After purchasing and remodeling what they thought to be their “forever home,” the Katanas were suddenly faced with a whirlwind of life challenges including simultaneous job changes and a new baby on the way. After careful consideration they determined that their much older forever home, no matter the amount of remodeling, inherently came with limitations that might never provide all that they had in mind for a place to raise their growing family.
Ultimately they discovered building a custom home with Petros Homes utilizing their Build On Your Own Lot program was the perfect fit for them providing a blend of personally customized and tailored design and the flexibility to make the changes they knew would provide a turnkey solution for them. With the help of Petros’ off-site sales specialist, the Katanas now have everything in their forever home they could have dreamed of.
Tell us a little about your family and what led you to build a new home.
We had bought what we thought was our forever home and completely remodeled it. After we put in a tremendous amount of work into the house, we both moved to different jobs, which shifted us to remote positions. This life change helped us come to the conclusion that our home was built in the 1940s, and there were limitations that no amount of remodeling could solve. It was a smaller lot and an older home, and then adding a child to the mix added more complexity. With all of that in mind, we knew it was time for a change.
What made you want to build instead of buying another existing home?
Having been through a massive remodel, we knew that if we were going to move, it would have to be a completely custom home. We were not going to move into something that needed work. We wanted an open floor plan and the ability to move in without making any changes. We also didn’t want a typical new build that would require us to add character after the fact. We were going for an established feeling from the get-go. With all of this in mind, we started looking at some custom builders in the area. We found a floor plan that was very unique and fell in love with it. With that kind of plan, we knew it would have to be a custom build.
What was important to you when looking for the right lot?
My husband was still commuting to Beachwood occasionally, but we’re west siders, so we needed to stay close to I-480. A lot of the newer neighborhoods had great access to I-90, but not I-480. We knew we wanted to stay in the area, so we casually started looking at what available lots. We started looking for property in Olmsted Falls because we have family nearby. There were some decent-sized lots, and eventually came across the property we ended up buying.
How did you go about choosing a builder?
The lot is within the historic district of Olmsted Falls, which came with a lot of restrictions. We needed a builder who understood that complexity and how to navigate it. We had also picked the floor plan before finding the lot, so we needed to work with a builder who could build the plan we wanted.
We had a friend who had built with Petros in Richfield, which has similar restrictions to Olmsted Falls. We met with David from Petros, and he really put our concerns at ease. He reassured us that Petros has a lot of experience with complex projects and municipalities and has the means to facilitate the interactions with the city.
What were some of the features you really wanted in your home?
Character was very important to us. We wanted a unique feature wall in the living room with stone up to the ceiling, arched built-ins with cabinetry, and a lot of trim details. We also wanted a large mudroom, where whether you came in from the garage, or the front door, you’d be in the mudroom. We decided to go with a large bench with convenient built-ins in the space which was exactly what I had imagined.
My husband loves to cook, so a large kitchen with a 10’ island designed to enable seating around all sides and storage on the other. Everyone who has visited us has said they’ve never seen a kitchen as big as ours.
In addition to the character added, the Katana’s incorporated a 2nd floor bonus room full of natural light for their future gym with access to an oversized walk-through laundry room and a large folding counter. It was also important to them that their 1st floor office had optimal privacy, and additional insulation was installed to make this happen.
Were there any concerns or stressful parts of the process?
Financing was initially a little stressful because we hadn’t done a construction loan before. Petros recommended a lender, and after we did our research, we felt comfortable moving forward with them. It was a little intimidating, but once the process started, it all went smoothly.
Choosing a lot in a historical district, trying to find the right property, and thinking through concerns like flooding, water issues, and slope of the lot were also concerns of ours, but Petros addressed and handled all of those things.
“When we began the build process for these homeowners, there was no clear sanitary connection, and locating it was difficult due to the depth of the property. Our land department investigated and identified an alternate point in the system, allowing us to avoid major excavation and road disruption while reducing costs. We also needed to connect to a poorly mapped storm system, so the land department used cameras to locate the correct depth and connection point, ensuring proper drainage for the home. We also worked with a neighboring property owner to relocate their shed that was on our homeowner’s property at no cost and took care to maintain surrounding properties and control runoff throughout the process.” – Chad Enders Vice President of Production Operations
In the end, Petros took care of all of the things I thought were going to be challenging. More than a few builders actually ghosted us, and Petros’ communication and ability to work with the challenges of our location, our lot, and the home design we had in mind ultimately led us to the beautiful home we are in today.
The Katana family worked in tandem with Petros Homes designing and building their custom home in their desired location on the perfect lot. If you would like to learn more about a fully custom build on your own lot, visit our Build On Your Own Lot page.
