Seattle-Based Custom Builder JayMarc Homes Launches New Product Line

Home buyers looking to build a custom home are often faced with several complexities during the process, including finding the right piece of land, hiring a great architect, and designing the home of their dreams, all while sticking to a budget. JayMarc Homes, a Seattle-based custom builder, aims to solve these key pain points with the launch of its new JayMarc Curated collection.

With a library of new floor plans and selection packages, JayMarc Curated hopes to deliver “the uncompromising quality, design, and luxury of a JayMarc home without the time-consuming complexity of the traditional custom home program,” according to the company’s website.

To learn more about the new product line, BUILDER spoke with JayMarc CEO Marc Rousso to find out why the builder wanted to launch this new program, how it addresses the pitfalls of custom building, who the target market will be, and more.

BUILDER: What is JayMarc Curated?

Rousso: Since the beginning of JayMarc Homes in 2010, we have welcomed 250 families into the JayMarc family of homeowners, yet there are hundreds more that we wanted to serve but couldn’t due to budgetary constraints. With our new JayMarc Curated program, we are reinventing how we build custom homes by marrying the high design and quality of a JayMarc custom home with the unmatched customer service our clients have come to expect, all within a simplified process at reasonable costs.

BUILDER: Why did JayMarc Homes create this new product line?

Rousso: Building a new home is a balancing act of inspired designs and budget realities. It’s about finding the ideal piece of land, the most sublime setting, and the top school districts. Inventory has been at record lows, and home needs are evolving due to changes in lifestyle, such as working from home, remote education, and making flexible spaces with multiple uses. It is competitive to find what you are wishing for in a new home due to budget, features, and economical restraints. Your place-making aspirations should not be pinned by premium pricing or extended scheduling. For these reasons, we created JayMarc Curated.

BUILDER: How does the new line address the pitfalls of custom home building?

Rousso: Our 10 years in business gave us an amazing opportunity to obtain firsthand feedback from potential homeowners about their wants and needs related to the home building process. We quickly learned that value, time, and process management were the key pain points that we needed to effectively address to ensure happy customers.

• Value: In collaboration with our valued trade partners, we developed a library of plans and selection packages that offer the same JayMarc quality and service customers would expect in any of our fully custom homes at an affordable price. Customers select a floor plan and then work with our experienced in-house design team to pick their interior selections. Our detailed price calculation tools ensure that we are staying on budget every step of the way.
• Time: For those choosing the traditional custom home route, they would work with an outside architect, hire an interior designer to choose finishes, hire a builder to construct your home, submit and wait for permits, and only then start building. This type of build can take two to three years, which is unreasonable for most customers. JayMarc Curated allows customers to fast-track through the feasibility, pre-construction, and construction phases to achieve a beautiful custom home in half the time.
• Simplicity: We have fine-tuned the JayMarc Curated project management process to ensure that each build will proceed smoothly and quickly based on a set of proven parameters. By setting expectations and following our proven process, it allows us to more efficiently develop floor plans, choose interior selections, finalize the budget, and submit for permits. Deadlines are key, and JayMarc Curated keeps everyone responsible and on task.

BUILDER: Who will be the target market for JayMarc Curated?

Rousso: Homeowners looking to build a new home in the Greater Seattle, Washington, area and wish to spend between $750,000 and $2 million.

BUILDER: Compared with a traditional custom home process, what steps will the buyer go through when building their new JayMarc Curated home?

Rousso: The difference between Curated and traditional custom will be the fact that the customer will choose from our vetted library of plans and have a dedicated program manager and the expertise of our in-house design and build team to guide them through the process. Utilizing the strength and knowledge of the JM team eliminates months off of the construction timeline. Working with our internal team and resources rather than an outside architect and interior designer, like a traditional custom home program, allows for a more streamlined construction process at reasonable costs.

BUILDER: How many floor plans and packages will be available to potential buyers?

Rousso: JayMarc Curated plans to launch with a library of six proven floor plans with three exterior options that range from 3,100 to 4,400 square feet and offer the best design and features available today. By the end of 2021, we expect to add an additional 10 unique plans.

BUILDER: How much flexibility do the buyers have with picking finishes and interior selections?

Rousso: Buyers will work with JayMarc’s experienced team to design their new home from a wide variety of proven plumbing and appliance packages and endless hard-surface selections that are vetted by our in-house design studio. Our built-in interior design services save significant amounts of time and money because our team of designers creates compelling packages in advance. All of our finishes are arranged in price categories to help ensure that we design something that is compatible with client budgets versus blindly going through a showroom and choosing things that are beautiful, but outside their established budget.

BUILDER: What will the price range of the homes be?

Rousso: Our target price is $250 square feet, and the total price is between $750,000 and $2 million.