048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1)

0:00

S… Speaker 3 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Tons of decisions and prioritizing the things that matter to you in life and how that plays out in your house. And I think I want to call attention to that as as important work that you guys have done. So good job, guys. Yeah. You know, for our listeners to understand, you know, if you're not coming to a project so that there's team is important, but.

0:23

S… Speaker 3 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

The homeowner is a major, major part of that team, an equal part of that team. And that team needs to be strong, too. And we can help as professionals with decision making, but the homeowner has to be on board with wanting to be a really strong participant in that team. So just want to underline that, too, for folks.

0:45

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Thank you. I think there was definitely areas of the home or parts of the home that I was more interested in or invested in. And there was definitely decisions that John was more interested in or invested in, especially style wise. Kitchen.

1:00

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Kitchen. Kitchen is his. It's good, though. It's good to draw those boundaries and say, this is yours, this is mine, or you're the point person here. I'm the point person there. That's good. Yeah. And we have an unfinished basement that we need to start talking about and tackling here. Yeah, that's the next project, Sherry. Okay. I'm on board. I'm on board.

1:24

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Was there anything else you guys had on your mind to share during the construction process or anything? I kind of said it before, but like understanding the structure of what your architect and their team is going to do for you is so incredibly important. I thought originally like, hey, we're going to work with Springhouse. We're going to get our plans right, you know, kind of situation.

1:49

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

I know that you are like full service, right? You're beginning to end, which is phenomenal. And it was like, okay, maybe we can just get some plans and then kind of work through that. And now I'm like, boy, that would have been a huge mistake. Like, you know, I think we would have fallen into a trap where a lot of others would have. I cannot put a price on the value of what you and your team did in helping us.

2:12

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Beginning to end the entire process, being there and working through that is so vitally important to that safety net and being able to to share that as it like kind of moves full circle. Right. Like very beginning phase of like, hey, this is what we want.

2:29

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Okay, maybe that's not what we want because that's way too much money. That didn't happen once. I'd go back to the drawing board and be like, okay, maybe we need to change this up a little bit, right? And kind of did a whole lot of revisions on that.

2:43

S… Speaker 4 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

And you guys were very gracious and helped us through that. Well, it is part of the process. It is. You know, and I hope we shared that with you because it's it is a process. It's a back and forth. It's, you know, every once in a while we'll get a home run on the first try. But that's not really even what we're trying to do on the first try. Right. I mean, you you always want them to fall in love with it, fall in love with the concept. But there's more work to do after that.

3:12

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Yep. So then kind of working through that and getting everything, you know, in the end, like, okay, now we're going to kind of, it's 2.0 time, right? Let's go ahead, make sure, because sometimes that's very difficult to get that, you know, that love out of your head, right? You're like, this is what it was. This is our design. Like, how am I going to read, you know, how are we going to work through this, you know, but that's part of the struggle, right? And you guys were there to support us the entire time and really, hey, I know we can't have this, but let's move it over here, right?

3:41

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

and and kind of work through that where we still got it to the house yes and and got things in there it was like okay do we do we need two porches like one on top of the other no that's silly no one's ever going to be on the second floor for that right like that's crazy so just do one and kind of work through those pieces uh and really seeing the vision in the end and and it all came together beautifully yeah

4:04

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

I would say that my goal was to create a house that you felt like you were outside while you were inside. I think it's something that I said to you, Sherry, at the beginning of it all. And I would say that we...

4:16

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

where you reach that goal oh yeah yeah magnificently like we're sitting out we're sitting here at our dining room table and i'm looking at the woods yeah we have woods in front of us we've got pond over here we've got we've got everything the kids can look out and see you know ducks in the pond and and all that stuff and we have deer in the woods it's fantastic when you wake up in the morning except maybe when a raccoon's looking at you when she's trying or the goose standing on top of your grill

4:43

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Yeah. But I mean, we have a really special property and the house never took away from it. And it, you know, it allowed us to live here and appreciate it. And every time we cut down a tree, my heart was hurt so a little bit. That's the other.

