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Show Summary
In this conversation, Trapper discusses the unique architectural features of homes in Los Angeles, emphasizing the elevated designs and the importance of incorporating a ‘wow factor’ in every home, regardless of its price point. He shares insights on specific projects, highlighting the significance of details and custom features that make each home special.
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Trapper Roderick (00:00)
Yeah, for sure. mean, it’s not every day that you hear someone that builds a home. I mean, more often than not, you hear, hey, I built this home. I never want to do that again, right? That was miserable. Like, you know, they’re happy with their house, but like it was just a painful process. And so our goal always is to make sure like it was such an exciting, enjoyable, well-communicated process that they’re like, I can’t wait to do that again. And most of that is done in pre-construction.Kristen Knapp (01:53)
Welcome back to the Real Estate Pros podcast. I’m Kristen and I’m here with Trapper Roderick, who is the owner of Roderick Builders. He’s an investor and contractor that builds and sells luxury spec homes. I’m excited to get into this. He has a very fascinating niche in the industry. So thanks for being here Trapper.Trapper Roderick (02:07)
youyeah, thanks for having me.
Kristen Knapp (02:11)
So you’ve built this amazing business. work in multiple different markets, Salt Lake City predominantly, but tell us how you got into this industry to begin with.Trapper Roderick (02:22)
yeah, I I always knew I was going to be in the industry. ⁓ My great, well five generations essentially. So there’s a company called Jacobson Construction, one of the largest commercial contracting companies on the West Coast. And that was my mom’s family. So I grew up around it. It was always inevitable that I was going to be in it. And then my dad was also a contractor, still is a contractor as well. He runs our California operation. So kind of had it on both sides. ⁓ Studied architecture.did a few other businesses, it was just always a matter of when I was gonna jump in.
Kristen Knapp (02:54)
Yeah, I I think people either want to avoid what their parents are doing or go all in. That’s great that you were able to find a passion so early.Trapper Roderick (03:02)
Yeah, just, it was really never even a thought. Yeah.Kristen Knapp (03:07)
So you have that architecture background. When did you build up Trapper, or when did you build up Roddick Builders?Trapper Roderick (03:13)
So my dad actually was the one that was he was running a Roger builders in California and Then when I decided to start my own entity here in Utah, I was like, well might as well co-brand together We already work all together. I project manager for him. He gives me advice on my projects. So ⁓ it was more of ⁓ Just an easy marriage, you know at that point So I did that 2017Kristen Knapp (03:37)
Yeah, it’s awesome. So yeah, you have theUtah market. You also have the California market. Tell us kind of how you guys are split up.
Trapper Roderick (03:42)
.Yeah, so we have a little bit bigger team here in Salt Lake because we do a little bit more ⁓ projects at one time, so we need more help. ⁓ And then the Los Angeles market, it’s really kind of ⁓ a smaller group of people because they’re building one home that will take four or five years to build at one time.
Kristen Knapp (04:05)
Yeah, and these are like very luxury homes that you’re building.Trapper Roderick (04:09)
⁓ Yeah, the ones in LA, ⁓ you know, we’ve done up to a hundred million dollar home, which is pretty ridiculous I added up the other day just for fun I said dad you realize that you’ve done nine hundred and fifty million dollars of luxury residential real estate He’s like, that’s cool. I said, yeah, but it’s under 40 homes. He’s like no way that that’s a really, you know cool set and I said, yeah I hope I can be there one day, you knowKristen Knapp (04:30)
Wow.That’s so cool. So how did you kind of get into that luxury market? I’m sure that’s difficult to build that up and gain the reputation.
Trapper Roderick (05:30)
You know, I mean we’ve always focused a lot on design So we’re not just like your typical contractor where we take the plans and we build the plans because well the plans are not always the best plan moving forward so I think that it mattered that we always cared a lot about the craft and the art and the feel of how that each project was going to be ⁓ So kind of got lucky honestly ⁓ There’s a few videos on our YouTube channel like dive in a little furtherto like how that happened but ultimately I mean people just trust us they like our design eye and they understand that we can help them get an ROI so it’s often times an investor coming to us that you know has got a lot doesn’t know what to do with it we kind of guide them on hey this how you can make money since you can’t just make money selling this lot
Kristen Knapp (06:14)
Definitely. speaking of the ROI, what are some of the best ways that you ensure that ROI for the owner investor?Trapper Roderick (06:16)
Thanks.Yeah, so we kind of look at ⁓ a luxury residential home, kind of like you would a multifamily house ⁓ project or a hospitality. So we’ll figure out what the numbers, how to make the numbers make sense and then we’ll design backwards to that number. And you know, there’s obviously been instances where there maybe isn’t a comp that we can justify, but we just know like in our gut that. ⁓
it’s going to make sense or it’s going to exceed expectations and obviously it takes a unique investor to go down that path but usually we’re kind of reverse engineering it.
