"When you do business with a factory or a lumberyard, you get detailed costs. For example, we ask the factory how much it would cost to do the landing on a stairway, and I'll get a price to the penny for both lumber and labor. Now when was the last time you asked your framing contractor how much he wanted for a change order and he said $18.93? Framing contractors don't think like that. They think in increments of $50 or $100 or something. They consider change orders an opportunity to make some quick money. But when dealing with a factory, they will give you precise numbers, which are usually a lot lower than the numbers I get from the guys on site. All of my change orders are very precise and very cheap."

LOWER ENERGY BILLS, LESS WASTE

"I also get a more insulated house," says Pages-Ruiz. "This translates into very low energy bills for my buyers. Because I build primarily for first-time buyers, this is an important element when they are calculating their budgets to see if they can spring for the extra money to cover a mortgage instead of a rent payment."

[IMAGE: The streetscape of Liberty Village.]

By using advanced framing methods, Pages-Ruiz keeps material costs down, which makes his homes more affordable and easier to sell.

Technology Highlights

This project included the following PATH-profiled technologies:

• Advanced framing techniques
• Dual-flush toilets
• Fly-ash concrete
• Frost-protected shallow foundations
• HVAC sizing
• Panelized wall and flooring systems
• Pervious concrete
• PEX Piping
• Smart vapor retarders

"People moving from even a little two-bedroom apartment into my 1,600-square-foot, 4-bedroom house with a two-car garage and a yard are paying less per month for utilities than they were in their apartment. This has had a real benefit in terms of making my houses more marketable."

"The other advantage of doing advanced framing is the waste factor. Because we build on a 24" scale, we are cutting all the materials in 24" increments: 24", 48", 8 feet. We therefore have very little waste at the end of the job. This cuts our trips to the dumpster in half. We also reuse all of our leftover lumber from jobsite to jobsite, which also saves us quite a bit of lumber and money."

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