Why We Are Better
This page isn't intended to slam some of the competitors it's just to show some of the differences and what happens when it isn't done right. These pictures are all of newly constructed homes, some were still under construction. Some of these pictures represent hidden features, omissions and flaws that can't be seen after completion or won't be caught by a home inspector. Buy a home from a reputable long established builder!

Unfortunately with some builders  “under what you see is what you don’t get”.

We do it right! Everything we build is built to meet and exceed code and built with pride. You will be dealing with a financially stable company started in 1971, built with a solid focus on reliability, honesty and a commitment to quality. We also use our family name, "Howie" Construction LLC. The others have some “catchy made up name, wonder why? The following comparisons might be one reason they want to remain anonymous.

The people who bought our competitions houses in column on the right "got a real good deal"! Their initial cost of their house was less than ours! Do you wonder why?

There are three things almost everyone wants in any product and they are Quality, Service and a Cheap Price! Please understand we will provide two of the three. We offer Quality and Service but not the "Cheap Price". We are competitive with other quality builders, but were are not cheap. It simply costs more to produce a quality product. The builders who offer the "Cheap Price" won't furnish you with the Quality or the Service.  Have you ever bought cheap tires and had them last as long as you wanted?

The higher price of our homes will pay back dividends in lower utilities, no maintenance and higher resale values.  Ask yourself if you want a cheap house with high repair bills in your future or if you want a well built, energy efficient and maintenance free home built by Howie Construction®LLC.
Howie Construction®LLC 
building methods
Competition's building methods

We build a drop chord overhang, it is structural!
They nail on a "ladder"  with NO support.
We use "step flashing", they meet code and the shingle manufactures requirements. They don't leak!
This flashing below doesn't meet code or shingle manufactures requirements and it will leak!
We compact every scoop of disturbed soil with rammer compactors or vibratory wheel compactors so nothing settles!
They didn't compact anything! Wheel packing isn't compaction, it's a joke! Machine wheel compaction simply doesn't work!
We use rebar in all of our concrete including sidewalks, driveways, garage and basement floors. Of course we compact everything first!
They didn't compact anything or use rebar. This is what you can expect if it isn't done right!
More lack of compaction. Here they poured concrete under the sidewalk in an attempt to support it  because they knew the uncompacted soils under it weren't stable. If someone doesn't know how to do it right the first time or doesn't care, would you expect the repair to be different?
Proper compaction is accomplished by vibratory or rammer compaction in 6" to 8" lifts. Anything different is simply inferior in every way. We compact the excavated basement excavation before the footings are poured to assure nothing settles, hence our slogan "Quality From The Ground Up". If you buy a lesser priced house with no compaction, you will spend more than buying one of ours!

Contractors or builders that "scrimp" on the building methods or don't follow the codes because they are in an area that doesn't require building inspections, are in my opinion, not just unethical, they are crooks. They hide or cover up missing components to pad their profit. Isn't that fraud?       Don't buy a problem!
We drill 10" diameter holes 4' deep and pour them full of concrete for every post pad and concrete pad. They are below the frost line and they don't move!
They didn't compact or pour a pier and this is the result. It needs to be repaired to have proper operation of the heat pump and before it tears the coolant lines off the house.
We place a house wrap over all of the sidewall sheeting including the gables and the garage. We install house wrap where it is supposed to be and how it is supposed to be. It is a code requirement!

We want you to have an energy efficiency home and we do everything we can to make it that way. A house wrap is just one of the ways we accomplish energy efficiency.

Technology is worthless if it isn't used!


This house has no house wrap and they are installing siding! This is a code violation! Why? Wind blows rain and snow under the siding and through the seams. Moisture is a  breeding ground for mold and it will also rot the sheeting, enter the wall cavity, soak the insulation and rot the framing.

Not using housewrap made our competition about another $700 but not installing it will cost the owners of this house thousands in future repairs and lost heat not to mention medical bills when mold becomes an issue!


