Greater flexibility, area expertise and traditional customer service drive sales for one Austin builder

It seems like every week brings more headlines of bursting real estate bubbles and national homebuilders posting significant losses. Despite the shaky ground in many areas across the country, Austin’s real estate market is holding steady, thanks in part to a foundation of superior local homebuilders. While the number of home sales nationally continues to slide, Austin has shown a month-to-month increase so far this year. In total 12,072 homes were sold in the first six months of 2008, with a single-month high of 2,410 homes sold in June. In that time, the average sales price in Austin has actually increased over last year, in part because of the quality of new homes on the market.

One such local builder is Buffington Signature Homes. The company is the newest venture from long-time Austin builder and investor, Tom Buffington, whose list of credentials includes Buffington Capital, a leading area acquisition and development company, and Buffington Homes, which became the second largest builder in Austin before being sold to a national firm in the late 1990s.

Today, Buffington Signature Homes represents a shift back to the roots of Austin homebuilding, with a locally-owned, locally-managed company that specializes in building distinctive communities throughout the Austin area. Many of the national volume builders are pulling back their productions throughout the region, allowing companies like Buffington to step in and hand-pick prime locations in the best communities.

The key to this ability is the leadership team’s unprecedented knowledge of the Austin area and eye for the factors that make a community succeed. “There’s a big difference between market research and market expertise,” explained James Giddens, President of Buffington Signature Homes. “Lots of communities look good on paper, but it takes an understanding of local tastes, needs and lifestyles to know which ones will truly succeed.”

The same holds true for home designs. While many volume builders simply rearrange layouts or change the exterior colors from location to location, Buffington’s design team carefully crafted each floor plan to best suit the needs and style of the Austin market. As those styles and needs change, the company can also adapt more quickly to better meet their customer’s expectations.

“Since all of our communities are within a few minutes drive of our corporate offices, the leadership team has a much better understanding of how our products are selling and what our customers think about their homes,” said Grant Whittenberger, Vice President of Sales for Buffington Signature Homes. “If there’s any problem with a design or feature, we can correct it immediately to ensure that our customers remain satisfied. And if one design is particularly successful, we can find out why and develop new designs that will appeal to our clients for the same reasons.”

This flexibility is another key factor in Buffington Signature Homes’ continued growth. A recent report indicates that the price of building materials increased by more than 10% from 2007 to 2008, with no signs of slowing. The flexibility to change designs and features or to develop relationships with new vendors, allows Buffington to maintain prices in a volatile market. Additionally, most of those materials come from vendors right here in Austin, so customers aren’t footing the bill for the shipping company’s diesel.

In their effort to keep costs as low as possible, many volume builders use a practice called “value engineering.” More often than not, that’s a nice way of saying “cutting corners.” But Buffington’s homes utilize quality materials and traditional building practices that were phased out by most national builders long ago. Each home features engineered foundations and frames, as well as full wind-bracing and half-inch OSB wrapping to protect against cracking walls and sticking doors or windows. The roofs are all traditionally framed and the interiors feature deep floor trusses. The three-quarter-inch sub-flooring is attached with screws and glue to create incredibly solid floors that are less likely to squeak or bounce.

“The key is to make sure we do it right the first time,” explains Whittenberger. “A little extra work during the construction stage means less work for us in the long run and less daily maintenance for our customers after they move in. Most of our leadership team has worked with the national firms, so we understand where their processes fall short. We spent a lot of time on product development, making sure our designs and our features picked up where the others guys left off.”

As part of that commitment to quality, every Buffington Signature Home comes with something they call Signature Features: more than 90 high-end fixtures, finishes and features that are included standard in every home. Signature Features include a 3rd car garage (homesite permitting), island kitchens with granite countertops and custom cabinets, rounded corners, energy efficient appliances, covered patios and fully sodded yards, all standard in the price of the home. Customers can also choose from a collection of Signature Options, optional designs and features to further personalize their homes.

And there’s one more factor that’s often overlooked by the national builders: the importance of community interaction. More than simple advertising or branding, local builders are active members of their community. From the ball fields to school activities, Buffington Signature Homes strives to help the community organizations around them.

“Obviously, when you work for a company, you’re invested in its success,” said Whittenberger, “but since we live here, we’re also invested in the success of the community and the city. That makes a big difference in the way a company operates.”

