Bob & Colleen Hutchins Display their Awards

Plateau Area Builder Scores Big 

There was an air of celebration last Wednesday evening when members of the Pocono Builders Association came together at the Stroudsmoor Inn.  It was their annual awards dinner and one Blakeslee home builder walked away with five awards.

Centennial Homes, Inc. a long time Pocono area builder had its biggest year yet.  It previously won awards in 2002, 2003 and 2005 but this year was a banner year.  When asked about it Vice-President Robert Hutchins, 1999 Builder of the year said, “We are very happy, but not surprised to see that our peers, who are professionals in the field, see the value in our product.  To be sure, there were other builders that earned awards but we received the ones that we wanted. ”  

Each year the association invites it members to submit homes for judging.  This year was the first year that the association included value categories.  In the past the categories were based on size only.  They also have categories for landscape, interior design, architecture and other specialties.  The entries are judged by builders from out of the area and the winners receive the awards at the banquet.  Centennial took value awards in categories under $125,000, under $150,000 and between $150,000 and $250,000.  They also scored wins for best construction of a home under 1500 square feet and for best auxiliary residential building. 

“The fact that Centennial Homes, Inc. received awards in two other categories also speaks to the quality found in a Centennial home,” said Sales Manager, Robert McKnight.  McKnight went on to say, “Our ads say that ‘We Build Sensible Homes for Sensible People’— These awards show that Quality plus Value equals the Sensible Choice… and now, once again, we have proved it.” 

In an earlier interview Jim Hutchins, Centennial’s CEO put it this way, “We believe that bigger is not necessarily better.  We believe that better is better. You see we don't try to impress you with veneer... we try to impress you with solid performance and quality which has nothing to do with size.”  He makes the case that value is a function of the best quality at a given price.  He argues, “That is why Centennial Homes, includes maple or hickory kitchens and premium windows in a home that costs less than $150,000. 

Photos of the winning houses will be uploaded to Centennial’s web site www.nowgrow.com   In addition to the plaques which will go on the wall of Centennial’s  Blakeslee office, each of the homeowners involved will receive a plaque.  “It’s only right,” commented Bob Hutchins.  “After all we cannot build award winning homes if we don’t have award winning customers who buy them.”

The Anatomy of an Award Winning Home

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