Originating in California, the earliest ranch style homes were built during the 1930s. They started to explode in popularity after World War II, developed by architect-builders like Joe Eichler and other craftsmen vital to developing huge housing tracts for World War II veterans. These homes are immediately recognizable by their low, single-story profiles that resemble American Craftsman bungalows. As with all 20th-century American architecture, ranch homes are eclectic in nature and individual houses may incorporate elements of its antecedents. This style has come back into fashion recently: its ability to integrate universal design and accessibility into a single floor plan has created a new generation of fans.
This list presents a number of excellent contractors who have a lot of experience with this style. A number of these contractors are award-winning craftsmen associated with various industry organizations, including the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Some have also been featured in magazines like The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Inc. and Professional Builder. Other than being recognized firms, these companies are also managed by highly experienced principals who work with talented teams who have the skills and the passion to craft beautiful homes.
If you are thinking about building a ranch home, we recommend checking each builder’s license with the local licensing board, speaking to past clients, and using our bidding system to get competitive quotes from at least 3 professionals. Getting multiple bids is the best way to ensure you get a fair price and that bids include the complete scope of work.
Celtic Custom Homes
3075 N Market Suite 1, Fayetteville, AR 72703
Celtic Custom Homes is known throughout Northwest Arkansas. Ever since its establishment in 1994, it has focused on crafting homes adorned with European features: Old World, French Country, and Tuscan styles are what the firm has been most recognized for. Celtic Custom Homes has crafted houses that have become Parade of Home award winners and have gathered other titles such as Citiscapes’ Best Builder from 2014 to 2016 and Celebrate Magazine’s Best of the Best from 2014 to 2016. Apart from these titles, the firm has also been featured in other magazines such as Builder/Architect, The Wall Street Journal, Building Arkansas Magazine, At Home in Arkansas, and Vertical Magazine.
Though it has built up a portfolio of wonderful houses, its most notable might be the Barrington Ranch House. A home that looks like it could have been crafted at the turn of the century, it was built with local Arkansas stone and antique bricks.
Erota Custom Homes
21930 Minnetonka Blvd., Excelsior, MN 55331
Founded on integrity, Erota Custom Homes was established in 1992 when it started crafting single-family homes in a variety of styles. Alongside the ranch style, the firm has also built homes in the Tudor, traditional, English Country, prairie, contemporary, modern, and traditional styles. Among these homes, Erota Custom Homes’s most notable work is The Ranch in Independence. Designed by architect Meriwether Felt, it has a dark palette that exudes subtle elegance. Aside from its attractive façade, this wide home—perfect for small family gatherings—has its very own stable. Because of homes like these, the firm has been featured in Midwest Home Magazine.
Currently, Erota Custom Homes is managed by owner and president Tom Hendrickson. A professional whose love of construction started in the 1980’s—when he worked for a large commercial construction company—Hendrickson has been involved with the firm since 1995. The firm also maintains associations with industry organizations like the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), Housing First Minnesota, and Builders Association of Minnesota.
Excel Builders
1100 Coastal Hwy. #5, Fenwick Island, DE 19944
Excel Builders has been supporting the Maryland and Delaware area for over two decades. Ever since then, it has worked on various projects and has gathered builders who have mastered the planning and execution of custom homes. Its impressive portfolio of homes features a variety of styles including ranch, colonial, and Craftsman. Its most notable is the Sunland Ranch. An elegant, mid-sized ranch home, it is a simple, one-story residence with mixed sidings. Alongside new home projects like this, Excel Builders also has experience doing smaller projects like remodels and deck installations. Excel Builders is also quite popular for its Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs) which are resistant against natural disasters and are energy efficient. Because of its reputation for crafting long-lasting projects, Excel Builders has been featured in Forbes, Professional Builder, and Inc.
MMDGCC
2780 La mirada Drive Suite A, Vista, CA 92081
Offering over 100 years of combined experience to its clients, MMDGCC has a reputation for impeccable honesty and an impressive ability to answer all client questions. Ever since Milan Djokich established the firm in 2006, this work ethic has led the firm to collaborate with nationally recognized architects and interior designers. The firm also has its own team of award-winning architects, interior designers, and client relationship managers. With this team, the firm has crafted homes in the ranch, modern, traditional, and Spanish styles. Its most notable is this stunning contemporary ranch home in Rancho Santa Fe. The firm’s portfolio also displays a collection of coastal homes and other remodeled luxury homes that exemplify the firm’s skillful project management.