Buffington Signature Homes currently offers homes in several highly sought-after communities in the Austin area: Silver Leaf, located just off Gattis School Road in Round Rock; Forest Oaks, located near 183A and 1431 in Cedar Park; and two premier South Austin communities, The Bridges at Bear Creek and Southpark Meadows. Later this year, Buffington will also launch sales in Teravista, located in Round Rock, and Belterra, located just minutes west of Austin on US-290.

For more information on Buffington Signature Homes, visit www.BuffingtonSignatureHomes.com or stop by their model homes in Silver Leaf or Forest Oaks.

The Forest Oaks Sales Center

1200 Shiloh St.
Cedar Park, TX 78613

Silver Leaf Sales Center
209 Aspen Trail
Round Rock, TX 78664

Hours of Operation
Monday - Thursday & Saturday, 10am to 7pm
Friday & Sunday, 11am to 7pm

About Buffington Signature Homes
Buffington Signature Homes is dedicated to building homes that will last a lifetime. A locally owned company with a wealth of experience, Buffington Signature Homes combines innovative floor plans, skilled craftsmanship and an exceptional buying experience to deliver homes with value that each and every customer is proud to live in. Proudly building fine communities and new homes in South Austin, Round Rock and Cedar Park.  Home prices vary per community, from the $210’s to the mid $300’s, ranging in size from 2000 to 3700 sq ft with new plans in development to go over 4000 sq ft.

Media Contact:
Grant Whittenberger
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
512.762.1315

Across the nation, headlines continue to paint a gloomy picture of the current real estate market. Experts speak out in despair about mortgage rates, housing markets and foreclosures. And while much of what they say is true, the slowing market offers a silver lining for many potential homebuyers.

“A down market can offer plenty of benefits to homebuyers,” explains Grant Whittenberger, Vice President of Sales for Buffington Signature Homes. “With low interest rates, higher rents and lots of great homes to choose from, it’s actually a great time to consider buying a new home in Austin.”

To help potential buyers understand how they can benefit from the current market, Mr. Whittenberger shared these important factors that could make it the perfect time to buy a home.

Increasing Rent
With more people moving out of their homes and more potential homebuyers opting to wait, renters find themselves facing fewer options and higher prices for apartments and leases. Apartment complexes, rental agencies and rental property owners are facing higher costs for maintenance and upkeep, forcing a rise in their rates across the country. As rental rates continue to climb, the price stability of a fixed mortgage payment becomes a much more attractive option.

Low Interest Rates
Interest rates are still at near-record lows, making monthly mortgage payments considerably lower than what they would have been in the height of the real estate boom. And despite tighter standards on lending practices and requirements, lenders are still eager to work with buyers who have good credit. First-time homebuyers today can lock-in at considerably lower rates than those who bought in a few years ago, and existing homeowners can move up to a bigger or better home with substantially lower interest costs.

Competitive Prices
Many production builders are facing a surplus of inventory homes with a declining number of potential buyers, and they are cutting prices in response. “The last few years saw home prices rise at their fastest pace in history,” explains Whittenberger, “and it didn’t take long before they reached levels that a lot of buyers couldn’t afford. As builders adjust to the current market, prices are returning to normal levels and many new buyers have a chance to enter the market again.”

Great Selection
Along with lower prices, an overabundance of homes on the market can also provide buyers with plenty of opportunities to shop around for the perfect home. New community developments have been popping up throughout the region, with great new homes in Austin, as well as Round Rock and Cedar Park, offering buyers more choices than ever before. Buffington’s newest communities include Silver Leaf in Round Rock, Forest Oaks in Cedar Park, as well as two premier South Austin communities, The Bridges at Bear Creek and Southpark Meadows. The wide variety of homesites and options available in these communities means any buyer can find a home that fits their unique style and needs.

Energy Efficiency & Innovative Features
Every year new developments in appliances, construction techniques and green technologies help make homes use less water, gas and electricity. “New efficient construction techniques and Energy Star appliances help Buffington’s homes significantly reduce your monthly utility bills, potentially knocking hundreds of dollars off of your expenses,” explains Whittenberger. “We’ve also designed our homes around the way people live today, with contemporary features like additional wiring for internet and cable, specially-designed computer spaces and pre-wired setups for HDTVs.”

Investment & Appreciation
Despite the ups and downs, there is virtually no other investment or purchase that carries the same track record for value appreciation as homeownership. On the national level, home appreciation has historically risen 5 to 6 percent each year. And from 1991 to 2007 the median price of a new home rose from $120,000 to $246,900, more than doubling in value. Compared with the drastic potential for loss in the stock market, investing in a home is safe and profitable.