5:00

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

thing I remember about this project. We had to clear not even that many trees. We picked the clearest spot there was, but we still had to take down good, healthy trees. And one of the trees then turned into this beautiful door behind us. We were able to repurpose some of that wood and the front door. I do not recall exactly whose idea was that front door, Sherry, but I remember you being so excited to share the front door.

5:28

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

And for those who are listening, it's a beautiful, very, very, very tall door that has like a tree in it, like cut into the wood. I think I've seen pictures of this. Carved into it. Well, I don't know, guys, this does sound like a home run. I am. I'm very excited to come home every single day and see my house and people who drive by.

5:55

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

They're like, I mean, we had a lot of looky-loos when we were, you know, just finished, right? We didn't have any of the rocks in front so that we couldn't block them. And they were driving back seeing the other new build that was near us. Yeah. Gosh, like, we love your house. Who's your builder? You know, and Lauren's like, can we just have some privacy, please? We're back in the woods. We didn't want anybody seeing where we were. Right, right. It's got to be quieter now. Yeah.

6:21

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

So we always do a wrap up question. I think you've probably already answered this, but we always ask. We know no project is ever perfect, but we would like to know what's something about your finished home that you love every time you see it or use it. It's more of a feeling where your shoulders drop out of your ears. Oh, yeah. Yeah. A lot of relaxation. I would say.

6:50

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Even though the house, you know, it's very, very nice, right? It still feels extremely functional for everything that we have. Especially we come in, if I'm working outside, we're cutting, you know, a lot of grass that's out there. I'm working in the pond because we do a lot of pond management. We have a mudroom and it's fantastic. And we can get things cleaned up in there and then we don't mess up the rest of the house. It's just very easy.

7:18

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

And everything around really feels like it's meant to be there. There's not like spots in the house where it's like, man, I haven't looked in that, you know, drawer in, you know, three years. No, everything in this house gets used the way that a house should be. It's beautifully functional. Yep. Yes. Yeah. In a relaxing way. Thank you, you guys. You've filled up my ego bucket today.

7:46

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

And I appreciate it. I loved that project. I still, I look back on pictures of it and come across the drawings every once in a while. And it's a pleasure to have been able to work on your project. Same. I'm very happy that we ended up meeting you and working with you and your team for sure. Yeah, perfect. And I feel like for our listeners, this too can be you.

8:10

S… Speaker 3 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

If you put together a good team. Absolutely. You can be on the podcast in a couple of years with a story just like this. If you put together a good team. That's right. Thank you. Thanks for your time. Absolutely. Thank you for having us. Thanks, guys. Well, that was fun to hear about how great you are, Sherry. I know. It's nice to hear every once in a while.

8:31

S… Speaker 3 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Well, I will say this, you know, we just had this whole long podcast where there was all these lovely things. Usually as working professionals, as architects, contractors, builders, whatever, we don't often get to hear these stories about how people are looking back on their build or their design process or enjoying the space now. So I think that's pretty special. And also for our listeners, we don't often get to hear that ever.

8:59

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Yeah. Yeah. So that's nice. So, yeah, that was very nice. They said a lot of very kind things, which I appreciate. It was a great project, a great team. I agree with, you know, what you had brought up, Marilyn. They were great clients. They listened. They took in information.

9:19

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

pushed back and asked for what they wanted. And it really was kind of textbook. And like I said, not a perfect project, but textbook in solving problems and redoing and really getting to the point of something that you love. I think that's the key. And one of the themes that continues to come up as we interview more and more folks is

9:43

S… Speaker 3 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Is to push back and stand up for what you want and that there's a way to do that while still maintaining strong, positive relationships with your team. Right. You know, I mean, you're saying that they did push back or ask for things that they wanted and that not.

