Henry Dunham of H D Building was thrilled when his name was read out as the winner of the GIB Living Show Home Award at the Registered Master Builders 2013 House of the Year.
Mr Dunham says it was a fantastic result, particularly considering his company had never entered the competition before.
“This was our first year entering House of the Year. Having been a judge for the competition in the past, one thing I learnt was that you need to pick your battles,” he says.
“I’m pretty particular about the work we do and what we put out there, so I was never going to enter a home unless I was sure it was our best work. I didn’t want to enter houses that I thought weren’t worthy of winning an award.”
He says doing well with his first entries was reassurance that the team is doing a great job.
“We had two houses entered in the competition and they both did really well. We walked away with a national category win and a Gold Reserve Award,” he says.
“The main driver for entering was to find out where I stood against my peers. After being involved in the competition as a judge, I knew who the good builders were, and I wanted to know how I measured up against them.”
The judges called the home an excellent example of quality workmanship, with great design functionality and style.
“Italian in character, this house is thoughtfully carried out with rigorous attention to detail, including a Juliet Balcony from the main bedroom with traditional wrought iron,” they said.
“Coupled with great indoor-outdoor flow on a difficult corner site, it was built with consideration to thermal efficiency and sound quality. The builder has excelled with details like a traditional oak and hand-painted kitchen, stylish European fittings and oak parquet floors.”
Mr Dunham says there is a spate of business advantages in taking part in House of the Year and being a member of Registered Master Builders.
“A definite advantage is recognition in the industry. A lot of people recognise the Master Builder brand, and if you do well in the competition I think it reflects well on the builder.
“If you take pride in your work, entering House of the Year is a fantastic way of having your team and your achievements recognised.”
The Awards are made possible through the support of PlaceMakers, Master Build Services, James Hardie, GIB, Nulook, Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Future-Proof Building, Carters, ITM, Plumbing World, Resene and Westpac.