I hope this information is useful in helping you make a decision on a builder. Before you build or buy ask for references and take the time to check them out!
If they would do this to save $700 what other major items were omitted?
We use a high density polyethylene butyl rubber tape around windows to prevent moisture and air infiltration.
They don't care!  Nothing is right and nothing is to code! No house wrap and no sealing tape around the windows and doors..... they will leak water and air guaranteed.
We compact a thick layer of crushed gravel under ever piece of flat concrete we pour. This provides for drainage which helps prevent frost heaving.
Honey, I'm home!    Anything exciting happen today?
The trim is straight, it's the floor that's not level. This is vinyl flooring.
No, this guy isn't a giant, he is 6' tall. Be aware, all building issues aren't this obvious!
Not only is the door installed incorrectly there is a major code violation with the door swinging into the stairs.
This door is improperly installed, notice the gap at the top, the door is 3/4" to low.
Notice the bow in the countertop and the gap at the end? The back of the countertop is straight but the wall isn't!
Our framing is neat as a pin, note the joists set exactly over the studs.
Proper framing of an art nitch.
Note the ceiling and the ?nitch? aren't level and parallel
This is what some consider finished drywall! 
This is our finished drywall and art niches. If there is neater and more professional work done than ours I haven't seen it in since we started building in 1971!
Check out the finish just to the left of the text
The dark spots are holes, and this is their finished product
Tile work done right!
A properly framed and supported staircase. All risers and treads are glue and nailed to prevent ANY squeaks!
This door is properly installed, note no daylight and the gap around the door sleeve is even.
The metal brackets are known as rafter ties or hurricane straps. They are mandatory if you don't want your roof in your neighbors yard!  Double nailing on the leading edge of the roof sheeting into each rafter in addition to the rafter ties make the roof able to withstand 100 mph+ winds.
The boards nailed in the gable marked with an * stiffen the gable. they are referred to as a "strong back". An added cost but well worth the time and effort. You aren't likely to see them on job sites.
******
here to

Properly installed and protected plumbing lines.
Rafter bottom chords are tied together at 1/3 of the span to stabilize the roof.
See the difference? We install solid surface countertops in almost every house including under mount sinks!
Marathon energy efficient 86 gallon water heaters.
Carrier high efficiency heat pumps
They consider this house finished.???
More of the same!  Does a man's pride show in his craftsmanship?
More coming from our competition soon!
I might just need another web site!
We install double sewer clean outs. In the unlikely event you ever do have a sewer blockage the plumber's equipment stays outside. The double wye cleanouts allows him to clean the main drain line in the house and to the street all from outside. 
Their sewer clean out isn't even accessible.
Amateur framing and trimming. The white by the trim is drywall that isn't covered.
The same style of trim done correctly, nothing like the rim to right will ever pass with our trimming crews.
2009 Rapid City Business of the Year !
The floor joist in the picture below has the top chord or "web" entirely removed for about 16" to allow for HVAC ducting. They have destroyed this joist, it has absolutely no structural capabilities! NEVER drill, cut, notch, over cut or remove either web. There are very specific guidelines on where to cut and the size of the hole you can cut in the "field" and this contractor totally ignored all of them.

This contractors "negligence" didn't just destroy a floor joist. The  adjacent joists now have more of the floor load than they are designed to support!
The driveway below has a trench that has settled over 2' under it.

THIS IS WHY WE COMPACT EVERYTHING!

THE CONCEPT FOR THEM IS APPRARENTLY SIMPLE, YOUR LOSS IS THEIR ADDITIONAL PROFIT!   We constantly hear "We can buy the same sq. ft. house from your competitor cheaper" and THIS IS ONLY ONE OF THE REASONS WHY!


This page was last updated: September 15, 2011
They can save $3,000+ by not compacting anything and later you can spend $10,000+ fixing what they could have prevented if they were quality builders!

Do you think $10,000+ is an exaggerated amount?
Well it isn't just the driveway that no compaction is a problem. The over excavation of about 3' inside the entire interior garage perimeter (necessary to pour the foundation walls) isn't compacted! What about addition fill in the garage or the basement floor?

