Business Vancouver Island – Nanoose Bay
Homes by Kimberly Ltd.
By Goody Niosi

Homes by Kimberly Ltd. is in the habit of exceeding client expectations. Co-owner Laurel Lambert say that she and her partner and husband David Lambert aim to have every customer tell them, when they hand over the keys to a completed home, ‘”This is better than I ever thought it could be.”

So far, after almost 20 years in business, they’re scoring 100 per cent. And that, she
says, is more rewarding than all the peer recognition they have received over the years. However, she adds that the peer acknowledgement is also a wonderful and desirable bonus.

This year Homes by Kimberly is a finalist in the Canadian Home Builders Association CARE Awards in three categories: Best Home under 2,500 square feet, best Home over 2,500 square feet and Best Kitchen. The Silver Care Awards they have already picked up in those categories join their collection of a dozen CARE’s they have won over the years as well as a Silver Georgie award.

What makes these three winning homes so special are the same things that makes every Home by Kimberly project unique, Lambert says, they’re styled to the individual needs of our clients - from in-house architectural design to interior design to final completion, and we pay attention to all the details.

Because Homes by Kimberly has its own millworking shop, no size or style of cabinetry, millwork or finishing is out of reach – tall and narrow – wide – odd sizes – all styles -- it’s all possible. And because Homes by Kimberly builds only custom homes and specializes in “dream homes” they work very, very closely with their clients.

Our attention to detail ensures the final product reflects our customer’s dreams. We’re with our clients every step of the way. At no stage of the process from inception to the end are they left wondering what to do.”

The process of building the home often starts even before the client has purchased
land. In fact, Homes by Kimberly works with clients from all over the world and often
helps them find the ideal site for their home. If a client comes to the company with a piece of land, the first thing the Lamberts do is walk the land and talk to them about what they want. “We put all our focus on the individual,” Lambert says. “We find out what their dreams are and we turn those dreams into a home which functions for their lifestyle and reflects their individual style.”

The design process takes between three and six months. After that, the company gets the required permits and then, before construction begins, the home is built on paper. “We turn the design into words,” Lambert says. “We have many discussions and we start creating a set of specifications that are quite lengthy and detailed. Anything can be changed but it is important to start with our customers having a very good idea of where they’re going, financially as well as for design components.”

She adds that somewhere in the building process almost every client comes up against what she calls their “hard spot.” Perhaps they have trouble picking out the flooring, or the paint colour or the plumbing fixtures. No matter, she says – the company is with them every step of the way until they hand them the key to their new home. “Our real goal is for you to say to me that this is so much better than you ever thought it would be,” Lambert says. “We hear that with every house.”

Homes by Kimberly is also a Built Green™ certified builder. The transition to the new
building standard was not a hardship, Lambert says. “For years we’ve been ’Healthy
Home’ builders and our focus has been on people-friendly, healthy homes with cost-efficient energy requirements. It's about ventilation and keeping emissions within a home as low as possible and being practical about it.”

She adds that Homes by Kimberly has always been dedicated to sustainable building and buying locally. She also points out that the new building code standards have raised the bar for professional home building and that’s a move the company applauds. Homes by Kimberly has always exceeded standards and plans to continue to do so.

The company's latest project, a modern seismically engineered home, is another very special and unique project that Lambert expects to enter into next year’s awards. “We’re very excited about the future,” she says. “We have some excellent junior associates working with us and we expect to keep building custom homes that exceed our clients’ expectations for many years to come.”

Homes by Kimberly is at 3500 Bluebill Place in Nanoose Bay.