Testimonials

Authentic Custom Homes,

Approximately a year and half ago we moved into our Authentic built home. We were pleased by the entire construction process, and looked forward to enjoying our home. We have indeed been pleased with the quality of construction and especially pleased with the steps taken to provide energy efficiency. Authentic used many of the newer energy savings devices when insulating our home. They also took great care in properly positioning our home to minimize the effects of the summer sun resulting in a home that is comfortable in the summer with minimal cooling. In the winter, our home is free of drafts and cold spots allowing for efficient use of heat at moderate temperature. We believe these factors are the reason our power bills to date have been extremely reasonable and yet allow for an extremely comfortable living environment.
We commend the Authentic team for using the new techniques which allow for the efficient and economical use of energy.

Thomas & Stacy Parisi

October 28, 2009

We closed on our new house at 185 River Crossing earlier this month, culminating a 2 ½ year journey of design and construction that included visits to Boerne every 6 to 8 weeks and more than a thousand emails.

Israel and the entire Authentic team were instrumental in making our journey both enjoyable and fulfilling. They listened to our input, made alternate suggestions where appropriate, and integrated several notable performance and aesthetic features into our house. We love the layout of the house with the views of the Guadalupe River from the living and bedroom areas, the front courtyard with the European style fountain, the wide plank oak wood floor, the temperature-controlled wine cellar, the deck beyond the pool, and much, much more. When we made the decision to build an infinity edge pool, Israel suggested “why don’t you put a deck beyond so you can sit there beside a fire pit, looking at the river, with the noise of an infinity edge waterfall at your back”. Hard to visualize I’m sure, but, trust us, it’s a wonderful feature for very little incremental cost.

Our house also has what, we believe, are two “Cordillera firsts”.
• Natural slate charcoal grey roof (from Spain)
• Rain collection system that we will use for irrigation and potentially pool water make-up.

In each case, Israel and his team did their homework to understand the issues, persuaded the Cordillera Ranch Review Board to accept, and then effectively implemented. We are especially pleased at how they integrated both features into the overall home and landscaping design. Our home meets our unique requirements, but yet still “fits within the overall Cordillera community”.

We were also one of, if not the first, to request blown-in foam insulation. Although we had done research on this ourselves, we didn’t realize the design challenges of building what effectively becomes “an air-tight house”. Authentic worked with the foam supplier and the HVAC contractor to address all the required issues and build us a highly energy efficient house. We strongly encourage anyone building a new home to use the foam insulation. The incremental payback is less than three, maybe less than two, years.

And finally, we have a relatively elaborate audio visual system, with both audio and video distribution throughout the house and a media room. Israel and his team worked with the audio visual company in San Antonio to effectively integrate both their design and the installation. Not an easy challenge, when both the audio visual company and we are constantly requesting new, just released, technology enhancements, but this just further illustrates Authentic’s capabilities.

If you want more insight into why we selected Authentic to build our retirement house and why we are very pleased we did, Israel has our contact information. We would enjoy the opportunity to elaborate.

PS: A special thanks to Brent, our project manager. I’m sure all of Authentic’s project managers are good, but we were especially pleased with the job Brent has done.

Jim and Muguette Alder
Southlake, Texas

My wife and I invested approximately two years searching for an area to call home, and to find a builder who would meet our expectations. After exhaustive search we selected Cordillera Ranch. That was the easier of our tasks. Our next challenge was to find a builder that could take our thoughts and desires and turn them into a home, not just a house but our home.

Our situation was different than most buyers would experience in that we did not live in the area and did not intend to make frequent visits during the many stages of design and construction. To the contrary we did not expect to see the ongoing effort at all, only end results. That meant that we were going to sign a contract and leave town. To do that meant we were going to trust the builder explicitly. Not an easy decision for someone with no contacts in the area.

After several meetings with Israel and his team Ann and I decided to rely completely on Israel and Authentic Homes to build our home. The day we signed the contract we spent about two hours reviewing draft plans and discussing their approach for final design and construction. Our final words were "You build like it was for yourself, and if you are happy with the results we will be happy". Then we departed.

Over the next year we received frequent photos of the building in progress but made no input as to styles, fixtures, appliances or colors, and we could not be more pleased with the results. Come see it when you are in the neighborhood.

Richard and Ann Hilton

"We enjoyed our home building experience with ACH and are very pleased with the end result! We also feel like we've made some very good friends in the process!"

