One of western Canada’s leading retail modular home companies has set up shop in Penticton and will soon be moving into the Kelowna and Vernon markets, as well as other regions across the Okanagan Valley.
Jandel Homes Ltd. held its official grand opening at its Penticton location at 1704 Government Street, across the street from the new Penticton Regional Hospital tower under construction and directly beside Triple M Modular, the modular home manufacturing company that will be building all Jandel Homes units in the coming months and years.
Mark Huchulak, president of CEO of Jandel Homes Ltd., said the company has been one of western Canada’s leading sellers of modular homes since setting up shop in Edmonton back when his father Del and mother Janet started the company back in 1974.
Penticton Mayor Andrew Jakubeit was on hand for the official ribbon-cutting as were the sales team in Penticton and numerous senior managers from their Alberta headquarters in Edmonton.
Huchulak bought out his father and brother to take over ownership of Jandel Homes almost a decade ago.
Huchulak said he and his wife Joyce, who recently celebrated their 34th wedding anniversary, have been coming to the Penticton area on vacation their entire married lives and he and his company have contemplated moving into the Okanagan Valley market for many years.
“We actually spent our honeymoon 34 years ago here in Penticton,” he said. “We’ve wanted to expand our business out to this valley for as long as I can remember … many, many years. We see a great opportunity not only in Penticton, but across the entire valley.
“We’re just opening up and getting started here in Penticton, but we’re also looking to move into the Kelowna and Vernon markets as soon as we can. Once we get settled in those markets,we’ll be looking at other locations because we really believe there is unlimited potential in this area. People from all over Canada want to visit here and live here. Some want vacation homes, others want to retire here. We think there’s a real untapped market for the types of homes we’re selling."
Both of his daughters also work for the company in Alberta.
“My Dad started this company more than 40 years ago and my brother and uncle were involved for many years until I bought them out a few years ago … so we’re third generation owners and in it for the long haul,” he said.
Jandel Homes has also been operating out of Grand Prairie, Alberta since 2001.
All of the modular homes Jandel has been selling in the western Canadian market are produced out of the huge Triple M Modular factory in Lethbridge, Alberta, said Huchaluk.
“We’ve had a working relationship with Triple M for many, many years and we’ve sold a ton of their houses in Edmonton and across western Canada, so continuing that working relationship in Penticton was an obvious match,” he said. “This facility will be building all of our products across the entire Okanagan Valley for many years to come.”
It has taken time and a lot of marketing expertise over the years, but the majority of Canadians looking at purchasing a new home finally realize that modular homes are built every bit as well, if not better, than traditional on-site homes, said Huchulak.
“Modular is simply a construction method, not a kind of home,” he said. “Instead of being built on-site, everything is done inside a factory or plant. When you are building an expensive home on a job site, you are exposing your workers and equipment to the elements and that’s sometimes not a great thing when you’re dealing with Canadian weather.
“When you’re building modular homes in a state-of-the-art facility like Triple M, all the guys are going to work every day in T-shirts, using the best equipment available. There’s just less wear and tear on employees and equipment in a modular factory. Anyone who sees the homes we’re selling will see the level of detail and care that is put into building them.
“Modular homes have been built in places like Sweden and Denmark for decades … we’re just catching up here in Canada.”
There are six show homes on the Jandel Homes site in Penticton, with one more being built, said Huchaluk.
They range from smaller, single-wide models with just under 1,000 square feet of space (two bedrooms, two bathrooms) to the high-end Juniper model that has just under 1,800 square feet of space (three bedrooms, two bathrooms) and numerous upgrades.
Prices range from $100,000 for smaller units to $310,000 for the Juniper model home shown on-site.
“The Juniper model on-site has a ton of upgrades,” he said. “We know what the housing market is like in Penticton and we feel our prices are going to be attractive to a lot of people looking to purchase a new home.”
The Cedarville model, which is just over 1,600 square feet (three bedrooms, two bathrooms), retails for roughly $280,000.
All of the prices quoted by his sales team “include delivery and full set up of the home,” said Huchaluk.
While home sales are the main focus of Jandel Homes, they also do commercial and multi-unit residential buildings as well as land development projects, said Huchulak.
“A big part of my job will be on the land development side,” he said. “We’ll be looking to develop major projects for the homes we sell here in Penticton and all across the valley.
“I’ve already been to Osoyoos, Oliver, Grand Forks, Princeton, Summerland and Kelowna looking at possible sites (to develop subdivisions). We feel there’s a huge untapped market for the kind of homes we’re selling across this incredible valley.”
Potential buyers can have their homes custom-made with special features, said Huchaluk.
It takes roughly four months to have a home delivered on site from the time it’s ordered and sold, said Huchulak.
Jandel Homes has been a well-respected, successful company that has sold tens of thousands of homes in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Northwest Territories and Yukon over the past four decades and he expects the same level of success in the Penticton and Okanagan markets, said Huchulak.
Jandel Homes has been widely recognized as a dedicated and respected business working for the betterment of the modular housing industry and have won numerous awards for their work, he said.
Offering excellent customer care and attention to detail isn’t just a marketing scheme, but deeply ingrained within the culture of his employees, he said.
People can view the model homes in Penticton from Monday to Thursday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.
For more information, go online and visit www.jandelhomes.com.
