Green and Company is a Custom Home Builder and Architect of the Seacoast of New Hampshire.
Creating Communities and Wonderful Places to Call Home
by Karen Leonard
Green & Company®, a premier builder and developer of custom and semi-custom home communities in southern New Hampshire, with development interests in northern Massachusetts and southern Maine, started out 30 years ago building a few homes here and there, and over the years has built hundreds of homes and many communities. Richard Green began his career in real estate with a distinct customer focus. His brother Michael came into the company with a background in finance and experience in real estate management and development on the Atlantic Coast and in the Midwest.
Richard and Michael Green grew up in the real estate business on the North Shore of Massachusetts, where the Green family has been involved in real estate for over 50 years. So, it comes as no surprise that Green & Company's initial work of building homes "here and there" evolved naturally into the building of "complete communities that many people call home." From their past experiences in real estate, Richard and Michael brought an insight into what their customers are looking for. "Our customers are buying much more than just a house. They are buying a home, a community, and a particular lifestyle. They are making one of the largest investments, both from a financial and family standpoint. We take that very seriously and work hard to ensure our customers are satisfied with their new home," says Michael Green.
Building Communities
Green & Company delivers quality homes with signature features, such as bell caps on chimneys and detailed woodworking, in distinctive neighborhoods in desirable towns chosen with care. Developed with an eye to preserving the environment, their communities exhibit great attention to subtle and less obvious elements, such as road placement and selective cutting of trees. The company specializes in building traditional style homes - Capes, Colonials, Federals - but will build any style or size home a customer may want, as long as it does not conflict with the overall integrity of the community.
Community integrity is a cornerstone of the Green & Company philosophy. Before any building begins in any of their communities, decisions about the price range and size and style of homes is determined by the aesthetics of the natural environment, the size of the lots, and marketing and locations studies.
Green & Company prides itself on delivering a complete package of services. They have an in-house marketing program where open houses, staffed by experienced new home specialists, are held every weekend to provide buyers with personal on-site consultations. And as an added incentive and convenience to their customers, they offer a streamlined financing arrangement. The company packages homes and land together, whether the home has been built or not. With only an initial down payment and no further payments until closing, Green & Company builds the house to the customer's specifications, saving the customer the aggravation and expense of securing the lot and construction loan, making construction loan payments, and then converting that loan into a long-term mortgage. Their streamlined arrangement means there is virtually no risk to the buyer, and helps to ensure that the home is delivered on time and on budget.
Listening and Learning - Then Doing It Right
Richard and Michael Green's father taught them to listen to people and to learn from everyone they meet. They have built their business by listening to their clients, landowners, planning boards, land and marketing surveys, and community concerns. As a company, they continually incorporate what they have learned into the development and building of a Green & Company community. "Most of our management team and craftsmen have been with the company for a very long time," says Michael Green. Consequently, they are accustomed to the fine-tuning and constant analysis and adjustments necessary to improve procedures.
"Working with Green & Company, we found the whole experience to be stress-free, enjoyable, and exciting. Anything we wanted to do or change, they'd find a way to make it work. Michael would always tell us that at the end of the day, he just wanted us to be happy."
- Layne Fier, Homeowner
The main objective is always to have each new neighborhood fit into the local community while meeting the needs of the individual customers. As Richard Green puts it, "We look to make sure that things are done right, that the construction quality meets our standards, that homes are very structurally sound, that they have curb appeal, and that the neighborhoods are all laid out in such a way as to take advantage of the natural characteristics of the property. All homes and landscaping are respectful of the surrounding environment."
The Greens believe in sticking to basics, and delivering the best quality at the best value for the customer. "People want to get something for their money. This is their home. They need it to be special and enduring for the long-term," Michael says. "We really do build every community and home the way we would want it built for ourselves."
Green & Company builds for a wide range of customers, in a variety of price ranges, with a special focus on the upper middle and high-end communities. Their business comes from customer referrals, public awareness, and the brokerage community. And, their solid and distinctive reputation in the area ensures continual growth and new customers. As Michael Green says, "Our good reputation has spread by word of mouth. We try to do the right thing - by building properly with attention to detail and by treating people fairly. It is very important to work with our customers, craftsmen, designers and vendors to assemble a beautiful, high quality finished product, both in the homes themselves and the communities overall."
