Los Angeles Custom Home Builder, Structure Home, 2013 Quarter 4 Newsletter

Quarter 4 | 2013

Feature Story: What’s a Budget

to Do?

Highlighted Project: Tuscan in Brentwood

Cooking with Great Design and Speed

Current Projects

And more

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ABOUT US: Headquartered in Warner Center since 1996, Structure Home builds and remodels fine custom homes throughout the Los Angeles basin. Our approach to design begins with looking at a building, functionally and aesthetically, as a complete operating system intended to perform today and for generations to come. To accomplish this goal, the entire design consultant and construction team must work collaboratively…in a well-organized process. We call our design development process ‘Whole Lot Living”… the thoughtful consideration of the entire structure, as well as its relationship to the natural surroundings. At Structure Home, we believe that a carefully managed design/specification and construction process is the only way we can be responsible stewards of our client’s most valuable investment.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Happy Holidays 3 What’s a Budget to Do? 4 Up on the Design Board Cooking with Great Design and Speed 6 Highlighted Project Tuscan Brentwood Home 8 Current “Under Construction” Projects 12 Recently Completed Projects 14 Structure Media & News 15

21101 Oxnard Street, Woodland Hills, CA 91367

P: (818) 598-1330, F: (818) 598-1340

www.StructureHome.com

© 2013

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“We believe that managing the budget, bringing order, control and discipline to project costs

is fundamental to building homes and relationships

for life!”

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We intend to pause throughout the holiday season and feel our gratitude... Grateful for all the blessings we are given in this wonderful life...especially for our health, the love of family and friends, for our freedom and security...the wonder and joy of life! We encourage peace in the world...and more compassion in the community we share. To all our friends we share this life with… We wish you a warm, safe and loving holiday season!

Structure Home

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What’s a Budget To Do? by: Robert Kleiman and Mark Sapiro, Structure Home

The project budget is kind of like the Wizard of Oz...a small piece of paper, tucked into a notebook...with the power to direct and control a custom homebuilding experience. The budget contains both a view of the big picture cost of your project as well as a line item breakdown to show detail...the component parts of the whole. The budget is both a road map and a tracking device for all of the costs centers and every improvement within a project. Knowledge of the cost of a custom building project is an essential component of a successful building experience. One of our roles in every project is therefore, to assemble and maintain the budget document, develop tools to track budget revisions over the course of the project and to perform project cost accounting/reconciliation to the approved budget. We believe that managing the budget, bringing order, control and discipline to project costs is fundamental to building homes and relationships for life! Completing a custom home is a big undertaking...one that involves several consultants, design professionals, dozens of material suppliers, manufacturers, trade professionals, craftsman and hundreds of component parts. Structure’s role is to orchestrate and facilitate the work of the entire project team, to research and communicate the information of the project to all and to manage the thoughtful assembly/construction of the home and site improvements. A frequent misunderstanding with construction cost quotes is due to a “partial” view of “project cost” as opposed to a “comprehensive” view...the whole picture. To evaluate the total cost of any custom home project all of the following costs centers must be considered:

General Requirements - the costs of the field operations like temporary power, fencing, site clean-up and project supervision.

Site Work - the costs of the site improvements from grading and site preparation through finished landscape, pools, etc.

Residential Construction Cost - the costs of all the products, materials and labor to assemble the home itself. Sometimes these are referred to as "hard costs" or "the sticks and bricks costs".

Permits and Fees - the costs associated with agency and governmental approvals and clearances for permits to develop the home and site improvements.

Insurance - special insurances required for a building project including general liability, risk of loss and workman's compensation.

Indirect Construction Costs - the consultants and design professionals engaged for the project design and documentation requirements.

At Structure, when construction of the project is underway, the budget is reviewed monthly and all revisions are approved. This monitoring activity is a control function in every project to ensure the project and its costs are tracked and understood. While this is an important function of project management during construction, the value of developing a budget, coincident with the design development phase of a project, is all too often overlooked. In fact, one of the discussions we often have with prospective clients is that "We can deliver the greatest value to a client when we are involved at the inception of the design development process"...and this is true for several good reasons.

...continued on next page

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….What’s a Budget To Do? Continued

1st Century Bank is a premium service business bank focused on providing small, community bank

relationships with big bank technologies and services. 1st Century Bank provides expertise and creative solutions for your construction project and our professionals will assist you in every step of your project, from budgeting to permanent financing. For more information, contact David Comfort at 310.270.9517, or [email protected].

