We liked everybody who worked on the project, but two individuals really stood out, Gina Davids and Benny Stanley. They were both outstanding individuals and did great work.
Member Profile
Harden Tuten Custom Homes (formerly Harden Homes) was founded by Joe Harden in 1988. In 2003, Joe Harden turned over control of the company to Low Country native and respected builder/developer, Mike Tuten. The company has been known since its inception for its commitment to the highest standards of customer service, quality construction, and on-budget on-time performance. Read more
In 2009 the Hilton Head Area Home Builders Association recognized Harden Tuten with eight Lighthouse Awards acknowledging Excellence in residential construction. Two of the eight awards were for "Best Overall" in the two successive price catagories for homes between 1 and 2 million dollars. In the ten year history of the Lighthouse Awards, Harden Tuten Custom Homes has received forty-six First Place Lighthouse Awards.
Guildmaster Award Winner
2007 Guildmaster
2008 Guildmaster
2009 Guildmaster
2010 Guildmaster
2011 Guildmaster
Affiliations GuildQuality
Guildmaster Q&A
Company History
The company was founded in 1987 by Joe Harden, a commercial builder in the Hilton Head area. In 2002 Joe Harden approached Mike Tuten who was vice-president of the Greenwood group, land developers, and asked Mike if he would buy the company to protect the committed employees of the company and it's reputation for quality residential construction.
Scope of Work
Harden Tuten Custom Homes is respected as a builder of high quality custom homes as well as a builder of quality semi-custom homes based on a library of model plans.
Typical Workload
Harden Tuten builds ten to twenty homes a year. The list volume depends on the size and complexity of the homes under construction.
Team Makeup
Mike Tuten is a hands-on builder who leads a team of highly experienced employees. Each home is assigned to a project manager who is responsible for costing the job, building out the job and getting materials and subs to the site. A job superintendent is on site every day making certain the home is built to Harden Tuten's high standards of quality. A client relations coordinator assist the homeowner with selections and manages the client relationship during construction and warranty period.
Personal
Mike Tuten is a native of the South Carolina Lowcountry. Mike, his wife Kathy and their two sons live in Ridgeland, SC. Mike is a board member and officer in the Hilton Head area Home builders Association.
More than 90% of your clients would recommend your firm to a friend. How do you earn such high praise from your customers?
We build relationships as we build homes. We stand behind our homes both during the standard warranty period and beyond. If a former client needs assistance, we are there even for second and third owners.
Client Profile
Typical clients are retired or retiring corporate executives, doctors and business owners.
Approach to Working With Clients
Treat them fairly and with respect. Give them the benefit of the doubt.
Ongoing Staff Training and Development
We have recently received our Earth Craft Certification.
What should clients bring to the table and contribute during the construction process? What can they do to help make the relationship a success?
We encourage our clients to engage us in a design/build collaboration with their architect. The more we are involved with the design process, offering value engineering and progressive pricing, the easier it is to eliminate surprises. This also provides us with a better understanding of the clients intentions.
How do you market your company?
Primarily by word of mouth, on the internet and through direct mail.
Customer Feedback Summary
Of 52 customers surveyed, 41 responded
Likely to Recommend
Construction Quality
Communication
Trust
Professional & Organized
Employees & Subcontractors
Problem Resolution
Value
Expertise
Budget
Recent Reviews & Published Comments
It has been a pleasure working with the professionals at Harden Tuten and we are absoluely thrilled with our new house.It has been an amazing experience for us to build a house as absent owners and to end up with our dream house with only very few minor problems along the way. The honesty and integrity of Mike Tuten and his team is outstanding.
Our letter of recommendation is forthcoming!
We were very pleased, 100%. We would definitely do it again with them.
They are the best!
They were the best builders to work with, and we've built three homes. Hands down, the best!
The experience was just as I expected.
They are by far above any other contractor I have dealt with.
This was the second house we have built and this experience was a dream!
We built our home while living in Virginia , so it was critical we had trust in our bulider. Harden Tuten met their deadlines and stayed in constant conact with us so there were no surprises. Great people, totally professional and dedicated to providing a quality product. George Pace
It was a good experience, they are good people, and we enjoyed building with them.
I am extremely pleased with our home in Berkely Hall, South Carolina and would gladly recommend Harden-Tuten Homes to anyone thinking about building a new home in South Carolina. This is the second home we have built with Harden Homes. Everyone associated with Harden Tuten from Mike Tuten on down was extremely professional, highly experienced and customer orientated. I would particularly like to mention some of the excellent staff at Harden Tuten. Early in working on our house Wayne Corely in marketing was very helpfull in directing us to Low Tide Designs to help redesign our home based upon our first home built by Harden. However, he didnt stop there but went out of his way to schedule key meetings with Low Tide Designs to finalize our house plans. Mike Tuten is a really hands on manager and Norma Henderson and Marcy Hirshman were a terrific team to work with to develop realistic cost estimates for our Berkeley Hall home. Additionally, Charlie Buck is an exceptional site manager than follows through on all project issues on your home. Building a home in Bluffton, South Carolina while living in Cincinnati, Ohio could have been a difficult and frustating project but Norma Henderson and Marcy Hirshman made it easy. Norma is great at client relations and gave us some really great options to finalize the details on the house. Additionally, she was always sensitive to maximizing our time in Bluffton working on the house details. As a Project Director at Procter & Gamble I recognize the planning aspects of projects and Marcy really excels as a project manager. She always kept us informed and followed up on the planning details. She really knows her craft. Both Norma and Marcy were really helpfull selecting contrctors from plumbing and tile work to appliances, elevators, and home theaters. All of the contractors were highly experienced, very reliable and provided solid value. Our landscaper, Bill Carson, was exceptional and my wife and I are so thrilled with the beautiful colors and smells of the flowers and trees. My son has a degree in horticulture and was very impressed with the job he did. In conclusion, Harden Tuten Homes really understands Total Quality and the importance of a true focus on the consumer when building a house. They deliver a terrific product and really follow through on everything. The true measure of the house Harden Tuten builds is whether you would build another house with them. Absolutely, I would and I did. The second experience we had in building our Berkely Hall residence was even better than our first experience in building our home in Indigo Run. Thanks to all at Harden Tuten for building us such a fantastic home and making the experience like working with friends.
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Guildmember since 2006
As a GuildQuality Guildmember, Harden Tuten relies on our customer surveying to help them deliver an exceptional customer experience.
We have surveyed customers on behalf of Harden Tuten in Bluffton, SC; Hilton Head Island, SC; Sheldon, SC; Brays Island, SC; Hilton Head, SC; Okatie, SC; and Coral Gables, FL.
In this report, Harden Tuten has published a summary of the customer feedback they've received since they joined GuildQuality in July 2006. In that time, 41 out of 52 customers (79%) responded to a GuildQuality satisfaction survey, with the most recent response in December 2010.
Recent Activity
Harden Tuten received feedback from a customer in Bluffton, SC.
12/20/10