Tax Incentives
Added to the increased value of your home each year, significant tax incentives are in place to make owning (and eventually selling) that home more affordable. In most instances, any money you spend on interest and property taxes can be fully deducted from your income, saving thousands on taxes. Collectively, homeowners save almost $100 billion on mortgage interest and property deductions each year. And when it comes time to sell you home, more tax breaks help to ensure you make the most of your home’s appreciation.

The Economy in Austin & Texas
Despite the national downturn in the housing market, the economy in Austin and throughout Texas has remained comparatively strong. Thanks to Austin’s thriving business and technology industries, and large defense and oil industry influences across Texas, the housing market has remained relatively insulated from the extreme highs and lows found in other areas. In fact, Entrepreneur magazine recently placed the Austin/Killeen/Round Rock area at the top of its “Best Places to Buy” list, citing low prices and high job growth as key indicators. While that may insulate the market from the extreme low prices found in other parts of the country, it also means your home will likely be a more secure investment with a greater resale potential.

The time is NOW
Production builders continue to adjust their business to meet the conditions of the market, cutting back on their new supply of homes and cutting prices on their existing inventory. Many experts believe the production and inventory of homes on the market will return to normal levels by later this year. “Then the opportunity will be gone,” says Whittenberger. “As builders adjust the market, there are great chances for buyers to come out ahead, but once the adjustment is over, most of those chances will have passed.”

For those hoping to “time the market” and make the most of current conditions: The time is NOW.

For more information on the best new homes in South Austin, Round Rock, and Cedar Park, visit www.mybuffington.com/aas.

About Buffington Signature Homes
Buffington Signature Homes is dedicated to building homes that will last a lifetime. A locally owned company with a wealth of experience, Buffington Signature Homes combines innovative floor plans, skilled craftsmanship and an exceptional buying experience to deliver homes with value that each and every customer is proud to live in. Proudly building fine communities and new homes in South Austin, Round Rock and Cedar Park. Home prices vary per community, from the $210’s to the mid $300’s, ranging in size from 2000 to 3700 sq ft with new plans in development to go over 4000 sq ft.
www.mybuffington.com/aas

Media Contact:
Grant Whittenberger
Vice President of Sales & Marketing
512.762.1315

Buffington Signature Homes offers 10 reasons you should consider buying new.

Austin, TX — June 7, 2008 — Every home buyer faces an early and important choice: purchase a newly constructed home or search out a used home that meets your needs. This decision can be made even tougher by the many misconceptions potential buyers have about new home construction. Too often, they believe that new homes will be too expensive or that the purchase process will be too complicated. Others believe a new home won’t appreciate as fast as one in a more established neighborhood. But that’s not always the case, says Grant Whittenberger, Vice President of Sales for Buffington Signature Homes.

“Buying a new home from the right builder can make a tremendous difference in what you get for your money,” explains Whittenberger. “With new construction, you can often customize important aspects of the layout and design, plus you can get better energy-efficiency, modern features and appliances, even incentives on pricing or financing.”

To help explain the benefits of buying new versus buying resale, Mr. Whittenberger shared these important factors to consider when choosing your new home.

Energy Efficiency
With drastically lowered monthly utility bills and a smaller impact on the environment, energy efficiency is an important consideration for many buyers. With the latest Energy Star technology and construction methods, as well as new strict codes on materials and insulation, new homes can provide enormous cost-cutting benefits to their buyers. From the kitchen, to the garage, to the laundry room, household appliances continue to improve every year. More than just looks or fancy features, these new appliances often use less energy and water, and they provide better performance than older models found in used homes.

Every Buffington Signature Home comes with a standard collection of state-of-the-art features, including Whirlpool Energy Star kitchen appliances, efficient gas water heaters, and Carrier, 14 SEER, Puron HVAC systems. Today’s best air conditioners use 30%–50% less energy to produce the same amount of cooling as air conditioners made in the mid 1970s. Even if your HVAC is only 10 years old, you would save 20%–40% of your cooling energy costs by replacing it with a newer, more efficient model.

Buffington’s homes feature highly efficient house wrap seals and insulation, insulated glass windows and extra seals around doors and windows to further reduce heating and cooling costs. This is an important factor, considering utilities can add hundreds of dollars per month in bills on top of your mortgage payment.

