Home Builders Association of Northwest Indiana prepares for Parade of Homes with V.I.P. Preview Night

On Thursday, September 17, the Home Builders Association of Northwest Indiana kicked off its V.I.P. Preview Night to mark the beginning of this year’s Parade of Homes event. This experience allows people to check out seven homes that are built by unique local builders.

This year, Parade of Homes features houses built by Bruce Built Construction, Davis Homes, Crusader Homes, Summit Homebuilders, Hendren Custom Homes, Harvey Custom Homes, and Steiner Homes.

Mike Tezak, developer of Stonebridge and builder for Generation Homes, views the Home Builders Association of Northwest Indiana Parade of Homes event as a perfect way to execute on bringing realtors, builders, and the community together.

“In our area, we haven’t had a single site parade in over 15 years, since 2011,” Tezak said. “It’s a great opportunity to do seven homes in a cluster, and utilize our four vacant lots as parking to host a nice event and showcase the builders.”

According to Jason Utesch, developer with Stonebridge, this development has been in the works for more than eight years.

“This is a crowning achievement of all the work we’ve done,” Utesch said. “We’re ready for everyone to experience this part of Porter County as we sell these homes.”

With more than a week to go on the Parade of Homes celebration, Tezak noted that V.I.P. members who came to Preview Night will get an early viewing of what these custom homes have to offer.

“There are some innovative elements, new trends, and even some surprises by the builders,” Tezak said. “Some people might take with them the desire to build down the road, or look into these builders.”

Matt Palm, builder and owner of Crusader Homes, highlighted what makes their custom home in this neighborhood such an exciting property.

“We have a suite in the master bathroom with a zero-entry shower,” Palm said. “It’s got heated floors and a custom master closet, and we’re happy to showcase this property.”

Bruce Young, president of Bruce Built Construction, has been doing this event for several years. He’s appreciative of the opportunity to showcase the newest property that his company built in the Stonebridge Subdivision.

“It’s not too often you get to be a part of something like this, and Valparaiso – or Porter County as a whole – needed this,” Young said. “It’s a beautiful subdivision with great builders, who are putting their neck out on the line to create a home of their caliber. It’s special because we’re between Valparaiso and Chesterton, making it the best of both worlds. This lot in particular that I’m building on is 1.69 acres, which is a lot of land.”

While the builders and realtors are at the forefront during the Parade of Homes, the sponsors are equally important to ensuring everything runs smoothly.

“We’re so appreciative of the Home Builders Association of Northwest Indiana for this opportunity. Our Preview Night is specifically for our builders, sponsors, and personal invites. With the help of our sponsors, we’re able to showcase these builders and their talents,” Tezak said.

Schillings was the leading event sponsor for the event, with Stonebridge serving as the developer sponsor and Pharr Nissan of Chesterton as the exclusive vehicle sponsor.

“We have supplied projects out here for a while, and opened up a Valparaiso location just over two years ago. We’re able to supply thousands of houses across Northwest Indiana every year, and we’ve got really good ties with the Porter County and La Porte County Builders Association,” said Carl Schroeder, store manager of Schillings in Valparaiso.

Parade of Homes will be open to the community from September 18-27, from 12-8 p.m. on Monday through Thursday, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday through Sunday. Food trucks, live entertainment, and a beer garden will be available depending on the day of visitation. Learn more about the Parade of Homes schedule at paradeofhomesnwi.com.

For more information on the Home Builders Association of Northwest Indiana, or to buy tickets, you can visit paradeofhomesnwi.com.