Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Hoge.
Brandon, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started in the foundation repair business in October of 2003 for Structured Foundation Repairs, Inc. located in the Dallas area. The company was designed to service real estate professionals and their clients’ needs. We were the “go to” professionals to repair problems and ensure that the agents and clients had all necessary documentation and certifications to go to the closing table without incident. I became a senior manager over a team of structural analysts and saw our company grow from 17 employees to over 150 and into one of the largest operations of its kind in the state. Our philosophy was simple: “Do the Right Thing.”
I soon began to study the Houston market and its needs. I knew the market was a large one with a vast number of options for foundation repair, but none like us. Having been asked on a number of occasions if we would service customers that wanted a different option in the Houston area, I knew that I had an opportunity to make inroads and a relatively quick impact in the Houston market. I pitched the idea of opening “Structured Foundation Repairs Houston” to the owner and was given the nod to do so.
Flash forward to 2014 and so began the journey that brought me and my family to Houston to offer a different and better option for foundation repair to homeowners and business owners all around the region. I came down with a small loan which I have since paid off and money that my wife and I had saved in order to one day own a business of our own. I had made one visit to Houston earlier in the year to secure an office, conduct an interview and order a trailer. Prior to that my last visit to Houston had been passing through to take a cruise out of Galveston 7 years earlier. Squashing any apprehension in my mind to turn back to familiar roots, I began by reaching out to anyone I knew in the area. As a 1996 graduate of The University of Texas at Austin I had a few friends around Houston. I wanted them to know I was here and what I was doing in the event they knew anyone that needed our services. I spent most of the first days cleaning out and setting up our office space and running from real estate office to real estate office. I handed out flyers and business cards to anyone that would take them and convinced front office personnel at the agencies to give me a spot on their calendars to sponsor sales meetings. I was able to get some set and yet many turned me away, not having heard of us. I took to the streets as well in the Texas heat, placing door hangers house to house and talking to anyone that would listen. Many had questions about foundations, or asked what my story was and some just wanted me and my door hanger to go away.
Not knowing many in the local industry made finding personnel a challenge for me. I had many setbacks on the way to getting the right qualified people in place to help run our business the way I wanted it to run. So, I resorted to waking up from my questionable extended stay hotel rooms every morning well before the sun came up and waited for the operating crews around town to begin their day. I’d follow them until they stopped for gas or food and handed my cards out to the supervisors hoping they might know somebody experienced and interested in handling installations for us. Many mornings of this ritual resulted in finding our first crew chief who is still with us today. I now needed an office manager and found one that turned out to be short lived. That meant that the handling of phones, appointments, marketing and operations were all up to me just as our business was beginning to pick up steam. I’d forward the office phones to my cell, made appointments from my truck during and in between home and commercial evaluations while marketing every real estate office, title company and mortgage office I could. Visits to the permit offices around town were also included into my day. All of this to return to the office at night to make sure my appointments and meetings were entered in our system, any important email was returned, paid the bills, ordered materials, and made sure the crew was ready to ship out the next morning. I returned home pretty late to kiss my kids goodnight, eat, go to bed and start again the next day. An exhausting routine to say the least, but I eventually obtained somebody to handle operations the way I needed it to be done.
Today home and business owners in Houston have the luxury of working with our fully staffed operation including well trained and experienced structural analysts, full crews and office personnel. Every employee of Structured Houston maintains our long standing “Do The Right Thing” attitude. Structured Houston is insured and bonded for our clients’ protection. Our workers are employees of the company and are covered by Texas Workers Compensation Insurance. The service that we offer is truly one-of-a-kind in the Houston market. We repair both slab as well as pier and beam foundations. We are able to offer a high quality pier system at a lower cost than traditional options with a lifetime transferable warranty that never includes adjustment fees in the future. We also offer on-site engineering and plumbing tests with our repairs. We haven’t forgotten our roots, so we maintain membership status with H.A.R. and for our friends in the real estate business, we also offer a T.R.E.C. approved course designed to educate agents to navigate transactions when foundation problems become part of them.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
No, it was anything but smooth starting out. In the beginning it didn’t take long for me to realize the daunting task I had before me in opening a foundation repair business in Houston by myself. So, everything from getting properly equipped, finding the right employees to marketing the business was a challenge. Heavy rain and historic flooding resulted in several lost jobs due to total devastation for some of our would-be clients and the inability to simply get to the office became impossible on a few occasions. Some other notables include my first hire, who didn’t fit the bill for what we needed to run a successful business. This left me to fend for myself as the business began to gain some traction. After writing a wonderful review and verbally praising our company, our second customer found many creative ways of avoiding payment including giving us a check and then canceling the payment (on two occasions), not showing up to make payment when scheduled to do so, and then attempting to obtain our bank information on the promise of wiring us the money. An abundance of persistence, some stern words and one mechanical lien later, I managed to resolve the situation. I’m told his other contractors weren’t so lucky. I was told on more than one occasion that I was “crazy” for coming to Houston by myself to open up in such a tough market. Maybe I was, but I am also persistent.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Structured Foundation Repairs Houston story. Tell us more about the business.