Appreciation
Another important factor to consider is your home’s appreciation. 84% of all homes sold are 3 years old or newer. The first seven or eight years of a home’s “life” are usually its formative years, where the most appreciation can occur. A typical home needs updating and remodeling after 20-30 years, a costly and difficult process that’s necessary to maintain its value. As a general rule, the newer your home, the higher the appraisal value, and a higher price tag on your home when it comes time to sell it.

Low Maintenance
From the moment a home is completed, the wear and tear begins. Even the best quality used homes require maintenance and upkeep, but new ones require significantly less than those that have already been lived in, even if the previous owner did the required yearly maintenance. With the latest in construction techniques, quality materials and high-end fixtures, a new Buffington Signature Home will be virtually maintenance fee for many years. Whittenberger adds, “Don’t forget about the remodeling savings. We just installed that new kitchen, master bath and mechanical units, and you even have the ability to select the paint colors and flooring in your new Buffington Signature Home.”

New Home Warranties
Even with the low maintenance of a new home, a warranty can provide important coverage and peace of mind for homeowners. New homebuyers are assured at least a one-year warranty on the home itself, with other warranties on major appliances and features. And in Texas, builders are required to guarantee the structure of the home for a full 10 years. With Buffington Signature Homes, you’ll have the peace of mind of comprehensive coverage through the company’s partnership with Bonded Builders Warranty Group, one of the state’s oldest and largest providers.

Home Location
As they say, location is the most important factor in the value of your home, and new home construction offers you endless possibilities for the perfect location. “Homebuilders put a lot of time and research into seeking out new up-and-coming areas or established neighborhoods that have some available land to build,” says Whittenberger. “This research shows us where we can provide extra value to our customers in the home and lifestyle they want to live. Shopping, schools, recreation and traffic flow are just the tip of the iceberg of information we use in choosing where we would like to build homes.” This offers more choices in the general area or neighborhood for your home, as well as the opportunity to choose the specific homesite within that community. Buffington currently offers prime homesites in some of the area’s premier communities, like Silver Leaf in Round Rock, Forest Oaks in Cedar Park, and the Bridges at Bear Creek and Southpark Meadows in south Austin.

Floor Plans
It’s easy to overlook the importance of floor plans. As our lifestyles change, so do the ways we use the space in our homes. Many older homes feature impractical layouts that leave wasted or unusable space throughout the home, while contemporary floor plans can make even modest homes much more livable. Buffington’s innovative floor plans are designed to maximize livable space. “We’ve talked to homebuyers,” says Whittenberger, “and we designed each home’s layout in a way that gives space in the areas where families need it, with open, island kitchens, more storage, closet space and high ceilings.”

Design Options
When you’re shopping among existing homes, the design options in your home are ultimately at the mercy of the previous owner’s tastes. Buyers are often left with the choice between paying more money to redecorate or to live with someone else’s choices. With Buffington’s Signature Selections, you can choose the designs and features that will make your new home truly your own.

Latest Technology
As with everything else in our space-age society, newer and better ways of constructing homes are always being generated. Fiber optic services are being installed in some new communities to offer faster and more reliable services in the future. Buffington Signature Homes installs additional phone and cable lines in all bedrooms, studies, home management centers, living and game rooms. They also pre-wire for projection screens over fireplaces with a recessed electrical outlet and conduit for future cables, so there is no need for exposed wires on the exterior of the home or costly sheetrock repairs from retrofitting future lines.

Financing Options
As the requirements for securing a new mortgage get more demanding, many potential buyers begin to worry about the stressful financing process. Many homebuilders can simplify this process by partnering with established lenders and offering significantly easier qualifying or reduced rates. Through a partnership with MyHomeMortgage, Buffington can ensure that their buyers receive the most competitive financing options available.

Competitive Pricing
Compare the prices of existing resale homes with comparably-sized new homes. With so many new home builders in Central Texas, builders are competing for your business. When you combine these already competitive prices with incentives on closing costs, financing options or special offers, it’s tough for an independent resale to compete.

These are just a few of the ways you can get more for your money by making your next home a new one. For more information on the best new homes in South Austin, Round Rock, and Cedar Park, visit www.buffingtonsignaturehomes.com/blog.

Buffington Signature Homes offers expert advice how to move up the right way.

