For builders & developers

Every great home is decided before it's built.

We design custom spec homes and make them build-ready - leading the entire design process, selecting & pricing every finish & fixture - so the home costs less to build and sells for more. That's the product. Around it, a menu - take what you need: underwriting if you're still buying, permitting, even eyes on site through the build. One team, one point of contact, about four months, hardly any of your time.

Not theory: 20+ Austin homes designed, permitted, built for less, sold for more.

Twilight exterior photo of a UK new-build-style house with white render, black windows, and a black garage door

The work — in four optional steps

  1. Know the ground

    Own it, under contract, or still searching - we underwrite first: what the land can carry, what it costs to build, and what it sells for once it's done. Numbers before commitment, starting at $2.5k.

  2. Core service

    Design to sell

    We replace the designer and become the glue for everyone else - architect, engineer, every key party - aligning each decision toward lower cost and higher exit price. Full package, design through product specs, from $25k.

  3. Clear the path

    Permits targeted for month four, following the process behind our 20-plus first-time approvals. You pay the expediter and the city at their cost, and a small management fee to us.

  4. Watch the build

    If you are a developer or investor, not the GC, we offer owner's rep support: verifying what the GC reports, watching quality, and coordinating the builder on your chosen cadence.

The Groundcraft difference

Typical spec developments

6–9 months

Architect and designer working independently, inefficiently, without full design selections, leaving you as the GC or developer to do an awful lot of the work throughout and afterwards.

Groundcraft

~4 months

Design leading architecture. Full product selections. Faster to permitting. Crafted in a way that means a lower cost build and a higher exit price, with significantly less work for you.

  • The market starts with construction.We start with what the finished home should be worth.
  • Most teams react to problems on site.We design and price them out before they exist.
  • Most owners manage four consultants.Our clients manage one relationship.
  • Builders build what is drawn.We draw what is most valuable.
Minimalist white and oak kitchen with black molded bar stools

Doing it yourself may feel free, just because it doesn't send an invoice. We find our methodologies frequently save tens of thousands in build cost, tens of thousands in holding costs, and add tens of thousands to the sale price. And as well as making your project more profitable, we make your life significantly easier.

Who this is for

Developers, GCs, investors, landholders - building to sell or hold; site owned, under contract, or still searching, your realtor or ours. First project or fiftieth. Not for the cheapest stamped plans - for custom-style spec homes, built to sell at a premium.

We've built houses for our own development company — we know how you see it and what you need, because we've been the builder ourselves.

The upgrade we love most

Healthy-home design - air, water, light, materials - woven in from day one. Good for the people who'll live there. Good for your bottom line too: healthy-home buyers are the fastest-growing segment in housing, and they'll pay a premium for a house that already meets them halfway.

Want to geek out? See our healthier-home options →
Daniel and Mel Brown smiling together in a close-up photo

Book a consult. Bring your site, contract, or search. One session: what it can carry, what it should cost, what it should sell for - and what we'd do first.

818-918-0149studio@groundcraftdesign.com@groundcraftdesign