Kristen Knapp (06:56)
Yeah, awesome. And what are some of the popular designs you’re seeing or layouts or floor plans?Trapper Roderick (07:03)
Yeah, that’s a great question. ⁓ We see a change from time to time. I everybody wants big windows. Can’t avoid that. But some of the new things that we’re seeing that are a little bit more.Common is people are liking more intimate spaces, not just everything totally open. So people are liking more formal dining rooms again. They’re wanting prep kitchens, not just a kitchen. So some of that’s more hidden. ⁓ People are loving saunas and cold plunges in their homes and home gyms where years ago was home theaters. so yeah, we’re kind of mixing ⁓ a lot of what used to be popular with newer trends as well.
Kristen Knapp (07:38)
That’s interesting and I mean have those trends kind of evolved over the last like 10 years or what’s the time period that that’s evolved?Trapper Roderick (07:45)
Yeah,mean, honestly every year there’s something new, some new trend and I ⁓ think it’s great that we’re in both markets because we can kind of really stay cutting edge, ⁓ at least in the Utah market because ⁓ California tends to be a few years ⁓ ahead, especially with the architects that we work out with out there. So it’s nice, you know.
Kristen Knapp (08:08)
Yeah, and in these luxury homes, I’m sure there’s kind of a fine line between these functional spaces and maybe going a little over the top, where maybe someone walks in, why would I need that? Where is that line?Trapper Roderick (08:17)
Totally. Yeah. Yeah.For sure. You know, that’s why we love being involved in the architectural process. Whether someone brings us an architect or an architect approaches us or someone doesn’t even have an architect and they want us to guide them ⁓ with an architect.
We want to be really involved in the beginning to make sure the spaces are functional. ⁓ All too often, you’ve just got a big room or a big bathroom. Does this make the most sense? Why is there no linen closets? And people still need a place to store things and live their everyday lives. So we want to be involved ⁓ as well from the structural components ⁓ and design. So that’s awful.
all too often someone will bring you a plan and say, bid this project. And we’re like, ⁓ I don’t think that’s necessarily the right thing because when someone brings you a project to bid and the home’s already designed, they’ve likely designed the house to their exact dream and ⁓ didn’t have someone involved keeping that in check underway. And it’s really sad when someone designs something they love, but then they realize they can’t afford it. And so ⁓ it’s really just important to…
to anyone who’s going to be designing and building a home. Get a builder involved with your architect day one. Pick a builder that you can have hard conversations with because at the end of the day, building is building and you obviously want somebody who’s going to build to a great quality, but you’re going to have hard conversations. Nothing’s going to go exactly perfect.
Kristen Knapp (09:40)
Right. Exactly. And if you can kind of elaborate on kind of the partnership that people have with contractors, I think, I mean, you said earlier, kind of an industry with a bad rep. think there’s a lot of people out there that, you know, maybe give a bad reputation to the industry. Talk about kind of what sets you guys apart and what someone should look for when they’re working with a contractor.Trapper Roderick (09:57)
ThankYeah, for sure. mean, it’s not every day that you hear someone that builds a home. I mean, more often than not, you hear, hey, I built this home. I never want to do that again, right? That was miserable. Like, you know, they’re happy with their house, but like it was just a painful process. And so our goal always is to make sure like it was such an exciting, enjoyable, well-communicated process that they’re like, I can’t wait to do that again. And most of that is done in pre-construction.
mean, that’s…
People are like, can we break ground? When can we break ground? Well, let’s spend our time. Let’s plan really, really well in advance. And then the project goes really smooth to the point where we have clients, literally the day that they’re finished, they’re like, let’s do it again. And so I think that’s a big part of it. back to the contractors have a bad rap. It’s all because they aren’t taking the time to prep and communicate. And we really want to help other contractors ⁓ raise the bar.
There’s a lot of great people in our industry ⁓ in different states and even in this state who do such a great job and there’s a lot of others that are bringing them down. So we’re always here to help others.