Many factors can lead a homeowner to decide it’s time to move from their current home to a new one. Some move-up buyers have growing families that require additional living space and more bedrooms. Others may have been first-time homebuyers with limited budgets who now have money and equity to put towards the home they wanted all along. Still others may be hoping to move to a different part of town or a newer neighborhood. Whatever your reason for joining the ranks of “move-up homebuyers,” there are plenty of important factors to consider before moving on to your new home.

With the help of one local Austin homebuilder, we’ve put together a list of tips to ensure your move-up purchase is a success. Buffington Signature Homes is the newest homebuilding venture from veteran Austin builder and developer, Tom Buffington. The company currently builds in two of the area’s premier communities; Silver Leaf in Round Rock and Forest Oaks in Cedar Park. In the mid-May, Buffington will begin offering homes in South Austin at The Bridges at Bear Creek and Southpark Meadows. If you’re in the market to move-up or move-down, consider these important tips to ensure you get the home you deserve.

Selling Your Current Home
Before you can begin to seriously think about the home you want, it helps begin by focusing on the home you already own. How much is it worth? How much would you sell it for? In this process, an experienced real estate agent can be your best ally. Some agents specialize in helping move-up buyers sell their current home and find their new one at the same time. In fact, Buffington Signature Homes works with one of Austin’s premier realtors, Kevin Elliott of Keller Williams’ Home Resource Group. “Buyers probably have a quasi-accurate assessment of what their home is worth. I start off by talking about what separates their home from your competition,” says Kevin. “Just like not all builders are the same, not all realtors are the same. In the Austin area, the ‘average’ realtor sells less than 7 homes per year, our team of experienced agents averages over 35 homes per year.”

“People coming to see your home may have no imagination, no time and not much extra money,” says Grant Whittenberger, VP of Sales for Buffington Signature Homes. “Image is everything. In the buyer’s mind, what they see is what they get. This is why Model Homes are always in such great shape. No buyer is going to pay top dollar for a home that looks like it is in need of repair, updating, even just a good cleaning—that’s why the home you are selling must be in the best shape possible if you want the best price possible.”

Figuring Out Your Budget
Your real estate agent can provide an accurate estimate of how much your current home will sell for. Combined with your current spending and savings, you should use this information to develop a clear idea of the budget for your new home. Once you’ve established your budget, you can begin looking for builders with homes in your price range. It’s important to find a builder that specializes in your particular price range, because they should have the most experience in building homes at the best quality possible while still remaining within your budget.

Choosing What’s Most Important
Now it’s time to begin looking at houses. With a wide range of options in your new home’s location, size, layout and features, figuring our what’s most important to you and your family can help simplify the process. Narrowing your search to a few key areas of interest will help ensure you’re happy in your decision to move up.

The Location
For many people, the decision to move is essentially about the location. New communities and retail centers are cropping up in great areas all over the Austin area, and new roads are providing better access to work, recreation and entertainment. If you’re looking for a new home in a prime location, Buffington Signature Homes currently offers homes and homesites in Silver Leaf, one of Round Rock’s premier new home communities, and Forest Oaks, located just off the 183A Toll Road in Cedar Park. Later this month, they will also begin offering homes in The Bridges at Bear Creek and Southpark Meadows in South Austin.

The Living Space
While some buyers are focused on the location, others are more concerned with life inside their home. One of the most common reasons a buyer seeks to move up is the need for more space. Whether it’s additional rooms, a bigger kitchen or more family gathering space, additional square footage can make a big difference. But it’s not always about the numbers. Effective use of space in a home’s layout and design can make a big difference in how “livable” your home feels. Buffington’s innovative floorplans utilize additional spaces in useful ways, like setting aside areas for desks so that the spare bedroom doesn’t have to double as the computer room.

Quality of Construction
It’s always a good idea to remember that the most important features of your new home might be the ones you can’t see. Learn as much as you can about each builder’s construction standards and materials, and beware of discount builders that use shortcuts or inferior materials to cut costs. Every Buffington home is built to the highest quality standards, with engineered frames and foundations, traditionally framed roofs and detailed construction standards for flooring and walls. Ensuring your home is built to these quality standards can help protect your investment and virtually eliminate day-to-day maintenance.

Features and Finishes
Of course, when comes to a new home, what’s on the outside can mean just as much as what’s inside the walls. Another important point of comparison is in each builder’s standard features and finishes for their homes. Different homes can include a range of features from big to small, like appliances, window treatments or high-end plumbing and lighting fixtures. While some builders pass on the additional cost of these “luxuries” to their customers, more than 90 high-end finishing touches, called Signature Features, come standard in every Buffington home.

