Celebrating two decades of success

When Sandcastle Homes started out 20 years ago, the news was full of Forrest Gump and OJ Simpson, the Oklahoma City bombing and the end of the war in Bosnia. Houston was emerging from an economic recession. New home construction was on the upswing while interest rates were falling.
 
Mike Salomon and Mike Dishberger '79 founded Sandcastle Homes when they realized the potential of Houston’s untapped, Inner Loop new home market and foresaw the major comeback of inner-city living. When the opportunity to buy lots on Sandman Street presented itself, they immediately recognized the potential and decided to pursue it, even though only a handful of other builders were active in the Inner Loop Houston market at the time.
 
“After over a decade in the corporate world, I was eager to nourish my entrepreneurial spirit, my true calling.  I had dreamt of having a homebuilding business since graduating from college but it seemed like little more than a dream,”  recalls Mike Salomon. “Then an opportunity presented itself. Both Mike Dishberger and I understood firsthand the desirability of Inner Loop living, and we saw that there was an opportunity to address a need that was not being adequately filled. The timing was right and we jumped on it.”
 
Sandcastle Homes continued to grow by constantly pushing the boundaries of developing areas, like Brunner, Garden Oaks and Cottage Grove, to create new home markets where none had existed. Other builders followed suit, and today, at least 100 builders are active in Houston’s Inner Loop new home market.
 
Despite the current building surge, Houston has endured several real estate booms and busts, particularly during the Recession when only a handful of builders were active in the Inner Loop. Many builders have come and gone in 20 years, but Sandcastle Homes survived to emerge as a formidable presence in the Houston housing market. As Salomon notes, “We grew rapidly our first 9-10 years, but consciously made the decision to flatten our volume at 40-60 homes per year.  This seems like the perfect size company.”
 
Sandcastle Homes’ growth has been carefully managed, and both owners continue to be directly involved with the daily operations of the company. “We are large enough to make an impact but can still be personally involved, meet all of our customers in person, and walk every home on a regular basis to ensure the quality is not compromised,” says Salomon.
 
That personal commitment has enabled Sandcastle Homes to build and maintain strong relationships with their customers, employees, subcontractors and vendors that have withstood the tests of time and market cycles. They handle every step of the home building process — from land acquisition to final quality assurance inspections—with maximum efficiency and strict attention to detail.
 
Sandcastle Homes has a reputation as the best value in the Houston Inner Loop and surrounding new home markets, offering superior designs, exceptional construction and outstanding customer service at unbeatable prices. Sandcastle Homes builds homes that are quite distinctive in the region. Rather than the usual tall 3-story home on a narrow lot, they offer larger lots that include backyards. Their homes are 2 stories, with 2-car garages and more square footage. That means more land, more living space – and fewer stairs.
 
Mike Dishberger adds, “We think we are doing things better than most of our competitors. From better designs to an outstanding quality control program, our unrivaled commitment to customer service, and our extremely competitive prices, all of these factors come together to make us The Best Value in Town!”
 
Sandcastle Homes has been building luxury homes at affordable prices in Houston’s Inner Loop neighborhoods since 1995.