Structured Foundation Repairs Houston has a no-cost yet comprehensive 3-step evaluation process including the taking of a complete elevation survey of the foundation. We utilize only engineer-approved methods including the use of pressed pilings of concrete or steel, and the piers are installed to true refusal (as far as a pier can be driven) by the use of a steel alignment system (for our concrete pressed pilings). The use of the alignment system eliminates the risk of misdirection, allows for maximum depth and ensures that piers do not simply fall apart. We offer on-site engineering visits at our customers’ homes before and after the work is done and provide reports. We also include plumbing tests following all slab repairs. Our warranty includes a definition of settlement, meaning there is always a standard to measure against in the event of a warranty claim. It never reads like a service agreement, so that it doesn’t cost our clients hundreds or thousands of dollars down the road to repair work they’ve already done.
Our company specializes in servicing the real estate community by providing free evaluations for both sellers and buyers of real estate in a timely fashion. After repairs are done, we provide all necessary certifications and documentation required by lenders, so that clients and agents can enjoy a stress-free closing. We have options for payment or financing that may make it easier for some individuals trying to get to the closing table. We also provide a T.R.E.C. (Texas Real Estate Commission) approved course in various locations around Houston with which agents can get continuing education hours to maintain their licenses while learning how to become better at handling foundation situations when they arise.
Some things as simple as being insured, bonded, employing crew members, and carrying Texas Workers Compensation Insurance may not seem like it would set us apart. However, being that there is no law requiring us to have these things, it does. A relatively unknown truth is that the foundation repair industry is an unregulated one in our state, therefore, not all companies operate on the same playing field making for a wide range of procedures, methods and pricing options. While we can never be the cheapest in town due to the quality and protections we provide to our customers, we find that we are a much more affordable option to other traditional high-priced operations for those who seek to have repairs done properly. Most home and business owners just want a quality repair they can trust at a fair price and a warranty that any future owner would be proud to hold. Some get caught thinking that all repair is the same and go with the cheapest they can find and wind up spending more later when those repairs don’t pan out. I’ve seen the frustration first-hand of those who find themselves in this position. We take it upon ourselves to educate consumers even if they elect not to use our services because we believe a well-educated consumer base is good for our industry. There is so much misinformation offered on the internet and by many who claim to be in the know that consumers are often confused about how to properly handle their repairs, what to look for and who to trust to do the right repair. The truth is that there are a set few approved methods for repair used by most foundation repair companies, but there are some very big differences between companies from how they conduct an evaluation to what measures are taken to ensure the well-being of their customers and everything in between. We consider it our mission to help cut through all of the confusion and offer straight talk and answers instead of a sales pitch.
I am proud to be the one to offer this revolutionary alternative for foundation repair in Houston, and I am proud of my employees and their proven track record for repair and customer satisfaction. I take pride that not only can I say these things, but I can prove it every time we enter a home or business.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I don’t believe in luck as much as I believe in my faith in God. First, I am extremely blessed to have an incredible and supportive wife. Without her support we would not be here, but I am also blessed to have a wonderful family and network of friends. I believe that I made the difficult decision to leave what used to be my comfort zone (even though I was told I was “crazy” to do so) and move to Houston in order to go through the difficulties of starting a new business because it was part of a greater plan. I’ve always wanted to be an entrepreneur, able to provide employment for others and have a positive impact in life, if in only some small way, and I believe our business is the vehicle for doing so. I can’t say that I’ve been afforded much “luck” in getting where we are today; I can say that we’ve tried to work harder than everyone else and prayed an awful lot.
Contact Info:
- Address: 8807 Emmott Road, Suite 2000, Houston, Texas 77040
- Website: www.StructuredHouston.com
- Phone: 832-230-5490
- Email: info@structuredhouston.com
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/structuredfoundationrepairshouston/
- Yelp: www.yelp.com/biz/structured-foundation-repairs-houston-houston-2
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