Whidbey Island Custom Homebuilder - Renovations and New Home Construction

Whidbey Island's source for home construction, remodel and renovations.	FOR MORE INFORMATION: (360) 321-4502
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Well, 2004 was punctuated with several positive events for us, not the least of which was the building of our new home on southwest Whidbey Island. We are so proud of it and want you to see it, so we put it on our Christmas card. How grateful we are for the good outcomes that came our way this year, and we share some of them with you here.

For most of the 22 years we lived in Bothell, we aspired to move to a cleaner and quieter place, but with Mike serving two, four?year terms as city councilman and mayor, we were precluded from leaving Bothell. That all changed in November 2001 when, as Mike likes to say, "The voters retired me." Although it was tough at the time, the reality of being able to look for a house outside of Bothell occurred to us along with the reality that we had our lives back. Wow!

From 2002 on, we scoured the Internet for houses, a search which took us from Bothell north to the Canadian border and west to the Kitsap Peninsula, Bainbridge Island, and Whidbey Island. We even spent time looking on the Olympic Peninsula in Sequim. Nothing floated our boat. If the area was good, the house was not or vice versa. By 2003, Karen began to say that looking was the end in itself. We were growing weary of the search.

It was then that one of our realtors said, "You two should consider building." Karen resisted that idea because she had heard nothing positive from anyone who had built a house. Soon she relented. We embraced the idea in late 2003 as we considered working with a new builder to construct a home at Warm Beach, a community about 45 miles northwest of Bothell and close to Puget Sound. But his lack of experience coupled with our not finding suitable property caused us to pass.

In early January, we contacted Rick Jones of Casa Group, the premier builder on Whidbey Island, a builder whose houses we liked. We had met him briefly a few months earlier and had found him a likeable sort. By February we had a meeting with him and toured the property on which we eventually built. But first we passed because we thought that it would be too shady. It did have a southern exposure, but it was lost to us on that dark February day.

We tromped around other sites with the builder and looked at other alternatives and builders until May when we decided to talk turkey with Casa Group about the property we saw in February, the one we thought was too dark. It was still available! That in itself was amazing because lots like ours are few and are often snapped up. We met with Rick early in May and left with a deal on a handshake. After reviewing with our attorney we signed with Casa on May 15.

With building permit secured, the foundation was poured just after July 4th. Then things got exciting fast. Decisions, decisions, decisions, so many so fast! We added two feet to the north wall enlarging our master bedroom, kitchen, and TV space. It also resulted in a well?sized, walk?in closet in the master bedroom. Of course, many interior decisions had to be made rapidfire, decisions like which plumbing and lighting fixtures, interior paint, and flooring. For several weeks, we found ourselves at showrooms choosing this or that.

As a birthday gift to Karen, Mike had French doors, instead of sliders, installed in the kitchen leading to the outside deck. Karen had talked about French doors for years, so Mike knew that they would be a hit. Said doors were installed without Karen suspecting a thing. Then one day in August, when we arrived on site, Karen walked into the kitchen to find French doors a five?foot?tall bouquet of balloons as well as festive bows sticking to the panes. Both Mike and Rick were right on her heels to see her reaction. She was delighted. Those doors make the kitchen.

Rick choreographed his subcontractors as he ran a tight ship. He meets his deadlines, and so it was with us. We found his subs to be of highest quality each dedicated to doing the job right. The result: We have a sound home, one of which we are proud.

As all that was going on, we had a house in Bothell to sell. When? Should we list in summer when interest rates were lower? Or list after Labor Day? Our answer was made for us, because we did not have the house staged and ready to list until late August. So our immaculate and well?staged house went on the market on August 30??just before Labor Day. We did not expect it to last long. It didn't. Our housing market was, and is, white hot, so our house sold in just four days and at full price. The buyers came from a rental, so we arranged the closing to meet our needs, meaning a long one. They agreed. We moved here on October 28.

As we approach the two?month mark, we now believe that we live here at Useless Bay Shores and that the real owners are not going to show up and tell us to leave. It feels good to have reached our long?held goal. We finally live in a quiet place, a place with good air and engaged neighbors who look out for one another. Having our community beach just a stone's throw away and our view out to Puget Sound and sunsets are just icing on the cake. So do we miss Bothell? You be the judge...

Our best to you for a healthful and prosperous 2005!

~ Mike & Karen Noblet

Dear Rick and all Casa Group,

Having a new house built can be intense, especially when it's your first brand new home, and being a retirement home, it's likely the only brand new home that you'll ever

have. On top of that add that the custom home is being built in Washington State, the architect is in New Jersey, and the owner is in Hawaii. It was an intimidating undertaking. And now, we are here, in our new home, and the experience was exciting and the result is magnificent. We would like to thank you and the entire Casa team. It is definitely a family undertaking.

Rick, you treated us fairly and honestly. From the beginning we felt that we could trust you in this project. You were open about costs, time frame, and process. Apart from being a trustworthy businessman, you have been an excellent advisor, giving us sound recommendations about structural and aesthetic issues?not only with the house itself, but with how the house fit in the environment.

Trevor, you have been our foreman, keeping the various subcontractors on schedule and explaining to us what was happening in gentle and understandable terms. You have

been tough with the job while being patient with us. When we had our hearts set on a particular wood floor, you calmly and persuasively talked us out of it. When seeing in another home what we had thought would be the ideal floor, we were so very grateful that we had accepted your expertise and advice.

Bobbi, you have been the security blanket we needed for interior details and appliances. You were tireless and gracious in finding just the right tiles, carpet, refrigerator, and all the rest of those details. When it became too overwhelming for us to make choices, you jumped in with just the right fixtures and colors. You listened to our likes and dislikes and put our unspecific visions into a lovely reality.

Mandy, you kept the construction real for us. The budget didn't allow for trips to Washington to see the progress, but even with work, school, and the last stages of a pregnancy, you went to the building site to take pictures to email to us. You gave us that extra feeling of inclusion.

Flaxen, you have done so much more than finish work. When we were looking for a contractor and saw a Hawaiian listing for carpenters, we called you, and you referred us to Casa Group. Later in the progress of the construction, you kept an eye on everything and everyone when Rick and Trevor weren't around. When we arrived on Whidbey in the final stages of building, you were reassuring, supportive, and patient. You talked us through our nervous anticipation of moving in and went out of your way to fulfill our requests. Your final touches helped to make this incredible house an incredible home.

To all of you at Casa Group, we extend our heartfelt thanks. The high business standards, quality workmanship, and genial relationships resulted in a most positive experience. We will definitely recommend Casa Group to anyone building a home on Whidbey Island.

~ Jim and Kathy Rothschild

Yippee! We have moved in!

We are almost done

And yes, it's been a Very Long Journey!

~ s

After talking about Redmodeling for 5 years we finally did it.

Bill was great at keeping the Contractors in line. I think they're still trying to figure him out. (You know how he watches every penney?) My job was to clean, clean, clean! And stay out the way.

~ s

Are we happy with the result? Very! Would we do it again? Too early to answer that question! Are Reta & Bill still friends? Barely!

~ s

We are really enjoying our new home. Thanks for the lovely flowers.

~ Pat & Bill