Sun Country Homes sells as well as it builds
If being “The Best of” North Fort Myers was determined by the number of awards a company has won, Sun Country Homes and Sun Country Realty would be at the top of the class.
The company for the past two years has taken home four awards for not only how it sells homes but how it builds them, with a special emphasis on cabinetry.
Marion Briggs, president of the company and lifelong Lee County resident, said taking someone else’s dream of a home and turning it into reality is what’s most rewarding.
“I’ve done custom homes my whole life. To do the same floor plan over and over might get boring. I like taking people’s ideas and thoughts and design a home that meets their needs, lifestyle and budget,” Briggs said. “It’s not always about what you want and need, it’s what you can afford.”
The story of the company began in the 1950s with Briggs’ father, who came down from Michigan to start building homes with a bunch of friends and formed the company Michigan Homes.
Briggs started Sun Country Homes in 1973, with his daughter starting up in 1979 and taking over the business in 1997.
Briggs’ and her father’s business plans differed. Briggs’ dad built models and didn’t do much advertising, while Briggs is vice-versa. Briggs said she wanted to build 100 homes a year, while her father warned her to slow down. That point, Briggs said, she understands now.
“We’re organizers. To lose control it wouldn’t be as fun. I enjoy sitting with my customers, helping them design their home and watching it happen. We never want to get so big that there’s a bunch of people between me and the project,” Briggs said. “When you lose touch, that’s the kiss of death.”
There have been boom times and bare times. But even during times with high interest rates and other economic challenges, nothing compared to the Great Recession when building stopped five years.
“For three years nobody was even talking about building homes. I never want to see that again,” Briggs said. “Even now, it will take years for us to fully recover.”
Once the writing was on the wall, Briggs started to recruit Realtors and diversified her company to include realty, similar to what she did early in her career. The synergy created by the team and the opportunity it has created has been a blessing for the company.
Sun Country also got into more remodeling, especially kitchen remodels, with cabinets being a heavy focus. With that, the company went to another level, and the awards started coming.
For Briggs, it’s about the team, not herself.
“The team is so supportive of the company and everyone works so well together. Real estate and building go well together so I’m looking forward to the years coming, when we can provide some affordable housing,” Briggs said.
Briggs credits much of her success to being a homeowner herself.
“I know the benefits of homeownership and I like to help others achieve that,” Briggs said. “There’s nothing like providing homes for people who have never owned one before.”
Sun Country Homes is at 1206 Pondella Circle.
Their hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. For more information, call 995-6001 or visit them at www.suncountryhomesandrealty.com or www.suncountryhomes.com.