Partners Through Shared Values: City Homes Master Builder

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In the six years since the founding of City Homes, the Master Builder has always made a conscious effort to prioritize using Edmonton-based trades on all of their projects. Being an Edmonton-based company itself, Sales and Marketing Manager Jason Hill knows how keeping business local helps so many more who are involved. This is also where City Homes’ relationship with All Weather Windows begins.

“Most window companies don’t do their manufacturing in Edmonton,” says Jason, pointing out that since City Homes’ formation, they have always used All Weather Windows products. “They’re a leader in Western Canada, and we’ve worked with them right from day one.”

With such a close partnership between the two companies, City Homes and All Weather Windows have been able to find common values and implement those values in the projects they’ve collaborated on. Going above and beyond and not compromising on quality remains a cornerstone of both companies and how they approach new projects.

Seeing opportunities, not obstacles

Jason joined the City Homes team a little over a year ago and, in fact, worked with All Weather Windows for eight years before making the transition to City Homes. He explains that understanding the on-the-ground technical knowledge about what goes into a home is the foundation for City Homes as a company.

“Our President, Jay Shipton, holds a Red Seal Journeyman Carpenter Designation and started building homes in Castor, AB before moving into residential management,” says Jason. Because of the technical expertise of City Homes’ staff, the organization is willing to explore new ways to meet customers’ needs that other builders may shy away from.

“If we have someone approach us and say they love a home’s design but want to make a few changes or have some updates while the home is under construction, many companies wouldn’t normally accommodate this because of risk and cost,” contends Jason. “But because Jay has so much experience in every aspect of home building, he can see how to approach any renovation. He never considers this as an obstacle.”

Luxury and affordability

Working collaboratively with vendor companies and homeowners to build homes that exceed expectations is how City Homes approaches every project. Jason uses the recent Caspia Townhome project in the Chapelle neighbourhood of Southwest Edmonton as one example of seeing this value in collaboration in action.

“We added in a lot of luxury features into these townhomes at a significantly lower price point,” says Jason. He explains how All Weather Window’s Vantage patio door and its eight-foot, three-wide triple-pane glass featured in each of the townhouses are a distinguishing point compared to most other townhome complexes in the area.

Further illustrating the rarity of these type of patio doors in any new-build, let alone a budget-friendly townhome, Jason explains that you can shop homes over $500,000 all day without finding the premium triple-pane patio doors in the Caspia Townhomes.

Value in loyalty

A core value shared between All Weather Windows and City Homes that Jason immediately identifies (particularly with his unique position of working with both companies) is the strong sense of loyalty. He observes how many of the companies that All Weather Windows has worked with over the years continue to work with them, and how the company’s leadership always stresses the importance of long-term relationships and having customers for life.

This dedication to nurturing relationships for the long-run is reflected in the operating trend of City Homes. “In the case of City Homes, we have only ever switched out a trade once,” reflects Jason. “In this market, that’s rare. There’s lots of pressure on the margins. But we would rather work with and negotiate with our current suppliers to try to find a way to make it work with our current trades.”

It’s this shared belief in the value of committed partnerships, and the many benefits they afford, that has allowed All Weather Windows and City Homes to push the boundaries of homebuilding excellence. It’s a sentiment Jason echos, citing how the willingness of partners like All Weather Windows to go the extra mile during every step of the building process is key to City Homes’ overall success. With the future firmly in mind for this partnership, it seems certain that the bar will continue to be raised for Edmonton’s homes for years to come.