September & October 2013 | Acadiana Builder 7 | By Kathy Bowen Stolz

Jason and Laurie Huff of Platinum Homes provide a unique take on the homebuilding industry – they’re a husband and wife team who are both licensed contractors! Because of their backgrounds, Jason supervises the job site construction, and Laurie oversees all design aspects and the office. “Most builders don’t have a dual team. The way we do it is very efficient so our construction time frame is shorter than most builders. The majority of our homes take four months from slab to finish; smaller homes take about three months,” Laurie noted.

Platinum Homes, located in Lafayette, constructs about 24 custom homes each year in the $250,000 to $700,000 range. It is now building in Island Oaks Plantation, Ella Trace, Audubon Plantation, Copper Meadows, Crystal Cove, and in the new Charleston Village subdivision.

“We’re different than big companies. We’re hands-on; we hold our customers’ hand throughout the entire building process,” Laurie stated.

As a trained interior designer, Laurie oversees all aspects of the planning and design process, beginning with floor plans. She considers how someone will actually live in the home as she designs each property. She then helps clients to select the right materials and finishes required to complete their dream home.

“My role is to help the customers make smart decisions. They have hundreds of them to make, right down to door knobs and cabinet pulls. Customers either know what they want or they have no idea, but either way is easy for me. I’m visual, so I ask ‘Can you show it to me?’ I give them homework to collect photos of how they want their home to look.”

She also helps customers with their budgets by making cost-effective decisions; therefore, they spend their money wisely. For example, is a range hood on sale really a bargain if it’s noisy? At the end of the day, she tells the customer, “It’s your home. I’m going to tell you the good, the bad and the ugly, but you have to make the final decision.”

While Laurie is either in the office or in showrooms with customers, Jason is out in the field meeting with subcontractors to ensure that each step of the construction phase is followed as planned. “Subs love to work for him, since he’s not a demanding person. He’s very patient. Jason gets along with everybody and makes them feel comfortable,” according to Laurie. Platinum Homes has used many of the same subcontractors since it began in 2003.

Customer service is important to Platinum Homes. If a customer calls with an issue after moving in, Jason will try to get to that home the same day to solve the problem. “He’s our best customer service. We encourage customers to call if they notice anything,” Laurie said. “But we don’t have very many callbacks.”

Platinum Homes has a reputation for quality home building, which is displayed throughout the building process and is evident long after the sale. Noting that “happy people talk about their builder in a good way,” the Huffs proudly display testimonials from customers on their website. They are pleased they’ve garnered so many testimonials in the year they’ve had their website. Typical of those testimonials are these words from Greg and Pat Case: “We ended up with much more than we ever expected. Laurie helped throughout the project with color schemes and coordination of construction materials, as we were clueless. Jason was on the job daily checking things out and asking if everything was ok. Both are true professionals in their field. Our project was completed on a timely basis and we are so proud. We wanted the ‘wow’ factor when someone would step into the area and [we] truly have it now. They have been a pleasure to work with.”

Jason and Laurie seemed destined to become homebuilders. Jason got his start in construction right out of high school, primarily doing framing for his uncle’s homebuilding company. Laurie learned homebuilding “by osmosis” from standing in the doorway listening and learning from her dad, who built production homes. “My dad encouraged Jason to open his own framing company. Then, after a while, Jason went to work for him, as a supervisor. Jason was taught to run several jobs at one time. My dad was a great businessman and taught Jason how to run a business.” 

Laurie worked for her dad’s company during her summers while she earned a degree in interior design. When she graduated in 1998, she joined the company full- time and learned even more. “Dad put me in charge of customers’ selections; he was building 80 homes a year.”

Additionally, “He made me do some hands-on construction work so I would understand how difficult it was. Little did I know, I had already learned the business side,” Laurie said. In time, Jason and Laurie started their own business, even though Laurie was pregnant at the time.

They chose the name Platinum Homes because the connotation for platinum was “the best of the best.” According to Laurie, they began building in the starter production homes market in 2003 because that’s the segment of homebuilding that they knew. After Laurie’s dad unexpectedly died a few months later, the couple soon realized how well he had trained them.

Recently, Platinum Homes segued into the custom home market, typically putting up homes between 1,700 and 3,500 sq. ft. “I like building that size so I can use my design talent. This is where I’ve always wanted to be,” Laurie said. “Larger houses allow me to be more creative.” The company builds both pre-solds and spec homes. It has three employees: an office administrator, a construction supervisor and a site clean-up person. Jason and Laurie have learned there’s a fine line to working and living successfully as partners. Laurie said she doesn’t actually see Jason very much during the day. “I’m here, he’s out there.” She admitted, “It would be a little hard to work side by side every day.”

However, she said they share the same work ethic and are both hard workers, which helps their partnership. While some business owners may think some tasks are beneath them, the Huffs will do what it takes to keep up, even if it means picking up trash from a job site or watering the grass. By controlling the number of houses they build, both she and Jason are able to get home by 5 p.m. to be with their kids every day.

Both their children claim they want to be builders. Some vendors’ sales representatives tell Laurie they remember her when she was “this tall.” She tells her kids that sales reps will tell them the same thing if they follow in the family business.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if yet another generation of Huffs puts roofs above the heads of Acadiana homebuyers, now would it?