Building with a Vision
Fifty years of making a difference for Knoxville homeowners makes Mike Stevens Homes stand out in the crowd
M
ike Stevens has built something incredibly special in the home building industry over the last 50 years. “I’ve been in the business as a carpenter, a superintendent, a builder, and a real estate developer,” Mike says.
“My career in all of that spans 53 years, and I could not be more proud of where we are today.” For the last 30 of those 50 years, Mike and his wife Marquita have poured themselves into Mike Stevens Homes, a leading custom design and build firm in East Tennessee. They have a unique approach to home building that has set them apart from other custom home builders in the industry. And Mike attributes a lot of that to the company’s core values that have never wavered, even during the most difficult of economic times. “If building custom homes was easy, everyone would do it,” Mike says, “but the thing is, we love what we do.”
Now, after 53 years, Mike is turning the leadership over to the next generation. With the help of a professional facilitator, new leadership is determined to take Mike’s vision into the future. Ken Bowman, with similar background to Mike, is President, overseeing all aspects of the building process. Christian Nave is VP and Chief Operating Officer, overseeing budget development, purchasing, and accounting. Taylor Cline is Chief Innovation Officer, overseeing plan design and interior design. Mike plans on staying on as CEO/Owner as long as the staff will have him.
The Mike Stevens Process: From Dream to Reality
“With the skills of our leadership team and our staff, the future looks bright, Mike says. “When a client first walks through the door at Mike Stevens Homes, they are greeted by a team that guides them through the process from start to finish. We love to get involved early in the process, and if we know their vision, we can help make sure their dream fits their land.”
The first question a new client typically asks is how much it will cost to build their dream home. That is where Christian steps in to set the stage for a positive path forward.
“I will start with our clients during the budgeting process, work with them on what they want budgeted, and walk them through the contract process,” Christian says. “There’s an attention to detail that I truly don’t think you can find anywhere else.”
“We take our fiduciary responsibility to our clients seriously, and it all starts with transparency,” Mike says. “We are in the business of building relationships, not just homes, so we take great care to understand our client’s wants and dreams and give them a realistic budget and design around it.”
With two skilled draftsmen, who Mike says are exceptional at listening to their clients’ visions, Mike Stevens Homes is able to turn wants and needs into tangible plans. Then an interior design team steps in to work alongside clients to create a concept for the space and help make selections.
“From there, our field team brings it to life,” Mike says, “working with our subcontractors and vendors to deliver the quality home our clients expect.”
Building Community
With this skilled team leading the charge, it’s easy to see why Mike Stevens Homes has taken home Cityview’s Best of the Best Gold the past five years in the Custom Home Builder category. But that’s not his only credential in the industry.
Mike has served as the president of the Home Builders’ Association of Greater Knoxville twice and once at the Home Builders’ Association of Tennessee. He’s served on the Board of Directors for Knoxville Habitat for Humanity, including two terms as President. He has also served a four-year term on the TN Housing Development Agency, the largest developer of affordable housing in the state. Mike is committed to his community and industry.
“When we had the really bad recession of 1979, I was already in the building business,” Mike recalls. “We worked our way out from the spec houses we had already started building, and then I decided I would do nonprofit work until the economy came back. I fell in love with providing affordable housing to those left out of home ownership.”
Mike started off working with Habitat for Humanity as their construction coordinator. However, even when he went back in business, his spirit of community never stopped and he instilled this spirit into each member of his team.
Today, Mike Stevens Homes not only supports Habitat for Humanity, but also Sertoma, Susannah’s House, and many other charitable organizations throughout East Tennessee and beyond.
“Mike helped us redo the main administration building, the childcare area, and then he built both of our housing facilities and helped us with our therapy center,” says Rebekah Fetzer, executive director of Susannah’s House, a nonprofit that helps house and rehabilitate families struggling with addiction and other disorders.
“We wouldn’t be able to do our program without these buildings. It’s given us a much larger capacity to be able to serve women and children in the community,” Rebekah says. “Mike just has a huge, huge heart and a lot of passion for what we do and for helping the community at large.”
Giving back to the community is a core value of each member of Mike Stevens Homes. “It will always be our guiding principle for our presence in the Knoxville community,” Taylor says.
A Legacy and a Cause
Part of having a successful transition of leadership is ensuring there is a tangible vision for the future and that all parties are on board. And Mike and his team ensured this was step one.
“Part of our transition plan involved determining our core values. One of the reasons why our leadership team works so well together is that we all share the same vision,” he says. “Financial responsibility, quality control at every level, innovative design, and philanthropy are our guiding principles as a company.”
These principles ring true for each and every member of the new leadership team and staff. It’s what they believe sets them apart from other companies in the home building industry.
“It is such an honor and privilege to be invited on the most personal journey of our client’s lives,” Taylor says. “Without our core values, we wouldn’t be where we are today and be able to provide excellent service to our clients and the Knoxville community. We have a clear vision for the future and I am excited to lead alongside Mike, Christian, and Ken.”
As Mike transitions to the new leadership team, one of his final goals at the helm is for Mike Stevens Homes to build a Habitat for Humanity House every year going forward. Mike has even set up an investment account that will fund this for years to come to ensure its success. He hopes it will inspire others in the industry to join in, heeding the call of philanthropy—and not just in East Tennessee, but across the country.
“I hope to set up a business model for nonprofit work that other builders can duplicate,” Mike says. Mike Stevens Homes may be changing leadership, but they sure aren’t changing their commitment to the industry. And Mike continues to remain as involved as possible, while allowing his new team to forge a path into the future of homebuilding.
“The going joke around here is ‘Mike will be building houses from his grave,’” Mike says with a laugh. “No time soon we hope.” There’s still more work to do for this industry leader—and many more dreams to help bring to fruition.
Gold Winner :
Custom Home Builder
865-454-2528
9515 Bluegrass Road
Knoxville, TN 37922
mikestevenshomes.com