Building vs. Existing Inventory
In many of the area’s premier communities, you’ll also have the option of buying a home from your builder’s existing inventory or building one for yourself. Each of these options can have benefits for different buyers. Of course, building your home from the ground up offers the opportunity to select the site, design and features that best fit your needs. Buffington offers a selection of innovative floorplans and prime homesites in their communities, as well as an additional Signature Options, or special features that their customers can choose to further personalize their new home. However, if you’re a little more flexible in your tastes or if you’ve found the perfect home on the perfect lot already, buying a home from your builder’s existing inventory has its advantages. Inventory homes are typically less expensive than customized or specially designed homes. Plus, when you buy a model that’s already completed, you can start the move-in process right away! Buffington Signature Homes currently offers a great selection of homes in Silver Creek and Forest Oaks.

These are just a few of the details to consider when you’re ready to move up to the new home of your dreams. For more information on moving up to a Buffington Signature Home, go to www.BuffingtonSignatureHomes.com/blog or visit the Silver Leaf Sales Center at: 209 Aspen Trail, Round Rock, TX 78664.

Buffington Signature Homes shares details on finding a new home that will last.

May 5, 2008 — Home Buying Season is in full swing and eager buyers are out touring new homes in Austin. But when it comes time to compare similar looking homes in similar locations, the most important features may not be so apparent.

Once you’ve settled on a specific neighborhood or area, it’s important to begin comparing the construction standards and features available from each of the homebuilders in that area. Grant Whittenberger, Vice President of Sales for Buffington Signature Homes, has gladly offered up a list of the most important features you should ask about to ensure the home you’re looking at is a keeper.

Buffington Signature Homes is the newest homebuilding venture from veteran Austin builder and developer, Tom Buffington. The company currently builds in two of the area’s premier communities; Silver Leaf in Round Rock and Forest Oaks in Cedar Park. Later this summer, Buffington will begin offering homes in Austin at The Bridges of Bear Creek and Southpark Meadows. Even in these highly competitive areas for new homes, Buffington Signature Homes stands out from the crowd with these important distinctions.

The Foundation
First, find out what kind of foundation the homes have. The soil in Central Texas is notorious for causing shifting and cracking in home foundations, which leads to sloping floors, cracked walls and sticky windows and doors. All of the foundations in Buffington’s homes are designed and approved by an engineer to ensure they remain stable and intact for the life of your home.

The Roof
The second most important part of a home after the foundation is the roof. Poorly framed roofs can lead to leaking and buckling on the outside, as well as cracking and nails that push through ceilings on the inside. While many volume builders use pre-fabricated roof trusses, Buffington’s homes feature traditionally framed trusses, where a little extra effort can ensure a much more stable and secure roof.

The Framing
The way a new home is framed also plays an important role in the overall stability and character of its construction. Buffington’s homes feature fully engineered, wind-braced frames. The extra bracing prevents the home from racking or twisting in higher winds, where even the slightest movement can lead to cracking walls and stuck doors or windows. The interior and exterior of these walls are wrapped in heavy-duty, half-inch OSB board, further preventing movement and also adding an extra layer of noise insulation. Additionally, all structural beams are sized by an engineer for proper load ratings, protecting against beams that are too small (and unstable) or too big (and unnecessarily expensive).

The Flooring
Many buyers are concerned with the floor coverings in a new home, but what’s underneath them can be even more important. To cut costs, many builders use pre-fabricated I-joists to build their floors, which can lead to floors that bounce and squeak. But Buffington’s floors are built with 16-inch-deep trusses, the deepest flooring support. The trusses are spaced 24 inches apart throughout the home, with just 16 inches of space master bedrooms and game rooms where the loads are typically heavier. On top of that, the homes feature three-quarter-inch tongue-and-groove sub-floors that are secured with screws and industrial adhesive, ensuring against squeaking, bouncing and those annoying nails that can stick up beneath floor coverings. Deeper floors and heavier sub-flooring also add extra noise insulation between floors.

Interior Walls
When it comes to framing the interior walls, builders can cut costs by cutting back on materials and labor. Many builders frame interior walls with studs spaced 24-inches apart where the code permits, but Buffington’s homes are built with 16-inch centers throughout. The closer spacing adds stability and further protects against cracking and shifting as the home ages. They also secure all sheetrock with screws instead of nails, preventing against nails that can push through walls and ceilings over time.

