OCTOBER 5

Expertise

Our goal with every project is 100% perfection. But perfection is far more than pragmatic design turned into exquisite spaces. And it’s more than laser-accurate tolerances and flawless materials. Perfection is a question. How do you feel when you step into a finished October 5 home? Do you notice a sense of calm and quiet—that everything’s just right? Your heart knows the answer to what makes a home perfect. So do we.

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At October 5, we put our love of architecture and design into every fine home we build. Our design extends to the smallest detail as we watch over its realization. By being completely involved with every aspect of your home’s design and construction, we’re able to apply our philosophy: Subtraction. Symmetry. Balance. These timeless qualities permeate every October 5 project and account for the sense of peace that our projects’ homeowners enjoy every day.

Our Process

Our design-build process keeps projects running smoothly, reduces stress for you, and allows us to always know where we are in the budget. While every project is different, they all share these common, essential phases:

1. We Visit Your Site

Dreams are a conversation between the head and the heart. They’re not found on paper. That’s why we begin every project with a visit to your site to discover your dreams. Sure, we’ll take measurements and request any existing plans, but our goal at this stage is simple: to listen to your hopes and desires for your house. It’s the first step in creating a home that will last for generations.

2. We Conceptualize

Based on your goals and vision, we draft an initial layout with floor plans. We then review the concepts together with you, showing you our recommendations while also revealing spaces, materials, or other architectural features you might have thought exceeded your budget. We’ll also begin to discuss material finishes for flooring, windows, doors, cabinets and more to keep the project’s timeline always active.

3. We Design

Design isn’t a static blueprint. It’s a living, breathing document that responds to changes in the layout, materials, and features that are considered. In this phase, we assemble design documents for the entire project, incorporating your needs, our approved suggestions, and the compliment of materials and finishes chosen for every room. It’s here that we make further adjustments to reduce waste, time, and costs, as we continue finding opportunities to save. We review all changes with you and secure your approval for a beautiful, functional, highly livable space.

4. We Take Care Of Approvals

At this stage, the design for your home is submitted to the local Building and Planning Agencies for plan approval. With a thoroughly vetted design tied to our innovative estimating and budgeting tool, we’re able to provide continuous stress-free cost and timeline estimates.

5. We Order Materials and Quality Control

Stress isn’t always brought on by the budget. That’s why we careful design more than just your home; we also design the construction process. We don’t put your project on hold just because we’re waiting for plan approvals. Instead, we’re busy ordering materials to facilitate a faster construction timeline. This is especially true for materials with long lead times, like those needed for finely crafted cabinets, or for fine lighting or plumbing fixtures. This also extends to windows, doors, even flooring and tile.

6. It’s Hammer Time

We sweat every detail of the construction of your home so that there’s no second guessing when it comes time to start building. An October 5 project manager is the first to arrive and the last to leave—every day. Being on site means we’re ready to respond to any questions or concerns you may have. The result is precision, not second-guessing. It means you’ll hear the sound of construction—which we call it music, not the quiet scratching of heads. But make no mistake, the work you hear is the result of planning. From the precise location of every outlet to the exact placement of tile, every part of the construction of your home is determined by our design-build process.

What is the Design-Build Approach?

Here at October 5, we bring the design team and the build team together, under one contract, with continuous involvement between the homeowner, architect, designer, and master builder throughout the life of the project. Rather than working with separate teams, we manage both the design and the construction of your fine home. The benefits of continuous involvement include faster construction with less waste, a greater integration of appropriate materials, and the ability to bring our philosophy of subtraction, symmetry, and balance into a project from day one. The result is a less stressful project, no needless compromises, and lower risks and costs. When you work with October 5, you’ll even have a single point of contact and responsibility for all phases of the project, from start to finish.

To learn more about design-build, read our article The Home Building Revolution ›

THE BENEFITS OF EXPERTISE

Expertise is about more than the number of successful projects we’ve built, the quality of the craftsman we employ, or the process that ties it all together. Our brand delivers results that make a true difference.

Reduced Stress

Our design-build process foresees all aspects of your project based on real numbers, real budgets, real materials, and real labor. It’s how we’re able to put a Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) into our contracts. For you, the end result is reduced stress. A new fine home, remodel or restoration is all about creating a stress-free environment. We go out of our way to make the design and build phases just as stress-free for you.

Better Budgeting

Thanks to our detailed design and our advanced estimation tools, we’re able to respond quickly with the cost implications of changes to the design, materials, or scope of your project. No second guessing. No unexpected cost overruns. We not only clearly define our costs, we make sure to adhere to the budget. For many clients, it’s the first time they’ve found themselves playing the key role in determining the final cost of a project.