Monarch Custom Homes
5097 N. Building Center Dr., Coeur d’ Alene, ID 83815
A 22-year old firm, Monarch Custom Homes specializes in a variety of custom home designs that range from Northwest rustic to more modern trends and styles. Aside from being beautiful and unique, these homes are also known for their energy-efficient components and high-quality materials that can weather the Northwest’s often intimidating weather patterns. As a firm that values the creation of high-quality projects, many of its captivating residential projects carry the rustic, contemporary, and Tudor styles. These homes have won a number of Parade of Home awards including the 2018 award for Best Master Suite and the 2016 award for Craftsmanship, exterior design and appeal, use of technology, and kitchen.
The firm is currently managed by Joel and Shawn Anderson. Joel has 25 years of industry experience which includes gaining knowledge on every aspect of construction from concrete to carpentry. Shawn, meanwhile, works as the firm’s financial manager and uses her eye for design to give a more well-rounded homebuilding experience. Shawn is also an active member of the North Idaho Building Contractors Association (NIBCA) where she served on the executive board as the first vice president.
Portside Builders
980 American Dr., Neenah, WI 54956
Established in 1977 by Fran Shefchik, Portside Builders has honed skills in custom designing, custom home building, remodeling, additions, home updates, and commercial construction. Because of its reputation as Northeast Wisconsin’s leading expert in residential custom home building and commercial construction, the firm has extended its reach from the northern tip of Wisconsin’s Door County, southward throughout the Fox Valley and Oshkosh area. Within these areas, Portside Builders has crafted homes in the ranch and modern styles; these homes exemplify its individualistic home designs, quality construction, and exceptional customer service.
Since the firm has been around for many years, it is associated with a number of industry organizations including the Wisconsin Builders Association, the Door County Home Builders Association, the NAHB, and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI).
Salcito Custom Homes
12 High Street, Wakefield, RI 02879
Established in 1978, Salcito Custom Homes has built up a diverse portfolio. Apart from building new custom homes in a wide array of sizes and designs, the firm is also capable of renovations, additions, commercial buildings, and tenant improvements. Over the years, the firm has delivered 300 projects valley-wide and 120 more within the past decade. Currently, Salcito Custom Homes can point potential clients to a collection of residences in various styles that include the modern, Mediterranean, contemporary, Spanish colonial, and rustic farmhouse styles. Its most notable is a ranch territorial style home designed by architecture firm Dale Gardon Design. With homes like these, the firm has been awarded Phoenix Business Journal’s Custom Home Builder of the Year Award and Arizona Foothills’ Best Custom Builder Award. Alongside these awards, the firm has been featured in various local and national magazines including Southwest Style, Phoenix Home & Garden, Interiors Magazine, Phoenix Business Journal, Arizona Foothills Magazine, and North Scottsdale Pulse.
Sebastian Construction Group
Ste. 715, 3100 Monticello Ave., Dallas, TX 75602
Established in 1948, Sebastian Construction Group is one of the area’s leading names in crafting premier residential estates in Texas. Over the years, the firm has built up an impressive portfolio of luxurious homes that carry various styles. These include the ranch, classical, modern, mid-century, contemporary, and Greek-revival styles among many others. Our editorial team was smitten with The Brazos Ranch. Surrounded by large fields and breathtaking views, this ranch designed by architect Ford Powell & Carson has an open floor plan with large windows that provide panoramic views. Sebastian Construction Group has countless homes that are as grand and as unique as this home. Thanks to its diverse portfolio, the firm has been featured in various magazines including Architectural Digest Magazine, Modern Luxury, Dallas Modern, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Architectural Record Magazine. It has also been included in books like Western Interiors and Design and Provincial Interiors. Alongside such features, Sebastian Construction Group has also been honored with The Texas Society of Architects’ 2019 Artisan Award and AIA’s 2019 Dallas Contractor Award.
The firm started out under the guidance of founder George Sebastian. A self-trained architect, Sebastian started the firm after World War II with the goal of building “post-war” houses to support Dallas’s expanding population. Currently, the firm is managed by John Sebastian, George’s son. With John’s expertise guiding the team, the firm started focusing more on construction and integrated commercial contracting systems to improve quality control, scheduling, and costs.
Stone Creek Building
502 7th St., Oregon City, OR 97045
Stone Creek Building was established in 2005. Despite this, the firm possesses a team that has over a century of construction related experience. That impressive experience has become one of the pillars of its reputation as one of Portland’s trusted new custom and luxury home builders. Stone Creek Building is also known to be a certified green builder with an Earth Advantage certification which ensures that a client’s home is at least 20% more energy efficient than the state building codes require. Alongside this certification, the firm is also associated with the NAHB and the HBA of Metro Portland. With this reputation and the associations it carries, the firm thrives on a steady line of referrals: it has worked with 685 clients over the years. Some of these clients have witnessed the firm’s work on ranch, contemporary, farmhouse, and plantation-style homes. One of its impressive projects is this contemporary ranch with an open floor that extends its reach to the outside to allow for more natural light and a closer relationship to the outdoors.