What about your sod and sprinkler system that is over the power line or the water line or the sewer line or the gas line.  This isn't the end of the settling, it will continue for YEARS.
Or maybe you will also have to replace your sidewalk when it settles and breaks. Don't worry about it, the City will remind you when they assess your property for repairs, or when someone sues you when they fall!
Are you still wanting to save money on your home construction by hiring the cheapest guy?

Sewer Line Trench
Water Line Trench
Drive Way
Maybe your deck will fall off the house because there aren't any concrete piers  supporting the posts, ours are 10" diameter and poured 4' deep!
The builder knew this would happen because it happens all the time!
UNCOMPACTED DIRT SETTLES!

What about unhappy customers? DON'T ANSWER THE PHONE!

What about law suits? IF AND YOUR COMPANY HAS NO ASSETS OR YOUR COMPANY IS JUST A COVER, YOU SIMPLY FOLD YOUR COMPANY AND START A NEW ONE TOMARROW!

TO FIX IT RIGHT
  • Jack hammer out all concrete
  • Excavate all of the loose fill
  • Compact all of the loose fill.
  • Pour new concrete

THEIR FIX
  • Dose dirt in the low areas


COST OF NEW CONCRETE
  • 75% of the drive apron $2,295.
  • 25% of the sidewalk $450.
  • 100% of the garage floor $2600.
  • 100% of the deck supports $150.
SUBTOTAL $5,495.


REMOVE CONCRETE
  • Jack hammer above $2100.
  • Load concrete rubble $900.
  • Haul rubble to landfill $750.
  • Landfill charge 30 ton $600.
SUBTOTAL  $4,350


EXCAVATE AND COMPACT
  • Water line $900.
  • Sewer line $1300.
  • Garage $1900.
SUBTOTAL $4,100.

COST OF TOTAL FIX  $13,945


Ask yourself the following;
  • Would a responsible contractor do this?
  • Is the gamble they took worth the risk?
  • Do you think they will come back and fix it?
  • Why is there house cheaper than ours?


The garage floor will probably take a couple of years to start busting up, unless you wash it or water gets to the fill. It will bust, heave or settle!

THIS IS ONE OF MANY REASONS OUR HOMES ARE WORTH MORE!

The old idiom
"YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR"  doesn't matter much if it is a $10 watch because your loss is minimal but something that may have a 30 year mortgage is another story.

The following is why we compact EVERYTHING!
IF THE CONRETE ISN'T DONE CORRECTLY
NOTHING ELSE REALLY MATTERS!
The number one reason structures settle and foundation repair is later needed is because of poor soil preparation when the structure was built. The builder fails to prepare the soil before the concrete is poured. The soil, once it is graded, no longer remains at it's NATURAL DENSITY. It is now disturbed, and is loose and porous. The contractor grades the property to level out the lot, sometimes cutting into a hill at one side and filling up the low spots at the other side. He rarely compacts this soil to it's natural density when he grades it down. The slab is poured level, but the homeowner soon sees his beautiful home start to develop cracks in the brick, cracks in the sheetrock, and the bathroom tile. Doors will not shut and some cannot lock.

What happened?

What has happened is that the loose un-compacted soil compacted on its own, and the slab settled into the ground. Un-compacted fill dirt will compact when it gets dry or when it gets wet, bringing the structure down with it. On loose soil that is un-compacted, even a light small shed will soon settle.

OUR HOMES TAKE LONGER TO BUILD.
WHY?
DOING THINGS RIGHT THE FIRST TIME TAKES MORE TIME. IF THEY DIDN'T EVERYONE WOULD DO IT OUR WAY!
Void under sidewalk
This is not an optical illusion, the house foundation is 6-13/16" out of square!  This is just waiting for some unsuspecting "lucky homeowner"!  Some of the variation is the camera angle because I am not quite square with the far wall.
R. Chris Howie & Darin R. Howie