Kristen Knapp (11:40)
Yeah, absolutely. It sounds like you guys have the design background but also the business background as well.Trapper Roderick (11:47)
Yeah, we try, you know. It took ussome failures along the way, but we got there.
Kristen Knapp (11:51)
Definitely. What were some of those hardships when you were kind of starting out?Trapper Roderick (11:55)
man, that’s a great question. I think. ⁓this probably was us, I can’t remember an instance where this was us, but I know that most builders ⁓ are getting these massive deposits from their clients, which I mean you do need deposits for operational income, for deposits on windows and upcoming materials and things like that, they just don’t keep track of what money is theirs and what money belongs to their client. And ⁓
I just see it all too often. And so there’s great softwares, there’s great reporting, there’s great coaches out there who teach you how to run work and progress reports, which shows you what money is yours and what money is not. I think that’s like the biggest pitfall across contractors in the entire country. Like you can’t just pull a work and progress report off of your QuickBooks. It takes a little more effort than that.
Kristen Knapp (12:45)
absolutely like having the systems in place to everything up.Trapper Roderick (12:48)
Yeah, exactly.So I would say that’s that one. then, you know, if you don’t do your pre-construction, this is probably like my biggest failure is you don’t do your pre-construction right. ⁓ Then, you know, your budget might not be accurate. And so early, my early days, there was a job that went relatively, it job went great, but
the budget got really out of hand. And, ⁓ you know, it wasn’t necessarily that we had done anything different. We just had allowances in there and ⁓ didn’t help set the client’s expectations from the beginning. And so now, you know, we put thousands and thousands of hours into pre-construction to make sure that ⁓ the expectations are there. If there are changes, that’s, you know.
voiced as to why and it’s likely because they want a material change and so those would be, you have hard numbers of what those changes are going to be before they’re even made. ⁓ That way in the end, know, not, I’m not feeling guilty wanting to give discounts and the client, you know, understands what they’re getting into.
Kristen Knapp (13:46)
Right, yeah I think that communication is probably really appreciated in the process.Trapper Roderick (13:50)
Yeah.Yeah, it’s the most critical part of building a home. I mean, it really is a marriage for the life of the project, you know.
Kristen Knapp (13:57)
Absolutely. And I’d love to talk about the Utah market. I know that it’s a very exciting one right now, kind of blowing up in its own way. So tell me more about it.Trapper Roderick (14:47)
Yeah, oh my gosh, I mean it’s crazy here. I mean we’re getting the Olympics back in 2034, which we were the first time around in 2002. We were the first place that had ever had the Olympics that had a profitable Olympics. Like most people lose money having the Olympics in their state or country, or Utah was profitable.catapulted just enormous growth into the economy more so after the Olympics in 2002 where this time we’re kind of seeing it before and we’re probably gonna see it after as well kind of being on blast Deer Valley just had this massive expansion now they were like I think they are the largest resort in the country now and the whole new area that they expanded around is just like now the new Mecca and of Park City like everything else is kind of old town and
Where the new part of the resort is it’s I would call it new town and that’s where all the action is got a Tiger Woods golf course going in you’ve got ⁓ brand-new airports you’ve got ⁓ Some of the hottest commercial land in the entire country in an area called Silicon Slopes So as far as like Utah’s growth, I mean, it’s just it’s crazy. ⁓ I hate it as a local I love it for business. So really though the main reason why I think ⁓
Kristen Knapp (15:53)
ThankTrapper Roderick (15:59)
You know, even if I hated my job, I’d probably stay relatively involved because ⁓ if all these people are going to be coming here, I might as well have some sort of influence on how it’s going to look and be built, just like my ancestors did before me.Kristen Knapp (16:11)
Yeah, absolutely. And what kind of people are you working with right now? Are you typically working with investors? Are you working with people living in the home?Trapper Roderick (16:20)
Yeah, so about 25 % of our jobs are investor driven. So those are homes that we’re going to be selling, whether it’s funded by us or investor or a combination. The other 75 % is homes for people. believe it or not, they’re all second homes. We don’t have any primary residences that we’re building. Doesn’t mean that has always been the case, but more often than not, in the Wasatch back or this.Heber City and Park City areas. It’s almost all second homes. And yeah, I’m sure they’re looking at it as an ROI. How can this be a good investment for us? But yeah, they plan to use it, rent it, and just use it a second home. It’s pretty crazy.