Uccello Development
101 Hammer Mill Rd., Suite D, Rocky Hill, CT 06067
An award-winning firm established in 1998, Uccello Development is a boutique luxury home builder known for crafting high-quality custom homes and exceptional residential communities. With the goal of becoming one of the region’s premier construction and real estate firms, Uccello Development has been involved in developing approximately 150 residential building lots and has constructed and renovated approximately 200 homes. The firm’s most notable might be this impressive modern ranch in Wethersfield. Aside from being surrounded by open space, the home has an open floor plan that includes 9-foot tall ceilings and oversized windows.
Uccello is also known for having built or renovated over 200,000 square feet of commercial space and it continues to own and manage roughly 100,000 square feet of office, retail, and industrial space. Thanks to the firm’s hard work and dedication to quality, it was awarded the 2017 HOBI award for the Best Single Family and the Best Residential Remodel. Currently, this award-winning firm is managed by company president Nicholas J. Uccello who has a keen sense for details and design. Aside from this capability, Nicholas is also a member of the Home Builders Association of Connecticut and the Rocky Hill Chamber of Commerce.
Wachter and Company
1410 Main Street, Daphne, AL 36526
Wachter and Company is recognized as one of the most respected builders on the Gulf Coast. Established in 2001, this firm is known for its quality work, its painstaking attention to details, and the robust customer satisfaction it cultivates. Wachter and Co. has gained and honed experience in real estate development and construction, producing a portfolio of custom homes in the ranch, colonial, and cottage styles. All these properties are backed by the firm’s special Homeowner Protection Program which covers the client with a limited warranty from the firm as well as the appliance manufacturer’s one-year limited warranty.
Currently, Wachter and Company is managed by Chason Wachter, a licensed builder and realtor with over 20 years of experience. He is also a Lifetime Member of the “Best of Baldwin” which is ranked on sales production by the Baldwin County Board Realtors.
Watermark
7320 Rabbit Creek Rd., Anchorage, AK 99516
A modern design-build company, Watermark is famous for its great cost management. The firm focuses on quality, superior organization, and attention to detail. Aside from being able to manage its projects, Watermark is also known for having an integrated project management system that pays special attention to the production of high-quality homes. Over the years, the firm’s work ethic has helped the firm craft homes in various styles including Ranch, contemporary, modern, rustic, Craftsman, and traditional. The combination of this work ethic with company principal Josh Gifford’s 18 years of experience renders Watermark fully capable of crafting unique homes that cater to each client’s tastes.
Wieland Builders
5982 Boymel Dr., Fairfield, OH 45014
A third-generation builder in the Cincinnati area, Wieland Builders has been crafting quality homes for over 65 years. Focused on the cornerstones of quality craftsmanship and unparalleled customer service, Wieland Builders is committed to making every detail of their clients’ homes exceptional. The firm works all over Southwest Ohio, including around Cincinnati, Lebanon, Maineville, Mason, Liberty Township, and Montgomery. Wieland Builders has crafted homes in various styles including ranch, cottage, and Craftsman. We fell in love with the Cheyenne. Wieland Builders’ 2014 Homearama Showcase home, Cheyenne is a large ranch featuring an open level with a master suite, complete with his and hers closets that add to the home’s subtle elegance.
Wieland Builders is owned by brothers Jeff and Mike Wieland. They grew up in the building industry, learning from their father and grandfather. Today, they carry on the 65 year legacy of bringing dream homes to life. Jeff leads the business operations and is closely tied with the Ohio and Greater Cincinnati Homebuilders Association, currently serving as 2020 President of the OHBA. Mike leads the field team in quality construction.
About Our Rankings
This list takes a range of ranking criteria into consideration, including but not limited to: work history, customer satisfaction, awards and recognition, geographic area of work, cost, building permits, and clientele. We spent over 40 hours researching local contractors before calculating the final ranking for this post. If there is additional information about your business that could affect these rankings, please fill out this form and we will take it into consideration.
Get Bids For Your Build
If you are thinking about building a ranch home, we recommend checking each builder’s license with the local licensing board, speaking to past clients, and using our bidding system to get competitive quotes from at least 3 contractors. Getting multiple bids is the best way to ensure you get a fair price and that bids include the complete scope of work.