Inspections
Throughout this entire building process, Buffington Signature Homes requires four separate, independent inspections on the structure of the home. With two separate inspections on the foundation, one at the framing stage and one final inspection when the home is complete, Buffington can ensure the structural integrity of their homes, and they’ll give you the paperwork to prove it.

These are just a few examples of the many ways that volume builders can cut corners and save money at the homeowner’s expense. But for Buffington, the extra effort and extra materials are a part of creating homes that their customers are proud to live in. A little hard work during construction can virtually eliminate the daily maintenance that many homebuyers find themselves stuck with in a new home.

Buffington Signature Homes recently opened their first sales center at Silver Leaf. The Silver Leaf Sales Center offers customers a chance to experience the builder’s quality construction and innovative floorplans in person, and the sales staff is on hand every day to help interested buyers find their new home. In May, they will also open a model in Forest Oaks, located just off the new 183A toll road in Cedar Park, with two more models coming later this summer at The Bridges of Bear Creek and Southpark Meadows in Austin.

For more information on Buffington Signature Homes, visit www.BuffingtonSignatureHomes.com/blog or visit the Silver Leaf Sales Center at: 209 Aspen Trail, Round Rock, TX 78664.

Veteran Austin homebuilder, Tom Buffington, says the timing couldn’t be better.

April 14, 2008 — It’s no mystery that the national housing market has slowed dramatically in recent months, and the effects are being felt even in Austin’s thriving economy. But as economists predict doom and gloom across the country, one Austin homebuilder sees a silver lining.

“Actually, now is a great time to build a new home in Austin,” says Tom Buffington, founder and CEO of Buffington Signature Homes.

Buffington led his first venture, Buffington Homes, to became the second largest builder in Austin before selling it to a national firm in the late 90s. After leading an equally successful acquisition and development company, Buffington has returned to his homebuilding roots with Buffington Signature Homes.

“With a lot of the national builders scaling back in the Austin market, there are some great opportunities for smaller local builders,” explained Buffington. “With the major firms cutting back, we’re able to come in here with innovative floorplans and a level of personal service that you usually can’t find in these areas. Being a local builder makes a big difference in terms of the quality and features we can provide for our customers.”

A key differentiator for Buffington Signature Homes is something they call Signature Features, more than 90 high-end fixtures, finishes and features that they include standard in every home. These include a 3rd car garage, island kitchens with granite countertops and custom cabinets, rounded corners, energy efficient appliances, covered patios and fully sodded yards, all standard in the price of the home. Customers can also choose from a collection of Signature Options, optional designs and features to further personalize their homes.

“Our approach is very different from the national builders,” says James Giddens, president of Buffington Signature Homes. “Tom [Buffington] and I have assembled a team of experienced leaders from many of these national firms, so we understand where their processes succeed and where they fall short. We spent a lot of time on product development, making sure our designs and our features picked up where the others guys dropped off.”

Buffington’s first major project has been a collection of homes in Silver Leaf, one of Round Rock’s premier new home communities. According to Buffington, Round Rock’s highly-rated schools, major employers and easy access to downtown Austin make this the perfect place to build a new home. And he’s not alone: Entrepreneur.com recently placed the area at the top of its “Best Places to Buy” list, citing low prices and high job growth as key indicators. As an added bonus, buyers can now enjoy the difference of owning a Buffington Signature Home in this prime location.

“We just opened our Silver Leaf Sales Center, and it’s exciting to have a model where people can walk in and really see the difference of our homes,” said Grant Whittenberger, Vice President of Sales for Buffington Signature Homes. “The Sales Center gives our customers a chance to experience the innovative floorplans and features in a way you just can’t do on paper. We’re planning a big Grand Opening celebration in May, but people are welcome to stop in now to tour the homesites and check out our pre-construction pricing specials.”

Buffington has also stepped into several other communities in the Austin area, and the team anticipates demand for their homes will be high. In May, they will open a model in Forest Oaks, located just off the new 183A toll road in Cedar Park. Later this summer, they will also begin offering homes two premier Austin communities, with openings in The Bridges of Bear Creek and Southpark Meadows.

For more information on Buffington Signature Homes, visit www.BuffingtonSignatureHomes.com/blog or visit the Silver Leaf Sales Center at: 209 Aspen Trail, Round Rock, TX 78664