Blog

Wheeeew…it’s over – – we had over 200 guests visit our Bethesda Open House yesterday!

I want to thank everyone for attending and I hope you liked what you saw.

First, I want to announce the winner of the Flip Mino Camera Drawing – the winner is…

…Mary H. (we’ll be contacting you today and sending out the
camera) – Congratulations!

Second, I apologize for not being able to meet with everyone individually and answer your
questions.

So I wanted to give you a quick FAQ below to answer some of the
most common questions and least technical (which I’ll answer in future emails – like,
does the $6500 tax credit apply to building a new home, can you really get tens of thousands
of dollars in tax credits with a tear-down and how do you obtain a “Green” LEED rated home?).

Here you go:

Q: Did we create the architectural design and perform the construction of the new home on Berkley Street?
A: Yes. We are architects and builders. Kevin is our on-staff, full-time architect.

Q: Is the home for sale or did we build it for an owner?
A: The home is not for sale, the home was built for the owner.

Q: Was the home design from our Paramount Portfolio Plan Book or was it custom designed?
A: When the owners were checking our references, they visited and met the owners of
our Belmont Model and fell in love with that home. However, given the owners unique needs
and wants and given the unique characteristics of the lot on Berkley, we created a custom design for
the owners.

Q: Do we charge a premium for creating a custom design vs building a home plan from our Paramount Portfolio
of over 80 New Home Plans?
A: Currently, we do not charge anything additional to create a custom home design.

Q: Was there an existing home on the property that was torn down?
A: Yes (we had many questions about the potential tax benefits of tens of thousands of dollars associated with the
tear-down, and a subsequent email will detail the benefits and how that works)

Q: What was the price of the Berkley home and what was included? What was not included?
A: Price was in the $600K +/- range and was all inclusive – demolition of existing home, excavation, permitting,
blueprints, engineering, surveying, utilities, custom selections, etc.

Q: Do you take on home additions and home renovations, as well as new homes?
A: Yes. Currently we have six projects of that type in process.

Q: Do you take on small remodeling projects – $50k to $200K?
A. No, but given the demand, we are considering accepting a few projects on a very limited basis.

Q: I want to build a new home but I don’t have land. Do you have land or lots? Can you help?
A: Yes, we have about 10 lots in Bethesda, Chevy Chase, Mclean and N. Arlington.

I hope this helped.

I’ll be sending out another FAQ in the next few days on some of the more technical issues brought up
and we’re working on a video series that will answer many questions at an even deeper level, which will
come out in the next few weeks.

Again, Kevin and I really appreciate your interest in what we do and please feel free to email me at
rob@paramountconstruction.net or Kevin at kdavis@paramountconstruction.net or call me at 301-370-6463
with any questions you have.

Exterior walls have water resistant barrier

This home has ZIP System® wall sheathing. This is a built-in, water-resistive barrier that eliminates the need for housewrap. We install the sheathing and tape the seams, and this becomes an all-in-one structural wall system and a water resistive barrier.

This wall system combines the stability and strength of a high-performing panel with the extra weatherability provided by the product’s water-resistive barrier.

We’ve found this to be a good system. One plus is that unlike housewrap, wind will not blow off the barrier during the construction process.

The manufacturer states that the panels “eliminate the risk of trapped water between housewrap and sheathing”. And the “built-in barrier controls drafts, which promotes energy efficiency and the barriers are specially engineered to allow the ZIP System walls to breathe”.

t

There is a alot of new home activity inside the beltway of Washington DC. The values of residential real estate in a variety of zip codes in Montgomery County Maryland have maintained value. In fact, there are several zip codes that have probably increased in value. We find that mortgage interest rates are relatively low combined with excellent prices on the direct costs which go into new custom home projects, make this an ideal time to be acquring and building.

Real estate should be looked at as a long term investment. We do not try to purchase real estate and “flip” houses. We believe real estate is a long term investment. Our financial models hold the assets for a minimum of five to seven years.

With this approach, we think real estate in the Washington DC area is an excellent long term asset. An asset which you can create real long term wealth.