10:00

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Not only was that good from your perspective, like you want them to do that. It's their house. But also you are able to continue having a great relationship. And I think sometimes people are afraid if they stand up for what they want that it's going to be bad for the relationship or it's going to cause problems. And if that's the case, if you're a homeowner and you're embarking on a project and you feel like you can't bring things up.

10:27

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

don't hire that person. You know, that should be something that you should try to discern early before you hire them. You know, in that interviewing process, figure out how open your team is to you bringing up those things and pushing back. And if the person says, no, it's my vision and I do what I want, then that's probably not a good fit for most people. Right, for most people, yeah. And I will say,

10:53

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

We work really hard. We like our clients so much, but we work very hard to keep a professional relationship, especially during the project. And that helps people be comfortable and confident coming to us and saying, this isn't quite right because we're not best friends. It's a fine line and it's hard not to, you know, really.

11:19

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

be best friends with your clients sometimes, but I think it's important. I think it's important to keep a professional relationship.

11:28

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

so that we know, so that everyone knows their job. That's a really important thing. We haven't really talked about that. Maybe we should do a little snack or something on that about the relationship, the sort of how to maintain a professional relationship, what that entails, how to kind of, because we are, as design professionals, getting very up close and personal to people's lives. Asking them all sorts of questions about, you know, their personal lives.

11:54

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

I mean, we're designing their bathrooms, for goodness sake. Like, you need to know a lot of information. And for us, we've kind of heard it all before. For, you know, for the most part, never say you've heard it all. For sure. Then you'll be surprised. Yeah, exactly.

12:11

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

I think that's part of it. And for people to feel comfortable bringing those things up. So, you know, I also think that they've said it towards the end, but that this is a forever home, intergenerational home, five acres. They found their perfect spot. Like, this is it. So it is worth it to them. And they understand the value of taking the time, doing things the right way.

12:34

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

you know, taking down the trees on the lot, which was really sad, but also turning that into the door and honoring that, you know, sort of story. And I think when it is your forever home, that really unlocks a lot for homeowners, you know, because it's a legacy. It's not just a flip or a, you know, five-year thing. Right. Yeah, I love that.

12:57

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

A couple of nuts and bolts thing I liked. They talked about the weekly meeting on site. So we were there with them every week or every two weeks. I forget. Now it was, you know, five years ago now. But the builder that they worked with, Bellpoint, their processes are among the best that I've worked with, honestly. And I know we don't promote builders here, but they really, I do.

13:23

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

appreciate the process where they come prepared to every meeting and they talk about and John brought this up and reminded me they give an update of a three-week update what happened last week what happens this week and what we're looking forward to so yep that

13:42

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

calms everything down right away, right? Like that's what everyone wants to know. What happened? What have you been doing? And if you don't just kind of have a system to do those things, that's where some of the anxiety comes from. That's right. And if the builder is not willing to do that or...

14:02

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

If you're interviewing builders and you say, what does our weekly meeting look like? Or are you keeping the agenda? Or can you give me an example of a weekly meeting agenda or minutes from one of your meetings during the week and what kinds of things are on there? And if they're looking at you going, what? Then that's not a builder for a custom home. It's just not. And that's okay. There are different builders who do different things.

14:25

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

I know all the builders that I work with who are, you know, custom builders who work at that level would agree 100%. That's how they run their operations. Right. And, you know, I think that's really good, that nuts and bolts. I want to bring up one thing that John said sort of quickly. This is a hot take.

14:45

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

So he said about having a porch upstairs and downstairs, like stacked porches. My hot take is you should never do that. No one ever uses second floor porches. They think they're going to and they never do. So hot take, you heard it here first.

15:00

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Do it. Everyone thinks they're going to have their coffee outside. Talk about that all the time. Primary bedroom. Right. Guess what? They're not going to because they're going to go downstairs, make the coffee, and then they're going to go sit on the back deck. Or go to work. Or go to work. Do it on vacation. Have a balcony on vacation. Have your balcony on vacation. Yeah. Yep. Also, just want to point out the comment about the flooring. So materials being super important.