Time Savings

Project efficiencies are about more than saving money. They’re about saving time. Our design-build process means no drawn-out bidding phase, quicker kick-off and construction timelines, faster issue mitigation, and an increase in the end-to-end efficiency of the entire process.

Quality control

We believe in building homes that will be celebrated for generations. That’s why we go out of our way to exceed expectations by putting the best materials into the hands of our best craftsmen. You’ll notice that we don’t tout our ability to meet building code standards and requirements. Why? Because those standards and requirements are the bare minimum. They’re not good enough for an October 5 home. We go beyond with enriched structural integrity, improved sound dampening and insulating qualities, lower maintenance materials, enhanced fire protection strategies, and greater safety features in the structure you and your family will call home.

It’s All About The Details

You should expect perfection in our design, in the work of our craftsman, in our materials, and in their presentation. Because we do. You see it in our fanatical attention to detail, whether it’s measuring down to 1/16th of an inch on a grout joint, or hand-planing framing materials to ensure flat, even surfaces measured with a laser before attaching drywall. Perfection allows for a house embued with calm. Sloppiness lives forever in a crooked line, a bowed entryway, or an outlet that isn’t centered with the tiles around it. If you’re like us, you’ll take perfection any day.

The Master Builder Tradition

We’re proud of our craftsman and the master builder tradition. With a storehouse of knowledge about techniques and materials, tools and traditions, we’re your one-stop source for any questions, concerns, or requests.

Collaboration is Key

Though we put our love and sweat into your home, we never forget that it’s your home. That’s why we make sure homeowners are actively engaged throughout the design and construction process. You bring us your thoughts and ideas (wish-list,) we’ll pair them with ours to realize your unique vision. But we’ll go further with our design-push approach. The concept is simple: we’ll push you to go beyond your original concepts to what you’d really like—and show you how a careful consideration of space and materials can get you there, on time and on budget. You’ll never be out of the loop, never be surprised by timelines or costs, and never worried about unplanned eventualities. It’s the October 5 way.

What We Build

Custom Homes

We design and build custom homes in Southern California that mirror your desires and needs. More than a house, the homes we build are a retreat for you and your family, built with craftsmanship and love that can be seen for generations. We also incorporate green building techniques into every project. View our projects ›

Home Remodeling and Renovation

Some homes have solid essentials but could use improvements to enhance their comfort, space, energy efficiency and safety. Let our home remodels and renovations expand your living spaces to accommodate larger master suites, upgraded family rooms, new home theater areas, even a home office. We also cover everything from upgrades to heating and air conditioning to new plumbing and electrical systems. Our energy efficient upgrades improve your living comfort while reducing utility costs. As with our full home designs, our remodels use the same design-build process resulting in accurate estimates and efficient timelines, with October 5 overseeing every step of the remodeling process.

Historical Renovation and Preservation

We’re proud of our master builder tradition and the fine work of our craftsmen. That’s why we’re always honored when we’re chosen to restore historic homes. With over 25 years of experience, we’re experts at bringing historic homes up to contemporary standards of comfort and safety while making certain they retain their essential characteristics. Whether your historic home is Victorian or Mid-Century, Spanish or Craftsman, we preserve the architectural details that make these homes a part of Southern California’s rich architectural heritage. Restoring historically registered and landmarked homes can be challenging, but there’s no better reward than giving a home with history a new life for generations to come.

Green Home Design

Green home design transcends the style of your home and even its architectural pedigree. Recent technological improvements in everything from energy collection to construction materials and practices mean that greening your home isn’t just an altruistic goal. It saves you money. Green home design is available for both new home construction and remodels, helping you make your footprint more sustainable while also lowering your energy costs. All without sacrificing your comfort or your home’s durability or utility. All October 5 green home designs are environmentally responsible and resource efficient. From conserving water to making use of solar technology, from improving indoor air quality to the careful selection of appropriate plants and trees, our green home know-how makes certain your home is in harmony with its natural environment while also being in harmony with your budget.

Landscape design

More than just home builders, our expertise extends to landscape design and even custom pools, making October 5 a one-stop provider for both new and remodeled properties. We take care to integrate natural and urban structures by calling on our interdisciplinary expertise in architecture, geography, civil engineering, and botany. The same considerations that go into our interior designs are mirrored in our landscape designs where we carefully consider scale, balance, simplicity, variety, and the impact of line, form, texture, and color on the outdoor experience—though all seasons. We’ll help you bridge the space between indoor and outdoor living with custom lanais, verandas, patios, and pools to extend the serenity of your home.

Experience Truly Remarkable Homes

View images and video from our recent fine home building projects. You’ll clearly see the benefits these homeowners experienced when they partnered with October 5.

See our fine homes ›

Fine Home Building with October 5

Each month in OCTOBER 5 STORIES, we publish an illuminating article on one of the many facets of designing and building a fine home. Choose from the articles below.