Sever Design Group Architects, Inc

Building a custom home for the first time, we began by selecting a top architectural firm whose work impressed us. We really liked the team, and agreed on the price of the house we wanted to build. They designed a stunning home for us, and we secured all the necessary approvals. But it turned out that building that house was beyond our budget. During this process we had looked for builders, and found Mark Sever. It turned out that Mark is not only a highly competent home builder, but also an extremely talented architect. We began again, and hired Mark as both architect and builder, as we felt that he would understand the cost drivers as he designed our home. What a brilliant move that turned out to be. Mark understood the implications of his designs from a the perspective of cost, functionality and risks. He designed something that was both stunningly beautiful, and that we could afford. My strong preference is to work with an architect who is also a builder... but finding someone excellent at both skills is not easy. There are a lot of builders out there who cut corners, and a lot of architects whose designs are run-of-the-mill, or out of touch with cost. Mark is a gem. In short: Mark's work is distinguished by a commitment to quality. Everyone who we worked with -- the designer, the sub-contractors, the vendors -- were all impressed with Mark's attention to detail. It is unbelievably hard to find this kind of excellence. Mark takes pride in the work he does, and he spends the time to find the best options. He spent enormous amounts of time searching for the best wood doors, the right wood ceilings, outdoor pavers that reflected our color scheme and more. The result is a stunningly beautiful, original product that could never be reproduced with short-cuts. When we had to make cuts due to cost, Mark worked with us to find the best approach. He listened and came up with constructive solutions. He hires high-quality sub-contractors. The build site was always clean and well-managed. We never heard concerns from anyone about the process. Most importantly, the house is absolutely amazing. We've had a number of visitors walk into our home and say that it's the most beautiful house they've ever been in. We have a house that reflects all of our personal needs and priorities, it's rock solid in terms of construction, and we couldn't be happier. I highly recommend Mark Sever, and would be happy to speak with anyone who is seriously considering working with him.

Make a list of what's important to have in an architect and builder, and Mark Sever almost certainly checks every box, all of them. My list included great, original contemporary design. The ability to work with us on shaping that design to fit our individual needs. I can't stress enough the need to be able to communicate and problem solve. Check, check, check. A zen like patience was key as we zigged and zagged a bit regarding what we wanted -- but he worked with us to fit our growing dreams back into our not-growing budget. Being an architect and builder was very helpful in balancing design and cost. The criteria not on my original list, but perhaps the most important, is that Mark Sever cared as much about making our house amazing as we did. Mark is a perfectionist in the best way. Case in point, our roof overhangs the house and we wanted to use a material on the underside that extends beyond the house which would look really special. Mark must have spent 6 months figuring out not only the best material but the architectural detail of it, which looks amazing. What I came to learn through the building process is that an amazing house requires both great conceptual architecture, but it's also made through a thousand little design elements. Mark has a rare eye for both. I would say the challenge we had was that we built this house from 2000 miles away and distance does equal time. We were at the build site only once every 4-8 weeks and if we didn't like a material being used (paint colors, stone, wood stain for cabinets, etc.) we had to wait until next trip out weeks later to view our options. From a cost perspective, we ran about 10%-15% above budget and had to pull back on a few things on our wish list to keep it there. I'd say that was pretty good considering the size, complexity, our distance and building time. Without Mark's attention to cost and value-engineering we'd have been much higher. We were introduced to Mark by a friend that ran one of the largest steel contracting companies in Phoenix. His comment was that if he were going to build a house the only person he would use to design and build it would be Mark. I couldn't agree more!

It has been a pleasure working with Mark Sever, designing and building our new home together. Mark is a very talented architect, he knows how to best adapt his design to a site without disturbing the natural elements. We are very pleased with the results and would highly recommend him to others.

We hired Mark Sever to build our dream home. This being our 5th home we have built... we simple gave Mark several pages of details we wanted. Mark came up with an amazing one of a kind contemporary design. Great to work with, attention to detail, high standards, high expectations of crews....these were consistent characteristics. He is one very creative architect...and super builder. It was a big plus to having him fulfill both roles. `