15:28

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

And not everything always ends up perfect or meeting full expectations or whatever. So they said they really liked the look of it, but maybe it wasn't performing up to what they needed. And sometimes, you know, we didn't get into it, but, you know, whether or not someone is a shoeless household, you know, whether there are kids who are like running, you know, toys and trucks and whatever.

15:48

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

dogs. So all of those things come into play. And I think that's an example of something that sounds like you guys did all, you know, sounds like you went through the right process, but just to underline that and say, you know, materials wise, it's good to talk through all those things and make sure, you know, are there certain spaces that you might want to do tile or stone or something that's more hardy in certain areas?

16:11

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Just for those reasons. But but maple is very hard. So I was surprised to hear. Yeah. And so honestly, know yourself for our listeners, like know that if there are scratches on your wood floor, if it's going to drive you crazy. Right. So maybe wood floor is not the right selection.

16:31

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

With all the given information, I think they still made the right selection, but just some maintenance issues that they're dealing with. I did want to touch on the multi-generational home and how they navigated that as a family. It was a good process to be a part of. It, as well as the build, was not perfect. There were times when we were getting...

16:56

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

direction from multiple people. And again, going back to the professional relationship we had with them, we did have to have a meeting to say, look, we need one point of contact that makes the decisions. That was something that we fell back on because as an architect, it is hard to navigate those decisions when you have parents,

17:26

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

And then kids, but the kids are in charge, right? It's their house, really. So there's a lot of those things to figure out in a multigenerational home. So if you're thinking of embarking on that, do some work ahead of time and have a talk with your family and decide who's going to make decisions, who's going to be in charge financially, who is going to set the meetings, who's going to be at every meeting.

17:55

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

Have those conversations early. I agree 100%. We've done several multi-generational houses. I think it's going to continue to be something that people are looking for. And one of the biggest ones, and you said it, and I want to underline it, is the financial thing. So sometimes if the kids, meaning adult kids, are paying for it, then sometimes...

18:17

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

parents are like well I don't want to ask for this because I feel guilty asking for certain things and then they make a bunch of compromises that then aren't great and the adult kids are like oh my gosh we totally would have done x and y if that would have made such a big difference so understanding how the finances are flowing because also sometimes it's the

18:37

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

older parents like grandparents are paying for everything right but they have a much smaller portion of the house also how is your equity working who's putting what in who's selling what is anyone contributing so all those things are really important and we can help with those conversations but we are also not

18:56

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

people's financial planners or tax advisors or legal whatever but sometimes us having these conversations with people can help uncover who they need to talk to so you don't have to feel like you have to have it all figured out before you come to us you could come to us as architects and say we're kind of all over the place

19:19

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

How do we plan this? And we can sit down and say, OK, let's talk through some things. You know what? After this conversation, here are the three people you need to talk to. And here are the three major decisions you need to make around who's doing what. And that initial kind of strategic session.

19:35

S… Speaker 2 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

you know, if you go to a tax accountant, they're going to tell you tax accountant stuff. They're not going to tell you like, you know, zoning wise, you can't have two front doors or whatever the case may be. So I think that's another plug for us to, for people to call us early and let us help them through that process so that they're doing things in a smart way. Yeah.

20:00

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

note. Okay. I think that's a wrap. Thanks for joining us on Home, the Second Story. If you'd like to come on the show and share your story, email us at admin at htsspodcast.com. We'd love to have you as a guest. Please be sure to rate and subscribe wherever you get podcasts and follow us on Instagram. We'll see you next time. Thanks for listening to Home, the Second Story podcast. Feel free to share this episode with a friend. Contact information for both of our architects are in our show notes.

20:28

S… Speaker 1 (048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1))

And don't miss future episodes. Follow or subscribe to our show for free in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you're listening right now.

048_2026_05_19_John and Lauren Katzman(1)

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