Like a home, a budget is developed over time. Here is how the process unfolds:

1) At our first meeting with potential clients the cost of building is discussed.

2) Based upon the clients vision of the home size and architectural style we develop a specific project budget prior to the hire of any design consultants.

3) We use this preliminary phase to educate, refine and optimize the best home for the client’s budget.

4) We then use the approved budget to guide and inform the design professionals so the design can meet the goals outlined by the client.

5) The budget is updated as the design unfolds to make sure we understand deviations and stay within the client’s financial goals.

6) At completion of the permitted plans we develop a comprehensive budget that forms the basis of a guaranteed maximum price agreement.

The process of budget development is characteristic of every Structure project and it is the mechanism that enables a home to be designed and built within the financial goals of the client. This is pretty important stuff...all of which occurs prior to turning a shovel at the site. One of the wonderful rewards of building your own home is the experience of designing the whole home and garden plus selecting every component precisely as you wish. Having the ability to accomplish the custom home, at a cost that is within your means, will invariably determine the quality of your building experience. Being involved early, letting the budget do its job...that is what a budget’s to do!

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Cooking with Great Design and Speed By: Jill Wolff, Jill Wolff Interior Designs

Several months ago I received a phone call from Alison C., my favorite salesperson from Ferguson in Woodland Hills, “Would you be interested in flying off to Louisville, Kentucky for a few days of training at GE Monogram with me and 19 designers from all over the country?” I jumped at the chance (literally). The time flew, and suddenly we were on the plane traveling to Kentucky. We arrived in Louisville and were whisked away to our amazing hotel. 21c is the first museum hotel in the country. It literally combines the most wonderful art with a fantastic boutique hotel and restaurant/bar. The hotel is stunning, with exposed brick walls and sleek furnishings that combine four historic buildings (built in the 1700’s) with new contemporary design (www.21cmuseumhotels.com). A jaw drop-ping, 6-story tall, gold replica of Michelangelo’s David welcomes you outside the hotel. Who says South-erners are reserved? The next day our education began, we arrived at the gigantic campus of GE and were taken to the Mon-ogram Experience Center. We immediately got to work learning about the GE Monogram brand of appli-ances (www.gemonogram.com). Following recipes created by Chef’s Joe and Brian, we were given the opportunity to cook on all of the Monogram appliances in completely outfitted kitchens. All of us were impressed with the appliances and with the yummy food that came out of those kitchens. I am still dreaming of the bread pudding the Chef’s made for our desert at lunch. (Who has desert at lunch??) The recipe is on the GE Monogram blog.

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The Amazing Cooking Lab at GE Monogram

UP ON THE DESIGN BOARD

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...Cooking with Great Design and Speed Continued I admit it….we don’t use many Monogram products in our Structure Home projects, our clients seem to lean towards Wolf, Sub Zero, and Viking. My mind was open to learning something new and that is “Speed Cooking” with the Advantium oven. It is literally 4 ovens in one: speedcook, true European convection, sensor microwave, and a warming/proof oven. It cooks magically and beautifully combining all of these ways of cooking or using the individual elements. Food cooks up to 8x faster than a regular oven and those who typically own this oven use it up to 3 times a day. We tested it and everything that we cooked came out perfect! I know I sound like an infomercial, but this was a revelation-I NEED THIS OVEN! I could see putting one of these in every home that I design, and I think I will try….

Our trip was rounded out by a tour of the city, a visit to a maker of gourmet food products, more eating and drinking than I care to remember, and the fun of meeting and getting to know designers from all over the country. It was a delicious experience in a beautiful city.

The 4-in-one Advantium Oven

Jill cooking on the GE Monogram Pro Range

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Brentwood Custom Home Status: Project Completed Architectural Character: Elegant Tuscan Home Data: The featured Brentwood home is an elegant Mediterranean style influenced by the architecture of Tuscany. The home, designed by Karen Putman of p2 Design, consists of 5,618 square feet of livable area plus an outdoor covered living room of 300 sq. ft. and a two-car garage. The floor plan includes formal and informal living areas as well as 5 bedrooms, 5.5 baths plus a play room lofted above the second floor.

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HIGHLIGHTED PROJECT CONTINUED

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Unique/Key Features: The client of this beautiful home selected fine material finishes…making for a refined feel of quality throughout. The informal family room opens to a kitchen and breakfast room as well as a seamless tran-sition onto an exterior living room…adorned with a fireplace, entertainment center and luxurious swim-ming pool beyond. A raised spa, with glass tiled surface and infinity edge…has the visual effect of a wet cube of glass protruding above the waterline of the pool. Rich textured stone, brick and wood accents throughout the home interior and exterior combine to create a beautiful accomplishment of old-world design with all of the lastest amenities and technology.

