Keystone Custom Homes

The Right Choice for All the Right Reasons

Jeff Rutt used to be a dairy farmer. Rutt and his wife owned and operated a 200 acre, 130 cow farm in Lancaster County, PA. After ten years of hard work and 100 hour weeks in dairy farming, Jeff decided to change careers. "I looked for something with lower risk and fewer hours" Rutt says with a straight face. "So I got into home building." Although he is now more than ten years removed from the dairy farm, its legacy lives on in the strategies and corporate culture of Rutt's Keystone Custom Homes. The head of this young firm takes a frugal approach to everything from scrap lumber to office space. In farming, you need three things: efficiency, perseverance and a positive attitude. Those are the same things you need to succeed in home building.

After spending several years as a Realtor working with builders to buy and develop land, Rutt started Keystone in 1992. In the first six months they sold 12 homes and have continued to grow ever since. Keystone has grown rapidly since it's inception despite a conservative debt-averse strategy. In 1993, they almost tripled their volume to 33 homes. In 1996 they had more than doubled again to 78 homes and expanded into neighboring York and Chester counties. They ended 1999 with 153 closings. Rutt envisions growth of about 10-15% per year.

"It comes down to efficiency," says Rutt. "We have a philosophy of cost savings that our employees and trade contractors see every day." Keystone relies on strong personnel, a reliable contractor base, and a proprietary scheduling system. "Everyone who works with our team knows how we do things. A lot of the trades have been with us since the beginning and we have loyalties going both ways."