Kristen Knapp (16:57)
Yeah, that’s awesome. And you guys invest yourself and sell some spec homes as well.Trapper Roderick (17:02)
Yeah, I mean often times we have to you know sometimes there’s a deal that comes up that we just can’t refuse you know and so you have to you have to move on it Other times you know your investors They don’t want to do it unless you’re putting a little skin in the game and we’re obviously always putting skin in the game or at we’re at a ton of risk building any home or getting construction loans, but Yeah, I mean all depends on the structure every deals a little different different YeahKristen Knapp (17:26)
Yeah, absolutely. Is there… ⁓Trapper Roderick (17:29)
I was just gonna say, yeah, we got a cool one coming up. It’ll probably be listed early February, maybe late February. It’s a cool Scandinavian style home, tons of wood and stone. It’s gonna be really pretty.Kristen Knapp (17:41)
Yeah, do you see one style dominating? know for a while, modern was really popular. That’s okay.Trapper Roderick (17:47)
Yeah,I mean in the the Park City market, mean the more broad term, yeah, modern, mountain modern, Scandinavian modern, they’re all similar in their own ways, but it’s just a matter of what fits the neighborhood because so many neighborhoods have really aggressive ARC guidelines and so you you just make it fit. So every project we, whether we are working with the architect or working with the client to come up with that initial design, we just got to do what’s going to be best for that.
particular lot because every lot is special in its own way.
Kristen Knapp (18:19)
And I mean you see so many plans come through some that you sign on to some you don’t what’s like is there a really crazy thing you’ve seen in a home where you were surprised by it?Trapper Roderick (18:31)
A lot of things. ⁓ So almost every home that we’ve ever done in Los Angeles, the homes are elevated at one point, a big portion of the home is elevated extremely high off the ground ⁓ with giant piles of concrete or steel going into the ground and the pools are usually cantilevered off the edge. So those are always crazy. We’ve done bowling alleys in homes, done pools and basements of homes. ⁓The last house that we did in LA was ⁓ really, really special. It wasn’t like this big, wow, sexy home or anything like that. I mean, it was, but it just was more about the details. The sliders were 19 and a half feet tall. They were flown in from Switzerland. And ⁓ I think the overall span was over 100 feet of glass. So, I mean, that was pretty special.
I think every home needs one wow factor. even if it is a $4 million home versus a $40 million home, each home needs its own wow factor.
Kristen Knapp (19:22)
Yeah.Totally. Yeah, well, I mean, it’s very impressive you guys have carved out this space for yourself in multiple markets. And it seems like design is really where you guys thrive. And also business.
Trapper Roderick (19:40)
Yeah, meanit’s a big part of it. I often times I think it scares architects away from us, which is frustrating because we’re not here to battle them at all. We just want to make sure that their vision really comes to life because all too often an architect and a builder, they start working together and you know, it’s so sad when the emotion and the…
that the architect was putting into it and that he felt he was going to be able to control, the builder just kind of butchers it. There’s some that just knock it out of the park, but we’re the ones that are on site every day, we’re the ones that are seeing it, and so if we notice something, it’s our duty, I think, to bring it up to the architect. Hey, what do you think about this? We’re here, what we’ve noticed, sometimes we’re awesome, other times we’re like, no way that ruins the function. Okay, sounds good. We just wanted to at least pass it on to you and collaborate together.
Kristen Knapp (20:28)
Absolutely. Well, this is really impressive. Tell everybody where to find you and where to find Roderick Builders.Trapper Roderick (20:33)
yeah, the easiest way is probably our Instagram, know, at Roderick Builders, ⁓ and same for YouTube, Roderick Builders, can’t miss us. I’m Trapper, and ⁓ the other principals are Travis and Zach, this company, so yeah, you’ll see them on those channels as well.Kristen Knapp (20:49)
I’m sure you guys have great visuals on your social media.Trapper Roderick (20:53)
Yeah,you we try to do better. I mean, we’ve been doing a little bit better as far as storytelling, because we can show pretty houses. Anybody can show a pretty house. But the guts and the stories that go along with it, we’re trying to get better at that.
Kristen Knapp (21:05)
Yeah, absolutely. Well, thank you so much for being here.Trapper Roderick (21:08)
absolutely, Kristen. Thank you.Kristen Knapp (21:10)
And thank you everybody for listening. I hope that you were inspired for your own business, learned a little bit, and got some good takeaways. So we’ll see you back next time. Bye.