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BRENTWOOD, CA

Traditional Coastal Architecture USGBC LEED and EPA WaterSense Products

5,253 square foot two-story home 10.127 square foot lot

PACIFIC PALISADES, CA

Traditional Custom Home 5,019 square foot two-story home

BRENTWOOD, CA

Traditional Cape Cod Custom Home 6,686 square foot two-story home

SANTA MONICA, CA

Traditional Custom Home 4,903 square foot two-story

including a 1,682 square foot basement

Approximate square footage listed of homes under construction (until homes are completed, rooms and items may vary).

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CURRENT PROJECTS

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BRENTWOOD, CA

Traditional Cape Cod Custom Home 5,382 square foot two-story home

including a 1,191 square foot basement

BRENTWOOD, CA

New England Traditional Custom Home

USGBC LEED and EPA WaterSense Products 6,244 square foot two-story home

including a 1,189 square foot basement

PACIFIC PALISADES, CA

Traditional New England Custom Home 4,121 square foot two-story home

SANTA MONICA, CA

Traditional Custom Home 6,200 square foot two-story home

including a 2,000 square foot basement

BEVERLY HILLS, CA

Remodel Project

BEVERLY HILLS, CA

Remodel Project

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BRENTWOOD, CA

Artistic Contemporary Custom Home

USGBC LEED Silver 5,351 square foot two-story home

including 1,200 square foot basement PACIFIC PALISADES, CA

East Coast Traditional Custom Home with

Contemporary Interior Accents 4,877 square foot two-story home

CHEVIOT HILLS, CA

California Contemporary Custom Home

3,476 square foot two-story home

PACIFIC PALISADES, CA

Traditional Americana with hints of Craftsman 3,375 square foot two-story home on a corner lot

HIDDEN HILLS, CA

Traditional Manor Custom Estate

7,774 square foot two-story home on an acre lot.

BRENTWOOD, CA

Traditional New England Custom Home

5,802 square foot two-story home

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RECENTLY COMPLETED PROJECTS

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The national TV series "Alive & Well with Michelle Harris" (Modern Organic Living) recently filmed an episode at VISION House Los Angeles. The show will feature Robert Kleiman discussing the recycling and management of waste, both in the demolition and construction phases of a custom home. The show is scheduled to air in November/December 2013 on DirecTV (ch. 306), Dish Network (ch. 217), AT&T U-Verse, Verizon FiOS and others. The show is on the ION Life TV Network which airs every day at 5:30 AM, 3:30 PM and week nights at 5:30 PM. Be sure to watch and record it!!

Luxe Magazine

Be sure to look for our new ad in Luxe Magazine in each 2014 issue.

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At Ferguson, find a tremendous selection of recognized plumbing, lighting and appliance brands, like Thermador. Visit our showroom and see all that Thermador has to offer, as well as our beautiful selection of home lighting. Mention this ad and receive 10% off lighting products. *Offer valid at Ferguson's Woodland Hills showroom, 6416 Variel Avenue. Does not apply to Murray Feiss products.

Pacific Palisades Junior Women’s Club Structure Home once again participated in the Pacific Palisades Junior Women’s Club’s Home Tour and Holiday Boutique as a Platinum Sponsor. This year’s event was special because one of Structure Home’s client’s opened their home on Toyopa to the tour.

Photo by: Joy Daunis

MEDIA & NEWS

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Structure Home 21101 Oxnard Street

Woodland Hills, CA 91367 P: (818) 598-1330 F: (818) 598-1340

www.StructureHome.com

© 2013

A special thank you to our preferred partners:

1st Century Bank Ferguson/Thermador

Aggressive Sash & Door

Boulevard Tile & Stone CJS Custom Woodworking & Design

Dynatech Security Systems Lifestyle Landscape

www.structurehome.com/directory.htm

Structure Home offers a referral incentive program that is designed to encourage, recognize and thank those clients who introduce Structure Home to friends, family and acquaintances. In the program, Structure Home will gift $2,500 to those who make a referral that results in a new client and will provide an additional $2,500 upgrade credit to the new clients who've been referred. In this way, all of our clients, past and new, share our appreciation for their loyalty and support. Email: [email protected] to find out more.