There has been a rising interest in owning personalized production homes over the years. Builders and developers offering consumers both the land and home while allowing them to choose selections (i.e., their preferred floor plan) contribute to this soaring trend. After all, making fewer decisions while having more freedom to personalize the home entices many consumers. Cottage Advisors ME, a real estate company based in Maine, United States, recognizing the growing demand for more personalized production homes, became a leader in this developing landscape.
Howard John Hall, a developer and real estate and land use attorney for 35 years, in his mission to develop neighborhoods that offer high-quality homes and unique lifestyles to homeowners, established Cottage Advisors in 2005. The renowned developer, with his extensive experience in the real estate industry since the mid-1980s, particularly in large-scale residential and commercial developments in New England, completed over a hundred projects throughout his career, many of which are age-restricted residential communities.
Howard's exploration of new approaches in residential development began from his desire to bring back the 1950s era of close-knit neighborhoods where neighbors know and constantly interact with each other, sharing common spaces and fostering connection that is now seemingly lacking in the digital age. This aspiration, coupled with Howard's delight in meeting and talking to people and his commitment to preserving the natural beauty of sites, led to the establishment of Cottage Advisors.
In 2007, Howard was joined by his son, Howard "Chip" Hall, in overseeing the permitting and development of hundreds of cottages. Chip, with over a decade of experience in tech startup companies before joining the now-family business, took on the responsibilities of site selection, property entitlement, and community development oversight. In 2015, he took over the day-to-day operations management of the company until he acquired full ownership in 2020. Chip has delivered over 450 units since then. The new owner recognized the changing needs of modern homeowners—a right-size home that leaves a smaller footprint on the land. In addition, Chip saw the rising demand for semi-customizable houses. With this, Cottage Advisor naturally became a leader in semi-customizable home building in the area.
Cottage Advisors currently welcomes homeowners in the Cottages at Winding Ridge in Gorham, an active adult, 55+ condominium community, and in the Cottages at Coastal Pines in Kennebunk, a multigenerational single-family home neighborhood. Chip remarked, "You can choose from different room layouts and floor plans with varying elevations. At Cottage Advisors, we allow you to pick from a portfolio of our building designs, meet with our designers and sales team, and go through everything together. Not many developers in Maine do this.”
The leading estate company has an in-house design consultant who guides homeowners through the entire personalization process of the home, from interior and exterior design options to the finishing touches. Cottage Advisors assures that each home is unique, like an extension of the homeowners themselves, unlike traditional neighborhoods that have the same patterns and designs from the inside out.
For instance, consumers can choose whether they want the primary suite on the first floor or the second floor. Meanwhile, those who prefer casual living combined with entertainment can opt for the bright and spacious open-concept floor plans. The company, being a family business, understands the value of uniqueness and ensures that all consumers can participate in creating a property they will be proud of. With Cottage Advisors, home-buying has never been more exciting.
“From the streets, our homes might look small. But like we always say, they might look small on the outside, but you live large on the inside. We believe that architecturally, the floor plans available to the general public waste a ton of space. We do our best to avoid that. Instead, we make sure to efficiently use the land and employ sustainable designs to minimize our environmental footprint,” Chip commented. Essentially, the Cottage Advisors team studied different design methodologies to devise a blueprint that maximizes the utility of the space while providing consumers with value for every dollar.
Cottage Advisors leads the real estate industry with a fresh approach to building semi-customizable homes. Chip added, “I tell people we're like a linen shirt. You can iron your linen shirt and go out for fine dining. The next day, you can pick up the wrinkled shirt off the floor and wear it to the beach. Whether you want to dress casually or formally, you can wear a linen shirt. That's the philosophy behind Cottage Advisors. You can pick a house that suits your vision or style and then personalize the inside. The style of the homes allows you to choose between a formal or casual decor which meets your lifestyle."
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Name: Howard Hall
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