NBT Bank will be offering its Home in the City program in Glens Falls and is partnering with the Affordable Housing Partnership of the Capital Region (AHP) to assist first-time homebuyers. "Through our partnership with AHP, NBT's Home in...

Wood Brothers Quality Construction in Glens Falls started three years ago. This is one of the company’s new homes, of which it builds two or three per year.

Courtesy Wood Brothers Quality Construction

By Maureen Werther

Some people excel in one area but may fall short in others. For Dan Wood, owner of Wood Brothers Quality Construction in Glens Falls, a combined excellence in his craft and knowing how to run a business has brought him early success and a steadily growing reputation in the upstate New York and Vermont regions.

In his third year of business, Wood said he made the right decision to venture out on his own. After working in the construction field for 15 years, first as an estimator and then as a project manager, he felt it was times to “take the leap.”

“I reached a point where I was doing a lot of jobs on the side,” he said. The timing was right and he made the change from employee to business owner. He’s never looked back.

“There’s always that uncertainty and knowing that you have to raise a family,” said Wood, who is also the father of two young girls. “I’m doing exactly what I was meant to be doing. This is a passion for me.”

That passion is two-pronged. He loves building things, but he is equally passionate about marketing and selling them.

Wood began his building career designing and constructing birdhouses, then finding ways to sell them. He attributes much of his drive to growing up in a large family that didn’t have a lot. As one of seven children, his parents always pushed them to do their best.

By Jennifer Farnsworth

With spring finally here, local designers and home improvement experts say they will see a dramatic increase in calls from homeowners looking to make a change.

Trends for 2017 center around the desire for customization; everything from cabinets to tiles, to paint colors.

Craig Vollkommer of Details and Improvements in Glens Falls said as soon as the weather starts to warm up everyone seems to want to start renovating at the same time. His advice to customers is to start making calls to contractors as early as possible in order to get their projects on a work schedule.

“Plan ahead, and prioritize, know what you want. We seem to get the calls all at once, so if you are looking to have something done sooner, rather than later, you need to reach out to designers and contractors now,” said Vollkommer.

Kitchens and bathrooms seem to continue to be the most in-demand, according to Vollkommer. He said people want the newest in bathroom shower options, laminates, granites, custom tiles, and backsplashes. He said that requests for painting is the one thing that never changes.