Growing with New Hampshire
The Greens see the New Hampshire economy as vibrant and strong, with a wonderful quality of life, even in the urban settings. Michael believes that the seacoast and southeastern parts of the state especially provide a place for a diverse population, which offers new ideas and thoughts, and adds richness and value to the community. Just as Green & Company homes are a blend of stone, granite, wood, and other diverse materials, the customers buying those homes create a rich and diverse community.
The company is committed to "quality throughout, from the ground up." Michael Green admits that they are "particularly focused on making sure that the foundation and overall structure or "the backbone of the home" is constructed exceptionally well." They also try to make the process of building a home as painless as possible so that the customers can work on "the fun part" - the decorations, flooring, light fixtures, cabinets, and other finishing touches. "Our customers work with our kitchen designers, lighting, appliance and flooring specialists to customize and personalize their new home.
Layne Fier, Homeowner in Blackford Place, Exeter, New Hampshire, affirms the Green & Company philosophy of listening, learning, and doing it right: "As a first-time home buyer, we had heard all the nightmare stories about building your own home. Working with Green & Company, we found the whole experience to be stress-free, enjoyable, and exciting. Anything we wanted to do or change, they'd find a way to make it work. And if one of our requests was just too wacky, they brought a wealth of knowledge and experience to the decision process that helped us make the right choices - the best choices for us and how our family would live in the house. Michael would always tell us that at the end of the day, he just wanted us to be happy."
"Our customers appreciate and enjoy the quality of a Green & Company home and the benefits of a well designed community. This has always been reflected in the high desirability and resale value of the homes in previous Green communities."
- Michael Green, Green & Company
Many of Green & Company's signature features are standard, such as chair rail and shadow box moldings and stepped tray ceilings in dining rooms, and crown moldings in dining rooms and foyers, hardwood flooring in foyers and dining rooms. Exterior details such as wide inset corner boards, dentil molding, window pediments, inset window panels, detailed porticos and front porches are also Green & Company signature touches. All Green & Company homes are built for energy efficiency with special attention paid to the type of framing, amount of insulation, and the kinds of doors and windows used.
In It for the Long Run
Green & Company's emergence as a premier home builder and developer of fine communities on the seacoast of New Hampshire is a direct result of the firm's long-term commitment to their clients, construction quality, and community design. By sticking to the basics, doing the right thing, providing the best quality at the best value for the customer, and delivering support for the whole building cycle, they establish solid working relationships and, in many cases, long-term friendships with their customers. Customers know that Green & Company stands behind their communities and homes, and are really there to make sure the customer is happy.
Customers show they value this sense of community and friendship by turning to Green & Company when they decide to resell their home, or to build a new home in a new community, because the company provides support for the whole cycle from lot choice, home plans/designs, the building process, resale of their existing home and new home acquisition. "Often we build our customers' first, second and third new homes, homes for their grown children, their parents and even their friends and co-workers. Our customers appreciate and enjoy the quality of a Green & Company home and the benefits of a well-designed community. This has always been reflected in the high desirability and resale value of the homes in previous Green & Company communities."
To that end, Richard Green says, "We're in it for the long run."
Green & Company is located in North Hampton, New Hampshire and is an active member of the New Hampshire Home Builders Association. For more information, contact them at 1-800-929-9964 or log on to: www.greenandcompany.com
Builder/Architect Magazine is proud to feature Green & Company�, a premier builder and developer of new residential communities in Seacoast New Hampshire. Your communities are truly �a wonderful place to call home� because of your commitment to doing it right and your delivery of quality homes in diverse communities.
All Contents Copyright � 2003, Builder/Architect Magazine of New Hampshire
Green & Company is currently building and planning communities in Greenland and Seabrook, New Hampshire. These wonderful communities are all located in the Seacoast, NH area which includes the surrounding towns of Exeter, Rye, North Hampton, Stratham, Kensington, Newfields, Newmarket, Newcastle, Portsmouth and the Massachusetts border towns of Amesbury and Newburyport. Green & Company is happy to welcome you to this beautiful area of New Hampshire.