– Introduction for today’s episode 00:48 – Leigh introduces Laura 01:25 – Laura and her husband decided to build their house in 2014 after the birth of their son 01:33 – It was Laura’s third time building a house and her husband’s first 01:40 – Laura and her husband didn’t have any idea what would happen after closing 01:55 – “Real estate is not a moment in time, it’s the craziest thing in our lives” 02:32 – Leigh was very supportive of Laura after what had happened to them after moving in 02:57 – They encountered a lot of nail pops in their new home that needed to be repaired 03:02 – They had thousands of nail pops, only after a few months 03:59 – Laura did not have this problem with her first 2 homes to this extent 04:20 – Laura has a newborn premature baby at home and people are constantly coming in for repairs 05:13 – Laura’s builder is a giant national builder and they had decent communication with the project manager until closing 05:42 – Laura had 3 project managers through the entire process of building 05:56 – Laura suggests being persistent and to keep notes while building your house 06:00 – Laura stayed positive and thought of her family to keep her going 06:11 – Leigh told Laura that it’s better that the nail pops are happening now rather than later 06:44 – Everything is not sitting well for Laura’s husband either 07:26 – Laura always wants her house to be ready for a re-sell and to do things the right way 08:39 – Laura enjoys building a house 08:56 – “Home is where you make memories, it’s where you build your life” 09:12 – Laura feels that it’s her responsibility to take care of the house 09:34 – Laura converted a part of her previous house as a movie room when she and her husband got married 10:02 – Laura’s previous house design was her interpretation of the things that make her happy 10:28 – Every time we travel, every part of the hotel that we stay in should make us feel happy and relaxed 10:56 – Laura wanted to replicate that feeling when she’s home, she wants to relax and rest 11:07 – Laura goes crazy on articles stating how to make something look expensive or high-end 11:28 – It’s about having a place of honor in your home 11:38 – “It doesn’t have to be that you’re trying to pull off something looking expensive” 12:26 – “I’m not trying to look expensive, I’m trying to look my style” 12:34 – Go with things that make you feel good 13:20 – Laura got a lot of great feedback from the desk manager at her previous home 13:48 – Buyers look for something different in their house 13:58 – Laura built the desk manager because she had an awkward hallway that didn’t make sense 14:55 – “When you think of those little details on how you live every day, that makes sense” 15:41 – There’s a lot of ideas online for designing and this is where Laura gets most of her ideas 16:11 – Laura started a Facebook page, Cookie Cutter to Custom 16:17 – People come together and give advice to each other for real projects that they can do 17:09 – It’s a free website and there’s no need to purchase anything 17:22 – Laura can give people recommendations that are low-budget and easy to do projects 17:30 – There are also people who share what they’ve accomplished 17:40 – Laura’s goal is for people to love where they live 18:28 – There are also people who will talk on Laura’s channel on how to protect your home, how to decorate and where you can purchase things 19:13 – Laura wants people to share and show off what they’ve done well 19:27 – Follow Laura on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Youtube 21:22 – Laura’s house is now doing great and she has moved forward 22:59 – Tweet Leigh Brown for your very own crazy story in real estate 3 Key Points Be patient, persistent and keep notes while in the process of building your house. Create a home where you want to build your memories with your family. There are people who have great ideas, but may be too shy to share—having a online group is a great space to do this. Credits Audio Production by Chris Mottram Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives Cover Design by Two Minds Design Original Music by Rimsky Music