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Client Kudos

Nearly 15 years ago, Rich Glass and John Toomey came to Raleigh from the Baltimore-Washington area to create Clearwater Group, a design/build firm they instinctively felt would fit a specialty niche. Today, with more than 500 homeowners placed in their dream residences, Clearwater is well respected among the area's top builders, realtors, and, most importantly, buyers.

"While stock plans may be sufficient to construct a building, they are rarely enough to create the very personal homes that our buyers desire."

The partners at Clearwater believe that vision, integrity and attention to detail are the cornerstones of exceptional homebuilding. Each home, created uniquely for each buyer, is a seamless integration of design, engineering and cost management that delivers exceptional homes as well as a delightful experience. Glass and Toomey's planning and determination have certainly paid off. The partners' portfolio of homes across Raleigh, Durham, Wake Forest and Franklin County areas is recognized for its high quality of construction and design among peer companies. Their customer-centric philosophy has earned them accolades that are coveted by the industry and include Parade of Homes recognition (including several hard-to-achieve Perfect Scores) plus the MAME (Major Achievement in Marketing Excellence) Award for homes of more than 3,500 square feet.

"We really try to preserve the richness of the dream."

What is the key driver of success for the team? The answer is the bridge they forge between the initial design of a home and its construction, so that nothing is lost in translation. Whether homeowners have an architect, or have an existing blueprint, Glass explains, "all of their energies get boiled down to what can be presented one-dimensionally on paper. The nuances, the flavor, the texture wind up getting diluted, if not omitted. While the plans may be sufficient to construct a building, they are rarely enough to create the very personal homes that our buyers desire."

By combining the design and build under one roof, the flavor and intent of the home is preserved and can be even further enhanced.

Clearwater's process is far more integrated and deliberate. "We really try to preserve the richness of the dream," Glass says. "Even once we've broken ground, we can continue to add value. I can say, 'I know what your vision was for this wall, and we should not just run the stone on the fireplace up to nine feet and stop. We should run it all the way to the second floor ceiling. Neither of us saw that, but now that we're standing here, this is the way it should be done.'"

Aiding the process is a strong foundation. Glass has a civil engineering degree from the University of Maryland and Toomey's degree is from Maryland Institute of Design.

"At the end of the day, satisfaction is about keeping promises. It's just that simple."

Glass begins the process by asking a client what the agenda is for the house, beyond simply number of bedrooms, preferred architectural style and what the exposures are on the lot. He wants to know much more about how the owners want their home to function. How will they live in the house? What do they enjoy most? Next are the chart of rooms with dimensions and rough sketches. Simultaneously, proceeding in the background, are ongoing budget refinements to manage expectations and stay in budget.

Clearwater also offers feedback—intended to maximize value and functionality, it also can keep clients out of trouble. The client who wants five bedrooms but only two baths is persuaded that a $6,000 savings (by omitting the 3rd bath) can translate into a $20-30,000 penalty when it's time to sell.

Finally, there are incalculable savings—in time, energy, and money—lent by Clearwater's expertise. The two partners combine their high level of service with a passion for details and an emphasis on problem solving. The custom-made glass roof proposed above a swimming pool—priced out of sight—is achieved, at far less expense, with a clustering of operable skylights. A natural granite countertop is less costly than a synthetic solid-surface—but only if you know your granites and work diligently with your suppliers.

The proposed lighting for a client's valuable art collection is another example. "When you make that kind of an investment in art, you deserve the opportunity to display it properly," says Glass. Ultimately, Glass found special recessed lighting used by museums and asked the manufacturer's representative to walk the house with him and the client. The bonus: the design guide specified the lighting be approximately 5 feet from the artwork, but the rep advised that in his experience, given the size and media of the work to be displayed, 3-1/2 feet would work better. It did.

Clearwater's feedback, intended to maximize value and functionality, also can keep clients out of trouble.

Gone are the seemingly endless trips to showrooms, disrupted schedules while waiting for specialty items and other stresses that Clearwater believes should never beleaguer the homeowner. "We want to research and understand the marketplace, discover what's available and ask critical questions like - what is available in market or can be shipped readily to our sites? What's the best price point, what's the best warranty, what has the most functionality, what comes in a range of styles? Not to mention, what meets the local building codes, (given our proximity to the coast and exposure to hurricane force winds)?" says Glass.

What's changing in the custom home market? Computer simulations so clients can walk through their homes during the earliest design stages, when there's plenty of time to make significant changes. Meanwhile, the internet is helping streamline builder-client communications. A prime example: for clients in upstate New York to watch daily progress as their Carolina home went up, Glass had a web-cam installed on the building site. Today it works as a security camera at their front door.

Most recently, Clearwater has started building at Heritage Manor of Wake Forest and Bedford at Falls River within their Estate Collection. It's another exciting time for us, says Glass. "We're designing multi-generational homes, for grandparents, parents and children." He asks clients if a parent or grown child might come to live with them. If the answer is yes, he suggests separate entrances, wider hallways, universal access, multiple kitchens, suites of rooms rather than the old standard guest room and shared bath, as well as increasingly popular residential elevators. The same suite can be used for teens and college students. "We've done a few suites over the years, it's a much larger segment of the marketplace right now."

"It's not enough to be good at what you do."

What's next for Clearwater? It's a continued focus on first-rate service across the board. To the fullest extent possible, this translates into a gratifying experience from homebuilding to open space and site preservation.

"One of the things we've done well as a company is to find employees with a certain passion. It's not enough to be good at what you do; you have to have a passion about what you do," says Glass. "Our employees are hired not on the basis of their resume alone, but on their attitude and passion for building strong relationships and creating awesome products. That has translated very well into helping me keep the promises I make to our clients. At the end of the day, satisfaction is about keeping promises. It's just that simple."