Dena and Alan

Dear Authentic Homes family,
We just want to let you know how much we are enjoying our new home. It is beautiful and we truly love living in it and here at Cordillera Ranch. Thank-you all so much for everything you did and are doing to make our entire planning, building and transition into our new home experience seamless. We are so happy. We truly appreciate each one of you for your contribution to our happy experience.
We love the design and it is just want we dreamed of. Brent and his attention to detail gives us comfort that our home is built very well and he is a great guy to work with. We have been very impressed by your subcontractors as well. Everyone has been so nice and pleasant to work with. Your "service after the sale" is commendable as well. We feel very well cared for by all of you. Eric is amazing at solving issues. Thank-you for having his service as a part of your team. It has been so nice to have him come and hang my mirrors etc...
You all are a wonderful team. Dee and I want to have you all out for lunch and to see the house at some point in the near future. We have been waiting on our dining table to come in. Well it finally did, Thursday, but it was damaged!!! It should be repaired and delivered in 4-6 weeks. For now, your invitation is on hold but coming!!

Thank-you for everything!
Your friends,
Katy and Dee Calverley

"As of tomorrow, we will have been in our home 21 months and the staff has continued to check to see if there are things that need attention. When we have called seeking that sort of help, you and other members of the Authentic team have responded in a timely and friendly manner. We have shared with others, on numerous occasions, how pleased we are that we chose Authentic Custom Homes to be our design and construction team." Click to read entire letter.

Sadie and Doug Hodo

"Building a Hill Country Home while living in England presented a unique array of anxieties and concerns. After our initial meeting with Israel Pena, we knew that this long-distance building process was possible and it would be relatively stress free and enjoyable. We found Israel and his Team willing to hear our concerns, excited to listen to our ideas and desires, very approachable and extremely creative. Communication via email and telephone was constant and they even sent photos so we could experience the actual building process. Our dream home is now a reality and we are so pleased with all aspects of the design-build process, we are having Israel and his Team build another home for us!"

Hugh and Vicki Guill

"We would like to thank you for building our home in Cordillera Ranch. We could not be more pleased in the professionalism of your team and the workmanship of the house. Throughout the entire process of designing and the construction, your Authentic Custom Homes Staff created the home of our dreams and guided us each step of the way to help us avoid problems or concerns." Click to read entire letter.

Daniel and Mary Ellen Shook

"We particularly appreciated the way in which Israel and Jim worked to make our vision a reality. Israel took our rather vague sketch and not only realized it, but with Jim's help and our input, made it so much better than we could have imagined."
Click to read entire letter.

Julie Evans

"I'm proud to live in such a well-designed, aesthetically pleasing home - and one that is uniquely me. I've received so many compliments from fellow Cordillera Ranch neighbors, many of whom live in far more expensive homes."
Click to read entire letter.

Sandy Ragan

"Dear Israel, We have just finished our first anniversary in our house in Fair Oaks Ranch and wanted you to know how much we love and enjoy the beautiful home you designed and built for us. The whole process of working with you and your great people has been a wonderful experience from start to finish." Click to read entire letter.

Dave and Nancy Ernsberger

"We have enjoyed our home for 27 months and the compliments from our friends and neighbors. It was a pleasure working with you and your design team through the many decisions necessary to complete a true custom home."
Click to read entire letter.

Dick and Phyllis Kiger

"When we selected Boerne as the area we desired to spend our retired life, we asked a real estate agent if it would be a problem to build a home rather than purchase a custom house already constructed. The agent replied, 'Not if you have Israel Pena design and build it.'" Click to read entire letter.

Russell and Helen Kiernan

"Lynda and I appreciate the way Authentic Custom Homes does business. We were pleased with the quality experience we had designing and building our home and this has continued in the follow-up phase following our move-in." Click to read entire letter.

J. Kent & Lynda C. Hamby

"We are so proud of our home, giving credit to Israel and Authentic Custom Homes for a job well done. The construction of our home was a challenge, but they rose to the task. We give them a 10, Four Stars and an A."

Roger and Carrie Wohlert

"Everything about this project from design to execution has exceeded our expectations. We are very happy with the way our retirement home turned out and we look forward to enjoying it for many years."

Randy & Edna Williams

"We really appreciate all you have done to take care of us through the entire process of building a new home."

Katie, Danny, Clint, Joshua,
Willie and Allison Buck

"Let me say that Israel and his associates are exceptional and my wife, Marna, and I recommend them without reservation.

