Media
Tony breaks down what a build-to-suit really is. There are three kinds of buyers: the one who buys an existing home and fixes it up, the one who buys a spec home and skips the build, and the build-to-suit buyer who wants to design a home from a blank canvas. Tony walks through how to find the right builder for that, why a builder's portfolio is their fingerprint, and the trap of chasing the lowest number instead of the most qualified team. He explains the difference between a cost-plus builder, where the risk sits with the buyer and the per-square-foot quotes are all over the map, and a fixed-price builder. Bella designs the home, completes the engineering, writes a 50 to 60 page spec book, and then gives you a price in writing. With more than 33 years in business and homes ranging from $3 million to over $22 million, Bella builds on quality and transparency. If you're considering a new home, come see the process.
Build to Suit
Levantina Stone
Stacy, Vice President and Lead Interior Designer for Bella Custom Homes, walks the Deloache project in Old Preston Hollow to show why the floor is the first thing you notice in a Bella home. The entry and both staircases are Crema Marfil, and the kitchen is Calcutta Black Vein marble, with dramatic veining on a clean white background that reads classic and holds up to daily use. All of it comes from Levantina, the Dallas natural stone warehouse Bella works with for every tile and slab, stocking marble, quartzite, granite, soapstone, and travertine. Whether it's a build-to-suit or a spec home, at $4 million or $15+ million, these are the materials that go into every Bella Custom Home.
Italian Groin Vaults
Tony Visconti, President of Bella Custom Homes, walks the Falling Water project in McKinney at the framing stage. The home is Italian Renaissance, and the groin vaults rising behind him on both the first and second floors are the signature detail. Bella builds across every style, from Italian Renaissance, Tuscan, and Mediterranean to French, transitional, and contemporary, and this project shows the level of craft that goes in long before the finishes arrive.
Building on a Topography Lot in the Hills of Kingswood
Topography lots are a Bella specialty, and this one shows the team behind them: architect Lloyd Lumpkins on design and grading, engineers, drainage and landscape architects, and more than 23,000 yards of compacted, injected fill before piers and foundation walls go in. Stacy, Vice President and part owner, explains why Bella builds on a fixed price with 40 to 50 page specifications, so clients know their cost and finishes before construction starts. Thirty-three years of building the hardest lots in the Metroplex, with the principals involved at every step.
Falling Water
Tony and Stacy walk the Falling Water project in McKinney from raw lot to finished home. The Italian Renaissance estate starts with retaining walls, foundations, and framing, then moves to masonry and cast stone detailing, a two-piece clay tile roof, Lincoln wood windows, and custom iron doors. Inside, Stacy covers the framed oval dome in the entry, groin vaults in the gallery halls, plaster ceilings in the great room, and a custom coffered plaster ceiling in the formal living room inspired by the clients' travels. Finish-out brings custom-mixed floor stains, cast stone mantels, custom cabinetry, slab countertops, and the decorative lighting Stacy calls the jewelry of the house. The completed home sits on almost 2.5 acres overlooking the lake, with a mini golf course out back, a 50s-themed game room with booths and bowling, a library modeled on a European castle, a pool, formal garden, sports court, and a cabana with spa, massage room, infrared sauna, billiards, and a golf simulator. A labor of love, built for generations.