodel, basement finish, or other property improvements; contact us for an estimate.

Wishing you a healthy and prosperous 2012.

Christmastime is here! Can you believe this year is almost over? Every December we pause to reflect on the passing year—areas where we succeeded and areas where we can improve.

We also like to take this opportunity to let our employees and our clients know how much we appreciate them. The people we work with really are the life of the business, and we have the best. We are grateful for the loyalty of both our employees and our clients, and we look forward to continuing to build those relationships as we enter the New Year.

Hopefully the excitement of the holiday season will linger awhile as we enjoy time with family and friends over the next couple of weeks. 2012 holds the promise of a happy and successful business year ahead.

From everyone at PL Lyons, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

So you’re getting ready to anchor down for winter. NFL football is in midstream, college bowl season is coming up, and basketball—well it’s just starting. You have old man winter moving in for the next 3-4 months and you’re thinking, “Man I’d like to have a cozy basement to take it all in.” If you’re the lady of the house, you might be thinking craft room, homeschool room, or kids play area. If you’re the man of the house, you’re thinking man cave. Did we mention that we provide marriage counseling along with custom building and remodeling Either way, finishing a basement is a great and affordable way to add space and functionality to your existing home.

It’s not too late to get the jump-start on a basement remodel. Can you have it done by Christmas? Well, no, but you might be able to have it done for that Super Bowl party you’ve always wanted to have. Or how about March Madness?

We just finished up several basement finishes this fall. We have some testimonials, some videos, and some after pictures to share in the coming weeks.

We completed one basement remodel in Jtown, a basement finish in Oldham County, and a basement remodel in Eastwood. Although building custom homes has always been our strong suit, we often go back and finish basements for our custom building clients. Oddly enough, none of these recent projects were from custom home clients.

Whether we’ve built for you in the past and it’s time to finish that basement, or you’re just looking for a Louisville basement remodeler, we can help.

We price a basement finish just like we price a new custom home—with precision. This way you know what you’re getting and know your budget from day one.

Call us to get the conversation started today at 244-0114. Or, as always, use our online form to schedule an initial conversation.

Take some time this week to count your blessings.
Take some time and relate with your family and friends.
Take some time and be thankful for your freedoms.

Guys get your share of football.
Ladies get your share of shopping.
Everyone get your share of good eats.

Enjoy the change in seasons. Some people never get to see a leaf fall, a snow flake, a bloom in spring, or a sunny July day.

If you spend any of your time off working on that honey-do list, you might find last week’s post helpful about winterizing your house.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Rocky Pusateri of Elite Homes talks about many of the benefits of building a Homearama home in 2012 at Shakes Run.

We figure Rocky hit on all the high points, so we’ll list the bullets here and you can watch the quick video for the rest. He summarizes it well as he usually does.

• Shakes Run gives you the feel of the country (think Spencer or Shelby county but without the bedroom community feel) but has the city life within three miles at the Gene Snyder in Middletown (think churches, Target, Kroger, schools, and restaurants like Wild Eggs).
• A home in Shakes Run (or any Homearama site) would give you an instant value. As Rocky states, many of the contractors and subcontractors want to put their best foot forward. Often times they are willing to discount new products or services in order to get the massive free publicity that a Homearama home gives.
• Shakes Run has lots of green space, lakes, and many walk out wooded lots. Balance this with a clubhouse and pool, and you have the suburbs meet the country.

Perry Lyons of P.L. Lyons just finished up a home in Shakes Run. He knows the ground, the restrictions, and the process. He’s also a respected builder in the community, and serves alongside Rocky on the board at the HBAL. Needless to say, we’d love to build a contract home or Homearama home for you at Shakes Run.

If you’d like to visit Shakes Run, we’d he happy to give you the nickel tour, simply fill out this convenient form or call us at 244-0114 to set it up.

These three homes were all built in the Fox Run subdivision in Eastern Jefferson County. We build to suit your needs and have built custom homes and completed custom remodels and additions in a number of prestigious areas and neighborhoods in Louisville including:

• Anchorage
• Lake Forest
• Douglas Hills
• Plainview
• in Briar Hill Estates
• Beckly Woods
• Hunters Point
• Winchester Acres
• Fairway Crossing
• Fox Run
• Glen Lakes

If you’d like to learn more, please contact me today.

We’ve worked hard to get everything squared away and we now officially have the building permits in hand. The pictures and video below show the initial demolition that took place as well as where the actual new addition will stand.

Stay tuned as we document the progress of this job up to its finishing stages. We look forward to working with Dr. Witte as he expands his practice to better serve his patients.

Maybe you’re one of the lucky people out there who already knows exactly what neighborhood you want to live in, what type of house you’re looking to build, and everything else is just details.

Doesn’t sound quite like your situation? Don’t worry, that’s actually not the case for most people. In fact, the process of deciding to build a custom home, choosing the perfect neighborhood, and finding the right custom home builder doesn’t always come easy.

Louisville offers some great neighborhoods in many different locations around town, so no matter what end of the city you want to live in, at least you can rest assured that you’re bound to find a neighborhood that is perfect for you and your family.

Ready to start researching communities in the Louisville area? This tool is a great place to start. It’s the Greater Louisville New Home Guide and provides maps, information, and resources to help you narrow down an area, find a custom home builder, and even search communities in surrounding counties.

The homebuyer guide walks you through specific details to keep in mind when searching for communities, builders, and the price range of your new home.

Once you’ve found a few locations you’d like to see, I’d love to talk to you about building a custom home in your chosen neighborhood. I’ve been building homes in Louisville and surrounding areas for more than 30 years and am a trusted registered builder. I can even help with your neighborhood selection process. Contact me to get started!

If you follow me on Twitter, you know I tweet out a lot of industry information like housing starts, mortgage rate information, real estate statistics, and much more. Sometimes you may get a bleak outlook from those tweets. Although things aren’t exactly rosy, we do have several proverbial “irons in the fire.” We’re always looking for more though. If you’d like to build a new house, a Homearama contract, or look into a remodeling project, we’re here to help.

In the meantime, we thought we’d update you on a few of the current and future projects we have going. If nothing more, this should give you hope for a brighter day. Recently, Dave Ramsey, financial author and speaker, tweeted out that hope is the one thing no one can take away from us.

We’re currently:

• Finishing a custom basement remodel in Oldham County, which includes a bathroom, fireplace, media room, family room, laundry room
• Finishing a basement in English Station which includes a media room, hobby room, family room, and bathroom
• Working on a custom room addition in Plainview—this is an all-weather type sunroom
• Preparing to start a custom contract home we’ve signed in Shelby County on a 14 acre farm
• Finishing a custom basement with a media room, family room, and bathroom in Jtown
• Finishing a custom master bathroom remodel in Jtown
• Covered deck with enclosed custom screening in Jtown
• Beginning a commercial dental office addition and renovation—with this job we had a 13 month rezoning process
• Finishing master bathroom and bedroom remodel in Douglas Hills
• Finished a custom home in Shakes Run
• We’re bidding three custom contract homes
• We’re bidding another commercial build-out