We came to Israel with plans from another architect for which we had already gotten bids. They were all too high. Israel and his exceptional design team were able to improve upon the plan while lowering costs! They were also very sensitive to our wishes. This was just the beginning of a wonderful relationship. Israel has a small firm with exceptional people and there is a real sense of customer focus. In fact, customers become friends and feel themselves to become members of an extended family. Better yet, as our lovely home becomes a reality we realized we do not have to worry; we are very pleased about the construction process and the quality of the work being done. If at any time there is a concern, we can call Israel, other staff members, or our excellent construction superintendent, Jeff, and get immediate assistance. In addition, we have a wonderful designer, Kim, to work with us on our selections and to improve aspects of the design. Any time we speak with the office we are treated with such kindness and attention to our concerns. Marna especially loves that she is able to customize the home with some antique features like old transoms or a beveled front door and Jeff and his crew are more than willing to accommodate. We all hear horror stories about people coming to hate their builder. But Marna and I are so fond of Israel and every member of his staff.

Most importantly, the wonderful folks at Authentic Custom Homes are building us a home we think is lovely beyond belief, built with such obvious quality and care. We thank them so much.

Tom Watson

"I would highly recommend Authentic Custom Homes to build your home. They build a quality home! I think that you will be pleased with not only the style that they design for you, but even more important; the quality of the construction. We rented a house three miles down the road while ours was under construction, so we saw everything first hand and up close. And I do recommend them!!

Friends of ours were building out here at the same time using another builder and we would go by their job site and look at their home, I was truly saddened by the shabby work and poor materials that they would then be hiding behind walls and paint!! There was no comparison to the workmanship that was going into ours.

If you have had the opportunity to get to know Israel Pena, the man that is Authentic Custom Homes, and everyone that works there, you would understand why you end up with a well built home. They are honest and trustworthy and friendly. They communicate with you every step of the way and customer satisfaction is their number one goal. My understanding is that if you are far away, that they will even take pictures as your house is being built and you can then watch it taking place!

They made the process of building a custom home a very pleasant one. I never felt like I had to keep watch over them, or check up on them, they monitor themselves. Our project manager would call and tell us what they would be doing next and what to expect, etc. We would come by the house and go “looks good”; and got to enjoy the process."

Pam Moore

"Thank you for our wonderful new home. You and your staff were outstanding throughout every phase of the process. You listened to both our desires regarding the home and the constraints of our budget. In fact listening was the most important part of the process. With each visit you took notes and refined our design until it met all our needs and our target price. The building process was equally satisfying. I have and will continue to recommend Authentic Custom Homes to our friends. This is our little piece of heaven and we sincerely thank you for helping us realize our dream of a hill country home."

Mike and Linda Reed

"The design is exactly what I envisioned, giving separate privacy to the adults and children with a common area for family gathering, and the porches for relaxation. All of our family and friends have raved over the house, the design, and the workmanship. I would be proud to refer you all, and encourage anyone in the market for building a home to use the Authentic Custom Homes team. Thank you all for making our "Dream Home" come to fruition.

John and Tami Terry

"When Jim and I engaged your services, we expected to receive a spectacular new home - which we got. We did not expect the extra special treatment from each and every one of your staff. We are settling into our new hill country surroundings and our wonderful Authentic Custom Home."

Jim and Melinda Keenan

"Throughout the design and building process, the team has communicated so comfortably with us that it has facilitated our achieving our goals with a great deal of ease. They have helped us with ideas and steered us away from possible pitfalls. Building a custom home while living two hundred miles away could be a strenuous and taxing proposition, but it has been made quite easy by Israel and his great staff."

Jack and Mary Purcell

Adrianne:
Our thoughts on the building process:
Once the decision to build a home had been made, the daunting task of choosing a builder had to be made. Having numerous quality builders in Boerne made the choice even more difficult. After looking at many new homes and speaking with those who had built, Authentic Homes was chosen. Israel Pena and team had an impeccable reputation, designed a style of home most closely following the "Hill Country" vernacular and promised to make the process "easy and enjoyable".
Throughout the process, we found the Authentic team meant what they said and were able to deliver as promised. They listened to our thoughts and designed a home that matched our vision and complemented our life style.
Our building superintendent, Mr. Ted Robinson, was easy to work with, provided open communication and instant feedback. Authentic's designer, Kim Gauntt, was always available to provide the much needed assistance in pulling together the various design aspects.
Once the home was finished, Authentic continued to provide their professional service by performing the minor tweaks necessary. Ted Robinson continued to maintain control over all tasks despite them being rather minor in nature. We were never left on our own.
Stacy and I were so pleased by Authentic Homes' integrity, professionalism, service and respect that we would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone considering building a home. They did indeed make the process "easy and enjoyable."
Thanks to all,

Thomas & Stacy Parisi